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President Joe Biden and Republican House speaker Kevin McCarthy have moved closer to a two-year deal to limit government spending and avert a US debt default, raising hopes of an end to the fiscal stand-off in the world’s largest economy. People familiar with the potential agreement said that negotiators were looking to finalise the agreement

Artificial intelligence is more of an opportunity than a threat for creative industries, the head of Europe’s biggest media group has said in defiance of warnings about the dangers of generative AI. Thomas Rabe, chief executive of the German business that owns the book publisher Penguin Random House and the music label BMG, said that

UK inflation dropped to 8.7 per cent in April, a smaller fall than the Bank of England expected, raising pressure on the central bank to keep increasing interest rates.  The figure will come as a blow to ministers and the central bank because the fall in consumer price inflation from 10.1 per cent in March

The writer is CEO of Google and Alphabet This year, generative AI has captured the world’s imagination. Already, millions of people are using it to boost creativity and improve productivity. Meanwhile, more and more start-ups and organisations are bringing AI-powered products and technologies to market faster than ever.  AI is the most profound technology humanity

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer will outline plans on Monday to get the NHS “back on its feet” if his party wins the next general election, by pledging to cut waiting times and reduce deaths from cancer, heart disease and suicide. In a speech, Starmer will argue that the future of the NHS will be

Facebook’s parent company is in talks to create a multiyear agreement with augmented reality start-up Magic Leap, as the social media giant continues to pour billions of dollars into its ambition to create an avatar-filled online world called the metaverse. According to people familiar with early discussions, Meta is exploring ways in which Magic Leap

European equities rose on Thursday, joining an overnight rally on Wall Street, as concerns over a potential US government default and the health of regional banks eased. Europe’s region-wide Stoxx 600 was up 0.4 per cent, recovering from two days of losses, while France’s Cac 40 rose 0.6 and Germany’s Dax rose 1 per cent. London’s

European stocks fell on Wednesday, with the US debt ceiling deadline weighing on investors as policymakers in Washington failed to agree on a deal to increase the nation’s spending limit. Europe’s region-wide Stoxx 600 fell 0.7 per cent and France’s CAC 40 shed 0.6 per cent In the first hour of trade. The moves come

How is one to assess the possibility of a voluntary default by the world’s most important country? Is something as mad as this really likely to happen? What might be the consequences if it did? These questions are impossible to answer. This is not because it is a “black swan” — that is, unimaginable. A

European and Asian stocks rose on Monday as investors cheered German economic data that indicated inflation in Europe’s largest economy was slowing. Europe’s region-wide Stoxx 600 rose 0.2 per cent, extending its rally from last week, while France’s Cac 40 edged up 0.4 per cent and London’s FTSE 100 gained 0.3 per cent in the

Tech entrepreneur Rosie Zhang is betting that the reopening of China’s borders to the world will jump-start growth for her start-up. “Now we can go out and sell,” she said, after three years spent during the pandemic pitching customers and teaching them how to use her company’s retail automation technology over video calls from Shanghai.

China will send a special envoy to Ukraine, Russia and other countries to discuss a “political settlement to the Ukraine crisis”, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Friday. Li Hui, a former Chinese ambassador to Moscow, will visit Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany and Russia from Monday, spokesperson Wang Wenbin announced at a press conference. “Sending

Two-thirds of the £12bn eventual rise in UK mortgage costs from higher interest rates has yet to be passed on to borrowers, leaving them facing painful refinancing over the coming months, a think-tank has warned. The Bank of England this week lifted its main interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.5

US inflation was slightly weaker than forecast in April, bolstering Treasuries and Wall Street stocks on hopes that the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes are bringing price rises under control. Consumer price inflation dipped to an annual rate of 4.9 per cent, its lowest level since April 2021. Economists had expected it to remain steady at

There was a moment when Turkey’s election debate came down to an onion and a warship.  It began when Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the man leading the charge to break President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s grip over Turkish politics, sat at his kitchen table last month, his shirt collar open, sleeves rolled up, and held up an onion.

Russian forces launched a barrage of air strikes on Kyiv ahead of an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive, in what the city’s mayor said was the largest drone attack on the capital since Moscow’s full-scale invasion last year. Ukrainian forces said they had shot down 30 “kamikaze” drones in the Kyiv area in the early hours of

Veteran Balkan politicians know better than to be enthusiastic about deals made under pressure in diplomatic back rooms. But the events of March 18 gave Visar Ymeri, a former leader of Kosovo’s ruling party, reason to be optimistic. “We have a deal,” the EU’s foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said as he wrapped up a

Saturday’s coronation of King Charles III will be the most public display in seven decades of the curious relationship in the UK between England’s established church and the hereditary monarchy. The King will be accompanied to and from the ceremony by thousands of military personnel, a reminder that Britain’s constitutional monarch remains head of state.

A flood of gilt sales is driving up the UK government’s borrowing costs, investors say, as markets are asked to absorb record volumes of bonds without the Bank of England stepping in to hoover up supply. Bond yields in most large economies have shot up over the past 18 months as soaring inflation drove a

The US Federal Trade Commission is seeking to ban Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, from monetising children’s data and further limit its use of facial recognition technology. The FTC’s proposal on Wednesday called for a blanket prohibition on Meta’s ability to commercialise data it collects from users aged 18 and under, including