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Private astronauts in space and Nvidia reports Q2 earnings

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Private astronauts in space and Nvidia reports Q2 earnings

This article is an on-site version of our The Week Ahead newsletter. Subscribers can sign up here to get the newsletter delivered every Sunday. Explore all of our newsletters here

Hello and welcome to the working week.

One event worth keeping an eye on is set to happen high above our heads on Tuesday when the Polaris Dawn space mission is set to launch with billionaire Jared Isaacman and three others on board. The mission, privately funded by Isaacman and operated by SpaceX, is using the company’s Falcon 9 rocket and spacesuits.

The spacecraft’s crew are planning to attempt a spacewalk during their mission, which is predicted to last five days. If they pull it off, the crew will be the first non-government astronauts to complete a spacewalk. While mainly symbolic, the feat would be a sign of the increase in private companies that are making more ambitious plans for space.

Already this year we have had the first commercial space flight to successfully land on the moon. Elon Musk’s SpaceX is also an integral part of Nasa’s Artemis programme to return to moon as the global space race gathers pace.

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Back on solid ground, there are some headline acts to watch out for in this week’s company results, including chipmaker Nvidia reporting its second-quarter results on Wednesday. In the group’s first-quarter results it reported a staggering 262 per cent increase in revenue. At the time the company’s boss Jensen Huang told investors that Nvidia would see “a lot” of revenue from its new Blackwell chips that power generative AI models that the company unveiled in June.

Since then the chipmaker has become the world’s most valuable company, lost about $750bn in value, and then gained it all back. No matter what happens, Nvidia’s results will be one to watch. It will also be worth catching the results for CrowdStrike, the first since a software update by the cyber security group caused an outage for large companies including Delta. This will be the first chance for investors to see in detail how the outage affected the company’s bottom line.

One more thing . . . 

In the UK it has been a surprisingly pleasant summer with only a few dull days. But as August winds down this week, our weather is set to take a turn from better to wetter. The UK Met office is aware of this and on Thursday will announce storm names for 2024-25. Names can be suggested by the public but cannot start with the letters Q, U, X, Y and Z so that they are aligned with the US National Hurricane Center naming conventions. So, sadly, we will never see a storm Zane.

Key economic and company reports

Here is a more complete list of what to expect in terms of company reports and economic data this week.

Monday

  • Sweden: The central bank publishes the minutes from its monetary policy meeting

  • UK: summer bank holiday. Markets closed (not Scotland)

  • Philippines: National Heroes Day holiday. Financial markets closed

  • Spain: PPI for July

Tuesday

  • Hungary: Central bank interest rate decision

  • UK: British Retail Consortium Shop Price Index, giving a picture of the inflation rate of 500 of the most commonly bought high street products for August

  • UK: Britvic shareholders vote on acquisition by Carlsberg

  • Results: BHP FY preliminary, Bank of Nova Scotia Q3

Wednesday

  • Israel interest rate announcement

  • UK: Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Catherine Mann participates in the Central Bank Research Association annual meeting in Frankfurt

  • UK: Q2 GDP estimate for Scotland

  • Results: Bath & Body Works Q2, Prudential HY, Lego interim results, Nvidia Q2, Woolworths FY 2024, Royal Bank of Canada Q3, HP Q3, CrowdStrike Q2, Salesforce Q2

Thursday

  • UK: Resolution Foundation annual Living Standards Audit

  • US: Revised growth figures for Q2 2024

  • Sweden: Q2 GDP data

  • Results: Qantas FY preliminary results, Autodesk Q2, Gap Q2, Best Buy Q2, Dollar General Q2

Friday

  • India: GDP for Q1

  • Peru: Santa Rosa of Lima Day. Financial markets closed

  • Czech GDP Q2

  • Turkey: Victory Day. Financial markets closed

  • Kazakhstan: Constitution Day. Financial markets closed

World events

Finally, here is a rundown of other events and milestones this week.

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Monday

Tuesday

  • US: Scheduled launch of Polaris Dawn mission from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on board a Falcon 9 rocket

  • US: Two-day Intelligence and National Security Summit is held just outside Washington DC. Speakers include FBI deputy director Paul Abbate and the CIA deputy director David S Cohen

Wednesday

Thursday

  • UK: The Met Office announces its names for storms for the 2024-25 season

  • 75th anniversary of the Soviet Union testing it first atomic bomb. The same day is also the international day against nuclear tests

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

  • Azerbaijan parliamentary elections

  • Germany: Parliamentary elections in Saxony and Thüringen state

  • First day of autumn by the UK Met meteorological calendar

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Bill Clinton to testify before House committee investigating Epstein links

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Bill Clinton to testify before House committee investigating Epstein links

Former president Bill Clinton is scheduled to give deposition Friday to a congressional committee investigating his links to Jeffrey Epstein, one day after Hillary Clinton testified before the committee and called the proceedings “partisan political theatre” and “an insult to the American people”.

During remarks before the House oversight committee, Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of state, insisted on Thursday that she had never met Epstein.

The former Democratic president, however, flew on Epstein’s private jet several times in the early 2000s but said he never visited his island.

Clinton, who engaged in an extramarital affair while president and has been accused of sexual misconduct by three women, also appears in a photo from the recently released files, in a hot tub with Epstein and a woman whose identity is redacted.

Clinton has denied the sexual misconduct claims and was not charged with any crimes. He also has not been accused of any wrongdoing connected to Epstein.

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Epstein visited the White House at least 17 times during the early years of Clinton’s presidency, according to White House visitor records cited in news reports. Clinton said he cut ties with him around 2005, before the disgraced financier, who died from suicide in 2019, pleaded guilty to solicitation of a minor in Florida.

The House committee subpoenaed the Clintons in August. They initially refused to testify but agreed after Republicans threatened to hold them in contempt.

The Clintons asked for their depositions to be held publicly, with the former president stating that to do so behind closed doors would amount to a “kangaroo court”.

“Let’s stop the games + do this the right way: in a public hearing,” Clinton said on X earlier this month.

The committee’s chair, James Comer, did not grant their request, and the proceedings will be conducted behind closed doors with video to be released later.

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On Thursday, Hillary Clinton’s proceedings were briefly halted after representative Lauren Boebert leaked an image of Clinton testifying.

During the full day deposition, Clinton said she had no information about Epstein and did not recall ever meeting him.

Before the deposition, Comer said it would be a long interview and that one with Bill Clinton would be “even longer”.

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Read Judge Schiltz’s Order

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Read Judge Schiltz’s Order

CASE 0:26-cv-00107-PJS-DLM

Doc. 12-1 Filed 02/26/26

Page 5 of 17

and to file a status update by 11:00 am on January 20. ECF No. 5. Respondents never provided a bond hearing and did not release Petitioner until January 21, ECF Nos. 10, 12, after failing to file an update, ECF No. 9. Further, Respondents released Petitioner subject to conditions despite the Court’s release order not providing for conditions. ECF Nos. 5, 12–13.

Abdi W. v. Trump, et al., Case No. 26-CV-00208 (KMM/SGE)

On January 21, 2026, the Court ordered Respondents, within 3 days, to either (a) complete Petitioner’s inspection and examination and file a notice confirming completion, or (b) release Petitioner immediately in Minnesota and confirm the date, time, and location of release. ECF No. 7. No notice was ever filed. The Court emailed counsel on January 27, 2026, at 10:39 am. No response was provided.

Adriana M.Y.M. v. David Easterwood, et al., Case No. 26-CV-213 (JWB/JFD)

On January 24, 2026, the Court ordered immediate release in Minnesota and ordered Respondents to confirm the time, date, and location of release, or anticipated release, within 48 hours. ECF No. 12. Respondent was not released until January 30, and Respondents never disclosed the time of release, instead describing it as “early this morning.” ECF No. 16.

Estefany J.S. v. Bondi, Case No. 26-CV-216 (JWB/SGE)

On January 13, 2026, at 10:59 am, the Court ordered Respondents to file a letter by 4:00 pm confirming Petitioner’s current location. ECF No. 8. After receiving no response, the Court ordered Respondents, at 5:11 pm, to immediately confirm Petitioner’s location and, by noon on January 14, file a memorandum explaining their failure to comply with the initial order. ECF No. 9. Respondents did not file the memorandum, requiring the Court to issue another order. ECF No. 12. On January 15, the Court ordered immediate release in Minnesota and required Respondents to confirm the time, date, and location of release within 48 hours. ECF No. 18. On January 20, having received no confirmation, the Court ordered Respondents to comply immediately. ECF No. 21. Respondents informed the Court that Petitioner was released in Minnesota on January 17, but did not specify the time. ECF No. 22.

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Chicagoans pay respects to Jesse Jackson as cross-country memorial services begin

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Chicagoans pay respects to Jesse Jackson as cross-country memorial services begin

James Hickman holds a photo montage of the late Rev. Jesse Jackson before a public visitation at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

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Nam Y. Huh/AP

CHICAGO — A line of mourners streamed through a Chicago auditorium Thursday to pay final respects to the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. as cross-country memorial services began in the city the late civil rights leader called home.

The protege of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and two-time presidential candidate will lie in repose for two days at the headquarters of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition before events in Washington, D.C., and South Carolina, where he was born.

Family members wiped away tears as the casket was brought into the stately brick building. Flowers lined the sidewalks where people waiting to enter watched a large screen playing video excerpts of Jackson’s notable speeches. Some raised their fists in solidarity.

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The casket with the Rev. Jesse Jackson arrives before a public visitation at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

The casket with the Rev. Jesse Jackson arrives before a public visitation at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

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Inside, Jackson’s children, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Rev. Al Sharpton were among those who stood by the open casket to shake hands and hug those coming to view the body of Jackson, dressed in a suit and blue shirt and tie.

“The challenge for us is that we’ve got to make sure that all he lived for was not in vain,” Sharpton told reporters. “Dr. King’s dream and Jesse Jackson’s mission now falls on our shoulders. We’ve got to stand up and keep it going.”

The Rev. Al Sharpton speaks as Jesse Jackson Jr. listens after the public visitation for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

The Rev. Al Sharpton speaks as Jesse Jackson Jr. listens after the public visitation for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

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Jackson died last week at age 84 after battling a rare neurological disorder that affected his mobility and ability to speak in his later years.

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Remembrances have already poured in from around the globe, and several U.S. states, including Minnesota, Iowa and North Carolina, are flying flags at half-staff in his honor.

But perhaps nowhere has his death been felt as strongly as in the nation’s third-largest city, where Jackson lived for decades and raised his six children, including a son who is a congressman.

Bouquets have been left outside the family’s Tudor-style home on the city’s South Side for days. Public schools have offered condolences, and city trains have used digital screens to display Jackson’s portrait and his well-known mantra, “I am Somebody!”

People wait to enter the security checkpoint for the public visitation for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

People wait to enter the security checkpoint for the public visitation for the Rev. Jesse Jackson at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

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His causes, both in the United States and abroad, were countless: Advocating for the poor and underrepresented on issues including voting rights, job opportunities, education and health care. He scored diplomatic victories with world leaders, and through his Rainbow PUSH Coalition, he channeled cries for Black pride and self-determination into corporate boardrooms, pressuring executives to make America a more open and equitable society.

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“We honor him, and his hard-earned legacy as a freedom fighter, philosopher, and faithful shepherd of his family and community here in Chicago,” the mayor said in a statement.

Next week, Jackson will lie in honor at the South Carolina Statehouse, followed by public services. According to Rainbow PUSH’s agenda, Gov. Henry McMaster is expected to deliver remarks; however, the governor’s office said Thursday that his participation wasn’t yet confirmed. Jackson spent his childhood and started his activism in South Carolina.

Details on services in Washington have not yet been made public. However, he will not lie in honor at the United States Capitol rotunda after a request for the commemoration was denied by the House Speaker Mike Johnson’s office.

The two weeks of events will wrap up next week with a large celebration of life gathering at a Chicago megachurch and finally, homegoing services at the headquarters of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition.

Family members said the services will be open to all.

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“Our family is overwhelmed and overjoyed by the amazing amount of support being offered by common, ordinary people who our father’s life has come into contact with,” his eldest son, Jesse Jackson Jr., said before the services began. “This is a unique opportunity to lay down some of the political rhetoric and to lay down some of the division that deeply divides our country and to reflect upon a man who brought people together.”

The family of the Rev. Jesse Jackson arrives as Yusep Jackson wipes his eyes before public visitation at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

The family of the Rev. Jesse Jackson arrives as Yusep Jackson wipes his eyes before public visitation at Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in Chicago on Thursday.

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The services included prayers from some of the city’s most well-known religious leaders, including Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich. Mourners of all ages — from toddlers in strollers to elderly people in wheelchairs — came to pay respects.

Video clips of his appearances at news conferences, the campaign trail and even “Sesame Street” also played inside the auditorium.

Claudette Redic, a retiree who lives in Chicago, said her family has respected Jackson, from backing his presidential ambitions to her son getting a scholarship from a program Jackson championed.

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“We have generations of support,” she said. “I’m hoping we continue.”

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