Axios

Concluding a busy week in central bank land, the Bank of Japan elected to leave interest rates unchanged overnight Thursday. But its communications were in sharp contrast to the Fed's from Wednesday.

Driving the news: The bank left its target policy rate at 1% as Bank of Japan governor Kazuo Ueda pledged that it will not fall behind the curve on its interest rate policy, one of several comments that signal more interest rate increases might be on the way.

• It adds up to a sign that a rate hike in the months ahead is more likely.

Alimentation Couche-Tard, the Canadian owner of Circle K, has agreed to buy listed Polish convenience store operator Zabka for around $8.7 billion.

Why it matters: No matter how much Couche-Tard and 7-Eleven owner Seven & i Holdings want to quit each other's narratives, they can't.

Delaware court fights over M&A are ordinary. Unless the parties are fighting over dozens of dolphins.

Driving the news: Creditors for The Dolphin Company, once one of the world's largest aquatic park operators, have asked a bankruptcy court judge for permission to sell its Mexican assets for $20 million to the company's current management.

• Included would be 87 bottlenose dolphins, plus eight manatees, and six sea lions.

U.S. and state officials believe that Iranian hackers were probably behind this week's cyberattack targeting municipal water systems in Minnesota, the New York Times reports.

The big picture: The coordinated campaign underscored a growing — and concerning — trend of cyberattacks targeting state and local agencies and services.

• Such an "act of aggression" from the Iranians would come at a tense point in the conflict with the U.S., the Times writes.

The U.S. economy grew at a 1.5% annualized rate in the second quarter, the government said on Thursday, capturing a three-month stretch shaped by the Middle East conflict and a surge in energy prices.

Why it matters: Consumer spending and business investment fueled by AI spending remained the economy's standout growth engines in the spring.

The U.S. military conducted "a heavy wave" of airstrikes in Iran on Wednesday evening, U.S. Central Command said in a statement.

Why it matters: These are the first U.S. strikes in Iran since President Trump paused the bombing campaign Friday to give negotiations another chance.

President Trump met Wednesday with Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, a U.S. official and another source with knowledge of the meeting told Axios.

• The meeting was added to the Saudi minister's itinerary after he met with Vice President Vance and told him that Saudi Arabia favors de-escalation with Iran — despite this week's joint U.S.-Saudi strike on pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, a source familiar with the matter said.

Why it matters: The source said the purpose of the meetings was to deliver a message from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) about the war with Iran and the situation in the region.

Pope Leo XIV plans to visit the U.S. "soon," the Chicago-born pontiff said in an interview with NBC News that aired Wednesday evening.

The big picture: The first U.S.-born pope told NBC's Tom Llamas during the interview that he loves "so many things" about America as he revealed he was just looking at his calendar for the next couple of years and confirmed people will see him in the U.S. "soon."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed skepticism during his meeting with President Trump about the chance of a deal with Iran and discussed increasing economic pressure on Iran "through kinetic and non-kinetic means," a senior Israeli official said in a briefing with reporters.

Why it matters: Tuesday's meeting was the first between Netanyahu and Trump since the start of the war on Feb. 28. It came as Trump is still trying to reach a deal with Iran but also considering a return to major combat operations.

FIFA, global soccer's governing body and World Cup organizer, is seeking to raise up to $4.2 billion for a new commercial subsidiary at a $20 billion valuation led by Joshua Kushner's Thrive Eternal.

Why it matters: This would be the first time FIFA has ever sought outside investment.