Economy
France recorded 54,542 births in August
Insee’s provisional records show births in August 2026 were 1.6% lower than a year earlier.
NEWSVERUM / Global briefing
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Economy
Deaths in France rose 0.2% year on year in August
Insee recorded 50,440 deaths from all causes in August 2026; 2026 data are provisional.
Business
Hong Kong retail sales rose 5.6% in August
Hong Kong's retail sales value rose 5.6% year over year to HK$32.1 billion in August, according to a provisional estimate. Online sales increased 9.9% and accounted for 8.7% of the total.
Agriculture
Indonesia corn area and output rise in August, BPS estimates show
BPS reported 0.29 million hectares of shelled-corn harvest area and 1.74 million tonnes of dry corn at 14% moisture in August. September–November output is a potential estimate.
Agriculture
Indonesia estimates August rice harvest at 5.46 million tonnes of milled paddy
BPS estimated August harvested area at 1.08 million hectares and milled-dry paddy output at 5.46 million tonnes. The release labels 2026 figures provisional and gives a September–November outlook.
Economy
Indonesia reports 1.60 million foreign visitor arrivals in August
Foreign visitor arrivals rose 6.27% year on year to 1.60 million in August. Domestic trips reached 104.30 million and star-hotel occupancy was 52.52%, BPS said.
Economy
Indonesia records August trade surplus as exports rise 6.72%
BPS put August merchandise exports at US$26.61 billion and imports at US$23.06 billion. The January–August trade surplus stood at US$7.25 billion.
Economy
Indonesia’s August transport data show mixed passenger and freight trends
Domestic air passengers fell 3.43% month on month while international air passengers rose 7.25%. BPS also reported rail, sea and inland-water transport figures.
Economy
Italy’s unemployment rate reached 6.2% in August
Istat’s provisional estimate showed employment unchanged in August as unemployment rose 0.2 point to 6.2%.
Business
Italian retail sales volume fell 1% year on year in August
Istat said retail value rose 0.3% and volume 0.1% month on month in August, while annual volume fell 1%.
Economy
Japan's unemployment rate rose to 2.5% in August
Japan's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 2.5% in August 2026. Employment rose by 140,000 year over year while the number of unemployed people fell by 20,000.
Business
South Korea's online shopping rose 7.3% in August
South Korea's online shopping transactions rose 7.3% year over year to KRW 24.21 trillion in August. Mobile shopping reached KRW 18.90 trillion, while its share of the total fell 1.1 percentage points in a year.