FINANCIAL TIMES
-Britain's chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has blamed regulators for the decline of the financial services industry for over a decade. Reeves presented a wide-ranging package of reforms to financial services regulation, stating that the changes would mean rolling back regulation that has gone too far in seeking to eliminate risk. Many parts of the world are loosening regulatory shackles to free up "animal spirits" in financial markets and fuel economic growth. The US, where President Donald Trump's administration has criticized regulators and the rules, is at the vanguard. The Fed, Bank of England, and ECB are all reviewing capital rules for banks. Experts say these reforms are part of a boom-and-bust pattern of financial rulemaking.
-President Trump has called on billionaire Rupert Murdoch to not publish an embarrassing letter from Trump in the 50th birthday scrapbook for Jeffrey Epstein, the pedophile who later died by suicide in jail. The letter included a drawing of a naked woman with Trump's signature prominently featured. Trump's requests were unsuccessful, and the Wall Street Journal published the story. Trump later threatened to sue Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal's parent companies, filing a lawsuit against Murdoch and the paper's parent companies. Murdoch is reportedly weighing whether Trump is losing his grip on the MAGA movement over the Epstein saga.
-Donald Trump has increased his demands in trade negotiations with the EU, pushing for a minimum tariff of 15% to 20% in any deal. This move aims to test the EU's pain threshold after weeks of talks on a framework agreement that would have maintained a baseline tariff of 10% on most goods. Trump is also unmoved by the latest EU offer to reduce car tariffs and would be happy to keep duties on the sector at 25% as planned. The US administration is now looking at a reciprocal tariff rate that exceeds 10%, even if a deal is reached. The EU is in a bind as it approaches an August 1 deadline, when Trump said he will impose a 30% tariff on all its imports.
-Japanese government officials are warning companies that they would be "on their own" if they needed to evacuate staff from Taiwan in case of a Chinese attack. This warning has hit Taiwan's largest source of foreign direct investment. The warning highlights the practical and political difficulties for governments and companies in the region of preparing for a potential cross-Strait war. Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory and threatens to take it by force if Taipei refuses indefinitely to submit to its control. The US military has been discussing operational plans for such a scenario with its allies, but obtaining political commitments has proven more challenging.
-Fred Goodwin, the former head of RBS, has been portrayed as a villain or megalomaniac in the past 17 years. Born in Ferguslie Park, Scotland, Goodwin attended Paisley Grammar and pursued his dream of building the world's largest bank. RBS rose to prominence and was knighted in 2004 for services to banking. However, in 2008, markets collapsed, leaving RBS exposed. The UK government nationalized the bank, leading to Goodwin's resignation and later his knighthood. The tragedy lies in the question of human agency, whether Goodwin was a victim of forces beyond his control, whether cheap money and regulatory flaws fueled irrational behavior, or if individual character failings and corporate culture were responsible for recklessness.
-Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has contacted Pope Leo to address the aftermath of an Israeli strike that killed three Palestinians in a Gaza church, prompting a public rebuke from the White House. The attack occurred after fragments from a shell fired during operational activity hit the church mistakenly. The US has demanded an investigation, while Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the highest-ranking Catholic official in Jerusalem, stated that none of the estimated 600 people sheltering in the church believed it was a mistake.
-The global cryptocurrency market has reached $4T for the first time, with investors anticipating billions of Wall Street dollars entering the sector after US digital asset legislation. Bitcoin's price reached a record high of over $123,000, while other tokens like ether and Solana's sol also rose. The Genius Act, passed by Congress, regulates stablecoins pegged to sovereign currencies, typically the US dollar. Separate rules overseeing digital asset market structure and banning central bank digital currencies are still pending Senate approval.
-German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has criticized the right-wing campaign against liberal judge Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf, whose nomination for the country's highest court has led to a crisis in his ruling coalition. He referred to the backlash from conservative MPs within his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party as "massive personal defamation". Merz defended his coalition with the SPD, stating that the situation could have been handled better. The debacle has raised concerns that Germany is embracing US-style culture wars by politicizing a process that has historically been unremarkable.
-Brazilian police have raided the home of former president Jair Bolsonaro, ordering him to wear an ankle tag and banning him from social media. The move comes amid a confrontation with US President Donald Trump, who has threatened Brazil with 50% tariffs from August 1. Trump has accused Brazil's supreme court of censorship and unfair trade practices. Brazil's top court ordered a curfew for Bolsonaro, 70, and seized his mobile phone and $14,000. The Brazilian supreme court has sped up Bolsonaro's trial, and he is likely to pass sentence next month. The dispute between the two largest nations in the Americas intensified after US secretary of state Marco Rubio announced a visa revocation against the Brazilian Supreme Court.
-The rise in unemployment among recent college graduates has raised questions about the value of college education and the role of AI. However, the headline trend is largely concentrated among young American men, highlighting the importance of understanding the nuances of the situation. This highlights the need for more targeted strategies to address the issue of graduate unemployment.
NEW YORK TIMES
-President Trump has directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to request a federal judge to release grand jury transcripts related to the 2019 indictment of Jeffrey Epstein for sex trafficking. Bondi has filed two petitions in the Southern District of New York, asking federal judges to unseal grand jury transcripts from Epstein's case and the prosecution of his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell. However, this request falls short of demands by Trump's critics to release all government files on Epstein, who died in federal custody while awaiting trial.
-Donald Trump has denied a report in The Wall Street Journal that he sent a sexually suggestive drawing to Jeffrey Epstein in 2003. Trump argued that he does not draw pictures, but a review of his past reveals that he was a high-profile doodler for years. In the early 2000s, he regularly donated drawings to charities in New York, often using a thick, black-marker and prominently featuring his signature. The drawings, which often sold at auction, are similar to the birthday note he sent Epstein. Trump's alibi for not drawing pictures is "I don't draw pictures."
-President Trump has long criticized federal judges who rule against his agenda, calling them "USA-hating judges" and calling for their impeachment. He has also questioned the constitutional role of courts as a check on the presidency. However, in the case of Jeffrey Epstein, Trump has taken a different stance, stating that judges have an important role in deciding whether and when grand jury materials related to Epstein's indictment for sex trafficking can be released to the public. He has asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval. Benjamin Wittes, chief editor of Lawfare and a fellow at the Brookings Institution, argues that the idea that a judge should make the final decision about the release of grand jury testimony is normal criminal procedure.
-Over 100 people remain missing in Texas, two weeks after the devastating floods that claimed at least 135 lives. The number of people unaccounted for has dropped this week, but some searchers are losing hope of finding them. The military presented an American flag to firefighters and relatives of Michael Phillips, the chief of the volunteer fire department in Marble Falls, who is among those missing from the floods. Since then, her hope has waned for her father, Michael Phillips, who is the chief of the volunteer fire department in Marble Falls. Despite the efforts of searchers, the number of people still missing statewide remains high.
-The Trump administration's immigration crackdown is straining the long-term care workforce, raising concerns about its impact on the senior population. Nursing homes and home care agencies are losing staff members due to the end of deportation protections for migrants with temporary legal status. Critics argue this has allowed migrants to stay longer than intended and restores immigration system integrity. Providers are also facing challenges in recruiting workers, potentially compromising service quality. Some may raise wages and pass on cost increases to patients.
-The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced plans to eliminate its scientific research arm and dismiss hundreds of scientists, including chemists, biologists, and toxicologists, following months of denial. The move reflects the Trump administration's push to cut the federal workforce and dismantle agencies, with government scientists being a key target. The decision to dismantle the E.P.A.'s Office of Research and Development was expected since March, but the Trump administration maintained no final decisions had been made. The science office provides independent research that underpins most agency policies and regulations.
-The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is conducting an audit of the 2024 election, focusing less on the Biden and Harris campaign and more on actions taken by allied groups. The audit, called an "after-action review," is expected to avoid questions about whether former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. should have run for re-election, whether he should have exited the race earlier, and whether former Vice President Kamala Harris was the right choice to replace him. The review is not expected to revisit key decisions by the Harris campaign, such as framing the election as a choice between democracy and fascism and refraining from hitting back after an ad by Donald J. Trump memorably attacked Ms. Harris on transgender rights. The draft document is described as focusing on the 2024 election as a whole, not on the presidential campaign.
-After the Assad government's collapse, many Syrians sought to find their loved ones who had disappeared under the regime. However, in Lebanon, many were left to wait and watch. Thousands of Lebanese people went missing during Syria's occupation from 1976 to 2005, and many were believed to be imprisoned in Syria. The security state of al-Assad extended beyond Syria's borders, ensnaring political opponents and civilians. The mukhabarat, secret police in Damascus, ran detention sites across Lebanon and transported suspects across the border to prisons like Sednaya. Lebanese officials estimated that over 700 of their citizens were still imprisoned in Syria, but some advocacy groups claim more are unaccounted for.
-Russia's summer offensive in Ukraine is gaining ground, with Russia's forces attacking multiple fronts. Analysts believe Russia aims to methodically destroy the Ukrainian military, as Moscow advances its own troops. The biggest challenge for Moscow may be far from the front lines, as the Russian economy can't keep up with escalating military spending. Ukraine's ability to sustain the war may be decided far away, as the Trump administration sends mixed signals about continuing arming Kyiv's forces.
NEW YORK POST
-Pope Leo XIV has declared the 2007 recovery of a premature baby, Tyquan Hall, at a Rhode Island hospital a miracle, credited to a physician's prayer. Tyquan was born via emergency cesarean section and suffered from oxygen deprivation. Doctors did not expect him to survive. After a desperate plea, Tyquan's heart began to beat normally without medical intervention. Despite the inexplicable recovery, Tyquan was expected to have serious neurological damage due to the severe lack of oxygen in his first hours.
-Taxi tests are underway on the X-59 supersonic plane, designed to break the sound barrier and reduce flight time between New York and London by half. The experimental aircraft, dubbed the "son of Concorde," taxied on a California runway at low speed using its own power for the first time on July 10. Ground maneuvers at the US Air Force's Plant 42 in Palmdale mark the final series of trials for the 100-foot-long, 30-foot-wide jet before its maiden voyage, which is slated for some time this year. The high-tech plane, unveiled by NASA and Lockheed Martin last year, is the centerpiece of the QueSST mission to produce a quieter sonic boom for communities below and revolutionize air travel, potentially cutting transit time down significantly for commercial flights.