Reuters, citing three industry sources, reported President Trump will direct some department heads to seek measures to control diesel prices, which are near record highs ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections. The directive could be issued as a presidential memorandum and would push officials to try to circumvent local and state rules that hinder energy production and to invoke the Defense Production Act to raise oil and fuel output.

The Washington Post reported the US blockade of Iranian ports has cut Iran’s oil exports to very low levels, costing Tehran tens of billions of dollars in monthly revenue. A senior Trump administration official said the White House believes time is on the US side, arguing prior rounds of pressure were cushioned by oil income but the current port blockade is removing that buffer and amplifying sanctions’ effects. The administration expects the blockade to further weaken Iran’s capacity to absorb economic pain, but to date the losses have not produced concessions on key negotiating demands and the stalemate remains.

The Ministry of Finance said in its 1H fiscal policy execution report that risks from stock implicit local government debt have been effectively mitigated. It reported localities had issued 1.73 trillion yuan of replacement bonds by end-July, completing 86.7% of the 2026 2 trillion yuan quota. The ministry said it will accelerate reform and transformation of local government financing vehicles (LGFVs), guide localities to resolve LGFV stock implicit debt, legally clarify government versus enterprise responsibilities, and speed the removal of financing functions from platforms. It will coordinate with financial regulators to optimize financial support policies for debt-risk resolution and guide financial institutions to use measures such as debt restructuring to reduce LGFVs’ liquidity risks and interest burdens.