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The UK prime minister will reportedly call a snap poll if parliament forces him to seek a Brexit extension from Brussels. Pictured: Boris Johnson speaks during the G7 summit in Biarritz, France, 25 August 2019. Photo credit: Office of the Prime Minister 

Johnson threatens October election

The British PM Boris Johnson said there were “no circumstances” where we would ask the EU for another Brexit delay. Rebels in his own Conservative party and the opposition Labour party are pushing a bill that would force the PM to seek an extension to 31 January 2020 if no deal is signed with the EU before then. Downing Street said Johnson would call a general election for 14 October if the bill passes next week. Sources: BBC, Bloomberg, Financial Times, Deutsche Welle and the Guardian.

Lam expresses regret for creating “unforgivable havoc” over extradition bill

Hong Kong’s embattled chief executive, Carrie Lam, said in a private meeting‎ with businesspeople that she would resign and apologise for starting the region’s current political crisis “if I have a choice,” but that‎ her “political room for manoeuvring is very, very, very limited,” according to Reuters‎. At a press conference later, Lam did not deny the Reuters report but said she had not tried to step down, reported the BBC and Guardian. Meanwhile, Monday was the first day of the school year on Hong Kong but an estimated 10,000 secondary students skipped class to participate in various pro-democracy protests, per the AFP and South China Morning Post.
First Dorian deaths confirmed

Hurricane Dorian has killed at least 5 people in the Bahamas.

Sources: BBC, Deutsche Welle and Reuters.

Deadly boat blaze near Santa Barbara

At least 8 people were killed and 26 are missing after a fire on a scuba diving boat off the coast of southern California. Sources: Deutsche Welle, the Guardian and Los Angeles Times.

Mersch blasts Facebook digital coin plans

Yves Mersch, an executive board member of the European Central Bank, called Facebook’s proposed libra cryptocurrency “beguiling but treacherous” and warned that it “could reduce the ECB’s control over the euro”. Sources: Marketwatch, Reuters and the Telegraph.

Deutsche boss “putting my money where my mouth is”

Christian Sewing, CEO of Deutsche Bank, will spend 15% of his net monthly salary buying shares in the troubled firm through 2022. Sources: City AM, Financial Times and Reuters.

China files WTO case against US

Beijing has lodged a complaint before the WTO against Washington over US import duties, saying they violate a previous agreement. US officials say WTO rules do not apply. Sources: CBC, The Hill and Reuters.

New chair at Saudi Aramco

Saudi Arabia named the head of its sovereign wealth fund as the new chairman of Aramco, replacing its energy minister, in a bid to improve governance ahead of the state-run oil giant’s expected IPO. Sources: AFP, Financial Times and Reuters.

Argentine peso rebounds

Argentina’s currency strengthened after its government imposed currency controls on Sunday. Sources: Bloomberg, Deutsche Welle and Financial Times.

Agenda

Tuesday 3 September, 8pm: Thai boxing open house in Beggen. Wednesday 4 September, 5:45pm: Botanical walking tour of Kirchberg. Wednesday 4 September, 6:30pm: “Founder Night Out: Network with Luxembourg City Entrepreneurs” at The Office City. Thursday 5 September, 6:30pm: House 17 hosts an “expat apéro”. Saturday 7 September, 12noon: International School of Luxembourg’s welcome back festival. Monday 16 September, 9am: 2nd Ukraine-Luxembourg Technology Forum.

Here are 4 finance & economy stories you may have missed

Brexit, part 1: Investors have withdrawn $4.2bn from UK equity funds since Theresa May announced that should step down as British PM in May 2019, and a total of $29.7bn since the Brexit referendum in 2016, per EPFR figures cited by the Financial Times. Brexit, part 2: UK home prices will decline 6% in 2020 and could go down by 10%-20% in case of a hard Brexit, per a KPMG report covered by the Guardian. Top pickers: Citywire Selector profiled the four oldest fund managers running more than $1bn, while Citywire highlighted the youngest portfolio managers running more than $1bn in funds. Human resources: The private bank Kleinwort Hambros started a recruitment initiative to attract mums looking to re-enter the workforce after taking extended family leave, per Citywire.

Canadian carrier “violated their linguistic rights”

Air Canada was ordered to pay a French-speaking couple $15,700 and issue a written apology for not giving French sufficient prominence on board a domestic flight. Sources: AFP, BBC and CBC.

Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald