FirstFT: In the present day’s prime tales | Monetary Instances

Funding banking charges soared to a file $57bn within the first six months of the yr, boosted by a sequence of profitable debt gross sales as firms grabbed cash to tide them by way of the coronavirus disaster.

Emergency financings by carmaker Ford, cruise line operator Carnival and aerospace and defence group Boeing have been among the many fundraisings that offered multimillion-dollar paydays for Wall Street banks that discovered traders keen to stump up the cash.

Debt capital markets bankers have been notably busy after the US Federal Reserve took motion to shore up credit score markets following the unfold of the pandemic throughout the US.

Firms, nations and different organisations have raised greater than $7.8tn by borrowing in bond and loan markets and promoting shares this yr, based on monetary knowledge supplier Refinitiv. The increase in debt charges greater than offset the decline in bank earnings from advising on mergers and acquisitions as dealmaking slowed. (FT)

Coronavirus digest

• Within the Asia-Pacific area China, Japan, South Korea and Australia have recorded recent spikes of their an infection charges.

• Cansino Biologics, a Chinese language vaccine developer, stated it had obtained approval for its coronavirus vaccine for use by the nation’s navy.

• The US has did not make it on to a shortlist of nations to be exempted from an EU coronavirus ban on journey from exterior the bloc, underneath a draft being voted on by member states.

• Gilead Sciences has stated it can cost governments $2,340 for a 5-day course of remdesivir.

• Boris Johnson will on Tuesday define a restoration highway map to “build, build, build” out of the disaster. The NHS is pitching a revamp of its troubled tracing app as “PPE in your pocket”. (FT)

Germany takes the helm of the EU’s rotating presidency on Wednesday with one overriding goal: to rescue the bloc from the worst financial disaster in its historical past. Extra in Coronavirus Enterprise Replace. Enroll right here.

Within the information

Wirecard backlash spreads globally The worldwide fallout from the Wirecard scandal grew on Monday, because the German group’s UK subsidiary scrambled to keep away from collapse and Singaporean authorities ready to increase their “extensive” legal investigation into the corporate. EY has informed its companions put together for tough conversations with purchasers about its audits of Wirecard. (FT)

China responds to US visa restrictions Beijing on Monday introduced visa restrictions on US people who “behave egregiously” in relation to Hong Kong affairs. The transfer was made in retaliation for the US limiting visas of Chinese language officers who undermine Hong Kong autonomy. (SCMP)

4 killed in Pakistan stock exchange assault Terrorists armed with grenades and assault rifles attacked the Pakistan stock exchange constructing in Karachi on Monday, including to the pressures on prime minister Imran Khan’s authorities because the nation tackles a widening coronavirus pandemic. (FT)

India bans dozens of Chinese language cellular apps India has banned 59 of China’s largest cell phone apps, together with TikTok and WeChat, on the grounds that they pose a risk to the nation’s safety. (FT)

Former French PM sentenced to jail François Fillon has been sentenced to jail for embezzlement after paying his spouse greater than €1m of state funds for work she by no means did, in a scandal that derailed the centre-right marketing campaign within the 2017 presidential election and enabled Emmanuel Macron’s victory. (FT)

US Supreme Courtroom strikes down Louisiana abortion regulation In its first main abortion resolution since Donald Trump turned president, the court docket dominated 5-Four {that a} Louisiana regulation requiring medical doctors who carry out abortions to have “admitting privileges” at close by hospitals violated the rights established in Roe vs Wade, the 1973 resolution that established a lady’s authorized proper to an abortion. (FT)

• Additionally Monday, the Supreme Courtroom dominated that the management construction of the Client Monetary Safety Bureau was unconstitutional however declined to strike down the whole company.

Reddit bans pro-Trump discussion board after assessment of hate speech guidelines The edgy dialogue website will ban r/The_Donald, a controversial discussion board, for hundreds of supporters of US president Donald Trump from its social media platform, following a assessment of its content material moderation insurance policies relating to hate speech. (FT)

US eyes Reserve Bank of Australia’s charge technique The Federal Reserve is finding out Australia’s expertise with so-called yield caps because it considers new methods to carry rates of interest down amid the pandemic-induced downturn. (WSJ)

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The times forward

Beijing rushes to move nationwide safety invoice The Nationwide Individuals’s Congress is racing to finalise and move a contentious nationwide safety regulation for Hong Kong that might come into power earlier than Wednesday, the 23rd anniversary of the previous British colony’s return to Chinese language sovereignty.

US authorities pandemic response underneath scrutiny Anthony Fauci, head of the Nationwide Institute of Allergy and Infectious Ailments, will testify earlier than Senate lawmakers on Tuesday, whereas Federal Reserve chairman Jay Powell and Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin will testify within the Home of Representatives.

England financial perception The Bank of England’s chief economist Andy Haldane will ship a speech Tuesday on the pandemic’s financial results, the implications for financial coverage, and the outlook for the remainder of the yr. UK first-quarter GDP is because of be introduced on the identical day. (FT)

Almost midway by way of the yr, Commerce Secrets and techniques checks in on its predictions for 2020, made again in January. Enroll right here to get each day insights on the altering face of worldwide commerce and globalisation.

What else we’re studying

Coronavirus might kill off populism The distinguishing attribute of the Donald Trump-Jair Bolsonaro method to Covid-19 is a deadly incapability to face actuality, writes Gideon Rachman. Each males at the moment are paying a big political price for his or her incompetence. (FT)

Discovering refuge from home abuse whereas WFH As nations imposed guidelines to scale back Covid-19 an infection, women and men have been confined to their properties underneath their companions’ fixed surveillance. With constraints on motion, employers may show a lifeline, writes Emma Jacobs. (FT)

Is Trump already too far behind Biden? The pandemic is eroding Donald Trump’s reputation amongst a gaggle that was essential to his 2016 victory — older white Individuals. In the meantime, Fb confronts its relationship with Donald Trump as advertisers depart the platform en masse. (FT, Washington Publish)

Our ballot tracker has the most recent on the place the presidential candidates stand.

Pandemic pensions time bomb To assist make ends meet through the disaster, some nations are permitting folks to withdraw from their retirement pots — simply as funds and retirement accounts undergo a brutal hit from monetary markets’ slide. (FT)

Non-public capital is having a very good disaster The massive shift of investor cash from public markets to extra opaque corners of the monetary system is more likely to speed up, Robin Wigglesworth writes — making this only the start of an period of personal capital. A brand new pattern is shaking up the ETF trade: energetic administration. (FT)

Lone conservative black voice on police reform Tim Scott, the one black Republican senator, finds himself on the frontline of a battle between Republicans and Democrats over reform policing practices following civil unrest over the killing of George Floyd. On Wall Street, bankers encounter an unwritten code on race. (FT, Bloomberg)

Is enterprise journey lifeless? Michael Skapinker wrote in March that, whereas the webinars appeared moderately efficient, they have been no substitute for being within the room. Since then he’s realized he can strike up relationships with folks you meet on video calls and even get them to signal contracts — however enterprise travellers shall be again. (FT)

FT Conversations

A take a look at what readers are speaking about within the feedback of Fb fails to stem promoting boycott over hate speech:

“The pullback by major companies is not just because of hate speech. We have reached peak Facebook. Users are tired of algorithms manipulating their behaviour and being used as fodder for advertisers. Advertisers are becoming aware of this creating the perfect storm that may bring down the entire Facebook house of cards. The share drop is just the beginning. Our young people most damaged by Facebook should breathe a sigh of relief.” — JackBlack