Seven government departments have jointly issued a document aimed at expanding and upgrading consumer goods spending. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) is launching a special initiative to cultivate AI application service providers. The Ministry of Finance reports that from January to July, the total profits of state-owned and state-controlled enterprises rose by 0.6% year-on-year. Additionally, the National Bureau of Statistics indicated that the manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) stood at 49.8% for August.

The implementation opinions on expanding and upgrading commodity consumption, recently printed by seven departments including the Ministry of Commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the MIIT, were made public on August 31. The document outlines four priority tasks. First, it promotes consumption of large durable goods by deepening the pilot reform of the automobile circulation and consumption system to expand auto consumption across the entire chain, while also accelerating the adoption of smart home applications. Second, it seeks to steadily enhance consumption of daily necessities by improving the quality of spending on food, beverages, textiles, clothing, and cultural and sports goods. Third, it supports consumption of specialty products by focusing on elderly care and infant needs, while promoting domestic trendsetting brands, quality foreign trade goods, and international premium products. Fourth, it aims to cultivate and expand upgraded categories of consumption by aligning with evolving consumer preferences to boost spending on green, smart, and health-oriented products.

On August 31, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun addressed a routine press conference. In response to remarks made by US Treasury Secretary Bessent, Guo emphasized that the essence of China-US economic and trade relations is mutual benefit and win-win outcomes. He stated that China never deliberately pursues a trade surplus and opposes all forms of unilateral tariff measures. China is committed to high-standard opening up, offering new opportunities to all parties, including the United States, through its vast market. Guo added that both countries should jointly implement the important consensus reached by their leaders, resolve relevant issues through consultation based on equality, respect, and mutual benefit, and preserve the hard-won positive momentum in the economic and trade field.

According to data from the Ministry of Finance, from January to July, the total operating revenue of state-owned and state-controlled enterprises nationwide reached 46.44664 trillion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 2.4%. During the same period, total profits of these enterprises amounted to 2.50899 trillion yuan, up 0.6% year-on-year.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that in August, the manufacturing PMI reached 49.8%, up 0.6 percentage points from the previous month, indicating a recovery in economic activity. By enterprise size, the PMI for large enterprises was 50.6%, up 1.1 percentage points from the prior month and above the threshold; the PMI for medium-sized enterprises was 49.4%, down 0.3 percentage points and below the threshold; and the PMI for small enterprises was 47.9%, up 0.5 percentage points and still below the threshold.

On August 31, the General Office of the MIIT issued a notice on launching a special initiative to cultivate AI application service providers. The notice states that this initiative will establish a resource pool of service providers, aiming to enhance their capabilities in technological innovation, system integration and delivery, and security compliance. The goal is to build a team of AI application service providers who understand industry pain points, grasp technical mechanisms, recognize security risks, and excel in delivery and operations. By the end of 2026, the number of service providers in the national resource pool is expected to exceed 2,000, forming a well-structured, clearly divided, and collaborative multi-tiered ecosystem with significantly enhanced delivery capabilities for complex scenarios. By the end of 2027, the pool should contain no fewer than 3,000 service providers, supporting the formation of an AI application service ecosystem with full-factor collaboration, full-chain integration, and full-scenario coverage.

According to MIIT data, in the first seven months of the year, revenue from information technology services grew by 10.0% year-on-year, accounting for 68.7% of total industry revenue. Within this, cloud computing and big data services saw combined revenue growth of 12.3%, representing 16.7% of IT services revenue; integrated circuit design revenue increased by 21.5%; and e-commerce platform technology services revenue rose by 5.1%.

On August 31, at the 2026 interim results briefing of PICC Group, President Zhao Peng stated that the company helped stabilize the capital market in the first half of the year, with net additions to A-share positions reaching approximately 30 billion yuan. The company also completed the establishment of a 10 billion yuan private securities investment fund, with investment performance outperforming the CSI A500 Dividend Index over the same period.

Recently, the results were announced for the equipment procurement for the 2026 expansion project of China Mobile's centralized intelligent computing node in Hohhot, along with the supplementary procurement of AI super-node equipment for 2026 to 2027. Yangtze Computing won the bid with a 71.43% share, with a contract value exceeding 700 million yuan including tax.

In a company announcement, iFlytek reported that on August 31, 2026, it conducted its first share buyback through a dedicated repurchase account via centralized bidding. The company repurchased 750,000 shares, representing approximately 0.03% of its total share capital. The highest transaction price was 40.42 yuan per share, the lowest was 39.53 yuan per share, and the total transaction amount was 30,021,592 yuan excluding transaction fees.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps public relations department said on social media on the 31st that an American MQ-9 Reaper drone was struck by an Iranian missile over the Strait of Hormuz and fell into the blue waters of the Persian Gulf.

Iranian media reported on the 31st that the Iranian military stated it had used drones to strike Al Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates.

The US Central Command issued a statement on the 30th saying that US forces carried out a "limited and precise" action against an Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps mine-laying unit, accusing it of posing a threat to navigation safety in the Strait of Hormuz.

Japan's industrial output rose 0.1% month-on-month in July, better than the expected decline of 0.7%. Retail sales increased 2.4% month-on-month and 4% year-on-year, both significantly exceeding expectations. Manufacturers forecast that industrial output will grow 6.4% in August and then decline 4.2% in September.

A survey released on the 31st by Teikoku Databank showed that Japan is set to experience its largest wave of price increases of the year, with an estimated 4,923 food product categories expected to see price hikes in September—roughly three times the number from the same period last year and the highest monthly figure this year.