FT News Briefing

Boris Johnson has commissioned an independent inquiry into the lobbying scandal involving David Cameron and Greensill Capital, and the $5bn-valued cyber security technology company, Darktrace, has set out plans to float in London. Plus, the FT’s US sports business correspondent, Sara Germano, explains why US states have suddenly embraced online sports gambling.  UK government to announce independent probe into Cameron and Greensill https://www.ft.com/content/ade87a61-b1e1-433a-a79f-25fc6b9a0aaf Mike Lynch-backed Darktrace sets out plans to list in London https://www.ft.com/content/01c49998-05d2-4ed4-b324-febfaef3a110 ‘The market is going bananas’: Governors back online betting to plug black holes in state budgets https://www.ft.com/content/bb04b14c-e215-4ae8-a655-2bf85fcb73c0? Virgin Atlantic boss warns on long-term hit to business travel https://www.ft.com/content/b8766e60-1a20-41ee-871d-6b97dbee71e8  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Former British prime minister David Cameron has admitted he made mistakes over his government lobbying for Greensill Capital, leading Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi is expanding its investment in chips, and Microsoft is on the verge of acquiring the voice technology pioneer, Nuance. Plus, the FT’s US equities correspondent, Aziza Kasumov, discusses US equities investors’ concerns about US president Joe Biden’s tax proposals.  Cameron admits mistakes as he breaks silence on Greensill https://www.ft.com/content/da2a2686-1efa-4fd4-bee4-79cc9d9a89a2 Huawei rival Xiaomi steps up chip ambitions amid US pressure https://www.ft.com/content/2fadf021-91c5-4553-aecd-33e4439e99ab? Wall Street investors look warily at gathering tax ‘storm’ https://www.ft.com/content/02f874f8-f5e3-4deb-908c-c709633821bb Microsoft nears deal to buy voice tech pioneer Nuance for $16bn https://www.ft.com/content/a36dd469-e521-4ce7-9351-ddc8f6b5cb42?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Amazon looked on course to defeat a historic effort by workers to unionise an Alabama warehouse, and companies and countries around the world are weighing the Biden administration’s global corporate tax plan. Plus, the FT’s markets editor, Katie Martin, explains Goldman Sachs’ purchase of £75m of Deliveroo shares after the UK food delivery group’s disappointing initial public offering last month.   Amazon vote count shows Alabama unionisation effort trailing https://www.ft.com/content/df3eeb04-d03e-4048-ab81-248c7a9fce4e Goldman Sachs bought £75m of Deliveroo shares to prop up IPO price https://www.ft.com/content/bf75f260-33d8-42ea-85c3-6482aa1fb2ff A grand bargain: how the radical US corporate tax plan would work https://www.ft.com/content/b358ebca-4097-4cd6-bc7f-8e9d8f069250  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The start-up that owns the biotechnology behind the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine has confidentially filed for an initial public offering in the US, Indian social media group ShareChat has raised more than $500m to grow its popular short-video app Moj, and Austrian activist Max Schrems has filed a privacy complaint against Google in France. Plus, the FT’s Washington bureau chief James Politi has details on the US’s offer to the rest of the world to tax multinational companies.  US offers new plan in global corporate tax talks https://www.ft.com/content/847c5f77-f0af-4787-8c8e-070ac6a7c74f Biotech start-up behind AstraZeneca vaccine files for US listing  https://www.ft.com/content/ff260c57-66f9-474b-9643-7640dc918009 ShareChat valued at $2bn in wake of TikTok ban  https://www.ft.com/content/3a5e44e2-b2c0-4f37-9c4a-f51c6ef46eb6? Max Schrems accuses Google of illegally tracking Android users https://www.ft.com/content/4617cc99-3ed2-49e1-b97f-db4f1b45b5db?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The EU drug regulator will launch an investigation next week into whether clinical trials of Russia’s Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine contravened ethical standards, and Japan’s national champion, Renesas Electronics, is being forced to diversify due to the pressures brought on by the chip industry. Plus, the FT’s Latin America editor, Michael Stott, explains how president Jair Bolsonaro lost his grip of Brazil.  EU regulator to probe ethical standards of Sputnik vaccine trials https://www.ft.com/content/50031165-1f46-446b-be9a-36d553805fec? Chip industry pressures spur Renesas to diversify https://www.ft.com/content/c583fe71-4556-4ef9-9367-a175a2033767 Brazil’s coronavirus nightmare: ‘Bolsonaro is more isolated than ever’ https://www.ft.com/content/55713895-2423-4259-a222-f778f9587490 Nematodes the latest casualty of post-Brexit trade glitches https://www.ft.com/content/888658ea-9b33-454e-bac5-c9d4a59eb201?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen is calling on other countries to join the US in setting a corporate global minimum tax, and bond investors who took big risks at the outset of the pandemic are enjoying big returns. Plus, the FT’s greater China correspondent, Kathrin Hille, discusses how a little-known chip company that dominates the global semiconductor industry is navigating political tensions.   Yellen calls for global minimum corporate tax https://www.ft.com/content/79023ff2-c629-429c-8a34-16bf68b4ea15 Investors scoop up huge returns from companies’ crisis-era bonds https://www.ft.com/content/2de01274-bf03-4788-ab94-c26189b9baea? TSMC: how a Taiwanese chipmaker became a linchpin of the global economy https://www.ft.com/content/05206915-fd73-4a3a-92a5-6760ce965bd9 GameStop shares fall after it announces plan to sell $1bn in stock https://www.ft.com/content/ddc11198-f162-484c-9131-a7a0b0346178?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The boom in Bitcoin mining is having an unintended consequence: it has driven up the cost of computer chips. Plus, the FT’s US-China correspondent, Demetri Sevastopulo, explains how China’s repressive treatment of its Uyghur Muslims is affecting Western brands who do business in the country.   Bitcoin mining boom adds to chip price inflation https://www.ft.com/content/d5c121c8-aefc-48d5-a3bf-6e581ccb5762 Western brands caught between US and China over human rights https://www.ft.com/content/a0be4094-2aba-4275-a3ca-ec5e58cc5032?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Wall Street touched a record high Wednesday as the White House released details of President Joe Biden’s multi trillion-dollar US stimulus plan, and the food delivery app, Deliveroo, closed down 26 per cent in its first day on the public market. Plus, the FT’s US labour and equalities correspondent, Taylor Nicole Rogers, explains why there are fewer black Americans in financial leadership positions than there were a decade ago.  Tech stocks power Wall St to record ahead of Biden stimulus speech https://www.ft.com/content/d7a93cb5-f9f1-485a-8b39-1e7a12a97790 Disaster strikes as Deliveroo becomes ‘worst IPO in London’s history’ https://www.ft.com/content/bdf6ac6b-46b5-4f7a-90db-291d7fd2898d Share of Black employees in senior US finance roles falls despite diversity efforts https://www.ft.com/content/887d064a-bd5e-4ce6-9671-9057e12bd5c7  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

 The head of the IMF has warned that the world should be ready for an emerging market debt crisis as the global economy emerges from the coronavirus pandemic, and Russia is using the Suez Canal incident to promote its own Arctic shipping route. Plus, the FT’s Mexico and Central America correspondent, Jude Webber, explains why Mexico’s citizens are willing to give president Andrés Manuel López Obrador a second chance.   Prepare for emerging markets debt crisis, warns IMF head https://www.ft.com/content/487c30f4-7f21-4787-b519-dde52264d141? Russia seizes on Suez blockage to promote merits of Arctic route https://www.ft.com/content/47b4cca2-b673-4763-95b4-555bd03a948a ‘In love with bad ideas’: López Obrador takes Mexico back to the future https://www.ft.com/content/b2537ad5-d72e-4b72-885b-01ceb543c253 Germany and Canada could host NFL games in 2022 season https://www.ft.com/content/12b7a706-cf5e-4623-997c-be0d04d68f27?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Biden administration is sticking with a Trump administration policy that will make it easier for US diplomats to meet with Taiwanese officials, and US companies say they are feeling the bite of inflation. Plus, the FT’s global finance correspondent, Robin Wigglesworth, explains why banks might be more careful with hedge fund leverage after the meltdown of Archegos Capital Management.  US to make it easier for diplomats to meet Taiwanese officials https://www.ft.com/content/05d67774-fdf7-41ae-b17e-a8f2fe8e9f6f? US companies sound inflation alarm  https://www.ft.com/content/f0bbed31-bea8-4542-b953-096762d2e59f Archegos poses hard questions for Wall Street https://www.ft.com/content/89b560ec-212c-4e82-b52e-c3e1408a9e6b   Volvo Cars revamps parental leave as it aims to increase female manager https://www.ft.com/content/aea0105b-b432-4f5c-8425-9fe78bddb5f8?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The private investment firm Archegos Capital was behind billions of dollars worth of share sales that captivated Wall Street on Friday, the head of the Suez Canal Authority has warned that there is no timeline for freeing the 220,000-tonne container ship that has blocked one of the main arteries of global trade, and Amazon workers in Bessemer wrap up a potentially historic unionization vote.  Traders brace after fire sale of stocks linked to Archegos https://www.ft.com/content/2542af81-9e93-4d05-a0b9-26c0f6aab6f3 Suez Canal head warns stricken cargo ship may need unloading https://www.ft.com/content/d452362c-b38d-4786-a2fb-14254df49dec The ultimate David and Goliath story: the fight to open a union at Amazon  https://www.ft.com/content/a7ee3ec0-f59d-4188-899f-34ceecf7f026?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

European leaders clash over vaccine distribution at a marathon virtual summit, holders of UK government bonds are suffering the worst quarter in at least two decades as Britain’s economic prospects brighten, Jack Ma’s Ant Group demands bigger fees to rebuild valuation after pulled IPO, and comfort foods like doughnuts and mac and cheese proved popular during the pandemic.  EU leaders clash over vaccine distribution in tense summit  https://www.ft.com/content/486a65fe-0608-4230-b9d5-c990f10d5be8 Investors in UK government bonds suffer worst quarter for two decades https://www.ft.com/content/0ea28218-7296-4b09-9cae-4b84a27a9e0c Jack Ma’s Ant demands bigger fees to rebuild valuation after pulled IPO https://www.ft.com/content/e6d0dffe-a691-484e-9c3e-434d1553a3d6 Pandemic comfort food offers too much solace https://www.ft.com/content/74497d5f-4bf4-4031-b424-b70a4547d23c?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

British and European officials on Wednesday issued a joint statement saying they’d discussed developing a “reciprocally beneficial relationship” to tackle Covid-19, after a top official in Brussels accused the UK of “vaccine nationalism”; a grounded container ship has blocked traffic in one of the world’s most critical shipping passages; and the rush to produce hydroelectric power in the Himalayas is adding to a crisis already exacerbated by climate change.  UK and EU move to calm tensions over access to vaccines https://www.ft.com/content/da800a0d-cd27-48d1-a06f-d0c49599c5d2 Suez Canal blocked after huge container ship runs aground https://www.ft.com/content/eec9f3a6-2817-45f5-b007-a290f3e530c6 Facebook says Chinese hackers tried to spy on Uyghur dissidents https://www.ft.com/content/70b94c78-474a-475a-b242-924f6b11929f Crisis in the Himalayas: climate change and unsustainable development https://www.ft.com/content/387f5b4d-69cd-45f6-b0fc-69d659381109 Nationwide to allow all office-based employees to ‘work anywhere’ https://www.ft.com/content/b4692568-0f60-4a32-9f86-fad222f319ff?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The escalation of a diplomatic row between the EU and China could imperil a market-access deal meant to be the cornerstone of future relations between Brussels and Beijing, Facebook’s CEO prepares for a grilling by US lawmakers over misinformation, and the Wall Street asset management group BlackRock has pushed for more diversity but now faces criticism for lack of an inclusive workplace.  Sanctions row threatens EU-China investment deal https://www.ft.com/content/6b236a71-512e-4561-a73c-b1d69b7f486b? Facebook: the billion dollar bot problem https://www.ft.com/content/5242c34f-f7fc-4005-9b49-49674cedeb71 BlackRock under pressure to live up to its promises on diversity https://www.ft.com/content/6476e681-4154-43a6-93e4-f5c86ae30dd9 The battle for the pub at the end of the world  https://www.ft.com/content/01fd588f-ad0a-4fe2-a370-78d1169fcd28  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Investor confidence in Turkey is shaken by the shock dismissal of the head of the central bank and the appointment of a new central banker with unorthodox ideas on how to tackle the country’s economic challenges, the increased production of the Covid-19 vaccine is creating shortages of other medicines, and Goldman Sachs bows to workplace complaints by junior bankers.  Turkey’s lira tumbles after Erdogan sacks central bank chief https://www.ft.com/content/6be3efd1-a8e9-47a8-abac-966db2d3cf93 Push to make Covid vaccines causes US drug shortages https://www.ft.com/content/b3ac261e-2675-4679-9356-53aa6d812ad7 David Solomon commits to Saturdays off for Goldman Sachs bankers https://www.ft.com/content/58ca979f-3110-4613-8f85-81d8704cd4ad  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.