Lebanon's new prime minister Najib Miqati has pledged to gain control of one of the world's worst economic meltdowns, saying lifting subsidies was a critical priority for the small country's government formed after a year of political stalemate.

It is a momentous task facing the 24-minister Cabinet, which includes fresh faces who are prominent experts in their fields, but which still reflects Lebanon's fractious politics.

Two decades after its destruction in the Sept. 11 attacks, the work to rebuild the World Trade Center complex remains incomplete.

Two planned skyscrapers, a performing arts center and a church are still unfinished at the site, which plays host Saturday to the annual ceremony honoring nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks.

Lebanon's long-awaited ration card plan was launched Thursday by caretaker Economy Minister Raoul Nehme and caretaker Social Affairs Minister Ramzi Msharrafiyeh.

Top officials from the EU and U.S. later will this month try to attune their strategies on regulating big tech and defend democratic values on the internet, a statement said on Thursday.

An avalanche of changes launched by China's ruling Communist Party has jolted everyone from tech billionaires to school kids. Behind them: President Xi Jinping's vision of making a more powerful, prosperous country by reviving revolutionary ideals, with more economic equality and tighter party control over society and entrepreneurs.

Since taking power in 2012, Xi has called for the party to return to its "original mission" as China's economic, social and cultural leader and carry out the " rejuvenation of the great Chinese nation."

The European Central Bank may be getting ready to trim some of its pandemic support but is likely to reassure markets it is not yet setting a firm date to wind down its massive bond purchases as the delta variant casts a shadow over the coming winter.

The bank's 25-member governing council meets Thursday at the bank's skyscraper headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, as data show businesses strongly ramping up activity and retail foot traffic exceeding pre-pandemic levels. The 19 countries that use the euro bounced back from a double-dip recession in the second quarter with economic growth of 2.2% from the previous quarter.

Shares fell in Asia on Thursday after further losses on Wall Street following a Federal Reserve report showing U.S. economic activity slowed this summer.

The report pointed to resurgent coronavirus cases and mounting supply chain problems and labor shortages — woes affecting many economies. Benchmarks fell in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Sydney.

The supply chain troubles caused by Brexit and the pandemic have been so bad for Satyan Patel that the shelves at his convenience store in central London are seriously lacking water and soft drinks.

"Last week I ran out of Coca-Cola. I haven't had large bottles of Evian for three weeks," said Patel.

The Turkish lira took one of its biggest tumbles of the year on Wednesday over speculation that the central bank was about to cut rates in the face of soaring inflation.

Turkey's annual rate of inflation accelerated to 19.25 percent last month, above the central bank's policy rate of 19 percent.

Energy ministers from Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon on Wednesday agreed a plan to bring gas and electricity to crisis-hit Lebanon at a meeting in Amman.

Egypt's minister for oil and mines Tarek al-Molla said that his country would "be ready to transfer gas (to Lebanon) as soon as possible" via the transnational Arab Gas Pipeline.