Aug 19, 2026 — Hongqing Technology’s technology-demonstration satellite Honghu-03, launched on a Zhuque-3 Yao-2 carrier rocket, successfully reached orbit. Solar arrays deployed and telemetry is normal. Hongqing says Honghu-03 was developed to validate technologies and production pathways that enable batch manufacturing — from core single-unit components to whole-satellite systems — to meet high-density launch and rapid networking needs. The company noted this follows maturation of reusable-rock

Rising intervention risk and higher rates have weakened yen funding, pushing carry traders toward Swiss franc financing. CFTC data for the week to Aug. 11 show hedge funds’ net short positions in the franc near a two-month high while they trimmed yen shorts for a second consecutive week. Tobias Jungmann, head of FX options at BofA in New York, said markets have increased franc short exposure to finance FX carry trades and that options are attractive given the franc’s vol-to-carry profile, allowing exposure with capped downside. The franc’s appeal rests on near-zero Swiss interest rates and the Swiss National Bank’s willingness to limit appreciation; by contrast, a late-July Japan–U.S. joint intervention raised yen volatility and curbed yen-funded trades.

World Weather Attribution (WWA) warns rising ocean temperatures could produce stronger storms in Europe later this year. The study says Mediterranean warming is running at roughly twice the global ocean average and parts of the Mediterranean and Europe’s Atlantic coast recorded June sea surface temperature anomalies above 6°C. Catherine Gregory, a co‑author and researcher at the University of Bern, said very high SSTs supply extra energy to storms and can prolong their duration, and that the topic is a relatively new research area that may be one of the most significant human impacts of marine heatwaves.