European banks are stepping up their complaints to Brussels about a lack of clarity on how to implement EU sanctions on Russia and a “misalignment” with equivalent measures imposed by the US and UK. Representatives of the region’s biggest banks, including the European Banking Federation, are due to discuss their concerns with European Commission officials

This is part of a series, ‘Economists Exchange’, featuring conversations between top FT commentators and leading economists A chart first brought economist Branko Milanovic to worldwide attention. In 2013, the former World Bank economist and his colleague Christoph Lackner captured in a simple picture how global growth in two decades of rapid globalisation had accrued

Through the little country town of Machynlleth, just before the old Dyfi blast furnace and down the potholed lane through fields, woods and over the River Einion, you’ll find Wales’s best restaurant. Though the setting is deeply rural — getting here by car takes three hours from Cardiff, more like six from London — those

A spate of lockdowns in Shanghai and other Chinese cities is piling severe pressure on transport and logistics across the country, exacerbating the economic fallout of the government’s commitment to its zero-Covid policies as cases continue to soar to record levels. The disruption has affected the trucking industry in particular, which plays a critical role

Samsung Electronics has forecast its highest first-quarter operating profit since 2018 on strong smartphone and microchip sales, but the positive projections failed to dispel growing doubts over its technological edge against rivals Apple and Taiwan chipmaker TSMC. Chip prices held up better than expected in the first three months of 2022 despite the gloomy global

Blackstone Group is weighing a takeover bid for Italian infrastructure group Atlantia, the manager of motorways, toll roads and airports across Europe, in what would be one the largest buyouts in the booming industry, said people briefed about the matter. The New York-based private equity group is working on the bid with Edizione, a holding

A South Korean state-run bank has delayed the approval of a loan earmarked for an offshore gas project run by Australian energy company Santos after indigenous Australians argued the project would damage the local environment. The delay of the loan to South Korean energy group SK E&S, a major investor in the scheme, and the

There is much talk of how the west should look to its own supposed violations of law before preaching to the postcolonial world over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (“West should look at its own violation of the law”, Letters, March 31). Presumably these violations include the ousting of the ethnic cleansing despots of Serbia such

Reforming the UK’s tax system by aligning the rates charged on different sources of income would improve equality and raise more revenue from wealthy individuals, according to a report by a leading think-tank. Researchers at the Institute for Fiscal Studies found that the UK’s tax system was largely progressive, raising more tax from those with

Levi Strauss does not expect to be able to reopen in Russia this year, its chief executive said on Wednesday, a month after the California jeans maker suspended operations there “temporarily” in response to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. “The way things are going now, I’m not optimistic we’ll be back in business in full

NHS leaders in several parts of England have temporarily scaled back services except for patients whose lives are in danger, as the number of people in hospital with coronavirus nears that of the first Omicron peak. The South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS), which operates across six counties surrounding London, announced early on Wednesday that it

A security guard at the British embassy in Berlin accused of spying for Russia has been extradited from Germany to the UK to face charges. David Smith, a 57-year-old British national, who was arrested by German police on August 10 last year, arrived in the UK on Wednesday. He is accused of collecting information from

Good evening, Two Financial Times reports from opposite sides of the world highlight the severe stresses on global food production from the shock of coronavirus followed by the war in Ukraine. In China, strict Covid lockdowns are exacerbating shortages of fertiliser, labour and seeds just ahead of the crucial spring planting season. Particularly badly affected

Hungary is prepared to meet Moscow’s demands for Russian gas to be paid for in roubles, Viktor Orban has said in a challenge to the EU’s rejection of Vladimir Putin’s attempts to shift the terms of energy contracts. The Hungarian prime minister, who won a fourth consecutive term in office in Sunday’s landslide election victory,

France’s presidential election is turning out to be a tight and unpredictable contest. The far-right Marine Le Pen is gaining ground on President Emmanuel Macron, who last month seemed assured of re-election. Financial markets are waking up to the possibility of a stupendous upset in the election’s second round on April 24. The spread between

Passengers know it is risky to take money from an airline to skip an overbooked flight. The next departure could be delayed or cancelled. The intervention of JetBlue in the merger of Frontier Airlines and Spirit Airlines confronts shareholders of the latter with the same dilemma. In February, Spirit agreed to merge with Frontier in

Ukraine’s authorities have urged civilians in the Donbas region and around Kharkiv to evacuate after Russian forces stepped up their offensive in eastern Ukraine and further evidence emerged of atrocities by Moscow’s troops elsewhere in the country. Iryna Vereshchuk, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister, said on Wednesday the military authorities called on residents living in the

Oil executives were accused of “ripping off” consumers on Wednesday, as Democrats in Washington tried to pin blame on the country’s fuel producers for petrol prices that have helped stoke US inflation. The heads of US supermajors ExxonMobil and Chevron, the American divisions of their European rivals BP and Shell and leading shale drillers Pioneer

The US has imposed its most severe level of sanctions on Sberbank, Russia’s largest financial institution, and Alfa-Bank, the country’s biggest private bank, escalating its economic punishment of Moscow in response to atrocities committed by Russian forces in Ukraine. The announcement on Wednesday of “full blocking sanctions”, which prevent the lenders from transacting with any

The head of Credit Suisse’s investment bank was under investigation over allegedly mistreating women when he was fired for his role in the collapse of family office Archegos Capital last year, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Brian Chin was one of several top executives to be ousted after Credit Suisse lost $5.5bn

The proportion of EU workers in the UK hospitality industry has dropped to its lowest level since 2019, leaving restaurants, hotels and pubs struggling to afford pay increases to attract domestic staff. EU employees now account for 28 per cent of the hospitality workforce, down from 42 per cent before the pandemic, while British workers