UK Economy Beat: Britain’s GDP grew 0.4% in July, smashing forecasts and boosted by services and AI-linked computer programming, giving Chancellor John Healey a lift ahead of the next budget. EU Competition Watch: The European Commission “stopped the clock” on its investigation into the Subsea7–Saipem merger, pending key information, with a decision now potentially slipping. Middle East Energy Signal: Oil prices eased as hopes grew for talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while Europe watches how energy-route risk keeps feeding inflation fears. EU Cyber Rules: The Cyber Resilience Act starts landing this week, requiring firms to report actively exploited vulnerabilities to ENISA within 24 hours and follow up with fuller updates on tight deadlines. France Fiscal Strain: France cut its 2026 growth outlook to 0.5% and warned it will miss its deficit target, citing multiple shocks including Middle East fallout and heatwave-hit agriculture. Germany Politics & Business Mood: After AfD’s strong Saxony-Anhalt result, Turkish-German business owners report anxiety and a wait-and-see stance as governments form. Spain Weather & Retail: Storms brought deadly flooding across Spain, while Mercadona’s top egg supplier pledged €200m to phase out cages across its farms within four years. Digital Sovereignty: SAFENet doubled in size as Europe pushes for more sovereign cloud, networking and AI infrastructure.