Mandelson vetting scandal raises questions over Starmer’s judgement
‘If only there had been a way of knowing that a man who had been forced to resign twice and was dubbed the ‘Prince of Darkness’ wouldn’t make a good ambassador’
SpaceX strikes $60bn deal to acquire AI start-up Cursor
Elon Musk’s rocket and AI conglomerate is seeking to catch up to rivals OpenAI and Anthropic
Letter: Europe’s price supports risk undermining its energy transition
From Jens Ewald and Thomas Sterner
Letter: Lord Denning’s observation on assisted dying debate
From Devra Wiseman, Leatherhead, Surrey, UK
Letter: Three events rekindled my love for the good ol’ USA
From Matt Long, Merville, France
Letter: Fed should recall lessons of oil shocks of the 1970s
From Leslie Lipschitz, Boston, MA, US
Letter: Measuring the dollar’s role as a reserve currency
From Konstantinos Gravas, Lecturer, Department of Economics, Athens University of Economics and Business, Athens, Greece
‘Why isn’t the energy used by people?’: China’s global AI push hits resistance
TikTok’s plan for $9.5bn data centre on Brazil’s coast reflects national ambitions but is hit by environmental concerns
Letter: Vix — more than an index of behavioural overreaction
From Professor Thanos Verousis and Professor Alejandro Bernales
Letter: Why Anglo-Saxon business mindset struggles in the EU
From Steven Vigor, CEO, Revigorate, Quarteira, Algarve, Portugal
Letter: Spare a thought for private jets and yacht marinas
From James van Bregt, Palma de Mallorca, Spain
Anthropic investigating unauthorised access of powerful Mythos AI model
Start-up has limited the release of the new tool because of concerns about its hacking abilities
Starmer’s political woes deepen as Mandelson scandal saps his authority
Ministers and Labour MPs appear to be losing sympathy for prime minister
UK energy regulator to gain powers to block bonuses
Shake-up of Ofgem comes after government strengthened water watchdog following public outcry
Inner London primary schools to be hit by 11% fall in pupils by 2030
UK spending watchdog says ministers need a plan to close or shrink classrooms as schools will struggle financially
FT Crossword: Number 18,352
Iran accuses US of violating international law over vessel seizure in Gulf of Oman
Iran’s ambassador to UN also accused Washington of ‘continuing internationally wrongful acts’ that breached ceasefire agreement
Hormuz disruption raises risk of global food shock, traders warn
World ‘on borrowed time’ to avert crisis as higher gas prices squeeze fertiliser production
Trump extends Iran ceasefire as peace talks hit impasse
President’s latest mixed signal comes as US sends more troops to region
United Airlines slashes profit forecast as price of jet fuel surges
Company curbs full-year expectations despite record first-quarter sales as Iran war pushes up costs
Deutsche Telekom examines merger with T-Mobile US
Combined company might seek a listing in the US and Europe
FirstFT: Donald Trump extends Iran ceasefire amid peace talk uncertainty
Also in today’s newsletter: Japan lifts ban on lethal arms exports, and CATL claims 1,500km range for new EV batteries
Transcript: Trading disruption
Katie Martin speaks to Robert Armstrong
JetBlue pressed by US lawmakers over suspected surveillance pricing
Deleted airline post on social media suggested a customer could see better airfare by clearing browser history