Gulf

Riyadh: The main Saudi Stock Exchange index closed lower on Monday, shedding 31.46 points to settle at 11,127.08 points, with total trading value reaching SAR 10.2 billion. During the session, the volume of traded shares hit 435 million. Shares of 86 companies registered gains, while 176 companies saw their share values decline. The parallel market index (Nomu) also closed lower, dropping 23.88 points to finish at 21,747.26 points. Trading value on Nomu reached SAR 30 million, with a trading volume exceeding 3 million shares.

Europe

Rome: Italy on Monday said it would extend by 15 days border checks with Spain put in place on August 1 after tens of thousands of migrants entered the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. The interior ministry said in a statement that the extension was "due to the continued relevance of the assessment factors that led to their introduction on August 1." Italy said it was "taking into account the initiatives already launched by Spain, together with the European Union, so that the situation in that area may move towards normalisation in the near future." More than 70,000 migrants entered the small Spanish enclave in North Africa in late July, swimming or crossing on foot from neighbouring Morocco in a chaotic influx that left scores dead and fuelled fresh tensions in the European Union over migration. Italy and Spain do not share a land border, but passengers arriving on flights from Spain now go through passport controls, which normally they would not have to because both countries are both members of the border-free Schengen zone. Ceuta is not part of Schengen. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday the rush of migrants was still under investigation, though he ruled out any responsibility on the part of Moroccan authorities. In a radio interview, the prime minister also denounced misinformation spread by the "ultra-right". Although the vast majority of migrants returned to Morocco within hours, thousands remain in Ceuta, which is only territory 18 square kilometres (seven square miles), many living rough on the streets.

Asia

Tokyo: Japan's defence ministry requested a record budget of 8.9 trillion yen ($55.6 billion) on Monday as Tokyo looks to artificial intelligence to speed up decision-making in the face of a tense security environment. The final budget reportedly could reach 10 trillion yen as Tokyo undergoes a sweeping upgrade of its defence in order to navigate growing tension with neighbours such as China, North Korea and Russia. The latest request focuses on countering "new ways of warfare", with an emphasis on the use of AI, drones and standoff missiles. Under the request, the ministry hopes to implement an AI-powered decision support system. It also wants to procure low-cost drones that can work in tandem with long-range missiles to neutralise enemy assets. The ministry said it plans to develop underwater-launched hypersonic missiles and establish a new unit to bolster defences against cognitive warfare, a growing threat aimed at shaping public opinion through disinformation campaigns and other operations. The budget request for the fiscal year starting from April 2027 highlights the latest step by Japan to boost its military to meet the volatile geopolitical reality, gradually shedding its traditional pacifist stance that limited the use of force purely for self-defence. China's rapid military expansion and North Korea's steady development of missiles and nuclear weapons have pressed Japan to shore up its defence. Russia's war in Ukraine has fuelled worries among Japanese policymakers that a similar conflict could erupt in East Asia, considering China's mounting pressure on Taiwan and its escalating territorial disputes with Japan. Request could increase The Nikkei newspaper said the defence ministry's request may jump to more than 10 trillion yen, citing an unnamed ruling party lawmaker. The current request did not specify the estimated costs of many products and services, including missiles, drones and digital systems. These figures will be finalised once the government finishes its revision of core national security documents by the end of the year, defence officials said. Those three documents set the outline of the country's future defence capabilities while assessing the country's security environment. Japan has been beefing up military spending and security cooperation in Asia, deploying missile launchers to outer islands, moving to acquire "counterstrike" capabilities and easing rules on weapons exports. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, seen as a China hawk, has placed national defence at the top of her conservative agenda. Japan's ties with China deteriorated sharply after she suggested in November that Japan could intervene militarily in any conflict over Taiwan, which Beijing insists is its territory. China has expressed alarm at what it sees as a return to "new militarism" by Japan. Under Takaichi, the government is expected to make an overall budget request of around 143 trillion yen, a sharp increase from 122.4 trillion yen requested for the ongoing fiscal year, the Nikkei newspaper reported.