UK July change in jobless benefit claims -11,000; prior reading revised from +6,700 to -6,400.

{"title":"MOFCOM and eight ministries unveil measures to boost county-level consumption","content":"MOFCOM and eight other ministries on Aug. 18 issued guidance to stimulate lower-tier market activity and county-level consumption. Measures target retail channel upgrades — deepening the "thousand markets, ten‑thousand stores" renovation, upgrading township trade centers, farmers' markets and large township fairs, and encouraging domestic and foreign brands to open regional first stores; promote redevelopment of existing land. The guidance calls for piloting one‑license, multiple‑locations for chain firms and individual traders within the same county where conditions permit, supporting domestic trendy brands' expansion into counties, and innovating consumption chains integrating primary, secondary and tertiary industries. It also seeks to improve county goods and services supply — promote urban‑rural parity on same‑spec goods, extend the 15‑minute convenience service circle to county areas, and advance commercial‑agricultural‑cultural‑tourism‑sports integration."}

USGS reports a magnitude 5.3 earthquake 75 km ESE of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia.