Netanyahu's Likud held a party primary on the 17th to determine the order of its candidate list ahead of a Knesset election scheduled no later than Oct. 27. Voting ran from 10:00 to 21:00, with roughly 140,000 party members eligible to vote. Israel allocates Knesset seats by proportional representation.

TASNIM News reported the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it will decisively strike any threats or acts of aggression.

CLSA raised its target for SMIC (00981.HK) to HK$97.5 (from HK$94.1) and its A‑share target to CNY180.2 (from CNY153.4), maintaining an Outperform rating. CLSA says SMIC’s Q2 revenue and gross margin beat the upper end of company guidance and Q3 guidance exceeded market expectations. Q2 shipment growth was driven by capacity ramp-up and AI-related chip orders; CLSA highlights demand support from AI, overseas order reshoring and domestic localization. SMIC expects wafer prices to remain at least stable through 2026. CLSA lifted its 2026–28 earnings forecasts by 69%, 44% and 38%, respectively.