View in Browser

Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Welcome to the Weekend Briefing; I'm covering for Robert today. We have the latest on wildfires around the world, take a look at China's ailing economy, and I recommend a few of our excellent long reads from this week.

Smoke from a wildfire in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, August 16, 2023. NASA EARTH OBSERVATORY/Handout

Wildfire season is getting longer

Evacuations: Canada's western province of British Columbia declared a state of emergency as firefighters battled wildfires, forcing thousands of evacuations. On the Spanish island of Tenerife more people were evacuated from their homes as a wildfire raging in the north of the island remained out of control.
Hawaii wildfire victims: As officials name those who died in the wildfires that scorched Maui, an early pattern has emerged: Many who perished were over the age of 65.

China's darkening economic outlook

Stock market stability: China's securities regulator unveiled a package of measures aimed at reviving a stock market that has slid to nine-month lows, but investors said they would do little to boost confidence if the economy remains sluggish.
The big question: As anxiety grows over China's worsening property crisis and its impact on the weakening economy, there are fears of contagion, and some are asking why is China not rushing to fix its ailing economy?

COVID-19

Strife and discord: Named for the Greek goddess Eris, the newest COVID variant has seen a rise in hospitalizations and infections in the US, Europe, and Asia. The good news is that upcoming vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna have proven effective against the variant in studies.
New lineage: The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that it was tracking BA.2.86, a new, highly mutated lineage of the virus that causes COVID. The World Health Organization announced it would be monitoring it.

2024 US Election

DeSantis' backers: America's top conservative think tank, the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, has emerged as a force behind the Ron De Santis presidential campaign.
First strike: President Joe Biden's re-election campaign will use next week's Republican debate in the battleground state of Wisconsin to engage thousands of social media volunteers and launch their first advertising campaign aimed at Black and Latino voters, according to a Democratic official.

Before I forget...

Drug cartels are using remittances to send illicit earnings back to Mexico. They're hiring armies of people on both sides of the border to move small sums to narcotics kingpins, authorities say. Reuters visited Sinaloa for this special report.

Afghanistan's Taliban marked the second anniversary of their return to power, celebrating their takeover of Kabul. Reuters Editor-in-Chief Alessandra Galloni reflects on the challenges of evacuating reporters and their families out of Kabul as the situation there deteriorated. Listen now on a special weekend episode of Reuters World News.

Some of the world's biggest advertisers, from food giant Nestle to consumer goods multinational Unilever are experimenting with using generative AI software like ChatGPT and DALL-E to cut costs and increase productivity, executives say.

President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol made several pledges in an historic Camp David meeting and issued a sharp rebuke to China.

"I am evil I did this" was written on a note penned by British nurse Lucy Letby. Letby was found guilty of murdering seven newborn babies and trying to kill another six in the neonatal unit of a hospital in northwest England where she worked.

Paris will ban pony rides for children in its public parks from 2025 following a campaign by animal rights activists who argue that the ponies are not well treated. Pony rides have been a popular feature in Paris parks for decades.

And finally, as the Women's World Cup tournament draws to a close, we look at some of the best photos of the action.

Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content.

Weekend Briefing is sent once a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here.