Next Week: Musk discusses Trump and the urgency of economic issues

Hello and welcome to the work week.

There is some strange/horrible news surrounding the month of August, a month in which normal events were thin on the ground with parliaments on vacation, schools on vacation and company executives going on vacation. The problem for this columnist is that the endless and depressing wars in the Middle East and Ukraine have not been publicized – however it is important to note that Monday is the 75th anniversary of the signing of the fourth Geneva Convention, which relates to the protection of citizens in time. of war.

So I’ll start by thanking the bean baggers. The next five days will bring a lot of economic data from China, Japan and the US as well as fresh statistics from the UK Office for National Statistics: monthly figures for unemployment and prices of finance, second quarter GDP and retail sales. After disappointing markets with labor market figures, the US publishes what will be a closely watched data report, China will post sales figures and industrial production while Japan delivers its first stab at the number its GDP for the second quarter.

What the reaction will be to all these statistics is unknown. The same can be said about the announcement that Donald Trump will be interviewed by social media platform X owner Elon Musk on Monday. Most importantly, perhaps, the former US president also agreed with his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris in a debate on September 10 on the American radio station ABC, and the discussion is ongoing with other discussions.

The debate over UK university funding – and whether it is the best route for young people – will come to a head on Thursday with A-level results in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to decide the fate of young people thousands of applicants for degrees. lessons. Full disclosure: I will be hearing this for the first time as a parent of an 18-year-old hoping to get his first choice of university. My colleagues in the public policy group have an additional analysis of the insolvency problem that is coming directly to other institutions.

Apprenticeships will also gain prominence in the UK, especially as many parents see degree apprenticeships as a way for their children to end up debt-free for college, with an employer paying tuition fees. Coincidentally, the latest data on the number of people choosing to do these programs in England and Wales will come out on the same day as the school exam results.

As we approach next weekend, the commemorations of VJ Day and the independence of Indonesia and Singapore will provide more speeches by the young political leaders of these countries.

Finally, on the topic of going on vacation, we have the end of the rage process in the latest earnings season. The ones to watch this week are tech companies (Alibaba, Tencent and Foxconn), large retailers (especially Walmart) as well as financial services companies (Aviva and UBS). More details below.

What are your priorities for the next seven days? Are you taking a break or are you working? Email me at jonathan.moules@ft.com or, if you’re reading this from your inbox, hit reply.

One more thing. . .

A premium service of this newspaper is predicting how the stock market will react to important economic reports, as readers will have discovered last week.

However, I can point you to a good FT review on market turmoil. So let me urge you to join Robert Armstrong, the US chief financial officer, and colleagues from Tokyo to London this Wednesday at 12pm BST for an FT webinar on the latest turmoil -rao and where the markets will continue. Register for your subscription pass at ft.com/marketswebinar and submit your questions for the panel.

Important economic and company reports

Here’s a full list of what to expect in terms of company reports and economic data this week.

Monday

• OPEC August oil market report

• India: July consumer price index data

• UK: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development labor market outlook

• UK: The High Pay Center publishes its annual FTSE 100 survey of high pay

• Results: Marshalls HY

Tuesday

• Prepared by Google event, to introduce the latest Google devices, including the Pixel smartphone. A funny video released in June said “AI . . . meet IX”

• IEA August oil market report

• Germany: August ZEW survey

• UK: monthly labor market figures

• US: July producer price index data

• Results: CSL FY, HelloFresh HY, handling HY, Home Depot Q2, Just a Team HY, Porsche HY, Sun Life Financial Q2

Wednesday

• EU: Q2 GDP, Q2 employment and industrial production figures for June

• France: July CPI and corresponding consumer price index data

• Norway: Half-year report of the Global Pension Fund Global

• Pakistan: Independence Day. Financial markets are closed

• UK: Release of CPI and PPI inflation rate data

• US: CPI inflation rate data for July

• Results: Aviva HY, Balfour Beatty HY, Cisco Systems Q4, Commonwealth Bank of Australia FY, DFDS Q2, That HY, Foxconn Q2, Lloyd’s table HY, RWE HY, Tencent Holdings Q2, Thyssenkrupp Q3, Tui Q3, UBS Q2, Vestas Q2

Thursday

• China: July retail sales and industrial production figures

• India: Independence Day. Financial markets are closed

• Japan: Q2 GDP figures

• South Korea: Independence Day. Financial markets are closed

• UK: first Q2 GDP figures

• Results: Admiral HY, Alibaba Q1, Used Materials Q3, Deere & Co Q3, Geberit HY, OSB HY, Status FY, Walmart Q2

Friday

• Germany: Q2 labor market figures

• UK: Retail sales figures for July in Great Britain

• US: University of Michigan August consumer opinion

• Results: National Australia Bank Q3 business update, Kingspan HY

World events

Finally, here is a list of other events and important events this week.

Monday

• Russia: Day of the Russian Air Force

• UK: Glorious Twelfth Day, opening of the British grouse shooting season.

• US: Former President Donald Trump is expected to be questioned by Elon Musk

Tuesday

• The United Nations Security Council Committee on Counter-Terrorism (Committee 1373) at a meeting held in New York

• US: Pretrial conference for former Republican Rep. George Santos on wiretapping and money laundering charges

Wednesday

• Switzerland: US-led ceasefire talks to begin between Sudanese army and Rapid Support Paramilitary Forces. The African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the UN participated as observers

• Turkey: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas begins two-day visit, meets President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and addresses parliament in Ankara

• UK: Garbage workers in Edinburgh are expected to launch an eight-day strike, affecting the city’s world-renowned arts festival, over a pay dispute.

Thursday

• Belgium: a large carpet of flowers in the center of Brussels, created by Belgian florists, is unveiled. The exhibition, which runs until Sunday, has been a biennial tradition since 1986, and this year is a tribute to art nouveau.

• India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivers a speech to mark the anniversary of his country’s independence from British rule in 1947.

• JAPAN: Emperor Naruhito and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida are due to speak at a ceremony marking the 79th anniversary of Japan’s second world war surrender at the Nippon Budokan.

• UK: A-level results date for schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland

Friday

• The Fifa/Coca-Cola World Football Rankings have been released

• UK: The English Premier League football season starts with Manchester United vs Fulham

• US: Sports Illustrated’s 70th anniversary, first published by Time Inc

Saturday

• Indonesia: President-elect Joko Widodo and defense minister and incoming president Prabowo Subianto are expected to attend 79-year independence celebrations in the capital Nusantara

• Zimbabwe: The SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government, met to discuss economic growth and development.

Sunday

• Singapore: Prime Minister Lawrence Wong delivers the annual National Day Rally speech, his inaugural speech after taking office on May 15 as Singapore’s fourth prime minister, the first change of leadership country for 20 years.