China Luxury Binges, Japan Stimulus, U.S. Manufacturing: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Wednesday, Asia. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help you start the day

• An uneven recovery is under way in China -- consumers are back to binging on luxury handbags, cosmetics and cars, but the shopping enthusiasm is not extending to mass consumption
• Yoshihide Suga, the leading candidate to replace Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, will likely keep big stimulus rolling
• U.S. manufacturing expanded in August at the fastest pace since late 2018, powered by growth in new orders -- a bright spot in an otherwise struggling economy
• One of the world’s Covid-19 vaccine front-runners is falling behind rivals, its advance appearing to be stymied by political tensions between China and Canada
• South Korea’s inflation picked up for a third straight month in August as flooding across the nation buoyed food prices
• Meanwhile, consumer prices in the euro area are falling for the first time in four years, showing a recent rebound in activity hasn’t managed to offset the pandemic’s profound impact on demand
• The Pentagon is warning that China’s rapid military buildup means it’s closer to joining the U.S. and Russia among the top nations capable of deploying nuclear weapons on land, in the air and at sea
• Brazil’s economy posted its largest slump on record and its recovery is likely to be irregular as the crucial services sector remains weak despite emergency government spending
• China’s top leaders next month will lay out their economic strategy for the next five years. The plan is to ramp up domestic consumption in order to insulate the economy from swirling geopolitical tensions
• A fight over fish is fanning a new stage of conflict in the South China Sea

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