Johnson Draws Up Plan to Legally Stop Brexit Extension – Daily Telegraph

Boris Johnson has drawn up plans to “sabotage” any Brexit extension without breaking the law, the Telegraph has learnt.

Varadkar Plays Down Prospects of Brexit Breakthrough – Financial Times

Irish prime minister to meet Boris Johnson for first time for talks on border.

US-China Trade Conflict Could Take Years to Resolve – Australian Financial Review

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the United States wants “near term” results from US-China trade talks in September and October but cautioned that the trade conflict could take years to resolve.

Draghi Primes ECB Easing that Will Test Global Currency Defenses –Bloomberg

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi will test the composure of global policy makers this week as he unleashes a barrage of stimulus to shore up economic growth.

Act Now to Get Ready for Recession, Think-Tank Urges Britain – Reuters

Britain is not ready for its next recession and must consider changes to the way it manages its economy to see off the downturn when it comes, the Resolution Foundation, a think-tank, said on Monday.

China’s August Forex Reserves Unexpectedly Rise to $3.1072 Trillion – Reuters

China’s foreign exchange reserves rose unexpectedly in August, even as the yuan posted its biggest monthly drop in 25 years amid escalating trade tensions with the United States.

Changing the FX Swaps Market Structure (Opinion) – Profit & Loss

There is no shortage of initiatives to innovate and possibly disrupt the behemoth that is the FX swaps market, but is there any real appetite for change amongst the most important sector of this market?

Japan Downgrades Second-Quarter GDP as Trade War Dulls Business Investment – Reuters

Japan’s economy grew at a slower pace than initially estimated in the second quarter as the US-China trade war prompted a downward revision of business spending, intensifying calls for the central bank to deepen stimulus this month.

Eurogroup Head Warns New Italy Government Over 2020 Budget – Reuters

Italy’s new government should not challenge European Union fiscal rules when it submits its draft 2020 budget to Brussels next month, the head of the euro zone finance ministers, Mario Centeno, said.

Regulatory News

China Allows Three More Brokerages Access to Interbank Forex Market – Caixin

China’s forex regulator for the first time in more than four years allowed three additional brokerages to trade on the domestic interbank foreign-exchange market.

Japan Boosts CLO Scrutiny as Banks Buy Risky Assets – Bloomberg

Japanese regulators are surveying the nation’s financial firms to determine their exposure to foreign assets including risky credit products as the global economy slows, people with knowledge of the matter said.

Publish Bank of England Governor Shortlist, Lawmakers Tell Javid –Bloomberg

A group of UK lawmakers are calling on Chancellor Sajid Javid to publish the shortlist of candidates to become Bank of England governor.

Luxembourg Considers Tougher Rules on Fund Liquidity – Financial Times

Financial watchdog has been consulting privately with asset managers following high-profile fund suspensions.

Crypto News

Digital Gold Mantra Revived After Bitcoin Tops Technical Hurdle – Bloomberg

The largest digital token climbed above its 50-day moving average, an indicator used to analyze trends and potential inflection points. 

Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence Technologies: Replacing Exchange Function of Money – European Scientific Journal

Today, the capitalist economy has entered into a dead end. Unemployment is expected to reach an unprecedented level due to the rise of automation and artificial intelligence technologies. The creation of excess fiat money will not be a remedy for the collapse of the capitalist economy. 

China Says New Digital Currency Will Protect PRC’s ‘Digital Sovereignty,’ – International Business Times

A senior Chinese banking official told state-run media that China is still planning to launch its own cryptocurrency and that it will be similar to Facebook’s Libra.

Bitcoin Futures on ICE Grow Nearer with Custody Warehouse Start – Bloomberg

Intercontinental Exchange Inc. is closer to offering Bitcoin futures trading as its Bakkt unit opens its digital-asset custody warehouse today to customers. 

Company News

Years of Forex Market Calm Sends Currency Funds to the Wall – Reuters

The Chinese yuan’s tumble is stirring hopes of a long-awaited volatility boost for forex markets but any rise will be too late for the currency funds that have shut down this year, and it may be too small to hold out much hope for those that remain.

Two FXPBs Begin Offering Access to Spotex’s ECN – Profit & Loss

The FX prime brokerage businesses at JP Morgan and NatWest Markets are now providing access to Spotex’s institutional ECN.

JPMorgan Creates ‘Volfefe’ Index to Track Trump Tweet Impact – Bloomberg

Make market volatility great again? Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. have created an index to gauge the impact of Donald Trump’s tweets on US interest rates, which they say is on the rise.

US Banks Set to Lower Forecasts as Falling Interest Rates Bite – Financial Times

Executives from some of America’s biggest banks will this week tell investors how badly their businesses are being hurt by falling interest rates and an inverted yield curve, setting the scene for a raft of cuts to profit forecasts. 

Market Savvy

‘Incredible Volatility’ Could Hit the Currency Market – Barrons

For years, Jens Nordvig was a top-ranked currency strategist on Wall Street. In 2016, the Danish-born Nordvig, 45, founded his own firm, Exante Data, a macro research consulting firm named for the Latin term for “before the event.”

Is it Time to Start Considering Plan B: Lower Rates Forever? – Australian Financial Review

There is no doubt that yields and returns are extremely low right now. It’s not hard to see why.

Global Bond Bull Run Has Reached Historic Levels – Financial Times

The global bull run that started in 1985 is now one of the most intense in the debt market’s 700-year history, comparable with a deleveraging and economic growth spurt that followed the Napoleonic wars.

Trump ‘Can’t Win Them All.’ Neither Can Powell – Bloomberg

Even if you’re not the biggest fan of the Federal Reserve, you have to feel a little sorry for Chair Jerome Powell. As everyone involved in financial markets is acutely aware, he and the central bank have been a favourite target of President Donald Trump’s ire for months now.