World briefs

CHINA A fire at a foot massage parlor in eastern China yesterday killed 18 people and injured two others, state media reported. Workers jumped out of windows to escape the blaze, which broke out at the Zuxintang parlor at around 4 p.m., and firefighters rushed to the scene. No cause of the fire was given.

SINGAPORE Asia’s expanding economies and growing middle class are a benefit to Singapore and may help offset the threat of a trade pullback from the U.S., according to Singapore’s Economic Development Board. Rising cross-border trade and deals “will provide that lift for countries in this part of the world,” Beh Swan Gin, chairman of the EDB, said in an interview.

PHILIPPINES The country’s president has warned that the military is ready to respond with airstrikes and new offensives if communist rebels launch attacks after both sides lifted separate cease-fires and he announced he was scrapping peace talks with the guerrillas.

INDIA It’s no surprise that satirical portraits of Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un are the centerpiece of the India Art Fair, the annual feast of visual arts where politics took center stage this year, including groundbreaking projects on migration and rapidly changing urban landscapes in South Asia. More on p12

KOSOVO A concrete wall erected in the northern Kosovo city of Mitrovica that has provoked tensions between Kosovo and neighboring Serbia has been pulled down. The move followed an agreement between the government and the country’s ethnic Serb minority, facilitated by the European Union and the United States embassy.

DUBAI agreed a USD3 billion loan with banks to fund the expansion of Dubai World Central airport and logistics hub as it prepares to host the World Expo in 2020, people familiar with the matter said. The emirate will pay interest of 200 basis points, or 2 percentage points, above the London Interbank Offered Rate on the seven-year facility, said the people, asking not to be identified because the talks are private. It will also pay a one-time fee of 85 basis on the loan value, they said. HSBC Holdings Plc is advising the government on the talks and an agreement is expected to be signed within weeks, the people said.

UAE The government approved a new visa system designed to attract top talents in fields such as medicine, science and research to the country.“The United Arab Emirates is the land of opportunities,” Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed Al Maktoum said on Twitter after the cabinet meeting. Attracting top talents will “add to our economy and future,” he added.