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Microsoft and Google’s owner Alphabet have quashed investor scepticism around the vast sums spent on developing artificial intelligence, after being boosted by rampant corporate demand for their cloud computing services. The combined market value of the two US tech giants rose by more than $250bn on Friday, a day after each reported double-digit revenue growth

Shares of Los Angeles-based social media platform Snap jumped more than 30 per cent after its earnings beat analysts’ expectations as increasing demand for its advertising services boosted sales. The company’s revenue of $1.2bn in the first three months of 2024 was 21 per cent above the same period a year earlier.   Net losses narrowed,

Facing one of the worst stock slumps in Tesla’s 14-year history, Elon Musk was under pressure this week to deliver a reassuring message to investors about its next generation of electric vehicles and a persuasive vision for an AI-driven, automated future. Instead, what the chief executive offered — alongside even worse than expected first-quarter profits

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund has sharply criticised ExxonMobil’s decision to sue two shareholders that filed a climate proposal at the US oil major, pursuing the litigation even after they dropped the resolution. Nicolai

Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Financial services myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. The writer is an FT contributing editor Britain is second only to the US as a centre for asset management. The business is fabulously profitable and employs tens of thousands in highly paid jobs. But

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Tesla pledged to bring forward the launch of “more affordable” models of its electric vehicles, helping its stock recover some of its recent losses despite reporting a 9 per cent decline in first-quarter revenue amid

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Police have arrested a staffer working for a German far-right member of the European parliament on charges of spying for China. Jian Guo, an employee of Maximilian Krah, was accused by Germany’s federal prosecutor on

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Manhattan prosecutors accused Donald Trump of lying “over and over again” about payments made in the days before the 2016 election to prevent claims of an extramarital affair with a porn actor becoming public, as

Ukraine faces tough weeks ahead in its fight to stem Russian battlefield advances despite this weekend’s passage of a long-awaited US funding bill, according to Ukrainian officials, soldiers and military analysts. The US House of Representatives passed the $60bn military aid package on Saturday night after months of delay that have left Ukraine short of

After Iran fired a barrage of drones and missiles towards Israel a week ago, 70-year-old Hengameh removed the mirrors from her walls and urged family members to stay away from windows for fear of retaliatory strikes. The Tehran resident, who lived through her country’s 1980s war with Iraq, said: “I am haunted by thoughts of

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The US House of Representatives has begun voting on a $95bn package of foreign aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, in what could be a big breakthrough after months of inaction on Capitol Hill. The

Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the UK inflation myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. UK inflation could hold around the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target for the next three years, according to an interest rate-setter, making the country “less of an outlier and more of a laggard”

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The writer is president of Queens’ College, Cambridge, and an adviser to Allianz and Gramercy National security experts and financial market traders seem to disagree on what will follow the recent escalation of tensions between

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Iran has activated air defence systems across several provinces, according to official news agency IRNA, after reports that an explosion was heard near the city of Isfahan. Tasnim news agency, which is close to Iran’s

Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Cyber Security myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. A few weeks ago, a friend was about to have life-saving brain surgery in Boston when her operation was suddenly cancelled. The reason? A unit of UnitedHealth, the gigantic American conglomerate, suffered a ransomware attack,

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Iran is exporting more oil than at any time for the past six years, giving its economy a $35bn-a-year boost even as western countries discuss stepping up sanctions in response to its attack on Israel.

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Rishi Sunak has been warned by the IMF to take much tougher action to rein in the UK’s public debt, putting a question mark over the prime minister’s cuts to national insurance. The IMF on

Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the UK inflation myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. UK inflation slowed less than expected in March, fuelling the debate over how soon the Bank of England will start cutting interest rates. Consumer prices rose at an annual rate of 3.2 per cent, down

Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Sovereign bonds myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. Ukraine’s international bondholders have formed a creditor committee ahead of a $20bn debt restructuring that Kyiv is aiming to negotiate by September, amid uncertainty over the arrival of funding to help in its war with

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Oil and Asian equity markets were muted on Monday following Iran’s military strike on Israel as traders shrugged off fears the conflict could escalate into a full-blown war and curb supplies from the region. Brent