Aurelia Butler

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Standard DigitalWeekend Print + Standard Digitalwasnow $75 per monthComplete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders. Pay a year upfront and save 20%.What’s included Global news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts10 monthly gift articles to shareGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionEverything in PrintWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisPlusEverything in Premium DigitalEverything in Standard DigitalGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresFirstFT newsletterVideos & PodcastsFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit app10 gift articles per monthExclusive FT analysisPremium newslettersFT Digital Edition10 additional gift articles per monthMake and share highlightsFT WorkspaceMarkets data widgetSubscription ManagerWorkflow integrationsOccasional readers go freeVolume discountFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Standard DigitalFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Premium Digital More

Standard DigitalWeekend Print + Standard Digitalwasnow $85 per monthBilled Quarterly at $199. Complete digital access plus the FT newspaper delivered Monday-Saturday.What’s included Global news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts10 monthly gift articles to shareGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionEverything in PrintWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisPlusEverything in Premium DigitalEverything in Standard DigitalGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresFirstFT newsletterVideos & PodcastsFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit app10 gift articles per monthExclusive FT analysisPremium newslettersFT Digital Edition10 additional gift articles per monthMake and share highlightsFT WorkspaceMarkets data widgetSubscription ManagerWorkflow integrationsOccasional readers go freeVolume discountFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Standard DigitalFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Premium Digital More

1. PCE data ahead this weekThe Fed’s preferred inflation gauge — the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index — due on Friday will be closely watched for clues about the direction of interest rates over the rest of the year.The data comes as markets are becoming resigned to the higher-for-longer interest rate narrative after last week’s Fed minutes, along with cautious sounding remarks from policymakers who expressed doubt whether inflation is indeed on a sustainable downward trajectory to its stated 2% target level.Investors will get the chance to hear more from several Fed speakers during the week, including Governor Michelle Bowman, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, Governor Lisa Cook, New York Fed President John Williams and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic.The economic calendar also features revised data on first quarter economic growth on Thursday and the Fed’s Beige Book — a summary of economic conditions in the U.S. — on Wednesday.2. ECB’s Lane says central bank ready to start slashing rates – FTThe European Central Bank is now in a position to begin cutting interest rates down from a record high of 4% at its upcoming policy meeting next week, the ECB’s chief economist Philip Lane told the Financial Times.Speaking in an interview with the FT, Lane said that “barring major surprises, at this point in time there is enough in what we see to remove the top level of restriction.”Spurred on by data showing inflation in the euro zone nearing the ECB’s 2% target, markets are widely betting that the central bank will lower its benchmark deposit rate by 25 basis points at its June 6 gathering.While such a move would echo similar cuts by central banks in countries like Switzerland and Sweden, it would come before other major economies. The Fed and the Bank of England are not tipped to reduce rates until later this year, and investors are wagering that the Bank of Japan could continue to increase them.Lane suggested that prices in the bloc may have cooled faster than in other economies because it was heavily impacted by a short-term spike in energy costs following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.Economists predict that May inflation data out of the euro zone on Friday will show that prices ticked up at a faster annual rate than in the prior month, while the underlying figure is seen remaining at the same year-on-year pace. Investors will likely be keen to see if these numbers will factor in to how the ECB approaches further potential cuts.3. Asian stocks edge higher, more rate cues awaitedMost Asian stocks advanced on Monday, recovering some ground from losses seen last week, amid anticipation over more cues on U.S. inflation and interest rates in the coming days. Regional markets took some positive cues from a strong close on Wall Street on Friday, as gains in technology stocks helped the Nasdaq Composite close at an all-time high.China’s Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite indices both jumped. Data on Monday showed Chinese industrial profits grew at a steady pace in April from the prior month, signaling steady improvement in one of the country’s biggest industries. But easing optimism over recent stimulus measures from Beijing kept gains in Chinese markets limited.4. Proxy advisor Glass Lewis recommends Tesla shareholders vote against Musk pay package – reportsProxy advisory group Glass Lewis has recommended that Tesla’s shareholders reject a proposed multi-billion dollar compensation package for Chief Executive Elon Musk at the electric carmaker’s upcoming meeting next month, media reports have said.Glass Lewis called the pay agreement, which was recently valued at $46 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal, “excessive” on both a “pure dollar basis and in terms of the dilutive effect upon exercise.” In a 71-page report over the weekend, the advisor added that Tesla’s “provided rationale does little to combat” these concerns.Tesla’s board of directors had originally approved a pay package worth around $55.8 billion in 2018, although it was voided by a judge in the U.S. state of Delaware in January. Last month, the company re-proposed an agreement that includes a 10-year grant of stock options.The large size of Musk’s potential compensation is justified by Tesla hitting ambitious revenue and stock price targets during his tenure at the helm of the company, Tesla’s board chair Robyn Denholm told Reuters earlier this month.5. Oil prices riseOil prices were higher in European trade on Monday as traders awaited more cues on U.S. inflation and a meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries this week.Brent oil futures expiring in July rose 0.1% to $82.21 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude futures moved up 0.2% to $77.39 a barrel by 03:27 ET (07:27 GMT).Trading volumes are expected to be limited with market holidays in the U.S. and the U.K.Both contracts edged down over 2% each last week due in part to fears that higher for longer interest rates in the U.S. could dent demand in the world’s largest crude consumer. Data showing an unexpected build in U.S. inventories also weighed on crude. More

PARIS (Reuters) – France is banking on a new push to integrate the European Union’s fragmented capital markets to give them the scale needed to wean its flourishing startup sector off of dominant U.S. venture capital, ministers, CEOs and investors said.A hodgepodge of local regulations and oversight has kept Europe’s financial markets largely shaped by national borders, preventing the emergence of deep capital markets to rival the United States.For startups in France and elsewhere in European Union that means they almost inevitably turn to U.S. venture capital – private equity funding of early stage promising companies – to fund growth as there simply is not enough big investors at home.While the U.S. funding is welcome, the result is a missed opportunity for Europe, said Matthieu Rouif, CEO of French startup Photoroom, which recently raised $43 million from UK fund Balderton and Silicon Valley’s Y Combinator.”A huge amount of wealth has been created over the past 20 years, created off the back of tech innovation, and the fact Europeans don’t have access to that is a big issue,” he said at the Viva Technology fair in Paris last week.The 10 biggest venture capital firms are all from the United States and dwarf their European rivals in the amounts of money they can raise for investment, according to the French central bank.A report published by venture capital firm Atomico in 2023 estimated European startups would raise $45 billion that year, compared to the $120 billion raised in the U.S.The French government is therefore pushing for the next European Commission to make a priority of reviving long-stalled plans for EU capitals market union harmonising financial regulations and supervision across the 27-nation bloc.While a consensus is emerging among EU governments to move ahead at least in principle, in practice some remain reluctant to lose regulatory control of their financial markets.French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire warned that Europe could not afford to keep dithering, citing the example of Mistral AI, France’s answer to OpenAi.”Mistral needs to raise money in the next six months, it’s going to be a lot of money. So either we move ahead with capital markets union or else they will go somewhere else,” Le Maire said at the Paris tech fair. Another way to scale up EU venture capital would be to get public sector investors, such as the European Investment Bank, more involved in financing startups by accepting more risk than private investors, Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau said.Meanwhile, for European venture capital firms, a single unified market would make it more attractive to float the companies they fund in Europe rather than the United States.”As a French citizen, it’s a shame to see that the value creation flywheel isn’t spinning as fast in Europe as it is in the U.S.,” said Antoine Moyroud at Silicon Valley venture capital fund Lightspeed, which is one of Mistral’s investors.European startups that end up floating on markets at home could also expect a more stable investor base than in the United States, where investors are more likely to sell down holdings in foreign firms during a downturn, said Louis Dussart with venture capital group RTP Global.”It would truly be a pivotal moment if we could establish Europe as an attractive place to exit and bring liquidity back into the ecosystem,” Dussart said. More

Standard DigitalWeekend Print + Standard Digitalwasnow $85 per monthBilled Quarterly at $199. Complete digital access plus the FT newspaper delivered Monday-Saturday.What’s included Global news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts10 monthly gift articles to shareGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionEverything in PrintWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisPlusEverything in Premium DigitalEverything in Standard DigitalGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresFirstFT newsletterVideos & PodcastsFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit app10 gift articles per monthExclusive FT analysisPremium newslettersFT Digital Edition10 additional gift articles per monthMake and share highlightsFT WorkspaceMarkets data widgetSubscription ManagerWorkflow integrationsOccasional readers go freeVolume discountFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Standard DigitalFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Premium Digital More

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.The European Central Bank has sent a clear signal that it will cut interest rates from their historic highs next week, as its chief economist brushed off fears that doing so before the US Federal Reserve could backfire.The ECB now looks almost certain to be one of the first major central banks to cut rates, having been criticised for being one of the last to raise them after the biggest inflation surge for a generation three years ago.Philip Lane told the Financial Times in an interview ahead of the bank’s landmark June 6 meeting: “Barring major surprises, at this point in time there is enough in what we see to remove the top level of restriction.”Investors are betting heavily that the ECB will lower its benchmark deposit rate by a quarter percentage point from its record high of 4 per cent at next week’s meeting after Eurozone inflation fell close to the bank’s 2 per cent target.The Swiss, Swedish, Czech and Hungarian central banks have already reduced the cost of borrowing this year in response to falling inflation. But among the world’s major economies, the Fed and Bank of England are not expected to cut rates before the summer and the Bank of Japan is considered more likely to continue raising them.Asked if he was proud that the ECB was in a position to cut rates earlier than others, Lane said: “Central bankers aspire to be as boring and I would hope central bankers aspire to have as little ego as possible.”He added that a key reason why inflation had fallen faster in the Eurozone than the US was because the region had been hit harder by the energy shock triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Dealing with the war and the energy problem has been costly for Europe,” he said.“But in terms of that first step [in starting to cut rates] that is a sign that monetary policy has been delivering in making sure that inflation comes down in a timely manner. In that sense, I think we have been successful.”Lane said ECB policymakers needed to keep rates in restrictive territory this year to ensure that inflation kept easing and did not get stuck above the bank’s target, which he warned “would be very problematic and probably quite painful to eliminate”.However, he said the pace at which the central bank lowered Eurozone borrowing costs this year would be decided by assessing data to decide “is it proportional, is it safe, within the restrictive zone, to move down”. Philip Lane: ‘Central bankers aspire to be as boring as possible’ More

Standard DigitalWeekend Print + Standard Digitalwasnow $85 per monthBilled Quarterly at $199. Complete digital access plus the FT newspaper delivered Monday-Saturday.What’s included Global news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts10 monthly gift articles to shareGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit appFirstFT: the day’s biggest stories20+ curated newslettersFollow topics & set alerts with myFTFT Videos & Podcasts20 monthly gift articles to shareLex: FT’s flagship investment column15+ Premium newsletters by leading expertsFT Digital Edition: our digitised print editionEverything in PrintWeekday Print EditionFT WeekendFT Digital EditionGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresExclusive FT analysisPlusEverything in Premium DigitalEverything in Standard DigitalGlobal news & analysisExpert opinionSpecial featuresFirstFT newsletterVideos & PodcastsFT App on Android & iOSFT Edit app10 gift articles per monthExclusive FT analysisPremium newslettersFT Digital Edition10 additional gift articles per monthMake and share highlightsFT WorkspaceMarkets data widgetSubscription ManagerWorkflow integrationsOccasional readers go freeVolume discountFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Standard DigitalFT Weekend Print deliveryPlusEverything in Premium Digital More