Dutch pensions to invest €100bn in risky assets boosting Europe’s defence efforts

In this week's Unlock the Editor's Digest, FT Editor Roula Khalaf highlights the stark contrast in vehicle sales between China's BYD and Tesla, with BYD experiencing a 58% increase in sales while Tesla faces declining demand in Europe. Analysts predict Tesla's first-quarter deliveries to drop by over 10% due to decreased sales in France and Sweden, possibly influenced by CEO Elon Musk's political interventions. Despite challenges, Tesla's strong manufacturing footprint in the US may help...

President Trump is set to announce global tariffs to combat unfair trade treatment by other countries and ensure American exporters remain competitive, following the release of a report by the Office of the United States Trade Representative highlighting trade barriers in key partners like China, Canada, the European Union, India, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and Vietnam. The report criticizes China for utilizing industrial planning to dominate sectors and failing to uphold commitments, Canada for supply-management...

Amazon is reinstating metal detector screenings and phone registration for its 750,000 U.S.-based hourly warehouse employees to prevent theft, starting with test locations and gradually expanding to all facilities. The new policy requires employees to walk through metal detectors to leave warehouses and share phone serial numbers for identification. Amazon previously faced lawsuits over the screenings but now aims to enhance safety and security for its workers, with 110 warehouses in the U.S. and 1.5...

When Greenpeace lost a $670 million verdict over its role in oil pipeline protests, a quarter-billion of the damages were awarded for defaming the pipeline’s owner, sparking concerns among activists and First Amendment experts. The lawsuit, filed by Energy Transfer in 2019, accused Greenpeace of orchestrating unlawful protests to block the Dakota Access Pipeline, with defamation claims playing a key role. The verdict raises questions about the boundaries between peaceful protest and unlawful activity, with...

Despite record high household net worth and low unemployment rates, the U.S. economy remains deeply unequal, with vast gaps in wealth and financial security persisting. The bottom 50 percent holds only a 1 percent share of financial market wealth, leading to frustration over inaccessibility of illiquid assets like home equity gains and stock portfolios. Economic confidence among American households has not fully rebounded, with perceptions along income lines showing increasing gaps and lingering dissatisfaction despite...

Wall Street stocks are facing their worst quarter in nearly three years due to fears of Trump's tariffs causing stagflation. The S&P 500 has declined 5% in the first quarter of 2025, with concerns about economic growth and inflation rising. Trump's upcoming tariff announcement has led to market uncertainty, impacting technology stocks, commodities, and global markets, prompting investors to seek safer assets like gold and US Treasury yields. Full Article