Financial Times

Good morning, Asia. While you were sleeping, this was our most-read story.

Alternative for Germany wins its first regional election Parties in Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-way coalition government receive a drubbing

Just published: front page of the Financial Times, international edition, Monday 2 September https://on.ft.com/3T8cTJR

Just published: front page of the Financial Times, UK edition, Monday 2 September https://on.ft.com/3Mt0Uml

'The deaf community are not usually in a concert hall. This is not inclusion, it is integration.'

'All of economics is a behavioural science. The difference is whether you think the behaviour is irrational or rational.'

The giant of modern finance discusses the wisdom of crowds and locking horns with the investment industry – over Lunch with the FT: https://on.ft.com/4dKvKTo

L'As du Fallafel in Le Marais serves actor Natalie Portman's 'favourite meal in Paris'. But what makes this specific version of the chickpea snack stand out? https://on.ft.com/4dEqdxO

A few months before the Ducati Senna bike’s release, in May 1994, Ayrton Senna, one of Formula One’s most legendary drivers, died at the San Marino Grand Prix. The bike produced in his honour was eventually unveiled as a memorial later that year.

Thirty years later, the bike remains one of the most beloved – and is racing ahead at auction:

The sensational Ducati 916 A bike designed for Ayrton Senna is racing ahead at auction

In which of their eras will you be attending Oasis 2025? Will you, like the Swifties, wear some token of your ardour to exchange with other fans? Maybe you can swap tambourines or bucket hats? Will you adopt the Noel mod haircut?

The FT's Jo Ellison thinks there is really only one Oasis era – which is it? Tap here to find out:

What’s the story? Oasis glory The band’s getting back together. But what does it all mean?

First-half figures at Sotheby’s main auction business have revealed the extent of the financial pressure the group came under before it struck an investment deal with Abu Dhabi earlier this month. https://on.ft.com/4fZBg6p

UK house prices are rising at their fastest pace since 2022, as cheaper mortgages continue to power a gradual recovery in the property market.

Mortgage approvals have also reached their highest level since the market was hit by Liz Truss's mini-Budget.

UK house prices rise at fastest pace since late 2022 Mortgage approvals reach highest level since market was hit by Liz Truss’s mini-Budget

Deciding how to transfer wealth is tricky for a lot of families.

Work out what you want to achieve and start early, says Moira O'Neill. The principles will probably remain the same, regardless of any changes in the autumn Budget.

Here's the rest of her advice.

Inheritance tax: how to prepare for the Great Wealth Transfer Work out what you want to achieve and start early. The principles will probably remain the same, regardless of any changes in the autumn Budget

For a chancellor looking to find £22bn, pensions are an obvious target. But how far will Rachel Reeves go?

Fiddling with pensions taxation could blight the retirement prospects of millions, says Claer Barrett. Here's why.

What’s the chancellor’s next move going to be with my pension? Fiddling with pensions taxation could blight the retirement prospects of millions

The move comes as the country’s population shrinks and ages https://on.ft.com/4dFrq8b

The Italian government is proposing a sharp increase in tourist taxes to help make visitors 'more responsible' amid a growing public backlash against over-tourism. https://on.ft.com/3AKk7xi

The company’s bondholders have suffered steep losses after French authorities charged Pavel Durov for allegedly failing to address criminality on the messaging app. https://on.ft.com/3yPH8hQ

Ukraine's positions in the strategically important Donetsk region were weakened by the redeployment of thousands of troops for the Kursk incursion, critics say. https://on.ft.com/3YYOkmm

FT Exclusive: Donald Trump's running mate told the FT that tech giants should be split up to promote innovation, and Google was 'way too big, way too powerful'. https://on.ft.com/3AKVLU2

The vice-president also distanced herself from the Democratic party's left on issues such as immigration, climate and Gaza. https://on.ft.com/3Mod1kq

The social media platform refused to meet a 24-hour deadline to name a legal representative in the country. https://on.ft.com/4g6lmH7

Good morning, Asia. While you were sleeping, this was our most-read story.

JD Vance urges billionaire Peter Thiel to help bankroll Trump campaign In FT interview, Republican vice-presidential nominee also says Google ought to be broken up

Shares in the Silicon Valley-based company were down by more than 6% on Thursday after the chipmaker's latest earnings report failed to live up to Wall Street's lofty expectations. Despite the drop, Nvidia's shares are still up about 140% since the start of 2024. https://on.ft.com/4e3tR3X

FT Exclusive: Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance has urged tech billionaire Peter Thiel to 'get off the sidelines' and help bankroll the Republicans’ White House bid, he said in an interview with the Financial Times. https://on.ft.com/3Z3O1Xu

Yemen’s Houthi rebels said they would allow a burning tanker to be salvaged from the Red Sea, amid international pressure to avert a huge oil spill following an attack on the ship by the militant group.

The incident, which threatened to become an environmental catastrophe, marked the latest attack in the Houthis’ campaign of targeting commercial ships, a move they have said is in support of Gaza’s Palestinians during Israel’s war with Hamas. https://on.ft.com/3TcJXAj

The significance of a BoE monetary policy meeting on Sept 19 lies not in the likely decision to hold interest rates at 5%, but what is set for the path ahead for quantitative tightening, writes our economics commentator Chris Giles.

Here are three reasons why the decision on future QT matters.

Forget the Budget — there’s a more important economic date coming up An MPC meeting next month looks set to shape interest rates, normalise risk taking and kill a silly fiscal rule

The UK public is estimated to give about £26.4bn to charity each year. But research suggests that better financial advice would help people to be more philanthropic https://on.ft.com/4e2BIyC

Will the Gulf serve as a lesson in how – or how not – to deal with scorching urban temperatures? Either way, the vastly differing experiences of the well-off and the labourers and security guards that keep the region functioning show worsening inequality.

Learning to live with 50C temperatures From Dubai to Mumbai, cities are having to adapt to hotter summers, often exacerbating economic inequality in the process

Like many poor countries, Benin has been trapped in a trading pattern in which it sells cheap raw commodities and imports expensive finished goods.

That is until now.

Could T-shirts be the way to industrialise an African nation? Benin is trying to achieve what few countries on the continent have managed: transform its raw materials into finished goods

More buyers and sellers have been coming back to the market after almost two years of muted activity caused by higher borrowing costs.

UK property market set for busy autumn as listings hit 7-year high For-sale stock of homes up 14% in August compared with year before as interest rate cut boosts activity

Residents reported snipers, drones and intermittent gun battles in one of the largest incursions into West Bank Palestinian cities in recent memory. https://on.ft.com/3Xl1MQd