China tightens scrutiny on $9.3 trillion fund industry

China’s top securities regulator pledged on Monday to crack down on mismanaged private funds and weed out fake ones, as the government becomes more assertive in dealing with an industry worth 60 trillion yuan ($9.28 trillion).
Japan’s retail sales extend gains but COVID-19 challenges persist

Japan’s retail sales rose for a fifth straight month in July, beating expectations as the consumer sector continued its recovery, although a coronavirus resurgence has cast doubts over the spending outlook.
China’s Sinopec posts $6 bln H1 profit on rebounding oil prices, better demand

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (600028.SS) on Sunday reported a 39.15 billion yuan ($6.05 billion) net profit for the first six months of 2021 on the back of renewed fuel demand and a rebound in oil prices amid a recovery from the impact of COVID-19.
Global dividends to near pre-pandemic levels in 2021 -report

Global dividends are forecast to rise to $1.39 trillion this year, up slightly from a previous estimate to reflect a stronger than expected recovery in the company payouts, Janus Henderson said in a report published on Monday.
Marketmind: A delta-driven drop

After an August in which stock markets have repeatedly hit record highs, the mood music turned decisively more sombre on Thursday, led by a late slump in U.S. stocks which cascaded into already jittery Asian markets.
Delta delays great exit as RBNZ holds fire on hikes

The Delta variant has delayed an expected rate hike in New Zealand, leaving Norway likely the first G10 economy to begin the journey out of an era of emergency-level interest rate lows.
Japan’s exports extend gains, machinery orders fall amid fragile recovery

Japan’s exports marked a fifth straight month of double-digit growth in July, driven by U.S.-bound shipments of automobiles in a positive sign for a trade-led economy, although a key gauge of capital spending fell for the first time in four months.
Wall Street slumps after weak retail sales, Home Depot results

Wall Street’s main indexes slid on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 logging its biggest one-day percentage fall in about a month, weighed down by a drop in U.S. retail sales that raised concerns about the economic recovery, as well as by disappointing results from Home Depot (HD.N).
Marketmind: Muddied Waters

Investors can be forgiven for being nonplussed on the data front this week. A day after U.S. consumer inflation data showed early signs of price pressures peaking, readings from the producer perspective showed inflationary readings remained firm.
OPEC+ supply boost unlikely despite call from U.S. for more oil, says Goldman

U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs said a recent call by the United States to OPEC+ to boost oil output is unlikely to result in higher production over the short-term given the threat to demand from the coronavirus Delta variant.