More than 500 days have passed since Sudan’s civil war began. Perhaps 150,000 people have died in the fighting and more than 10m have fled their homes. Aid agencies have been unable to deliver the food needed to prevent mass starvation. Some experts predict that hunger and related diseases could kill more than 2m people by the end of the year.

Ceasefire talks in Switzerland last month achieved little. The Sudanese national army, one of the two main belligerents, refused to even attend. On August 15th it reluctantly allowed aid agencies to resume shipments via a crucial border post between Chad and Darfur, in the west of the country, despite the fact that the crossing is controlled by the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary group it is fighting for control of the state. But an extra aid route will not be enough to prevent what may become the world’s deadliest famine in 40 years.

Europe’s biggest bank has a new boss. Georges Elhedery takes over HSBC on Monday, replacing Noel Quinn, whose surprise exit was announced in April. And it is not just the top job changing hands. Last week HSBC said the head of its wealth and personal banking unit, chief operating officer and human-resources boss would all step down.

The shake up is sorely needed. HSBC’s share price has languished since Mr Quinn took over in 2019. Profits during this year’s second quarter were better than analysts predicted, but still flat year on year. HSBC ’s large footprint in Hong Kong leaves the bank uniquely vulnerable to shifting geopolitical winds. The bank has resisted attempts by its largest shareholder, Chinese insurer Ping An, to force it to spin-off its Asian operations. At the same time falling interest rates will crimp HSBC’s profit margins. Mr Elhedery’s first task will be to reassure investors he won’t be blown over.

Despite being 87 and not in the best of health, Pope Francis set off on Monday on the longest trip of his papacy. He will go to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore, flying some 30,000km. Plagued by back and knee problems and rarely seen out of a wheelchair, the pope will spend more than 40 hours aboard planes over 12 days.

What is the point? A central theme of Francis’s papacy has been care for the marginalised. That includes isolated communities of the faithful in places like Timor-Leste, where the 1.4m population is almost entirely Roman Catholic. And visiting Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority state, will give him the opportunity to develop another: inter-faith dialogue. Clearly, despite his age, Francis has not given up on long-distance travel. In December he even said a visit to his native Argentina was also on the cards.

The Turkish economy managed to grow at a respectable 4.5% last year despite the worst inflation crisis in over two decades. But data released on Monday showed the trend was beginning to taper off. GDP growth slowed to 2.5% in the three months to July, compared with the same period last year.

Growth has been weighted down by a dramatic monetary tightening cycle, in which interest rates have reached 50%, and by the government’s decision not to increase the minimum wage. But there may be better news in store on Tuesday, when consumer-prices data are published. Analysts expect that inflation may have cooled to under 53% in annual terms in August, down from almost 62% in July. That is still painfully high—but the fall will be welcome to consumers whose purchasing power has cratered over the past few years.

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