Japan's Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato voiced serious concern over China's latest export controls on rare earths, stressing the importance of coordinated action from Group of Seven nations. "Japan is deeply concerned about these measures," Kato told reporters in Washington on Wednesday, referring to China's latest trade measures. "I called for G-7 nations to unite and respond," Kato said. Kato spoke following a G-7 meeting held on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings. Also in Japan, ruling party leader Sanae Takaichi's chances of becoming prime minister strengthened after progress on policy talks with the Japan Innovation Party, with Monday emerging as a deadline for deciding whether the parties form a new coalition. The Liberal Democratic Party and the Osaka-based JIP, also known as Ishin, confirmed they are on the same page on major policy items. But one major sticking point remains in place: reforms on political funding rules. For more perspective, we speak to Shuntaro Takeuchi, Portfolio Manager at Matthews Asia.

Plus - Stocks slid, extending a weeklong stretch of volatility on Wall Street, as bad loans at two regional banks stirred concern about credit quality in the economy and further underscored the fragility of the $28 trillion bull market. Following an earlier advance driven by another solid outlook for artificial-intelligence demand, the S&P 500 turned lower as a pair of regional lenders disclosed problems with loans involving allegations of fraud, adding to concern that more cracks are emerging in borrowers' creditworthiness. We turn to Jeff Palma, Head of Multi Asset at Cohen & Steers.

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