Good morning and welcome to FirstFT. In today’s newsletter:
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Former FBI director James Comey charged with threatening Trump
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EU in talks over Hungary’s frozen funds
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Asian chipmakers propel emerging market stocks to record high
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What happened to the women who spoke up about a wealthy abuser?
You can listen to today’s top news stories with the FT News Briefing podcast.
We begin in the US, where federal prosecutors have charged James Comey with threatening the life of Donald Trump. It is the second indictment against the former FBI director, who investigated the president’s alleged ties to Russia.
The charges: The Department of Justice accused Comey of threatening the president when he last year posted a photograph of seashells arranged in a pattern that read “86 47”, according to court documents. Prosecutors interpreted this as an “intent to do harm”, with “86” seen as slang for to “get rid of” and “47” referring to the number of Trump’s second presidency.
The DoJ also charged Comey with transmitting communications including a threat to kill a US president across state lines.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Read the full story.
Here’s what else we’re keeping tabs on today:
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Mandelson affair: Sir Keir Starmer has headed off a Conservative-led bid to refer him to a parliamentary ethics inquiry.
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Monetary policy: The US Federal Reserve is expected to leave interest rates unchanged.
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Economic data: Germany releases preliminary April CPI and harmonised index of consumer prices figures.
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Drinks makers M&A: Pernod Ricard has dropped its pursuit of Brown-Forman. The Absolut Vodka maker’s retreat could bolster Sazerac’s rival bid.
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Earnings calls: Alphabet, Meta Platforms, Mercedes-Benz, UBS and TotalEnergies report earnings. See the Week Ahead for a full list.
Five more top stories
1. Exclusive: The EU is negotiating a workaround with Hungary’s incoming prime minister Péter Magyar to keep part of €10bn in frozen Covid-19 pandemic recovery funds available beyond an August deadline. The aim is to buy more time to disburse the funds, which were frozen over rule of law concerns during the Orbán administration.
2. Exclusive: Dependence on Chinese green technology is making European countries vulnerable to national security risks including cyber attacks, trade restrictions and espionage, new research warns. Governments were failing to account fully for such risks as they roll out the technology in efforts to secure energy supplies and address climate change.
3. Emerging market stocks have recovered all of their losses from the early stages of the Iran war to hit an all-time high, as a dizzying rally for a handful of Asian chipmaking giants highlights the tech sector’s growing sway over the asset class.
4. King Charles urged the US and the UK to ignore domestic pressure to “become ever more inward-looking” as the British monarch defended the transatlantic relationship in a landmark speech to Congress yesterday, the second day of a four-day visit to the US to mark the 250th anniversary of America’s Declaration of Independence. Read the full story.
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Strained relationship: Flattery and pomp failed to conceal the growing gap between the two nations.
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Diplomatic awkwardness: Britain’s ambassador to Washington said that America’s only “special relationship” is “probably Israel”, in remarks that risk embarrassing King Charles during his US visit.
5. Hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin has questioned whether wealthy individuals understand the risks of investing in private credit and warned that they might struggle to access their money in the event of a downturn. Read more on the Citadel founder’s concerns.
The Big Read
Berlin’s rapid defence build-up is starting to shift the balance of power within Europe. Though widely seen across the region as necessary, the spending plans are stirring unease in France and Poland over whether rearmament will boost German industry without guaranteeing the country’s neighbours a share of the spoils.
We’re also reading and listening to . . .
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#MeToo aftermath: The women who spoke up about UK tech baron Lawrence Jones’s sexual abuse endured a criminal and legal process not designed for them, writes Madison Marriage.
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Commodities disruption: Trump’s attack on Iran has served as a reminder of how interconnected the global economy remains, writes Martin Wolf. Meanwhile, the UAE’s surprise Opec exit raises doubts over the oil cartel’s future.
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Envoy exit: The acting US ambassador to Ukraine is leaving due to frustration over Trump’s lack of support for Kyiv, leaving a key diplomatic post vacant while Russia prepares for a summer offensive and peace talks stall.
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The Story of Money 🎧: Hosts Robin Wigglesworth and Gillian Tett discuss how a truly transformative technology — railways in the 19th century and potentially AI today — can still cause a financial crash.
Graphic of the day
Continental glaciers and the Greenland ice sheet would continue to shrink in coming years, scientists said, after data showed Europe had warmed twice as fast as the global average. This could leave people “across the planet” vulnerable to flooding, with each 1cm in sea level rise thought to expose 6mn people to coastal flooding.
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Take a break from the news . . .
The once worthless prefabricated houses originally designed by modernist Jean Prouvé for refugees and emergencies are now cult collectibles. Edwin Heathcote views nine structures on display at art dealer Patrick Seguin’s French estate.
