| US prepares ban on Chinese, Russian car technology. Sri Lanka elects political outsider as president. Asian stocks are set to fall. Here's what you need to know today. The US Commerce Department is planning to reveal proposed rules that would ban Chinese- and Russian-made hardware and software for vehicles as soon as today, according to people familiar with the matter. Commerce has been meeting with industry experts in recent months looking to address security concerns raised by a new generation of cars. Many of today's vehicles are equipped with devices connecting them to the internet or cloud services, making them potential hacking targets. The move would include bans on the use and testing of technology for automated driving systems and vehicle communications systems, the people said. China's housing rescue package offers the best path for putting the country on track to expand around 5%, in the view of most economists, assuming it's deployed to maximum effect in the face of a real estate crisis expected to last as long as five more years. Among the policy options considered by 15 analysts in a Bloomberg survey, a more forceful implementation of the government-led plan was the top choice of a majority of respondents. The poll followed the release of data for August that deepened doubts over whether the economy will meet Beijing's annual growth goal. Asian stocks are poised to fall first thing as concerns over the health of the Chinese economy grow. US equity futures were steady. Contracts in Australia, Hong Kong and mainland China point to an early loss, while moves in Asia may be exacerbated by thin liquidity with Japanese markets closed for a holiday. The S&P 500 closed 0.2% lower on Friday following a quarterly options expiry. This week, factory activity and consumer confidence readings in Europe are due while Australia and Tokyo are set to release inflation data. Apollo Global Management has offered to make a multibillion-dollar investment in Intel according to people familiar with the matter. The move would be a vote of confidence in the chipmaker's turnaround strategy. The alternative asset manager has indicated in recent days it would be willing to make an equity-like investment of as much as $5 billion in the company, one of the people said. The development comes after California-based Qualcomm floated a friendly takeover of Intel, people with knowledge of the matter said, raising the prospect of one of the biggest-ever M&A deals. Sri Lankans elected a leftist political outsider as president, rebuking elites who bankrupted the nation and imposed stringent austerity measures backed by the International Monetary Fund following a financial crisis two years ago. Anura Kumara Dissanayake, popularly known as AKD, won 5.74 million votes after two rounds of counting in the country's first-ever runoff. He has vowed to reopen negotiations with the IMF over its $3 billion bailout, which came with spending cuts and tax hikes that proved deeply unpopular with voters. The ongoing strength in the Chinese yuan has opened the door for potential monetary policy adjustments by the People's Bank of China. While concerns over currency weakness and capital outflows have tempered the PBOC's actions, a more robust yuan — alongside the start of the Fed's easing cycle — may allow for greater policy flexibility. Although the medium-term lending facility rate is expected to remain unchanged this week, additional liquidity injections are likely. Asian equity markets appear primed for further gains despite recent weakness in US stocks, which faced pressure from rebalancing and options expirations. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, a noted hawk, stoked optimism for more cuts later in the year. Waller indicated he could support quarter-point reductions in both November and December, contingent on inflation trends and broader economic conditions evolving as expected. His comments, centered on easing inflation concerns, may be echoed by other Fed officials in the coming days. This sentiment continues to support emerging markets, provided the US avoids slipping into recession. Mary Nicola is a macro strategist for Bloomberg's Markets Live team, based in Singapore. | 
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