Hong Kong Airport Reopens After Overnight Clashes, Mass Protests –Reuters

Hong Kong’s airport resumed operations on Wednesday, rescheduling hundreds of flights that had been disrupted over the past two days as protesters clashed with riot police in a deepening crisis in the Chinese-controlled city.

Trump Delays Tariffs on Chinese Cellphones, Laptops, Toys; Markets Jump – Reuters

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday backed off his Sept. 1 deadline for 10% tariffs on remaining Chinese imports, delaying duties on cellphones, laptops and other consumer goods, in the hopes of blunting their impact on US holiday sales.

Argentine Financial Markets Steady, but Political Instability Drives Uncertainty – Wall Street Journal

Stocks and currency had plummeted amid growing prospect that October elections will return the left-wing Peronist movement to power.

UK Gears Up for Brexit-Driven Election that Johnson Can’t Call – Bloomberg

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s staff talk about an imminent general election as though it were a fact, and on Tuesday, a Conservative politician accidentally published a draft email about his “GE2019 team.”

Going Negative? As Trade War Rages, Central Banks Ponder Radical Steps – Reuters

Negative interest rate policy – an unconventional gambit once only considered by economies with chronically low inflation such as Europe and Japan – is becoming a more attractive option for some other central banks to counter unwelcome currency rises.

Italy Senate Slows Government Crisis, Frustrating Salvini’s Election Push – Reuters

The Italian Senate postponed till next week further debate on an ongoing government crisis, frustrating a push by Matteo Salvini, leader of the far-right League party, for new elections.

Liquidity is Bad Even by August Standards, JPMorgan Shows – Bloomberg

A familiar bogeyman is lurking alongside the gut-wrenching swings across assets of all stripes: illiquidity. It’s problematic even by the dire standards of August, according to JPMorgan.

Regulatory News

No Need for More Granular CCP Auction Rules: Trade Bodies – FOW

CCP12, EACH say there is no need for added granularity or prescriptive requirements in CCP default auctions.

Asia Awaits Term SOFR Solution for Local Benchmarks – Risk

Asia’s benchmark administrators are closely watching efforts to establish a term version of US dollar Libor’s replacement, the secured overnight financing rate.

Regulators Close to Unveiling Volcker Revamp – American Banker

Wall Street watchdogs are poised to take a major step toward overhauling Volcker Rule limits on banks’ ability to trade with their own funds, according to four people familiar with the effort, moving to ease post-crisis safeguards reviled by the industry.

EU, US, CCP Tiering Proposals Not Far Apart: Isda – FOW

The head of clearing at Isda says EU and US CCP tiering proposals are not as far apart as they seem.

Accused NY Forex Fraudsters Get Separate Trials – Law360

A New York federal judge on Tuesday ruled that two foreign currency exchange traders facing charges over a purported $1.1 million fraud scheme targeting Korean-Americans will face separate trials, deeming a joint trial off the table in light of one trader’s plan to implicate the other.

Crypto News

SEC Postpones Decision on Three Bitcoin ETF Rule Change Proposals – Coin Telegraph

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has delayed its decision on three Bitcoin exchange-traded fund proposals.

UK Crypto Regulation is Changing, Recognition Looming at Long Last – Coin Telegraph

While it has even been suggested that London will overtake San Francisco as the fintech unicorn capital of the world, the UK has been less welcoming of crypto than it has of traditional finance.

Bitcoin Draws Premium in Argentina and Hong Kong Amid Sell-Off – Bloomberg

The turmoil in Argentina and Hong Kong is prompting local investors to pay a premium for Bitcoin, with the leading cryptocurrency proving to be less of a refuge for everyone else than advertised. 

Forget Bitcoin, This Firm is Using Blockchain Tech to Build a Smart City – South China Morning Post

A Singaporean start-up is looking to transform the face of Southeast Asia by building smart cities powered by blockchain technology – starting with an ambitious 100-hectare mixed-use development project in the heart of the 

Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh.

Company News

Bloomberg Acquires RegTek Solutions – Profit & Loss

Bloomberg today announced that it has acquired RegTek.Solutions, a provider of global regulatory reporting software solutions.

Argentina Market Rout Pummels Brazilian Hedge Fund – Reuters

A Brazilian hedge fund was among the casualties of Monday’s market rout on Argentine assets, with at least 75 percent of its equity exposure suffering losses between 25% and 59%.

FTC Chief Says He’s Willing to Break Up Big Tech Companies –Bloomberg

The head of the US Federal Trade Commission said he’s prepared to break up major technology platforms if necessary by undoing their past mergers as his agency investigates whether companies including Facebook are harming competition.

MarketAxess Acquires LiquidityEdge – Profit & Loss

The fixed income trading platform space has started to consolidate with news that MarketAxess is buying US Treasury trading platform LiquidityEdge for $150 million.

Market Savvy

How Trump’s Currency War May End Up Hurting the US Economy, Rather than China – South China Morning Post

Worse than being unjustified, Washington’s decision to brand China a currency manipulator was misguided as it could backfire on the US economy.

US-China Trade War Data Belie Trump’s Bragging – Financial Times

If President Donald Trump’s tweets are taken at face value, the US-China trade war is a “beautiful thing” combating Beijing’s sharp practices while helping to attract “massive amounts of money” into the US. However, key data tell the opposite story.

Countdown to Recession – What an Inverted Yield Curve Means – Reuters

The spread between yields on US two-year and 10-year notes, a closely watched metric, is likely to invert for the first time since 2007. That would follow the inversion of another part of the yield curve earlier in the year.