FT News Briefing

The FT’s Peter Spiegel, Katie Martin and Elaine Moore preview what could happen in geopolitics, markets and artificial intelligence in 2024. The FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson, Kasia Broussalian and Marc Filippino. Additional help by Sam Giovinco, Peter Barber, Michael Lello, David da Silva and Gavin Kallmann. Our engineer is Monica Lopez. Topher Forhecz is the FT’s exec...

FT News Briefing presents  a special episode from Slate’s “What Next” podcast , hosted by Mary Harris. Everybody loves pandas—and China knows it. As we say goodbye to the National Zoo’s pandas, this Slate podcast looks back at 50 years of “panda diplomacy” and consider its uncertain future. Join Harris as she speaks with E. Elena Songster, author of  Panda Nation: The Construction and Co...

Are generative AI systems such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT really intelligent? Large language models such as GPT 4 appear to use human-level cognitive abilities when they engage in legal reasoning, write essays or solve complex problems. Hosts John Thornhill and Madhumita Murgia speak to Emily Bender, professor of computational linguistics at the University of Washington, to find out what’s really happeni...

Historian Sir Simon Schama and FT deputy arts editor and film expert Raph Abraham join Lilah to discuss the historical epic ‘Napoleon’. Ridley Scott’s new two-and-a-half-hour-long film stars Joaquin Phoenix, and documents a lot: Napoleon’s rise and fall, some of his most famous battles, and his relationship with his wife, Josephine. But how well does it represent his character? We discuss what the...

When a Dutch crime reporter makes an unbelievable discovery, a small-town murder case begins to look like an international assassination plot. For more from the FT, sign up for the FT Edit App. To listen to Hot Money ad free, subscribe to Pushkin+. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more i...

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt raised the prospect of the Bank of England reducing interest rates in 2024 in an interview with the FT, and Novo Nordisk’s drugs for obesity could have a profound effect on healthcare, society and our relationship with food. Plus, part three or our three-part series on a changing India looks at the country’s booming fertility industry.  Mentioned in this podcast: FT Per...

A global rally in government debt has driven yields past many Wall Street targets for the end of 2024, and rising premiums in China are driving families to cancel health coverage. Plus, in the second of a three-part series, the FT’s Benjamin Parkin travels to southern India to see whether factories can help solve the country’s employment problems.  Mentioned in this podcast: Bond market rally...

Copper is set to finish the year as the top-performing industrial metal, and the FT’s John Paul Rathbone recently visited a Hamas tunnel and talks about his experience. Plus, in the first part of a three-part series, the FT’s John Reed goes to Varanasi to show how India’s digital transformation is going.  Mentioned in this podcast: Supply squeeze helps copper prices buck tough year for base m...

Activist investor Cevian Capital has taken a €1.2bn stake in UBS, and Nippon Steel has agreed to buy US Steel in a $14.9bn deal. Plus, the FT’s Josh Gabert-Doyon takes us to the English town of Widnes and discusses what the destruction of fossil fuel infrastructure means for local citizens.  Mentioned in this podcast: Activist Cevian places €1.2bn bet on UBS Nippon Steel agrees to buy US Stee...

Corporate bankruptcies are increasing at double-digit rates in most advanced economies, and TSMC is going to play a huge role in Taiwan’s upcoming election. Plus the FT’s Henry Foy explains how a European politician spied for China.  Mentioned in this podcast: UK’s biggest companies failing to close pay gap, says report Chipmaker TSMC casts long shadow over Taiwan election Chinese spies recru...

Central banks are charting different courses for interest rates in 2024, and EU leaders have agreed to officially start accession talks with Ukraine. Plus, for US union leader Shawn Fain, the historic auto workers strike is only the beginning.  Mentioned in this podcast: EU leaders agree to start accession talks with Ukraine Stocks and bonds surge as Jay Powell comments fuel bets on interest...

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday held interest rates at a 22-year high, countries reached a deal at the COP28 climate summit to transition away from fossil fuels, and Germany reached a last-minute budget deal to avoid a financial shutdown. Plus, the FT’s John Paul Rathbone explains whether Israel can continue its pursuit of Hamas without losing western support.  Mentioned in this podcast: How...

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak headed off a Conservative revolt over his flagship Rwanda migration bill, US core inflation rose last month, and the FT’s Sam Jones explains the downfall of Signa, one of Europe’s most prominent property developers.  Mentioned in this podcast: Rishi Sunak secures win in Rwanda asylum vote Rise in US core inflation highlights stubborn price pressures Rwanda vote e...

Investors poured record sums into high-yield bond exchange traded funds in November, Rishi Sunak will on Tuesday seek to face down rightwing Tory rebels by pushing ahead with his controversial Rwanda bill, and the FT’s Joshua Chaffin tells us about the wealthy donors pushing for US universities to crack down on antisemitism.  Mentioned in this podcast: High-yield bond ETFs attract highest flo...

French immigration reforms put Emmanuel Macron’s leadership to the test, Pisa rankings show sharp decline in student attainment in maths and reading since 2018, India’s stock market is set to take Hong Kong’s spot among world’s largest, and Shohei Ohtani signs a record $700mn baseball contract with Los Angeles Dodgers.  Mentioned in this podcast: UK students fall behind on core skills post-pa...

The EU is set to pave the way for completely ending gas imports from Russia and Belarus, and a record supply of oil from the US is complicating Opec+ maths. Plus, the FT’s Jennifer Hughes explains why the price of gold and bitcoin are both booming in the same week.   Mentioned in this podcast: EU paves way for total ban on Russian gas imports Oil market caught by surprise as US outp...

Moody’s Investors Service advised staff in China to work from home ahead of its cut to the outlook for the country’s sovereign credit rating, Palestinians in Gaza are running out of places to evacuate to, and oil prices have fallen to their lowest level in five months. Plus, the FT’s Christopher Miller explains what would happen on the ground in Ukraine if western aid dries up.  Mentioned in...

Leading economists say the Federal Reserve will hold off on interest rate cuts until at least July 2024, and the US Supreme Court heard a case that could shut down Democrats’ attempts to impose a wealth tax. Plus, the FT’s Europe editor, Ben Hall, explains why Ukraine is cracking down on oligarchs and what it means for the country.  Mentioned in this podcast: Economists see Fed keeping rates...

Hot Money is back with a brand new season. On the first episode of Hot Money: The New Narcos, a Dutch crime reporter makes an unbelievable discovery, and a small-town murder case begins to look like an international assassination plot. Subscribe to Hot Money: The New Narcos Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The UK will make it harder for employers to hire overseas staff in an attempt to reduce record immigration by 300,000 a year, a Venezuelan referendum lays claim to two-thirds of neighbouring Guyana, and the White House says the US is set to run out of funds to aid Ukraine by the end of the year. Plus, we get a preview of the new Hot Money season, which dives into the European cocaine trade. Mentio...

Israel has ordered Palestinians in Gaza to evacuate a large area of land in the south of the strip, South Korea has become a top 10 defence exporter since the start of the war in Ukraine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party has won a series of resounding victories in India’s state polls, and wealthy Argentines are moving to Uruguay to avoid high taxes.  Mentioned in this pod...

Hot Money is back with a new season that begins with a mysterious murder in a small town and leads to a cocaine super cartel and a secret proxy war between democracies and dictatorships. Follow Hot Money: The New Narcos here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Washington is aiming to halve Russia’s oil and gas revenues by the end of this decade, and markets turned things round and had a great November. Plus, the FT’s Nicholas Megaw explains how investors use AI to decode what executives say on earnings calls.  Mentioned in this podcast: US aims to halve Russia’s energy revenues by 2030, says official Investors use AI to glean signals behind executi...

Nato’s secretary-general is warning the west not to underestimate Russia, Cigna is in talks to merge with Humana in a deal that would create a US health insurance giant worth $140bn, and an audio essay by the FT’s Najmeh Bozorgmehr explores Iranians’ complicated feelings about the Israel-Gaza conflict. Mentioned in this podcast: Russia has stockpiled missiles for winter attack on Ukraine, says Nat...

A record number of Chinese people have defaulted since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, a court ruling in Germany has opened up a huge €60bn hole in the country’s budget, and the FT’s Christine Murray explains why Mexico is benefitting from companies rethinking their foreign investments. Mentioned in this podcast: Chinese people default in record numbers as economic crisis deepens ‘A hous...