Tensions continue to rise in Lebanon and there is growing fear of escalating conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. Over the past decade Lebanon’s economy has shrunk dramatically, the currency has collapsed, and prices have skyrocketed. We hear from Lebanon's business community on how they are coping in the current climate and look at what this means for the wider Middle East economy.

In the US, Leanna Byrne looks at the Boeing production workers strike, which has already racked up over half a billion dollars in losses. More than 30,000 employees are now in their second week of protesting, fighting against cuts to bonuses and pensions. A Kenyan court has ruled that Facebook's parent company Meta can be sued over the dismissal of content moderators. These workers say they were fired for trying to form a union and that they were blacklisted from new jobs when Meta changed contractors. Could this ruling impact how big tech companies manage outsourced workers?

Leanna is joined by ABC's senior business correspondent Peter Ryan and chief economist at The Conference Board, Dana Peterson.

Under the shadow of conflict is normal life possible in Lebanon? The country has had a major economic crisis for almost a decade, and there is growing fear of escalating conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. We hear from Lebanon's business community on the challenges of working under the shadow of increasing violence.

Roger Hearing looks at the ongoing legal dispute between Brazil and the social media platform X. The company, which has more than 22 million users in Brazil, has appointed a new lawyer who has told the BBC that the company has decided to comply with all the court orders. And in Japan, Nintendo and its partner The Pokémon Company have filed a legal case against the maker of the hit adventure game Palworld over alleged patent infringement.

Roger is joined by Emily Feng NPR’s international correspondent in Taipei and Alexander Kaufman, senior reporter at HuffPost.

A half point reduction in interest rates has seen the cost of borrowing in the US come down. We talk to experts, businesses and a realtor to find out if the first cut to Federal Reserve rates in four years is the right step for the world's biggest economy.

Hezbollah blames Israel after exploding pagers kill nine and injure thousands in Lebanon. The US Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates for the first time in four years. And we learn why Norway is racing ahead with electric vehicle sales.

Amid many economic challenges, the government in Islamabad wants to ensure it keeps its IMF support, brings down inflation and avoids a debt default.

Also, we examine how China can produce electric vehicles for under $20,000 and why Elon Musk's social media company X is moving its headquarters from California to Texas.

The property crisis in China hits stock market with the lowest record in the last 5 years. A grim reflection of how investors selling shares is hearting the economy. What will happen next?

Also, why the historic downturn of the Paraguay River can play crucial role for the Paraguayan economy? And what future can we see in the space travel business?

Business reacts to US Election Debate. The fiery debate took place last night in Pennsylvania. Vice President Kamala Harris made her stance on fracking clear.

Kamala Harris faces former President Donald Trump in a first TV presidential debate in the US. It is likely to be the only one before Novembers Election, and will give voters a chance to hear both candidates set out their policies.

China has taken a further step toward raising its unusually low retirement age benchmarks this week. Pension and health care systems are struggling to cope at a time when women are having fewer babies.

The European Union's competition commissioner rules Apple must pay 14 billion dollars in what it says are unpaid taxes. Presenter Ed Butler looks at the fallout from these decisions and is joined by Alison van Diggelen, who's in California, and Andy Xie, who's in Shanghai.

Former Italian Premier and former ECB chief Mario Draghi has authored a European Commission report calling for €800 billion euros of additional annual investment. The report says the EU needs a new industrial strategy for Europe to avoid a decline in living standards.

The iPhone 16 has just launched, but Apple's sales of this famous handset have not been stellar of late. Cheaper and some say equally smart rivals are making their claims on consumer attention these days. So how has Apple, one of the world's biggest firms, responded?

Also in the programme, presenter Ed Butler looks at China and concerns it could it be entering a dangerous deflationary spiral. China's industrial producer prices had fallen by nearly 2 per cent in the last 12 months. Ed is joined by Economist at the University of Maryland Peter Morici, and Sushma Ramachandran independent journalist and columnist with the Tribune newspaper in Delhi.

The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, visits Haiti. The country is under a state of emergency as gangs try to expand their control over the capital, and other regions. We get the latest.

As Elon Musk's X is banned in Brazil, rival BlueSky gains ground in the South American nation. We talk to its CEO, Jay Graber.

Four years after being left paralysed by the Covid-19 pandemic, has the cruise ship industry fully recovered? We find out.

And we get an insight on how airplane seats are made.

Roger Hearing discusses these and more business stories with two guests on opposite sides of the world: Emily Peck, markets correspondent for Axios, in New York, and James Mayger, Bloomberg's senior reporter, in Beijing.