Know someone who would like this newsletter? Forward it to them.
The World
Ukraine is massing a million-strong fighting force equipped with western weapons to recover its southern territory from Russia, the nation’s defense minister has revealed to The Times. In his first interview with a British newspaper since the invasion began, Oleksii Reznikov said President Zelensky had ordered Ukraine’s military to retake occupied coastal areas which are vital to the country’s economy. (The Times)
Ukraine War Pushes Millions of the World’s Poorest Toward Starvation: Malnutrition wards in Somalia are overflowing, with children bearing the brunt as prices of food staples surge since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. (Wall Street Journal)
UK foreign minister Liz Truss confirms bid to replace PM Boris Johnson. Truss, the tenth contender in the race, promised to ‘start cutting taxes from day one’ to help with the cost of living. Truss joins contenders including former health secretaries Sajid Javid and Jeremy Hunt, ex-chancellor Rishi Sunak and interior minister Priti Patel. (South China Morning Post)
Japan's ruling coalition won the majority of seats contested in Sunday's upper house election. But while citizens validated Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government, the mood among the victors was mostly joyless, as the vote came just two days after the assassination of former leader Shinzo Abe. (Nikkei Asia Review)
President Biden’s Middle East trip this week marks a move toward a more traditional American foreign policy with Saudi Arabia, as the realities of oil diplomacy and geopolitics lead him to compromise on campaign promises to isolate the kingdom over human-rights violations. The shift in U.S. priorities has led to starkly divergent views being put forth by U.S. and Saudi officials over how the visit will unfold. Mr. Biden and his senior aides say they are focused on a summit of Arab nations where the president will mingle with multiple heads of state, and not on a highly anticipated face-to-face meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who remains toxic in much of Washington, especially among Democratic leaders. U.S. officials said the president will meet with the 86-year-old King Salman and his leadership team, which includes Prince Mohammed. (Wall Street Journal)
The record for the hottest day in Britain could be broken this week during the latest heatwave, the Met Office has said. Forecasters have advised people in the southeast to stay in the shade, cover windows and check on vulnerable and elderly people as temperatures rise in the coming days. Today will be one of the hottest days of the year, with highs of 32C (90F) expected in some areas. There is a 30% chance that temperatures would edge towards 40C (104F) next weekend, setting a record. (The Times)
A wildfire threatening some of the world's oldest giant sequoia trees in California's Yosemite National Park expanded five-fold over the weekend as smoke prompted air quality alerts throughout the park and obscured views of its famed scenery. As of Sunday, the blaze had scorched nearly 1,600 acres (648 hectares) of timber and brush at the southern end of the park, up from 250 acres on Friday, a day after fire was first reported by visitors on the Washburn Trail of the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias. (Reuters)
Economy
US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo conceded that removing US tariffs on Chinese goods would not ease inflation in a “very significant way”, underscoring the White House’s struggle to devise an effective plan to fight high prices. The senior administration official on Sunday still lent her support to the move, on which President Joe Biden is due to decide soon. But she emphasised that its impact would probably be limited given the multitude of factors pushing up prices. (Financial Times)
Chinese manufacturers are starting to see demand for consumer goods in developed economies tail off, after a strong rebound from pandemic shocks. Spot ocean freight rates between China and major U.S. and European markets are falling as consumer demand retreats. Goods demand is “normalizing” leading to a significant slowdown in global growth and trade but not quite a recession yet. (CNBC)
The biggest US banks are set to report bumper earnings from lending, benefiting from Federal Reserve interest rate rises even as they prepare for a potential recession. In second-quarter earnings starting this week, analysts expect JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup to see growth in net interest income — the difference in what banks pay on deposits and what they earn from loans and other assets. (Financial Times)
Bitcoin bulls beware: Wall Street expects the cryptocurrency’s crash to get a whole lot worse. The token is more likely to tumble to $10,000, cutting its value roughly in half, than it is to rally back to $30,000, according to 60% of the 950 investors who responded to the latest MLIV Pulse survey. Forty percent saw it going the other way. It was around $21,850 late Friday afternoon, ending the week up over 12%. (Bloomberg)
VC funding in Latin America, which hit a record $14.8B in 2021 according to PitchBook, has slowed down in 2022 as investors without large portfolios pull back. (Protocol)
Technology
Tech’s Red-Hot Hiring Spree Shows Signs of Cooling: High-profile tech companies — including Twitter, Netflix, Amazon and others — have announced plans to slow hiring or cut jobs, and are in some cases warning employees to brace themselves for tougher times. (Wall Street Journal)
A leaked trove of confidential files has revealed the inside story of how the tech giant Uber flouted laws, duped police, exploited violence against drivers and secretly lobbied governments during its aggressive global expansion. The unprecedented leak to the Guardian of more than 124,000 documents – known as the Uber files – lays bare the ethically questionable practices that fueled the company’s transformation into one of Silicon Valley’s most famous exports. The leak spans a five-year period when Uber was run by its co-founder Travis Kalanick. During the fierce global backlash, the data shows how Uber tried to shore up support by discreetly courting prime ministers, presidents, billionaires, oligarchs and media barons. (The Guardian)
Twitter has hired elite law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz as it readies for a legal battle against Elon Musk, who has moved to terminate his $44bn acquisition of the social media company, according to two people familiar with the situation. The San Francisco company is preparing to file its lawsuit with the Delaware Court of Chancery against Musk early this week. (Financial Times)
Smart glasses help Japan seniors peruse store shelves from home. Pilot test bridges last-mile gap for rural shoppers with mobility issues. (Nikkei Asia Review)
Andreessen Horowitz, Thrive Go Bargain Hunting for Beaten-Down Tech Stocks: Plunging shares of tech stocks have prompted venture capital firms to take an unusual step: buying publicly traded stocks. Thrive Capital early this year bought beaten-down shares in online used-car marketplace Carvana, according to securities filings. Andreessen Horowitz bought shares in Jack Dorsey’s Block, which partner Marc Andreessen has said he regretted not backing when it was private. And GGV Capital in May bought more than 400,000 shares of HashiCorp, a newly public software company it first backed in 2014. (The Information)
Smart Links
Canada waives Russia sanctions to ease Germany’s gas shortage. (Financial Times)
How much money it takes to be considered ‘financially comfortable’ in 12 major U.S. cities. (CNBC)
Starbucks Stops Selling New Chicken Sandwich Over Quality Concerns. (Wall Street Journal)
Recession Angst Spurs Pivot to Emerging World’s Growth Engines. (Bloomberg)
Yen Selling Accelerates as Japan Policies Earn Public Backing. (Bloomberg)