In China, rain-triggered floods in the southern part of the country since early this month have left 175 dead and 86 missing so far. The Ministry of Civil Affairs said four rounds of torrential rain battered the region since June 3 have caused floods and landslides in the Yangtze River's downstream provinces and several southwestern and southern provinces. According to a statement from the ministry, the disasters have affected 36.57 million people and left 1.64 million displaced in 510 counties in the provinces. The ministry said the floods have caused direct economic losses of 35 billion yuan. In an urgent notice, the authorities urged several provinces to prepare for possible disasters, as a fresh round of rainfalls has been forecasted for the region next week.