Open Editor's Digest for freeRula Khalaf, editor of the Financial Times, picks her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.Two state-owned banks in China are playing a crucial role in Thames Water's future, as part of a group of lenders involved in a standoff over debt at the parent company of Britain's largest water utility.Thames Water's immediate parent company Kemble Water Finance has a £190m loan that shareholders last week said they would be unable to repay when it falls due on April 30. The lenders, who have so far refused to extend the loan without an injection of new shares…
Author: ricardofrancois
When you reach the saving stage, your first thought may be to preserve the real value of your capital. This is most likely to happen when you're downsizing after a lifetime of investing, but it could also happen when you reach your first £10,000 or £100,000 of savings.The inflation attack on consumers has begun to ease. Some commentators, such as consultancy Oxford Economics, believe UK inflation is returning to its 2 per cent target. The Bank of England has recently made some optimistic comments, although it said it could not rule out another global shock that would keep inflation high.…
Paris-based startup Pigment has raised a $145 million funding round just five years after its founding. The enterprise software company offers a business planning platform so that large companies can visualize their past financial performance and forecast the coming quarters. This funding round comes as a bit of a surprise, as larger rounds have been few and far between in France. According to a recent study from EY, funding rounds in the French tech ecosystem fell by 38% in 2023 compared to 2022. But if you remove AI startups like Mistral AI and capital-intensive infrastructure that aren't actually tech startups…
France denies its willingness to talk to Russia about Ukraine (Reuters)France denied expressing its willingness to hold possible talks with Russia regarding Ukraine, refuting Moscow's account of a phone call that took place on Wednesday between French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu.The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that “readiness for dialogue on Ukraine was noted” and that “starting points could be based on the Istanbul Peace Initiative.”Such details were not present in the French readout, which showed Lecornu and Shoigu discussing the growing terrorist threat in the wake of the recent mass shooting…
A Model Y electric car is photographed during the start of production at Tesla's “Gigafactory” on March 22, 2022 in Gruenheide, southeast of Berlin. Leading American electric car manufacturer Tesla received the green light to establish its “megafactory” in Germany on March 4, 2022, paving the way for production to begin shortly after an approval process marred by delays and setbacks. (Photo by Patrick Pliol/Pool/AFP) (Photo by Patrick Pliol/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)Patrick Bliol | AFP | Getty ImagesTesla India will explore sites in India this month to set up an electric vehicle factory with an investment of up to $3…
Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up for the World myFT Digest – delivered straight to your inbox.Good morning. Today we're bringing you an exclusive story about a plan that could mark the biggest shake-up ever for Google's search business.The company is considering charging fees for new “premium” features powered by generative AI, people familiar with Google’s plans told the Financial Times. This will be the first time that Google, which for many years has provided free consumer services funded entirely through advertising, will make people pay for improvements to its core search product. Google is looking at options including…
One person was killed Wednesday after a car ran off the road in the Malibu Hills, authorities said.The fatal crash happened around 5:30 p.m. on Malibu Canyon Road near Adamson Flat, less than two miles north of the Pacific Coast Highway, according to the California Highway Patrol.The accident brought traffic to a halt in both directions on Malibu Canyon Road, a two-lane road that passes through the Santa Monica Mountains and unites Calabasas with Malibu and the Pacific Coast Highway.The road curves along the ridge and can be treacherous, with steep drops into the valley below. The trail has been…
Open Editor's Digest for freeRula Khalaf, editor of the Financial Times, picks her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.The writer is Global Head of Capital Markets Client Solutions at Northern TrustFor fund and investment managers around the world, every percentage point slice of return matters. For that reason, it must be prepared for what is known as “T+1” — an impending change to the rules governing business operations in the United States, Canada and Mexico, which would add unwelcome costs and hinder performance.In the age of smartphones, buying and selling financial instruments is a seemingly simple act. A few clicks…
Open Editor's Digest for freeRula Khalaf, editor of the Financial Times, picks her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.Abrdn shareholders have been urged by influential adviser Glass Lewis to vote against the asset manager's pay report due to the “substantial” salary of the new CFO.Glass Lewis noted that Jason Windsor's basic salary of £675,000 was 25 per cent more than his predecessor Stephanie Bruce received, and appears to be more than usual for such a position. The consultant said that although Windsor's base salary was the same as he had earned in his previous job, he believed “new executives should…
Weeks before India's national elections, Elon Musk's company The company posted that the first group of contributors from India will start publishing notes today and more will be accepted over time. Contributors usually post more context in posts to debunk a myth or add more information to improve context. These submissions are then scored based on their usefulness and accuracy and displayed to users. Musk renamed the old Birdwatch project to Community Notes when he took over the company in 2022. In December 2022, the social network rolled out the ability for people to see community notes related to posts…