KUWAIT CITY, Aug 06:  Agility KSCP, a supply chain services, infrastructure and innovation company, has announced the successful conclusion of the July Cohort of the 2025 edition of “Academy X” as part of its ongoing strategic partnership with CODED Academy.

Launched as a pilot under the “Kuwait Codes” initiative in 2023 and officially rolled out in 2024, “Academy X” returns for its second year in 2025. The July cohort is a free, six-day program targeting 227 high school and university-level female students, offering hands-on training in business development and AI-powered app design. It also includes modules on public speaking and communication to help participants lead confidently in both technical and business environments.

Agility continues to invest in youth development through partnerships with leading non-profits that expand access to technical and vocational education. Its collaboration with CODED Academy is a standout example. Since launching as a pilot in 2023, “Academy X” has grown steadily, equipping more than 500 young women with coding and entrepreneurship skills to date. The broader partnership with CODED, which began in 2022, has reached over 2,450 female students. Agility’s support underscores the private sector’s role in advancing digital literacy, innovation, and inclusive growth.

More broadly, Agility’s 2025 CSR program aims to reach over 5,000 individuals across Kuwait through initiatives focused on education, technology, and entrepreneurship, building on two decades of collaboration that have reached over 51,000 people across the country.

A person stands in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm on Aug 1, in Tokyo. (AP)

TOKYO, Aug 6, (AP): Asian shares were mostly higher in muted trading Wednesday, after discouraging signs about the US economy sent Wall Street shares declining, and Investors are sifting through a slew of corporate earnings reports to assess how businesses may have been affected by USP resident Donald Trump’s tariffs.

Among Japanese companies, automakers Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. will report fiscal first quarter results this week, as will electronics and entertainment company Sony Corp. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.6% to finish at 40,794.86. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.8% to 8,843.70. South Korea’s Kospi was little changed, gaining less than 0.1% to 3,198.14.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.2% to 24,958.75, while the Shanghai Composite gained 0.8% to 3,633.99. U.S. futures were up 0.5%. On Tuesday, the S&P 500 fell 0.5% to 6,299.19, coming off a whipsaw stretch where it went from its worst day since May to its best since May. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.1% to 44,111.74, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.7% to 20,916.55.

A weaker-than-expected report on activity for US businesses in services industries like transportation and retail added to worries that Trump’s tariffs may be hurting the economy. But conversely such indicators raise hopes the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates. That along with a stream of stronger-than-expected profit reports from US companies helped to keep losses in check.

The S&P 500 remains within 1.4% of its record. The pressure is on companies to report bigger profits after the US stock market surged to record after record from a low point in April. The big rally fueled criticism that the broad market had become too expensive. For stock prices to look like better bargains, companies could produce bigger profits, or interest rates could fall. The latter may happen in September, when the Fed has its next policy meeting.   

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, delivers his speech during the State of the Nation Address at the House of Representatives in Quezon City, Philippines, on July 28. (AP)

 MANILA, Aug 6, (Xinhua): Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Wednesday ordered the suspension of rice importation for 60 days beginning Sept 1 to protect Filipino farmers during this current harvest season.

Marcos issued the directive after consulting with cabinet members and upon the recommendation of Philippine Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel.

The country’s Department of Agriculture earlier recommended to Marcos the temporary suspension of rice importation and an increase in tariffs on imported rice to protect local farmers.