* China’s economic slowdown will affect big US firms operating there
* China’s property woes deepen as property developer suspends trading of bonds
* China vows ‘forceful’ response to Taiwan VP’s US visit
* Smaller nations are being left behind in new world economic order
* US consumer sentiment mostly unchanged in August, near historical average
* “A default cycle has started,” says Torsten Slok, chief economist at Apollo
* Russian ruble falls to 17-month low vs. the US dollar
* Large-cap growth stocks (VUG) are crushing value shares (VTV) this year:

Clean energy transition proceeding rapidly around the world. “We look at energy data on a daily basis, and it’s astonishing what’s happening,” says Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency. “Clean energy is moving faster than many people think, and it’s become turbocharged lately.”