FirstFT: Elite US Navy unit coaching for China invasion of Taiwan

Good morning. Right this moment we’re masking:

• The most recent on the 7-Eleven takeover bid

• How China ‘throttled’ its personal sector

• Nippon Metal and the bounds of American friendship

However we begin with an unique story: the US Navy Seal unit that killed Osama bin Laden in 2011 has been coaching for missions to assist Taiwan whether it is invaded by China, in response to individuals aware of the preparations.

Seal Crew 6, which is tasked with a few of the army’s most delicate and troublesome missions, has been planning and coaching for a Taiwan battle for greater than a yr at its headquarters in Virginia Seashore, about 250km south-east of Washington.

Whereas US officers stress that battle with China is “neither imminent nor inevitable”, the key coaching underlines Washington’s elevated concentrate on deterring Beijing from attacking Taiwan.

The US army has in recent times stepped up preparations for such an occasion, sending extra common particular forces to Taiwan for missions that embrace offering coaching for the Taiwanese army.

However the Seal Crew 6 actions are much more delicate as a result of its covert missions are extremely labeled. Right here’s what else we all know.

And right here’s what else I’m holding tabs on at present and over the weekend:

• Financial information: Japan publishes revised industrial manufacturing for July. China on Saturday reviews August retail gross sales, industrial output and the home value index.

• Central Asia: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Sunday begins a three-day go to to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.

How effectively did you retain up with the information this week? Take our quiz.

5 extra high tales

1. Unique: Seven & i Holdings has tapped Nomura to advise its board in preparation for a possible takeover battle with Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard, whose opening $39bn bid for the 7-Eleven proprietor was rejected. The appointment of Japan’s largest funding financial institution comes after Couche-Tard stated this week it remained “extremely centered” on the merger.

2. The European Fee has rejected presents by Chinese language electric-vehicle makers to regulate their costs in a bid to keep away from sharply increased tariffs. The choice to refuse the Chinese language carmakers’ presents comes forward of doubtless pivotal commerce talks between Beijing and Brussels subsequent week.

3. OpenAI will launch an AI product it claims is able to reasoning. The corporate stated the fashions will be capable to clear up laborious issues in maths, coding and science in a crucial step in direction of reaching humanlike cognition in machines.

4. Russia launched a serious counteroffensive to push again Ukrainian forces from its southern Kursk area, as Vladimir Putin warned that Moscow would take into account Nato nations “at warfare” in the event that they allowed Kyiv to make use of western-made weapons for strikes deep inside his nation.

5. Donald Trump has dominated out one other presidential debate towards Kamala Harris. The announcement comes two days after a showdown when the Republican former US president was rattled by his Democratic opponent. Right here’s what Trump stated.

The Huge Learn

Amid political and financial pressures, enterprise capital finance has dried up in China, prompting a dramatic fall in new firm formation. Founders and buyers harbour few hopes of a return to the glory years earlier than the Covid-19 pandemic, when the likes of Alibaba and Tencent took benefit of speedy financial development and the rise of cellular web to turn into globally vital tech firms. One Chinese language govt stated: “The entire trade has simply died earlier than our eyes.”

We’re additionally studying . . . 

• Nippon Metal: The Japanese firm’s doomed bid for US Metal through the election season presents classes on the bounds of American friendship, writes Leo Lewis.

• Rahul Gandhi’s US journey: With Narendra Modi on the defensive at residence, the chief of India’s resurgent opposition is being seen with contemporary eyes in Washington, writes John Reed.

• Indian supply apps: Reliance and Google-backed Dunzo is reported to have minimize employees amid intensifying competitors. Chris Kay explains the pressures on India’s supply market.

Chart of the day

The value of oil has tumbled out of its year-long buying and selling vary as buyers develop more and more nervous in regards to the impression of a slowdown on the planet’s largest economies on the demand for crude.

Take a break from the information

This yr’s annual FT Enterprise Authorized Leaders sequence examines how senior in-house legal professionals are responding to altering calls for — from maintaining with developments in synthetic intelligence to managing cyber threats and geopolitical danger.

Extra contributions from Gordon Smith and Tee Zhuo