Friday Morning Briefing: Sessions hits back at Trump over Justice Department criticism

Highlights

Trump drew a sharp rebuttal from his attorney general after he gave a scathing assessment of Jeff Sessions as being unable to take control of the Justice Department.

China will keep hitting back at Washington as more U.S. trade tariffs are imposed, but its counter-strikes will remain as targeted as possible to avoid harming businesses in China - whether Chinese or foreign, Finance Minister Liu Kun said.

As the United States imposes an additional round of tariffs on $16 billion worth of Chinese imports, global trade relationships are changing in ways that could eventually leave American farmers out in the cold, writes Trevor Kincaid, who was the Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Public Affairs in the Obama administration.

The dollar fell today, set for its biggest weekly decline since March as markets braced for a speech by Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell for hints on the direction of monetary policy.

Increasing consensus at the Federal Reserve on the need to continue raising U.S. interest rates was on display at the start of a global central bankers meeting, as the longstanding distinction between so-called policy hawks, centrists and doves blurs in the face of falling unemployment.

Special reports

Frustrated by a string of defeats at the polls, a progressive wing of the Democratic Party pushes a populist platform across the country. Amid wins and losses, the movement aims to reshape a party in flux.

Once a hero to native peoples, Evo Morales faces growing opposition from the diverse ethnicities that made him Bolivia's first indigenous president. After clashes with native groups over development, and controversial maneuvers to stay in office, indigenous voters are now turning against him.

world

Despite serving a 12-year sentence for corruption, Lula is still calling the shots in his Workers Party and engineering another presidential run, underscoring his stature as the most popular modern political figure in Brazil.

Incoming Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison promised generational change in the warring Liberal party, seeking to end an internecine battle that has scarred the conservative government ahead of an election due by May 2019.

Reuters Top News  @Reuters

Two Reuters journalists have been detained in Myanmar since Dec. 12, 2017. See our full coverage: https://reut.rs/2yPnwus

1:27 AM - August 24, 2018
Philip Pullella  @PhilipPullella

Our preview on trip: When John Paul visited Ireland in 1979, contraception and divorce were illegal and Church influence on deeply conservative society was near-total. Francis will find an Ireland his predecessor might not have recognized as Catholic. http://reut.rs/2o0FaTD

9:53 AM - 24 August, 2018

Business

Shelved Aramco IPO hits at heart of Saudi prince's reforms

Saudi Arabia’s decision to shelve what was billed as the biggest share sale ever is a major blow to the credibility of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman but there are other ways to finance reforms to strengthen the economy, bankers and investors say.

7 min read

Delayed wages, lower profits: Chinese gaming firms fret as approval freeze bites

As the maker of family-friendly games like “Gardenscapes” and “Toy Blast”, iDreamSky Technology never expected to get caught up in a tangle with Chinese regulators. But the Shenzhen-based gaming company is enduring an unprecedented wait for over a dozen of its games to be approved for release in China, a situation it fears could impact profits this year.

6 min read

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