CUSTOMS: China exported 34,706.3 tonnes of rare earths in Jan-Jul.

Prime Minister Takaichi said she will restore the food consumption tax to 8% after two years to preserve market trust and fiscal sustainability. The cabinet on Wednesday approved a plan to temporarily cut the consumption tax on food and non‑alcoholic beverages from 8% to 1%, effective April next year, as a transition until a new tax‑credit system due in 2029. The government has not specified how it will cover an estimated annual revenue shortfall of more than 4 tln yen, leaving funding and fiscal risk as market concerns.

U.S. initial jobless claims rose 1,000 to 199,000 in the week ended Aug. 1, below the 202,000 consensus, keeping labor-market resilience intact. Claims have fallen sharply since an early-June spike, though some of the decline may reflect seasonal-adjustment challenges over the summer. Separately, announced corporate layoffs in July fell to a two-year low, concentrated in the tech sector; there is no sign yet that AI infrastructure build-out is triggering broad job losses, and layoffs remained low despite oil-price shocks from fighting involving the U.S., Israel and Iran.