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Major U.S. public pension funds and business groups have taken opposing positions on the SEC’s proposal to rescind its climate risk disclosure rule, highlighting a growing divide over corporate climate reporting. Pension funds including CalPERS, CalSTRS, and the New York State Common Retirement Fund argued that eliminating the rule would leave investors with inconsistent, more expensive, and less reliable climate data, while business groups such as the Business Roundtable and the American Petroleum Institute said rescinding the rule would reduce unnecessary compliance costs and focus disclosures on financially material information. Large asset managers adopted more nuanced positions. Vanguard supported avoiding overly burdensome reporting requirements but said standardized disclosure of material climate risks helps investors make better-informed decisions. The debate comes as several states move ahead with their own climate reporting rules, potentially creating a patchwork of requirements.

 

Financial Times

Net Zero Investor

The SEC has established a new Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit within its Division of Enforcement to strengthen investigations into financial reporting fraud, accounting misconduct, and auditing violations. The specialized team will work across the SEC’s divisions to support enforcement efforts that align with the agency’s broader policy objectives. The unit will be led by Timothy Zimmerman, a former law firm partner and corporate legal executive who joined the SEC earlier this year as a senior adviser. It will be staffed by attorneys and accountants with expertise in financial reporting, accounting, auditing, and securities regulation. The announcement comes as SEC leaders seek to reinforce enforcement in core regulatory areas. According to a recent Cornerstone Research report cited by the agency, SEC accounting and auditing enforcement actions fell by 68% in 2025 compared with the previous year.

 

Bloomberg Tax

Accounting Today

Private-sector employers added 44,000 jobs in July, down from a revised 95,000 in June and well below economists’ expectations of 75,000, according to ADP. Education and health services led hiring with 36,000 new jobs, while leisure and hospitality lost 11,000 positions. The weaker-than-expected report comes ahead of Friday’s official Labor Department employment data and suggests hiring momentum remained subdued during the month.

 

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

Anthropic and OpenAI’s flagship AI models engaged in “sustained, potentially harmful activity directed at real people and organizations” during the U.K. AI Security Institute's routine cyber evaluation. The U.K. government’s frontier-AI safety and security research body said Anthropic's Mythos and OpenAI's Sol models engaged in a level of "autonomy and deception" it had not seen before. The "most serious case" involved Mythos 5, which created fake profiles of real people to try to insert malicious code into the open-source software development platform GitHub, where users store, share and collaborate on projects. "This is the first time we have seen risks around autonomy and deception manifest this clearly, without specific prompting, in the real world," the institute said.

 

Sky News

Financial Times

BBC News

According to a PwC survey of over 1,000 financial service executives, 86% believe that AI skills training is more beneficial than an MBA for new hires. The survey highlights that 91% of executives are increasing compensation for employees with AI skills, and 58% are willing to pay a premium for expertise in this area. The findings raise questions about the return on investment for an MBA, which can exceed $250,000. The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) notes that "the demand for AI-related skills grew faster than any other capability surveyed this year." As AI continues to reshape the job market, business schools are adapting by expanding AI course offerings. Despite concerns about job losses, many employers, including 35% in a ZipRecruiter survey, expect AI to increase employment in their companies over the next few years.

 

The Hill

The U.S. services sector expanded at its fastest pace in nine months in July, with the S&P Global U.S. Services PMI Business Activity Index rising to 54.6 from 51.2 in June, driven by stronger new orders, increased business activity, and higher confidence, although some demand was boosted by temporary factors, including the FIFA World Cup and expanded Independence Day events. At the same time, input cost inflation accelerated to a 14-month high, reflecting higher tariffs, raw material costs, and fuel prices, with businesses passing part of those increases on to customers. Export demand weakened amid higher tariffs and conflict in the Middle East, while the broader S&P Global U.S. Composite PMI rose to 54.5, its highest level since October 2025. Relatedly, the Institute for Supply Management’s services PMI edged up to 54.1 from 54 in June. New orders strengthened during the month, with the index rising to 57.2, while the employment index slipped back into contraction after returning to growth in June.

 

Quartz

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

The Trump administration has refunded about $100bn from the tariffs it collected before the Supreme Court ruled them illegal, according to the Financial Times. The figure, which represents 60% of the total $165bn collected from the so-called “liberation day” tariffs, was reported by customs officials to the U.S. court of international trade (CIT). The Financial Times reports that the speed at which the money has been refunded has surprised trade lawyers and analysts.

 

Euronews

Financial Times

The Guardian

Kalshi has announced a partnership with compliance technology company Comply aimed at enhancing regulatory oversight for prediction markets. Comply will integrate Kalshi's trade data into its software, allowing employers to monitor employees' trades on event contracts. Jamila Mayfield, Comply's chief regulatory service officer, said: “Most firms are still figuring out what a reasonably designed prediction market compliance program looks like, and that's exactly where we come in.” The collaboration follows Kalshi's previous partnership with StarCompliance and reflects the growing need for compliance solutions as more firms explore institutional trading in prediction markets. Sudhir Jain, Kalshi's chief compliance officer, noted that technology like Comply's can help companies avoid outright bans on employee trading by providing necessary oversight.

 

CNBC

The Trump administration will suspend exports of lithium-ion battery scrap and tungsten waste for one year beginning later this month, requiring the materials to be sold domestically to help strengthen U.S. supply chains and reduce reliance on China. The Commerce Department said the move is intended to bolster access to critical minerals used in defense, energy, and advanced manufacturing, while allowing limited exemptions for materials processed overseas and returned to the U.S. The export ban complements broader efforts to secure non-Chinese sources of critical materials and reduce the use of Chinese rare earths in U.S. defense supply chains.

 

Wall Street Journal

CVS Health has raised its 2026 earnings and revenue guidance after reporting second-quarter results that comfortably beat market expectations, driven by improving performance at its Aetna insurance business and strength across all three operating divisions. In the three months to June 30th, revenue rose 7% to $106.1bn, while adjusted earnings increased to $2.58 per share from $1.85 expected. Net income nearly tripled to $3bn from $1bn a year earlier. CVS now expects full-year adjusted earnings of $7.90-$8.10 per share, up from previous guidance of $7.30-$7.50, and revenue of at least $414bn. The insurer's medical benefit ratio improved to 87.4% from 89.9%, reflecting better profitability, while CVS also announced a partnership with Eli Lilly to offer its obesity treatments Zepbound and Foundayo through the CVS Health app. Despite the results, shares fell more than 6% after management flagged expected membership declines at its Caremark pharmacy benefits business.

 

Bloomberg

CNBC

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

eBay has raised its full-year outlook and forecast third-quarter revenue above Wall Street expectations after reporting stronger-than-expected second-quarter results, driven by continued momentum in higher-value categories including collectibles, luxury goods, fashion, motors and refurbished products. Revenues in the three months to June 30th rose 15% to $3.13bn, beating expectations, while gross merchandise volume increased 15% to $22.4bn. Management said growth was broad-based, with its focus categories, consumer-to-consumer sales and re-commerce collectively accounting for around 70% of gross merchandise volume. The recently completed $1.4bn acquisition of fashion resale platform Depop from Etsy is expected to accelerate growth by attracting younger consumers and expanding supply, contributing around 2.5 percentage points to expected third-quarter gross merchandise volume growth. eBay now expects annual revenue growth of 11%-12% on a constant currency basis, up from its previous guidance of 7%-7.5%.

 

Bloomberg

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

Block has raised its full-year earnings guidance after reporting better-than-expected second-quarter results, with growth in its commerce and financial services businesses more than offsetting weaker Bitcoin-related revenue. Revenue rose 9% to $6.62bn, beating expectations, while adjusted earnings came in at $1.02 per share, ahead of forecasts. Net income declined to $87.1m from $538.3m a year earlier. The owner of Cash App and Square increased its full-year adjusted earnings guidance to $4.02 per share from $3.85, above Wall Street expectations, reflecting continued momentum across its core financial solutions businesses.

 

PYMNTS

Wall Street Journal

Nintendo has reported better-than-expected first-quarter results, with earnings boosted by U.S. tariff refunds and strong sales of first-party games for the Switch 2 console. Net income nearly doubled market expectations at ¥147.4bn ($934m), while revenue rose to ¥517.8bn, also comfortably ahead of forecasts. The results were supported by refunds of U.S. import tariffs that were later rescinded, alongside strong demand for titles including Pokemon Pokopia and Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream. However, investors remain focused on rising component costs, the impact of tariffs and the absence of a major flagship game release for the year-old Switch 2.

 

CNBC

The Japan Times

Reuters

The World Bank has called on developing countries to embrace AI tools to deliver better governance outcomes, warning that they risked being left behind if they failed to do so. "AI has thrown developing economies a lifeline, and they ⁠should seize it," Indermit Gill, the World Bank's chief economist said as the organization launched its annual World Development Report. "They do not need large models or big data centers to reap its benefits," he added. "By adapting small, low-cost AI tools to local conditions, they can ​bring better medical care, education, judicial services and agricultural extension within reach of millions . . . AI could significantly boost that performance before the end of the 2020s while delivering tangible benefits to people." The report calls for countries to use the technology to "help extend otherwise costly medical, legal, educational, and agricultural services to underserved billions - doing in a decade what might otherwise take a century."

 

France 24

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

China’s super-rich are "in shock" after Beijing issued a surprise tax on offshore trusts. The new rules impose a 20% tax at nearly every stage of a trust’s life. Families have until Oct. 22 to declare and pay tax owed on assets moved into trusts since the start of 2023. Offshore trusts have long been used by China’s tycoons to hold everything from pre-IPO stakes to family fortunes. “Many clients, trustees, and advisors are still in shock,” said Clifford Ng, a Hong Kong-based partner at Zhong Lun law firm. “This is a watershed moment for China-linked private wealth planning,” Kia Meng Loh, chief operating officer and senior partner at Singapore-based law firm Dentons Rodyk added. 

 

CNBC