Happy Saturday, folks. While you were sleeping, the U.S. equity markets continued their descent largely thanks to uncertainty over the Fed’s lift-off timing following the non-farm payrolls report. August jobs climbed 173,000, below expectations of a 220,000 rise but Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker was quick to point out that while it didn’t meet expectations, 173,000’s “still a strong number,” and that it isn’t enough to change the picture for monetary policy. The bond market however doesn’t seem to be pricing in that possibility, with short-end yields barely moving from their Thursday levels.
Here’s what else you need to know:
Chinese pre-crash trading account data inexplicably unavailable. The weekly report published by the China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation (CSDC) – which details the number of people who opened or closed trading accounts that week – mysteriously ends on May 29, two weeks prior to the Shanghai Composite’s dramatic crash. Whether or not this information was pulled by Beijing, or if the CSDC simply chose to stop publishing these figures, is still unclear. Quartz
Mainland banks are going to have a rough year. Ratings agency Fitch says that mainland lenders’ profitability will continue to get screwed in the second half of the year, mostly due to a rise non-performing loans following a sustained deterioration in asset quality. “Weakening asset quality could result in some profit decline in the near term, as banks cannot rely on lowering their provision coverage to generate positive profit growth.” South China Morning Post
Egyptian billionaire offers solution to migrants. Naguib Sawiris has offered to purchase an island from Greece or Italy to house hundreds of thousands of migrants that are currently overwhelming Europe. Sawiris says he would give the island independence and provide jobs for the migrants to make it their own country, permanently or temporarily. TIME
Good news: there’s more trees than we thought. A new study found 3.04 trillion trees on Earth, 7.5 times the amount thought to exist. On the down side, the number of trees has fallen by 46% since humans arrived on the planet. CNN
Top Democrat opposes Iran deal. Sen. Ben Cardin, the top Dem on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, says he will oppose the nuclear deal with Iran. Cardin’s announcement won’t kill the deal in Congress, but Cardin’s weight does hurt Obama’s efforts. Cardin says he fears the agreement would strengthen Iran in the long run.Politico
Indonesia cuts plans for high-speed train. The country has decided to ax what would have been the first high-speed train for the nation, connecting Jakarta and Bandung, because the 93 mile route was deemed too short for a high-speed train. Wall Street Journal
You won’t believe this…
Died: The world’s shortest man. Nepali Chandra Bahadur Dangi has died at age 75. Dangi was 21.5 inches tall. Wall Street Journal
Japan fights ISIS with anime. Soon after ISIS took two Japanese hostages, Japanese social media responded with an Anime character known as ISIS-chan. The cute cartoon wants to spread love, and show extremists that knives should be used for melon cutting, not violence. BuzzFeed
Photo: Marina Kyriacou