France July services PMI (flash) 49.8 vs consensus 47.5, previous 46.8. Reading remains below 50, indicating continued contraction despite a stronger-than-expected improvement.

Hong Kong equities opened lower and slid through the morning; Hang Seng Index was down 1.27% and the Hang Seng Tech Index down 1.69% at the midday break after the tech gauge fell over 2% intraday. Chip names recovered: Lanqi Technology (06809.HK) rose about 5%, SMIC (00981.HK) gained ~1%. BOC Hong Kong (02388.HK) advanced over 4%, marking a fresh intraday record high. PCB-related stocks led losses: Kingboard Laminates (01888.HK) -9%, Kingboard Holdings (00148.HK) -7%, Shenghong Technology (02476.HK) -5%. Gold miners tumbled: Lingbao Gold (03330.HK) and Zijin Gold International (02259.HK) both down more than 5%. Robotics, select internet names, power equipment, smart-driving suppliers, Chinese brokers and mainland property shares were weaker. Stock movers: Zhipu (02513.HK) +7%, UBTECH Robotics (09880.HK) -5%.

RUSSIAN CENBANK forecasts 2026 annual inflation of 6.0%–7.0% driven by a sharp rise in fuel prices.