Is Narendra Modi’s sheen coming off?
Also in this newsletter, India disappoints in business complexity rankings
Letter: Digital money must not dilute wholesale markets’ standards
From Kate Lowe, Deputy chief business officer, Euroclear UK and International, London EC4, UK
Letter: Steelmaking never will be a UK sovereign capability
From Guy Kiddey, Senior Adviser, Energy Transition, Industrial Policy & Stakeholder Strategy, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Xi told Trump that Putin might ‘regret’ invasion of Ukraine
US president also suggested they should co-operate with Russian leader against the International Criminal Court
Letter: An unfair choice of image to depict ‘British declinism’
From John Watt, Torquay, Devon, UK
Letter: The Nifty Fifty stocks were considered bulletproof too
From Steven E Cerier, New York, NY, US
Google and Blackstone to create AI cloud group
Search giant and world’s largest private capital group set to bring 500MW of data centre capacity online next year
Electric ships and trucks to buoy battery boom, says China lithium boss
Tianqi says demand forecasts underestimate rapid rise of battery-powered industrial equipment
Trump uses social media to browbeat Iran, again
‘I think he’s started messaging in his sleep’
Standard Chartered to cut 15% of back-office jobs as AI use escalates
Bill Winters’ new strategy aims to ‘drive sustainable growth’ at Asia-focused lender
SpaceX IPO set to hand $20bn stake to one hedge fund
D1 Capital is among the Wall Street firms in line for big rewards if the rocket maker successfully lists next month
FT Crossword: Number 18,376
British Airways seeks up to £10mn from Heathrow after baggage system chaos
Airline wants financial redress over series of breakdowns including loss of 20,000 bags last weekend
US drops fraud charges against Asia’s richest person
Conglomerate owned by Asia’s richest person had earlier agreed to pay $275mn to settle separate US sanctions violation probe
Trump administration creates $1.8bn fund for victims of government ‘lawfare’
Settlement deal comes after US president and family drop $10bn IRS lawsuit over tax returns leak
The US megadeal set to spark a fight over the cost of the AI boom
Proposed deal between NextEra and Dominion would cement control of US ‘data centre alley’
Burnham vows to reverse privatisation and austerity if he replaces Starmer
Greater Manchester mayor also insists he will not rip up the UK’s fiscal rules
Trump says he is holding off attack on Iran planned for Tuesday
US president says UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar requested Washington suspend operation ‘for two or three days’
Musk loses case against OpenAI after two hours of jury deliberations
Decision hands a legal victory to Sam Altman in a case that had overshadowed the AI lab’s plans to go public
FirstFT: Court throws out Elon Musk lawsuit, handing legal victory to OpenAI
Also in today’s newsletter: Takaichi’s abrupt budget U-turn and China warns of ‘severe’ global conditions
US eases Russian oil sanctions in bid to contain Iran price surge
Renewal of 30-day licence comes as high fuel costs hit American consumers
The cracks in the Putin edifice
Russian leader’s conviction that he could outlast the west is being tested
How Trump became political kryptonite
The president’s ‘populist war’ in Iran is dooming his allies and leaders who sought his favour
Dior boss Delphine Arnault says brand will be ‘cautious’ on pricing
Scion of billionaire Arnault family who own LVMH is attempting a reboot alongside designer Jonathan Anderson