Joe Biden will catapult his climate change agenda on Thursday by signing an executive order calling for half of all new vehicles sold in the US to be electric by 2030 as part of plans to slash transport emissions. The US president will announce the target as he lays out plans to reinstate and toughen
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Employees of Archegos Capital Management face losses of about half a billion dollars after the value of a deferred pay plan set up by the firm crashed along with its other investments. The family office run by Bill Hwang is yet to release money it owes to former employees, who saw the value of their
Tencent has announced new restrictions limiting how long minors can play its online games after the Chinese internet group came under intense pressure from state media, which labelled the gaming industry a “spiritual opium”. In a social media post, the company said it was introducing the measures after “relevant authorities” requested greater protection of minors
Goldman Sachs has become the last of the big investment banks to raise salaries for junior staff in response to complaints about burnout from new recruits caught in a dealmaking boom during the pandemic. First-year analysts will now earn a base wage of $110,000, rising to $125,000 in their second year, according to people familiar
Pfizer raised the price of its Covid-19 vaccine by more than a quarter and Moderna by more than a tenth in the latest EU supply contracts as Europe battled supply disruptions and concerns about side effects from rival shots. The groups are set to generate tens of billions of dollars in revenue this year as
A leading US bond manager has warned of inflationary pressure from housing rental costs that could push interest rates higher and overturn a sense of complacency among investors. The comments by Dan Ivascyn, chief investment officer at Pimco, which has $2.2tn under management, comes after US 10-year interest rates eased in recent months to about
The eurozone’s four largest economies have emerged from their historic pandemic-driven downturns and returned to solid growth in the three months to June, according to data released on Friday. Germany, France, Italy and Spain all logged quarter-on-quarter expansions in output in the three months to June, and all but Germany outperformed economists’ expectations. Gross domestic
China’s securities regulator has sought to ease concerns among international investors and banks after tough new restrictions on private education companies sent shockwaves through markets. Regulators in Beijing held a call with executives from global investors, Wall Street banks and Chinese financial groups on Wednesday night, according to three people familiar with the matter. One
Apple, Microsoft and Alphabet said on Tuesday that their latest revenues and earnings had surged above the stock market’s already optimistic expectations, confirming that demand for their digital services and gadgets continued to soar as some countries began to emerge from the pandemic. Apple Apple’s profits almost doubled in its latest quarter to $21.7bn, as
Chinese tech stocks plunged for a third day as investor fears grow over a broadening crackdown by Beijing, with shares of Tencent falling the most in a decade after the internet group halted registrations for its flagship app. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng stock benchmark tumbled more than 5 per cent on Tuesday with the Hang
The British government is exploring ways to remove China’s state-owned nuclear energy company from all future power projects in the UK, including the consortium planning to build the new £20bn Sizewell nuclear power station in Suffolk, according to people close to the discussions. The change in mood at the top of government also affects proposals
The lending businesses of large US banks are doubling down on wealthier customers, as well-to-do Americans borrow to buy second homes, invest in the stock market and potentially lighten their tax bills. The combined value of loans made by the wealth management arms of JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley surpassed $600bn
US stocks ended Friday at a new high, reversing steep losses at the start of the week, as fears about the Delta variant of coronavirus were soothed by strong corporate earnings and continued central bank support for financial markets. The S&P 500 climbed 1 per cent, lifting the index’s weekly gain to 2 per cent
Eurozone businesses are reporting the fastest expansion in over two decades, fueling hopes of a rapid rebound this summer despite the spread of the Delta variant. IHS Markit’s flash composite purchasing managers’ index — based on a survey of eurozone businesses — rose to 60.6 in July, up from 59.5 in June. The rise indicates
Global investment banks are racing to redirect Chinese groups’ initial public offerings towards Hong Kong after new cyber security rules instituted by Beijing halted lucrative tech listings previously heading for New York. About 20 Chinese companies had publicly disclosed plans to raise $1.4bn from share sales in New York this year, Dealogic data showed. But
Google and Mukesh Ambani’s Jio are hoping to crack one of the world’s largest untapped smartphone markets, launching a device they hope will be cheap enough to convert 450m Indians on “dumb” handsets into smartphone users. The JioPhone Next, a successor to Ambani’s earlier-generation JioPhone, has been designed by the companies to run a custom version of
The European Commission is set to warn of increasing threats to judicial independence and to the fight against official corruption in Hungary and Poland, underscoring deep concerns within Brussels as the two countries seek EU approval for their recovery plans. A report from the commission into the maintenance of the rule of law, due on
Tokyo’s dreams of a trouble-free run-up to Friday’s Olympic opening ceremony have been shattered by a tally of Covid-19 infections, an alleged rape, a bullying scandal and a vanished weightlifter. Just four days before the start of what the head of the International Olympic Committee has described as “the most complex” games ever held, organisers
Costs at the top US banks jumped more than $6.6bn, or 10 per cent, in the most recent quarter compared with the same period of last year as executives paid up for talent and technology to fortify their businesses against increasing competition from nearly every angle. The increase in spending at JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs,
The US is experiencing a “pandemic of the unvaccinated”, the head of the country’s top public health agency warned, as new coronavirus cases have jumped 70 per cent in the past week. More than 33,000 infections were reported across the US on Thursday, Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said
The death toll from heavy flooding in western Germany rose to 81 on Friday and more than 1,000 residents are believed to be missing in one of the country’s most destructive natural disasters in years. Officials in the Ahrweiler district, south of Cologne, said about 1,300 people appeared to be missing as of Thursday night.
The pace of China’s economic recovery rose modestly in the second quarter after signs of sluggishness in the world’s second-biggest economy stoked expectations of greater policy support. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, China’s gross domestic product expanded 1.3 per cent in the three months to the end of June, up from a 0.4 per cent expansion
Global holdings of Chinese stocks and bonds have surged about 40 per cent to more than $800bn over the past year as investors bought assets at a record pace in spite of souring relations between Beijing and the international community. The drive into China’s markets by global investors has come despite tensions between Beijing and
The Biden administration will this week warn US companies of the increasing risks of operating in Hong Kong as China asserts greater control over the financial hub. According to three people familiar with the message, those threats include the Chinese government’s ability to gain access to data that foreign companies store in Hong Kong and
The rapid spread of the Delta coronavirus variant is causing economists to worry that Europe’s brightening economic outlook risks being undermined by rising infection levels and the reintroduction of travel and social restrictions. The lifting of most lockdown measures across the region in recent months has led to a surge in business activity, retail spending
The world’s largest economies have thrown their weight behind a global tax reform deal that would impose a minimum levy on multinational corporations, ramping up pressure on a small number of holdout countries to sign up to the agreement. G20 economy ministers and central bankers meeting in Venice on Saturday issued a joint communique endorsing
The world’s largest economies will this weekend pile pressure on to holdout nations which are refusing to sign up to a global tax reform deal that would impose a minimum levy on multinational corporations. G20 economy ministers and central bankers met in Venice on Friday to discuss the proposal, which was agreed by G7 nations
A top Federal Reserve official has warned the spread of the Delta coronavirus variant and low vaccination rates in some parts of the world poses a threat to the global recovery as she urged caution in removing monetary support for the US economy. “I think one of the biggest risks to our global growth going
Some of America’s biggest oil groups are racking up tens of billions of dollars in hedging losses despite soaring crude prices, as contracts signed during last year’s crash leave them selling their output at deeply discounted prices. Oil is trading near six-year highs of around $75 a barrel, but almost a third of the US’s
The Delta variant of Covid-19 and a surge in infections among younger, unvaccinated people have catapulted Spain’s coronavirus rate to the highest in mainland Europe, according to Financial Times research. Infection rates in the country have rocketed over the past week, surpassing both Portugal and Russia, with the seven-day rate almost tripling from 58 cases