Destructive price wars and US tariffs are sending a chill through the Chinese economy. Growth slowed across the board. The latest snapshot of the world’s second-largest economy indicated that growth lost steam after a show of strength earlier in the year allowed Beijing to take a wait-and-see approach to further stimulus.

In a sign of the breadth of the malaise, the report revealed slowing growth in factory production, retail sales and investments, while a contraction in real estate deepened and urban unemployment rose more than forecast. 

“July’s main economic indicators suggest that the country’s tariff-related swoon has begun,” said Homin Lee, a senior macro strategist at Lombard Odier in Singapore.

Top leaders have signaled they will stick with supportive measures already planned while promising to pump more aid when needed, a strategy analysts expect to be fine-tuned pending economic figures in the coming months. —Balázs Penz

What You Need to Know Today

Narendra Modi ratcheted up his criticism of US President Donald Trump’s trade policy. In his address to the nation, the Indian prime minister decried the rise of “economic selfishness” and said India needs to become self sufficient in energy, critical minerals, technology and weaponry. Modi also announced a cut in the sales tax, aimed at boosting domestic demand as steep US tariffs threaten the country’s exports. 

Modi delivers his speech at New Delhi’s Red Fort. Photographer: Prakash Singh/Bloomberg

Japan’s economy delivered a positive surprise, boosting the case for an interest-rate hike this year. An annualized 1% GDP growth in the second quarter was more than double the pace estimated by analysts. Authorities also revised the number for the previous three months to 0.6% growth, reversing from a preliminary contraction. While the BOJ is expected to hold steady when it next sets policy next month, some 42% of economists surveyed by Bloomberg anticipate a move in October

Indonesia’s president delivered a stern message on corruption and doubled down on the social programs he campaigned on last year. Since taking office in October, Prabowo Subianto has quickly rolled out a series of bold initiatives as he seeks to emulate China’s model of rapid, state-driven development. Read our Big Take here. 

Prabowo during a campaign rally. Photographer: YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP

AI is working for Masayoshi Son, who’s added $11 billion to his fortune this month. SoftBank’s bets on the industry sent its shares to record highs, boosting the founder’s wealth to $33.3 billion, the second biggest in Japan after Fast Retailing’s Tadashi Yanai. A rebound at SoftBank’s flagship Vision Fund and big payouts on sales of assets including some of its T-Mobile US stake are giving Son fresh firepower to double down on AI-related investments.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway bought shares of UnitedHealth in the second quarter. The disclosure of Berkshire’s UnitedHealth stake, worth $1.6 billion, pushed the insurer’s shares up as much as 9.6% in post-market trading Thursday. Filings also revealed that billionaire David Tepper scooped up shares in the beleaguered health insurer, while paring bets on Chinese stocks. And Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square reported that it had build an Amazon stake worth nearly $1.3 billion.

The Hong Kong dollar finally pulled away from the weak end of its fixed trading band against the US dollar after months of pressure. The currency touched a three-month high overnight, an early sign that sustained interventions by the city’s de facto central bank may be taking effect.

Australia’s richest tycoon increased a bet on Trump’s social media platform. Gina Rinehart’s US stock portfolio rose by more than $600 million in value in the second quarter as she boosted her holding in Truth Social by 67%. Rinehart also benefited from the rising value of a stake in MP Materials after the US Defense Department announced last month that it would take a stake in the little-known rare earths producer. 

A Trump post on Truth Social. Photographer: Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto/Getty Images

What You’ll Need to Know Tomorrow

For Your Commute

Holding back a boyish enthusiasm in his apartment overlooking Hong Kong’s financial district, Tony Banham sifts through relics of Japan’s invasion in 1941 and the occupation that followed. These few physical remnants point to Banham’s deep knowledge of a long-forgotten battle: Japan’s assault on the British colony that began within hours of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Banham has interviewed countless veterans and their family members, published four books and has been writing his Hong Kong War Diary blog since 2003. At the heart of his research is tracing what happened to almost every defender in the battle, and the impact on survivors and their families. This isn’t history as memorialized by the victors — grand themes of valor and noble sacrifice — but thousands of individual stories tied together by a shared tragedy. 

Air raid wardens take up position at the entrances to public shelters in Hong Kong, during an exercise in the last days before the Japanese invasion in December 1941.

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