State Council Information Office will hold a press briefing on 28 Sep 2026 at 1500 Beijing time as part of a 'Kick‑off for the 15th Five‑Year Plan' series. State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) deputy director and spokesperson Pang Xiaogang will outline implementation steps for the 15th Five‑Year Plan aimed at advancing high-quality development of central state-owned enterprises and will take questions.

The EBRD cut its 2026 regional growth forecast by 0.6 percentage points to 2.5% and raised its 2027 forecast by 0.4 percentage points to 4%.

Australia's unemployment rate rose to 4.6% in August, above economists' 4.5% forecast, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday. Employment increased by 39,500 versus an expected 20,000, while the participation rate rose to 67.1% from 66.9%. ABS head of labour statistics Sean Crick said the share of people moving into unemployment from outside the labour force was higher than in recent years. The report is the last major data point before the Reserve Bank of Australia's end-September meeting and complicates the RBA's 'slightly tight' labour market assessment: higher participation may reflect a stronger labour supply or rising cost-of-living pressure driving more people to seek work.