Main by morning: Dubai airport halted operations, Trump awaits help in defending the strait

Dubai has suspended operations at its main international airport after a drone strike caused a fire at a fuel tank near the terminal. US President Donald Trump said he is "demanding" that other countries contribute to the defense of the Strait of Hormuz. China's Hua Hong has developed 7nm chip manufacturing technology with Huawei, becoming the second company in the country after SMIC with such capabilities. These and other topics are in our review of key events on the morning of March 16.

Dubai has suspended operations at its main international airport after a drone strike caused a fire at a fuel tank near the terminal, Bloomberg writes. Flights were stopped for more than five hours, airplanes were forced to circle in the air, no casualties were reported.

Emirates, the world's largest international airline, has suspended flights until further notice and some planes are being diverted to other UAE airports or returned to their countries of origin. This is the third confirmed incident near Dubai airport in the past two weeks amid the war with Iran, the agency noted.

US President Donald Trump said he is demanding that other countries join in the defense of the Strait of Hormuz, which is virtually closed to oil tankers because of the war with Iran, Bloomberg reports. According to him, the U.S. is negotiating with about seven states that have ships and minesweepers capable of ensuring safe passage of ships.

Trump noted that about a fifth of the world's oil passes through the strait and that countries that receive energy from there - including China - should be involved in protecting it. He also said he might postpone a meeting with Xi Jinping if Beijing does not help unblock the route.

Oil prices were on the rise Sunday evening, with WTI rising above $100 a barrel and Brent trading around $104, CNBC reported.

U.S. memory maker Micron Technology has announced plans to build a second plant at the Tongluo site in Taiwan, which the company recently acquired from Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing, Reuters reports.

The facility will produce advanced DRAM chips, including high-speed HBM memory for artificial intelligence systems. Construction is scheduled to begin by the end of fiscal 2026.

China's Hua Hong Group has developed 7-nanometer technology for manufacturing chips for AI, becoming the second company in the country after SMIC capable of producing chips of this level, Reuters reports. The launch of production is being prepared at the Huali Microelectronics plant in Shanghai.

Test production is already underway, with plans to produce several thousand wafers per month by the end of the year. Huawei was involved in the development, which is seen as an important step in China's efforts to reduce its dependence on foreign semiconductor suppliers, the agency said.

China's JD.com has launched an international online platform Joybuy in Europe, starting operations in six countries at once, including the UK and Germany, CNBC writes. The company relies on its own warehouses and logistics, which allows it to offer fast delivery - in some cases on the day of the order.

JD.com expects to compete with Amazon, as well as AliExpress and Temu, by offering a direct retail model with its own inventory of goods and branded stores. In the U.K., orders of 29 pounds or more are delivered for free, and a JoyPlus subscription for £3.99 a month gives unlimited free shipping.

- Japan's broad Topix index was down 0.5 percent, while the Nikkei 225 was down 0.2 percent.

- Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rises by 1.3%. Mainland China's CSI 300 index loses 0.1%.

- In South Korea, the Kospi index is up 1.1 percent and the Kosdaq is down 1.6 percent.

- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 closed trading down 0.4%.

- S&P 500 futures were up 0.6 percent, Nasdaq Composite futures were up 0.7 percent and Dow Jones Industrial Average exchange-traded contracts were up 0.5 percent.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor