President Joe Biden has confirmed he will be adhering to his 31st August deadline to withdraw all U.S. military personnel from Afghanistan despite G7 leaders pushing for an extension, amid continued evacuation chaos in Kabul. With a month to go before Germany’s federal election, the SPD has pulled ahead of Angela Merkel’s CDU by a single point - the first time in 15 years. In market news, the S&P 500 posts its 50th record session this year ahead of this week’s Jackson Hole meeting of central bankers. And Beijing has accused Washington of attempting to drive a wedge between China and its Asian neighbours as U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris cranks up the diplomatic pressure during the second leg of her South-East Asian tour in Vietnam.   See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.