FirstFT: AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb discuss $400bn tie-up
Also in today’s newsletter: Iran says Hormuz shipping deal with Oman is close and Chinese VC firms rush to raise funds
Labour overtakes Reform UK in polls for first time in more than a year
Party commands about 25 per cent of the vote as Andy Burnham promises to ‘bring back hope’
AstraZeneca holds talks with Bristol Myers Squibb over $400bn tie-up
Deal would create the world’s fourth-largest drugmaker by market value
Iran says deal with Oman to manage shipping through Hormuz is close
Negotiations on agreement seen as critical to preventing the US-Iran war from escalating said to be in ‘final stages’
Hugo spritz boom shakes Aperol’s fizz
US sales of Campari’s orange spirit outstripped by Bacardi’s St-Germain elderflower liqueur
Monte dei Paschi explores Banco BPM takeover after ‘merger of equals’ talks collapse
MPS chief executive weighs approach to Banco BPM’s largest shareholder, Crédit Agricole
Earnings season reaches a peak
SpaceX gives first results call, Flutter migrates to New York, inflation updates from China and India
A red card for the boss of world football
Infantino’s abortive plan shows Fifa needs a sweeping governance shake-up
America’s biggest companies report ‘rock solid’ profits as consumers face higher costs
S&P 500 groups on track for strongest earnings in five years
Europe’s weak reaction to Spain’s migrant crisis
Pedro Sánchez is being unfairly singled out for a liberal immigration policy
Morocco counts its dead and missing after mass swim to Ceuta
Families search for children not seen since 60,000 people crossed into Spanish enclave, as death toll rises to 72
How to save the British high street
Communities need help to tackle the blight of delinquent landlords who let empty properties decay
Hungary braced for power cuts amid extreme drought
Record-low water levels on Danube force country’s first shutdown of nuclear power plant
Trump says he cancelled Iran strikes at request of Middle East nations
US president claims ‘perimeters of a deal’ to end conflict have been agreed days after he threatened to attack
Rupert Lowe offers to find ‘common way forward’ with Reform UK
Comments by Restore Britain founder come as Nigel Farage’s party slips in polls and faces scrutiny over its finances
‘Crush this lady’: how eBay harassment campaign led to $56mn payout
Employees’ cyberstalking of Boston couple involving macabre deliveries ended in jail time and financial settlement
Walter insurers paid millions of dollars to credit rating provider Egan-Jones
Billionaire investor faces wide-ranging probe into the private credit holdings of insurers he controls
Will July’s US employment data prompt a rethink on rates?
Market Questions is the FT’s guide to the week ahead
What percentage of UK households are net contributors?
Despite attempts, the figure is virtually impossible to calculate
‘Voters have had it’: influence of pro-Israel lobby group sparks backlash in the US
Aipac’s links to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu provoke controversy in midterm election campaigns
Morgan Stanley’s IPO after-party: a wealth management bonanza
Bank’s underwriting of SpaceX and other new issues generates $74bn second-quarter haul in wealth management assets
Iran sets the pace in war with Trump
Tehran’s military raised the stakes with Washington by further expanding the battle across the Middle East
Who needs junior markets like Aim anyway?
The London Stock Exchange is trying to stem Aim’s decline by streamlining rules to cut costs and make capital-raising easier
Air France-KLM targets easyJet passengers during takeover turmoil
Chief executive of French-Dutch airline group sees opportunity if low-cost carrier is acquired by its suitors