U.S.-China Fail, Aussie PM Crisis, Powell Revisits '98: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Happy Friday, Asia. Here’s the latest news from Bloomberg Economics:

• Trade talks between the U.S. and China wrapped up Thursday with no major progress; for the global economy, there’s no traditional August lull as battles over protectionism heat up
• Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is waiting to learn his fate as a leadership crisis grips Australia. His problem isn’t new, as this chart shows -- on the upside, it’s bringing much needed currency depreciation
• Wind back the clock 20 years, and the U.S. economy looked a lot like it does today -- so does the title of a paper Fed chief Jerome Powell will deliver at Jackson Hole
• Meantime, two regional Fed chiefs said they favor further interest-rate increases and added that criticism by President Trump wouldn’t influence U.S. central bank policy
• As the economic landscape gets more rocky, Southeast Asia’s central bankers are turning to Facebook and YouTube for help in getting their messages across
• In New Zealand, the central bank chief isn’t ruling out cutting interest rates to achieve his inflation target
• India is seeking to boost the aspirational value of handyman jobs as it tackles unemployment in the millions. Economic growth likely slowed in 1Q of the fiscal year, writes Abhishek Gupta
• The upheaval set off by the threat of American sanctions is roiling the Kremlin’s economic plans even before the U.S. announces a new round of penalties
• Venezuela’s currency chaos has gotten so bad that there’s now an app to lop off zeros
• Over in the U.K., higher credit card charges, slower service, more regulation -- and less sperm. The official picture of life after a “No Deal” Brexit isn’t pretty

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael Heath in Sydney at mheath1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nasreen Seria at nseria@bloomberg.net, Chris Bourke

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