🎙 One of the world's hottest trades came unstuck and hammered global markets last month.

On today's Big Take Asia, Shuli Ren, K. Oanh Ha and David Gura explain what the carry trade is - with a little help from some soup dumplings https://link.podtrac.com/jxfy2rhy

Gold is having a moment. The price has hit a fresh record in any major currency you care to name at some point this year. A standard gold bar saw its value rise to more than a million dollars for the first time.

Plus, the very rich are fueling a run on storage vaults to hold their gold bars. What’s driving this bull market in gold? Read more: https://bloom.bg/4cRrnok

📷: Akos Stiller/Bloomberg

Rail revamp: China signed an agreement Wednesday to revamp a Mao-era railway that will help landlocked Zambia, Africa’s second-largest copper producer, export the metal through Tanzania. https://bloom.bg/3z3eYjq

Port-access plan: Djibouti’s government expects Ethiopia to accept an offer for exclusive access to one of its ports, a proposal that’s aimed at defusing regional tensions triggered by Addis Ababa’s bid to regain direct access to the sea. https://bloom.bg/47cSkSc

Good business: South African business sentiment rose to an almost two-year high, underpinned by the return of sustained power supply, optimism about the economy and political certainty after May elections. https://bloom.bg/3MxeoO4

Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

It’s been more than a decade since Singapore’s dollar was last this strong against the US dollar, and the effects are being felt by everyone from importers to tourists. More here: https://bloom.bg/4cSUVlu

📷: Lauryn Ishak/Bloomberg

Gas prices: Nigeria is considering allowing billionaire Aliko Dangote’s refinery to set the price of the gasoline it sells, a move that’s poised to refashion the government’s control over what customers pay for fuel. https://bloom.bg/4g9gXDn

Smaller gap: South Africa’s current-account deficit narrowed more than expected in the second quarter as the rand price of exported goods and services increased more than that of imports. https://bloom.bg/3zirgV3

Chinese money: President Xi Jinping unveiled a raft of economic sweeteners for Africa, showcasing China’s commitment to strengthening its sway over a continent seen as key to his geopolitical ambitions. https://bloom.bg/3Xw1PZp

Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

“We’re building as if nobody’s checking on the demand.”

Building tall landmarks has long been a source of prestige and national pride for Malaysia's leaders. But Merdeka 118, the world's second-tallest building, could test the country's appetite for skyscrapers. Read more: https://bloom.bg/3XysQeQ

📷: Ian Teh/Bloomberg

Fuel subsidies: Nigeria is once again trying to end a costly addiction to fuel subsidies and wean itself off a reliance on imported gasoline, just as billionaire Aliko Dangote's local refinery starts to deliver a home-grown product. https://bloom.bg/3Xxmcp5

Trade balance: China's Premier Li Qiang signaled that his country is open to more businesses in Africa, comments likely aimed at fending off worries about a record trade surplus with the continent. https://bloom.bg/47dCIxX

Just transition: Germany is willing to help fund the 390 billion rand ($22 billion) that South Africa said it needs to incorporate more solar and wind power into the national grid and ensure its energy security. https://bloom.bg/3AQr4Nj

Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

Chelsea FC’s main shareholders are exploring their ownership of the English Premier League football club after little more than two years in charge, amid a deterioration in relations, people familiar with the matter said.⁣
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California-based private equity firm Clearlake Capital — Chelsea’s majority owner — and US businessman Todd Boehly are assessing whether they can potentially buy each other out, according to the people. Read more here: https://trib.al/F1XvzJK
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📷: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

Narendra Modi’s visit to Singapore just made global tech frictions between China and India more complicated. That and more in this week's free Singapore Edition newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3Xzo6pu

📸: Press Information Bureau, Government of India

Vaccine costs: The price of Bavarian Nordic’s mpox vaccine is set to become a key sticking point in talks to secure millions of shots for Africa, with the Danish company under growing pressure to lower its cost. https://bloom.bg/3TlbBv4

Renewables consolidation: Engie, the French utility that led a $1 billion buyout of a rival’s renewable energy assets in Africa last year, expects more deals to be seen in the industry across the continent. https://bloom.bg/3XheQF8

Energy investment: Namibia’s state-owned electricity provider has signed a pact with Chinese companies to build what will be the country’s biggest solar photovoltaic plant. https://bloom.bg/4efaTaS

Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

The iPhone 16 and 16 Plus will be available in new colors and get a customizable Action button that had only been available on higher-end models, Apple said during its “Glowtime” event. New Pro models, meanwhile, will get slightly larger displays and thinner borders.

AI was a major theme of the presentation, and the company hopes to use the Apple Intelligence software to entice consumers to buy upgraded devices, since customers will need a recent iPhone to handle the capabilities. Read more here: https://trib.al/Vyb7Ze9

African investments: Indian tycoon Gautam Adani's plan to invest in East Africa's busiest airport has been dealt a blow by a Kenyan court. Read why the $1.85 billion deal has been suspended — and what happens next. https://bloom.bg/4efsTBH


Spacecraft launchpad: Turkey has held talks with Somalia about setting up a spacecraft launchpad in the country to test-fire missiles and space rockets. https://bloom.bg/47jgHO4


Cocoa smuggling: Ghana’s cocoa industry regulator is negotiating to raise the price it pays farmers by 65% for the season that started this month in a bid to curb smuggling. https://bloom.bg/3XigS7L


Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

🎙 The future of Indonesia’s new capital initially looked bright. Now, Nusantara is plagued by delays and financing woes.

What went wrong? And when will it replace the sinking, congested current capital, Jakarta?

Listen to the Big Take Asia podcast: https://link.podtrac.com/jxfy2rhy

Protests disrupt: Flights were canceled, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded as Kenyan aviation workers strike against plans for Gautam Adani's takeover of airport operations at the nation's biggest airport in the capital Nairobi. https://bloom.bg/3XAyv45

Looting beans: Farmers in Uganda are taking desperate steps against thieves that loot coffee beans straight from trees — including night patrols and bees. https://bloom.bg/3zg1mRW

The debate: Former US President Donald Trump allowed himself to be distracted from his efforts to define Kamala Harris, while the vice president hammered her core argument during their debate that Trump was unfit for the job. https://bloom.bg/3ZiWQg4

Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

Fighting mpox: Bavarian Nordic's smallpox vaccine is moderately effective in preventing mpox infection after a single dose, according to a study in Ontario, Canada, where the shot probably helped curb a 2022 outbreak. https://bloom.bg/4ehPa1S


Art heists: Armed groups are reportedly looting priceless museum artifacts at "an unprecedented level" in Sudan, as a brutal civil war rages on. Fighters are taking away boxes of ancient statues and vases, with claims that they're being posted for sale online. https://bloom.bg/3Zt5kRI


Food access: Zimbabwe is considering culling elephants for the first time since 1988 and using the meat to feed people who have been affected by a crippling drought, a top minister says. https://bloom.bg/3MFYWiq


Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

Boeing factory workers are poised to walk off the job for the first time in 16 years after members of its largest union rejected a contract offer and voted to strike: https://bloom.bg/3B4ECFa

📸: M. Scott Brauer/Bloomberg

China will raise the retirement age for the first time since 1978, Xinhua news agency reports. Here's why: https://bloom.bg/4ghfJ9r

📸: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

Veteran minister: Pravin Gordhan, the anti-apartheid activist and two-time South African finance minister who won plaudits for standing up to Jacob Zuma during his scandal-marred presidency, has died. He was 75. https://bloom.bg/3Zkdufr

Naira slump: Nigeria’s currency, which has endured a volatile week, fell to a record low after dollar liquidity in the domestic foreign-exchange market shrank by nearly half. https://bloom.bg/3XH1e7h

Power for miners: Zambia’s biggest mines are turning to a surprising power source as the copper-producing nation battles an unprecedented energy crisis: South African electricity company Eskom, which until March faced its own severe deficit. https://bloom.bg/3MKcv0o

Sign up for our twice-weekly newsletter on where sub-Saharan Africa stands now — and where it’s headed at https://bloom.bg/3OsOf3y. Next Africa publishes every Tuesday and Friday

At Asia's largest annual oil conference, industry bigwigs gathered in Singapore to sip cocktails and influence the future of energy. Find out what went down in this week's free Singapore Edition newsletter: https://bloom.bg/4e88K16

📸: Serene Cheong/Bloomberg