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Good morning and happy Friday. In today’s newsletter we’re covering:
Investor concerns over potential Shein London IPO
Rahul Gandhi’s election breakthrough
The ‘AI PC revolution’
But we start with an exclusive story on two British judges who have resigned from Hong Kong’s top court. Their departures comes as China continues its years-long crackdown on political dissent in the territory.
Lord Jonathan Sumption and Lord Lawrence Collins, both former UK Supreme Court judges, told the FT they had resigned as non-permanent judges on the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal this week.
Collins said he resigned “because of the political situation in Hong Kong”, while Sumption said he would make a statement “in due course” about the reasons for his resignation.
Human rights groups have criticised western judges who have continued to serve on Hong Kong’s apex court following Beijing’s imposition of a sweeping national security law in 2020 that suppressed civil liberties in the city.
A Hong Kong court last week convicted 14 activists of conspiracy to commit subversion in what is the territory’s largest national security trial.
Here’s what I’m keeping tabs on today and over the weekend:
Economic data: China publishes May trade balance data, the EU reports first-quarter GDP figures and the US releases last month’s employment figures.
India rate decision: The Reserve Bank of India delivers its bi-monthly monetary policy statement.
South Korea: Samsung Electronics faces its first ever strike action as its union plans to stop work for one day over demands for higher wages. (Reuters)
Russia: Vladimir Putin speaks today at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
EU parliamentary elections: The four-day vote concludes Sunday, and will set the direction of EU policy and shape top jobs appointments.
Look out for today’s Europe Express, publishing at 1pm HKT. The FT’s premium newsletter on European policy and politics is free for standard subscribers to read today and on Monday due to the European Parliament elections.
How well did you keep up with the news this week? Take our quiz.
Five more top stories
1. UK fund managers have warned that investors will “struggle to support” fashion company Shein’s potential blockbuster flotation in London because of concerns about its alleged treatment of workers. Human rights groups have claimed ethnic minorities are being subjected to forced labour in Shein’s cotton supply from Xinjiang, which the Singapore-headquartered company has denied. Here’s what investors told the FT.
2. The European Central Bank has cut interest rates for the first time in almost five years. Yesterday’s quarter-point cut to 3.75 per cent represented a milestone in the fight against inflation, but the ECB warned future reductions would depend on price pressures easing further.
3. UK tech tycoon Mike Lynch was acquitted of criminal charges by a jury in San Francisco yesterday, capping a 12-year legal saga stemming from one of Silicon Valley’s biggest fraud cases. The former Autonomy chief executive had been extradited to the US to face the criminal case over the software company’s $11bn sale to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.
4. Credit Suisse bondholders have sued Switzerland over the decision to wipe out $17bn of debt when the bank was rescued by its rival UBS last year. In the first major claim brought in a US court over the takeover, lawyers representing the group accused Switzerland of unjustly violating their property rights in orchestrating the deal.
5. An Israeli strike on a UN school in central Gaza has killed dozens of people, according to Palestinian officials. Israeli military officials said Hamas militants were using the facility where displaced Palestinians had been sheltering. However, Hamas’s media office accused Israel of carrying out a “horrific massacre”. Here are more details.
News in-depth
Over years of ineffectual challenges to Narendra Modi, Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi faced persistent attacks from the prime minister’s party characterising him as a privileged, out-of-touch dynast. But Gandhi this week enjoyed the biggest breakthrough of his career when his Indian National Congress party and its opposition alliance pulled off a shock result in India’s general election this by doubling their seat count and robbing Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party of its majority.
We’re also reading and listening to . . .
Robots and rice bowls: Soft-handed robots capable of assembling bento boxes and onigiri are coming for your lunch, writes Leo Lewis.
🎧 China’s ambitions: In this week’s podcast, Gideon Rachman discusses China’s rapid political and military rise with author Oriana Skylar Mastro. Listen here or read the transcript.
Streaming wars: Higher subscription prices are set to usher in a new phase in the battle between media giants, writes Richard Waters.
Chart of the day
The titans of the chip industry descended on Taiwan this week to lay claim to an “AI PC revolution” that promises the biggest advance in decades in how consumers interact with their personal devices. Here’s why Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger called it the “most exciting moment” since the birth of WiFi.
Take a break from the news
Parisian real estate has become a tale of two cities. Properties further out are in abundant supply and prices are falling. But in the heart of the city, values remain high and many homes never get advertised, as deals are made off-market.
Additional contributions from Sophie Spiegelberger, Tee Zhuo and Gordon Smith
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