China

China's State Council Order No. 841, which took effect 15 September 2026, establishes exit bans of six months to three years for Chinese citizens and entry bans of one to five years for foreigners under specified conditions including false statements and certain export-control violations. The regulation does not create a technology-worker-specific category, name particular nationalities or companies, or apply the timed entry bans automatically to those on countermeasure lists. Decision-makers operating across Chinese borders should assess exposure against the precise legal grounds defined in the 19-article text rather than broader characterizations circulating in commentary.

China's central bank reported that year-on-year growth rates for aggregate financing, M2, and renminbi loans all decelerated in August 2026 relative to both July 2026 and August 2025. M2 grew 7.5% year on year, down from 7.7% in July and 8.8% a year earlier, while renminbi loan growth fell to 4.9% from 6.8% in August 2025. Cumulative aggregate financing to the real economy reached 23.91 trillion yuan for January through August, a figure 2.64 trillion yuan below the same period in 2025.

China's August data showed industrial value added growing 5.2% year on year, up from 4.5% in July, while retail sales slowed to 0.4% growth, missing forecasts, and fixed-asset investment contracted 7.2% for the January–August period, worsening from a 6.7% decline through July. Property development investment fell 19.9% over the same period, and private investment dropped 10.1%, while high-tech manufacturing rose 16.7%. The NBS acknowledged a prominent imbalance between supply and demand but did not specify fiscal or monetary instruments to address it.

Japan's Liberal Democratic Party and Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party met in Tokyo on September 14, 2026, agreeing to strengthen party-level cooperation on Taiwan Strait stability, with discussions covering defense, economic security, and reducing dependence on China. The talks produced no signed agreements, working groups, or binding commitments; proposed mechanisms such as memorandums of understanding and cooperation on undersea cables and drones remain prospective. Separately, China's new exit-and-entry management regulation took effect September 15, prompting Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council to warn certain categories of travelers, though no official link between the regulation and the party dialogue has been established.