Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Aug 31 it killed Omar Saraj, the Hamas logistics and supply commander for Gaza City, during an operation in the Sabra area of Gaza City. The IDF said Saraj was responsible for providing weapons to Hamas fighters in Gaza City and that the raid aimed to eliminate that threat. The military added Hamas has recently pushed attacks on Israeli forces and civilians and has systematically violated the ceasefire agreement.

MOFCOM and six other ministries issued implementation opinions to expand and upgrade goods consumption, calling for national AI application pilot bases in the consumer sector, strengthened AI product R&D mechanisms and the launch of internationally competitive consumer AI products with high consumption potential. The document directs accelerated promotion of AI‑enabled smartphones and PCs, smart wearables, intelligent robots and smart‑home products, and the development of AI+consumption clusters, collection stores and AI application experience centers as consumer infrastructure.

U.S. energy stocks rose in premarket trading after international oil prices climbed: Halliburton (HAL.N) +2.0%, Valero Energy (VLO.N) +2.4%, Occidental Petroleum (OXY.N) +1.6%, Chevron (CVX.N) +1.6%, Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) +1.4%, Marathon Oil (MRO.N) +1.2%.