Good morning. Nvidia’s forecast signals slowdown. China’s campaign to ease the auto price war falls short. And Lego builds up its presence in Asia. Listen to the day’s top stories.

— Samantha Stewart and Dina Katgara

Close but no cigar. Nvidia slipped after giving a tepid revenue forecast for the current period, fueling concerns that a massive run-up in AI spending is slowing. A brighter spot: the company approved an additional $60 billion share buyback. Ahead of the earnings, Wall Street traders lifted the S&P 500 0.2%. Shorter-dated Treasury yields dropped as the curve steepened further amid political pressure on the Federal Reserve.

The food delivery price war is taking its toll on Meituan. China’s food delivery leader warned of major losses this quarter as it took on Alibaba and JD.com, in the most striking sign yet that internet rivals are threatening its longstanding dominance of a lucrative home market. Meituan issued the dire prediction after reporting “irrational competition” had all but wiped out its profit in the June quarter. 

Donald Trump’s levies on India are hitting exporters hard, with industry groups pushing for stimulus as they say they can’t survive without government support. The tariffs—which took effect Wednesday in Washington—are now among the highest in Asia, leaving Indian goods uncompetitive in the US market. After months of pressure from Trump, the Mexican government plans to increase tariffs on China as part of its 2026 budget proposal. Other Asian countries are also expected to face higher tariffs, a person familiar said.

Get ready for next month’s Fed meeting to be a “live” one. The central bank’s John Williams hinted at the possibility of an interest-rate move without saying what course of action he would support. On Lisa Cook, Scott Bessent repeated a call for Jerome Powell to conduct an internal review.

Getting a Covid vaccine in the US is about to get trickier. American regulators have approved updated versions, though a much smaller group of people will be eligible to receive them after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took aim at the shots. Pfizer and Moderna rose. And the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez is being ousted just weeks into her tenure, according to people familiar.

Deep Dive: Steeper Savings

China’s campaign to steer car companies out of a ferocious electric vehicle price war appears to be having a limited effect, with all of the nation’s top 20 auto brands either keeping discounts intact, deepening them or only slightly reducing them in July.

• Such a muted response to the government’s pledge shows how difficult it is to control the auto market as it battles overcapacity and lackluster consumer sentiment.
• Foreign automakers in China are taking more heed, as average sales prices for European luxury brands Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi all rose in July. That may be due to Beijing ordering banks to stop auto loan partnerships that paid kickbacks to dealers who then passed on discounts to buyers.
• Domestic EV maker Zhejiang Leapmotor said that while the campaign is beneficial for the industry, it won’t affect its pricing tactics. Others like BYD and Geely saw sale prices continue to decline. 

The Big Take

Opinion

A new China-buys-China narrative is taking shape as Beijing steps up its tech rivalry with the US, Shuli Ren writes. The success of AI chip designer Cambricon shows how to foster future national champions.