Treasury doubles long-end buybacks, buying time for a strained bond market

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• Gaza strikes are testing a fragile ceasefire. At least 10 people were killed in two Israeli strikes, according to local hospitals and the Palestinian Red Crescent. Israeli troops also crossed the ceasefire line in southern Gaza and detained a Hamas police colonel, days after Jared Kushner reportedly asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reduce attacks. Netanyahu has said Israel will not withdraw from its current lines until Hamas disarms. 5
• China is turning humanoid robots into an industrial test. At Beijing’s World Robot Conference, Unitree showed robots boxing, dancing and playing table tennis as it made its Shanghai stock-market debut. Other models demonstrated moving components in factory-like tasks, while UBTECH brought several industrial robots. The shift from spectacle to deployment is the key commercial question for China’s fast-growing robotics sector. 6
• Indonesia seized about 2.6 tons of liquid methamphetamine at sea. Authorities intercepted a ship off Sumatra, found the drug hidden in eight drums and water tanks, and detained 10 Myanmar nationals. The seizure came less than two weeks after a separate operation confiscated 1.3 tons of ketamine, highlighting the exposure created by Indonesia’s long coastline and proximity to major shipping routes. 7
• Trump nominated Heidi Overton to lead the FDA. The White House aide would need Senate confirmation and would inherit unfinished fights over vaccines, abortion pills, e-cigarettes and peptide regulation. Her nomination places a politically aligned health official at an agency whose decisions affect drug safety, approvals and the biotechnology industry. 8
• Washington and Ottawa postponed a tariff confrontation, not resolved it. Trump delayed threatened 50% U.S. tariffs on $20 billion of Canadian imports for three days after claiming a last-minute deal. Canada’s Mark Carney described “substantial progress,” but important work remained, leaving businesses without the certainty of a signed interim agreement. 9
• The U.N. says drones are restricting aid work in Ukraine. Humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said marked vehicles have been hit and described the threat around Kherson as “quite chilling.” The U.N. is seeking more than $2 billion for Ukraine’s prioritized humanitarian response this year, with winter damage to power, water and gas systems a major concern. 10
• A Kenya safari helicopter crash killed seven people, including five Americans. The aircraft went down at 9:13 a.m. while flying from Loisaba Conservancy toward the Ewaso Nyiro area in Samburu County. Kenya’s aviation authority said an investigation was underway; the crash again puts safety pressure on an industry that relies on small aircraft to move tourists across remote terrain. 11
• Fed officials are keeping a rate increase on the table. Minutes from the July 28–29 meeting said many officials thought higher rates might be needed if inflation stayed elevated. Policymakers voted 9–3 to hold the key rate near 3.6%; investors now expect a September hold, but the path to December depends on upcoming inflation data. 4
• U.S. national debt crossed $40 trillion. Treasury data put the total at $40.05 trillion on Aug. 18, more than double its 2017 level. CBS reported that net interest costs approached $1 trillion in 2025 and are consuming a growing share of federal spending, making the long-end bond market’s ability to absorb new borrowing a central economic risk. 12

Quote of the day

“This increase in buyback operation sizes reflects Treasury’s desire to provide greater liquidity support in longer-dated nominal sectors where there is consistent strong sponsorship from market participants.”

— U.S. Department of the Treasury, explaining the purpose of the expanded operations. 1

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