Thursday Briefing: China’s stock market slump

By Justin Porter

Good morning. We’re covering China’s stock market slump and a U.S. setback in Niger.

Plus, a new Holocaust museum opened in a video game.

China’s stocks slump amid economic gloom

A recent stream of worrying economic data released by China is taking the fizz out of its stock market.

An index of Chinese stocks traded in Hong Kong has fallen more than 9 percent this month, and the Hang Seng Index is down a similar amount. The CSI 300, which tracks the biggest companies listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen, has dropped about 5 percent.

“The Chinese economy is faced with an imminent downward spiral with the worst yet to come,” analysts at the investment bank Nomura wrote in a report on Tuesday.

The People’s Bank of China has cut key interest rates to new lows, but critics say that the moves have not been bold enough. More distressing data arrived yesterday: Home prices have fallen in 49 of 70 major cities in the country.

Analysts said that the two biggest issues to address were the housing market and domestic spending, which has been hampered by rising unemployment, particularly among young people.

The outlook: Barclays cut its forecast for economic growth in China this year to 4.5 percent from 4.9 percent and said next year would bring even slower growth.

The coup in Niger upends the U.S. terrorism fight

With the help of 2,600 French and U.S. troops, Niger has managed to slow down extremist groups that have been rapidly gaining ground elsewhere in the Sahel region. Now the military takeover could force the U.S. to withdraw troops from the country and close drone bases.

The resulting security vacuum could embolden groups linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State, and would make it harder for military analysts to identify and quickly disrupt threats, U.S. officials said. In response to the coup, the Biden administration is weighing two main options: It could cut aid to Niger or seek an arrangement with the junta to continue counterterrorism cooperation.

It may not be too late: “The Daily” explains why Niger’s allies still think it’s possible to reverse the coup.

England ends Australia’s World Cup dreams

England defeated Australia 3-1 yesterday, meaning that the honor of claiming this year’s Women’s World Cup will fall to one of two new powerhouses, England or Spain, who will face off on Sunday.

On some level, though, this tournament has belonged to Australia, Rory Smith, our chief soccer correspondent, writes. The Matildas’s run will have what Alex Chidiac, one of its midfielders, called a “lasting legacy.” It may well be that this tournament come to be seen, a decade from now, as the beginning of a virtuous circle for Australian women’s soccer, and Australian soccer in general, in fact.

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THE LATEST NEWS

• Ukraine said that its forces had retaken the village of Urozhaine in the south, but the major port cities they hope to recapture from the Russians are more than 50 miles away.
• Germany is hesitating over supplying Ukraine with its long-range cruise missile, the Taurus.
• A cargo ship that had been stuck in Odesa since the start of the war left the port and set a course for Istanbul, despite Russian threats of attacks in the Black Sea.

• The death toll from the Hawaii wildfires is now at 106. DNA specialists have flown to Maui to help identify the dead.

• North Korea’s state media said that the American soldier that fled into its territory last month was disillusioned by inequality in the U.S.
• Thailand’s Constitutional Court dismissed a petition to renominate Pita Limjaroenrat as the country’s next prime minister.

• Germany approved a plan to legalize some recreational marijuana use.
• The Georgia prosecutor in the case against Donald Trump and his allies asked for a March 4 trial date. Experts say this is a stretch.
• New York’s governor criticized New York City for being slow to help the more than 100,000 immigrants who have recently arrived there.

• The British Museum announced that it had fired a staff member on suspicion of looting jewels from a storeroom.
• A glitch at a bank in Ireland triggered long lines at A.T.M.s after customers were allowed to transfer money without changing their account balance.

Metallica is on the road again, touring North America after the release of the band’s 11th album, “72 Seasons.” Lars Ulrich, the drummer, spoke about how each show’s set list comes together.

Metallica has been banging heads for four decades: How do you keep “Master of Puppets” fresh after you’ve played it 1,697 times onstage? This is Ulrich’s answer.

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ARTS AND IDEAS

A Holocaust museum in Fortnite

A virtual museum called Voices of the Forgotten opened this week, promising to teach visitors about the Holocaust. The tour guide’s avatar was dressed like Spider-Man, and some of the players wandering the galleries had their own wild outfits, or names like DoctorLlamaLord.

All of this was happening on servers belonging to Epic Games, the publisher of Fortnite, one of the world’s most popular games.

Epic Games now finds itself vetting sensitive topics that can become public relations fiascos with a single misstep. Despite the risks, some Holocaust educators are optimistic. With 70 million monthly active players on Fortnite, Voices of the Forgotten could be a blueprint for reaching young people who have grown up online.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Cook egg foo young, stuffed with meat and vegetables and smothered in gravy.

Read a romance novel that celebrates the hard work of love.

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Make sure you’re eating enough fiber.

Play the Spelling Bee. (If you’re stuck, the Bee Buddy can help.) And here’s the Mini Crossword, Wordle and Sudoku.

That’s it for today’s briefing. I’ll be back tomorrow. — Justin

P.S. Republican presidential candidates will hold a debate on Aug. 23. What issues do you hope they will discuss?

We like to hear from our readers. Send us your suggestions at briefing@nytimes.com.

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