German Contraction, Tariff Delay, China Data Slump: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) --

Welcome to Wednesday, Europe. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help get your day started:

• Germany’s economy shrank in the second quarter, piling pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel to unleash fiscal stimulus as manufacturers reel from a U.S.-China trade war.
• At the same time, the European Union’s eastern economies are withstanding the brunt of global headwinds
• In Norway, one of the last interest rate hawks could make a stand this week
• Less than a week since he vowed to go to war to protect the independence of the South African Reserve Bank, Governor Lesetja Kganyagohas approached the courts to protect his name after a racial slur from a ruling party official
• President Donald Trump bowed to pressure, delaying the imposition of new tariffs on a variety of products until December. Tom Orlik explains why that makes little difference to the broader dispute
• Meantime, Chinese officials are sticking to their plan of visiting Washington in September for face-to-face meetings, signaling that talks remain on track for now
• China posted the weakest industrial output growth since 2002 and slumping retail sales in July, as a cyclical slowdown and trade tensions add to the case to roll out more stimulus. The weakness in July is just a taste of worse to come, writes Chang Shu and David Qu
• A key measure of U.S. consumer prices unexpectedly accelerated in July in a broad-based advance, suggesting inflation may be firming as the Federal Reserve debates whether to lower interest rates further
• President Mauricio Macri is set to unveil a plan to ease the economic pain of Argentines struggling with unemployment and inflation. Here’s what the latest rout looks like for small business owners in Argentina

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