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Donald Trump flies into Scotland later to visit two golf resorts which he owns in the country where his mother was born, BBC reported.

He will travel to Turnberry in South Ayrshire, a world-class venue he bought in 2014, and to Menie in Aberdeenshire to open a new 18-hole course. 

The White House says Trump will also meet Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to discuss trade while he is in the UK.

The trip is exceptional as US presidents rarely promote their personal interests so publicly while in office, according to BBC.

The price of gold has dropped by Rs 500 per tola in the domestic market on Friday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the yellow metal is being traded at Rs 194, 700 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 195, 200 per tola on Thursday.

Similarly, the silver is being traded at Rs 2, 340 per tola today.

The Morimla border checkpoint between Nepal and China will be opened for trade and business in Upper Dolpa from August 10. 

Pemma Wangchen Gurung, Vice Chair of Shey-Phoksundo Rural Municipality, informed that a decision has been made to open the border area from August 10-29 following discussions with officials from Dongba Province under China’s Shigatse County. 

The Morimla border has been opened once a year for the three municipalities in Upper Dolpa. This year, 2,200 people received border entry passes to conduct trade across the border, informed Damodar Gyawali, the Assistant Chief District Officer. 

According to the municipality's request, Armed Police and Nepal Police will be deployed up to the border during the period. 

Last year, the border was open for 15 days. Residents of Upper Dolpa have been purchasing daily consumables, clothing, and various machinery materials through the Morimla border. 

Due to the remote geography of Upper Dolpa, the transportation costs for Nepali goods are high, so locals have been buying Chinese goods here at cheaper prices.

How is this agrarian country faring in the midst of another paddy plantation season? The once fertile fields of the Madhes have the answer. 

Even in the midst of the monsoon, most of the paddy fields are lying barren in the province known as the grain basket of the country, thanks to a prolonged drought and a lack of irrigation facilities. 

This is not a new phenomenon, by the way. Drought conditions have been prevailing in Madhesh for (at least) about three years, leading to a serious scarcity of drinking water, leave alone water for irrigation. 

A couple of factors are behind this crisis situation. Erratic weather patterns resulting from climate change have played a huge part and so has the degradation of the Chure hills, thanks to an unchecked exploitation of the hills for construction materials like sand, boulders, and deforestation. Aware of the central role of the Chure as a source of water for the fertile fields of Madhesh as well as its burgeoning population, the government has a program dedicated to its conservation, but the efficacy of the program leaves much to be desired. 

The vital role of Madhes in feeding the whole country can be better understood by the fact that the province has 8,02,988 hectares of cultivated land, accounting for about 21.33 percent of total cultivated land (39,24,009 hectares) in the country. The province has 26.4 percent of the paddy fields and 26.56 percent (67,156 hectares) of the horticultural lands (2,52,818 hectares).  

How to revive the grain basket of the country? This is a crucial question before central, provincial and local governments. 

Farmers throughout the country, including in the Madhesh, have been relying on rains for cultivation since ancient times. Any government worth its name should be able to provide irrigation facilities to the farmers, in this day and age, if it is indeed serious about averting a famine. In an era of global warming and climate change, we would do well to opt more and more for less water-intensive crops. 

Also, the drought afflicting Nepal’s southern plains and beyond have laid bare a misplaced priority of the government. For decades, the government’s focus has been on transboundary water cooperation rather than on meeting domestic requirements of water for drinking, irrigation, navigation and green energy generation. 

The government should learn lessons from the parched fields and act accordingly. 

EU-China relations have reached an "inflection point", European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told her Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping at a one-day summit in Beijing, BBC reported.

"As our co-operation has deepened, so have imbalances," von der Leyen said, referring to the European Union's huge trade deficit with China. She also warned China's ties with Russia were now the "determining factor" in its relations with the EU. 

Xi urged EU leaders to "properly manage differences", saying "the current challenges facing Europe do not come from China".

Earlier in the year there were suggestions a Trump presidency could help the EU and China find common cause but instead ties have grown more fraught, according to BBC.

Hulk Hogan, one of America's best-known wrestling stars, has died at the age of 71.

The star, born Terry Gene Bollea and known for his flowing blond hair and iconic handlebar moustache, died at his home in Florida on Thursday.

Hogan began his professional wrestling career in 1977, but shot to fame after signing for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), as it was known before it became World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), in 1983.

He was one of the most prominent characters as the popularity of wrestling exploded, and later became well-known for his reality show, Hogan Knows Best, which aired on VH1 from 2005 to 2007.

France will officially recognise a Palestinian state in September, President Emmanuel Macron has said, which will make it the first G7 nation to do so, BBC reported.

In a post on X, Macron said the formal announcement would be made at a session of the UN General Assembly in New York.

"The urgent need today is for the war in Gaza to end and for the civilian population to be rescued. Peace is possible. We need an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and massive humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza," he wrote.

Palestinian officials welcomed Macron's decision, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the move "rewards terror" following Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack in Israel, according to BBC.

The influence of monsoon winds is getting weak across the country now. 

The Weather Forecasting Division has stated that the monsoon low pressure line is located near the average position. 

According to the division, the weather will generally be cloudy across the country this afternoon. 

Light to moderate rain with thunder and lightning is likely to take place in some places in the hilly regions of provinces, including Bagmati, Gandaki, and Lumbini, as well as in a few areas of the remaining provinces. 

There is also a chance of heavy rainfall in one or two places in the hilly regions of Bagmati and Gandaki Provinces. 

Similarly, the division has indicated generally cloudy weather in the hilly regions of the country, including Koshi Province, while the remaining areas will have weather with partial cloud cover tonight. 

There is a possibility of light to moderate rain with thunder and lightning in some areas of Koshi Province and in a few places of the other provinces. 

The weather bulletin published by the division mentions a possibility of winds in some locations of the Tarai region.