The billionaire Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates thinks the richest governments should increase their support for African countries that have been overshadowed by development funding increasingly going toward the humanitarian response to the war in Ukraine as well as support for refugees around the world in recent years.

"There's less money going to Africa at a time when they need it," whether it's for debt relief, vaccinations or to reduce malnutrition, Gates told The Associated Press in an interview. As a portion of aid money, the funds going to Ukraine are "substantial," he said.

Starting next year, China will raise its retirement age for workers, which is now among the youngest in the world's major economies, in an effort to address its shrinking population and aging work force.

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the country's legislature, passed the new policy Friday after a sudden announcement earlier in the week that it was reviewing the measure, state broadcaster CCTV announced.

Wall Street inched toward modest gains before the open Friday as markets continue to erase last week's sweeping losses.

Futures for the S&P 500 climbed 0.2% before the bell Friday while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were 0.1% higher.

Russia's central bank raised its key interest rate by a full percentage point to 19% to combat high inflation as government spending on the military strains the economy's capacity to produce goods and services and drives up workers' wages.

The central bank said in a statement Friday that "growth in domestic demand is still significantly outstripping the capabilities to expand the supply of goods and services." It held out the prospect of more rate increases to return inflation from the current 9.1% to the bank's target of 4% in 2025.

Aircraft assembly workers walked off the job early Friday at Boeing factories near Seattle and elsewhere after union members voted overwhelmingly to go on strike and reject a tentative contract that would have increased wages by 25% over four years.

The strike started at 12:01 a.m. PDT, less than three hours after the local branch of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers announced 94.6% of voting workers rejected the proposed contract and 96% approved the work stoppage, easily surpassing a two-thirds requirement.

U.S. stocks are holding relatively steady Thursday following a couple reports on the economy that came in close to expectations.

The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged in early trading and remains on track for a fourth winning week in the last five. It's climbed back within 2% of its record set in July following a shaky summer.

The post-pandemic spike in U.S. inflation eased further last month as year-over-year price increases reached a three-year low, clearing the way for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next week.

Wednesday's report from the Labor Department showed that consumer prices rose 2.5% in August from a year earlier. It was the fifth straight annual drop and the smallest such increase since February 2021. From July to August, prices rose just 0.2%.

Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, began a visit to Iraq on Wednesday, aiming to deepen already close ties with the neighboring country on his first trip abroad since taking office.

The three-day trip comes amid turmoil in the Middle East sparked by the war in Gaza, which has drawn in Iran-backed armed groups around the region and complicated Iraq's relations with the United States.

Most U.S. stocks are ticking higher, offering a respite following weeks of sharp swings. The S&P 500 was up 0.4% in early trading Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 67 points, and the Nasdaq composite was up 0.8%. Oracle jumped 10% after delivering better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Stocks have been careening down and up since setting their latest all-time high in July amid worries about the slowing economy and whether coming cuts to interest rates will keep the U.S. out of a possible recession. Treasury yields were relatively steady in the bond market.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP's earlier story follows below.

Coming off the worst trading week in close to a year-and-a-half, markets on Wall Street are poised to rebound at the opening bell Monday.

Futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7% in premarket trading.