Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has suggested that his country, Africa's largest natural gas exporter, could join the BRICS economic group that includes Russia and China.

Tebboune's comment comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin -- whose country is hit with Western sanctions over its Ukraine invasion -- in June called on BRICS leaders to move towards "formation of a truly multipolar system of inter-government relations".

The first ship carrying Ukrainian grain set out from the port of Odesa on Monday under a deal brokered by the United Nations and Turkey that is expected to release large stores of Ukrainian crops to foreign markets and ease a growing food crisis.

The Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship Razoni left Odesa carrying over 26,000 tons of corn destined for Lebanon.

In bankrupt Lebanon, Khalil Mansour has to queue for hours every day just to buy bread for his family and some days he can't afford any.

Lebanon's State Prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat has ordered the seizure of a Syrian-flagged ship that docked at a northern port with a cargo of Ukrainian grain Kyiv's embassy in Beirut said was "illegal."

Oueidat instructed police to investigate the Laodicea, which docked in Tripoli earlier this week, a judicial official said.

Lebanon has appeared to reject claims by the Ukrainian Embassy in Beirut that a Syrian ship docked in a Lebanese port is carrying Ukrainian grain stolen by Russia, following an inspection by Lebanese customs officials.

A senior Lebanese customs official told The Associated Press that there was "nothing wrong" with the cargo of the Laodicea, which docked in the Lebanese port of Tripoli on Thursday, and that its papers were in order. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

Russian energy giant Gazprom Saturday suspended gas supplies to Latvia following tensions between Moscow and the West over the conflict in Ukraine and sweeping European and US sanctions against Russia. 

Twitter's lawsuit to force Elon Musk to complete his $44 billion buyout bid is set to go to trial on October 17, a U.S. judge has ordered, in a case with major stakes for both sides.

The main U.S. oil contract, WTI, jumped more than five percent in trading on Friday as supply concerns outweighed recession worries, and as traders began to look ahead to a meeting next week of OPEC+ nations on production.

China's leaders effectively acknowledged the struggling economy won't hit its official 5.5% growth target this year and said Thursday they will try to prop up sagging consumer demand but will stick to strict anti-COVID-19 tactics that disrupted manufacturing and trade.

The announcement after a Communist Party planning meeting reflected the high cost President Xi Jinping's government has been willing to incur to stop the virus in a politically sensitive year when Xi is widely expected to try to extend his term in power.

Inflation in the European countries using the euro currency shot up to another record in July, pushed by higher energy prices fueled by Russia's war in Ukraine, but the economy managed better-than-expected, if meager, growth in the second quarter.

Annual inflation in the eurozone's 19 countries rose to 8.9% in July, an increase from 8.6% in June, according to numbers published Friday by the European Union statistics agency.