Russia responds to depleted uranium shells for Ukraine; China’s currency tumbles, and more

This is the world in brief from the Economist. Our top stories. Russia said that America's plan to supply Ukraine with depleted uranium shells was a criminal act. The Biden administration said on Wednesday that it would provide the munitions used in M1 Abrams tanks as part of a package of military and humanitarian aid worth $1 billion. Meanwhile, Yen Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary-General said that Ukrainian forces were gradually gaining ground in their counteroffensive. Ukraine claimed this week to have pierced Russia's first line of defense on the southern front. China's currency, the yuan, tumbled to $7.3 against the dollar, its lowest in 16 years, as the country's economy struggles to recover from the post-COVID slump. Data released on Thursday showed that China's exports had declined by 8.8% year-on-year in August, although that was an improvement from the 14.5% decrease in July. Shares in Apple fell by more than 3% on Thursday amid reports that China had banned the use of iPhones by state employees. China, one of the American tech giants largest foreign markets, already does not allow some government workers to use iPhones. But the new restrictions are reportedly more widespread. Apple's market value has dropped by more than $200 billion in the past two days. Peter Navarro, a trade advisor to President Donald Trump, was convicted of two counts of criminal contempt of Congress for failing to comply with a subpoena issued by the committee investigating the capital riot. He is the second Trump era official to be convicted for that offense. Last year, Steve Bannon was sentenced to four months in prison, he has appealed against his verdict. The Biden administration condemned, quote, hateful and anti-Semitic comments made by Mahamud Abbas, the Palestinian president in a speech he gave in August. A video of Mr. Abbas emerged on Wednesday in which he claimed that Hitler killed Europe's Jews for their, quote, social role. What he said were their predatory lending habits and not their religion. The EU's diplomatic service also slammed the remarks as false and grossly misleading. German industrial output fell by 0.8% in July, the third consecutive monthly decline. Weak demand for goods in China, labor shortages and higher interest rates have all contributed to sluggish factory growth, further weighing on Germany's struggling economy. Data published on Wednesday showed that industrial orders fell by 11.7% in July, compared with the previous month. Spain's top female football players announced a strike over pay, a day before the legal F season was due to begin. They initially demanded a minimum salary of 25,000 euros or 27,000 dollars, up from 16,000 euros, which the league refused. Male players currently earn at least 180,000 euros, according to the Spanish players association. The dispute comes as a sexism scandal has overshadowed Spanish football. And figure of the day, 291, the number of homes in East London blocked from being built by Britain's high court in 2021, in part to save a mulberry tree.