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The writer is the FT’s architecture and design critic The first renderings of the new Saudi city of Neom were released last week, depicting a gleaming, mirrored, trillion-dollar channel slicing through the Tabuk desert. Intended to house 9mn residents over a length of 170km, according to the website, no one could accuse it of a

Former chancellor Rishi Sunak on Monday rejected claims that he represented “stale economic orthodoxy” in the Tory leadership contest, claiming his rival Liz Truss was instead wedded to old-school thinking on business taxation. Truss, foreign secretary, has claimed that Sunak represents the continuity of failed policies and that his adherence to Treasury orthodoxy led him

European shares and US stock futures kicked off the month on a lacklustre note, as disappointing Chinese factory data muddled the economic outlook. Following a rebound for beaten-down global equities in July, as markets responded to an economic slowdown by anticipating that high rates of inflation would ease, Europe’s regional Stoxx 600 share index edged

A grain shipment has left the port of Odesa for the first time in months, in a crucial test of a deal between Russia and Ukraine intended to alleviate soaring global food prices. The Sierra Leone-flagged Razoni, carrying 26,000 tonnes of Ukrainian corn, left the Black Sea Port at 9:48am local time, the ministry of

The venture capital world is in the grip of a silent crash. Unlike the stock market, there are no daily market indexes to broadcast the pain, and no individual share prices for anxious tech employees to watch as their personal wealth evaporates. In fact, for many of the investors and entrepreneurs who have just lived

Zoom into the “where we are” map on Automattic’s website, and you’ll search in vain for an “our headquarters” icon. The large but low-profile tech company behind WordPress and a host of other open source software has people working for it from Ghana to Greece, from San Diego to Seville. But its 2,031 staff, in

Joe Biden’s political prospects have just built back better. Last week’s passing of the Chips and Science Act by Congress breathed new life into the White House’s plans for industrial policy and support for US manufacturing. Meanwhile, the famously intransigent West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin, the king of coal country, performed a shocking turnabout on

If Russian president Vladimir Putin completely shuts off the gas taps to Europe, what are the risks of the lights going out — or the heating turning off — in the UK? To listen to public statements from the government you could be forgiven for thinking the odds are exceptionally low: the UK has no

Andrii Melnyk, Ukraine’s outgoing ambassador to Berlin, sometimes went too far. Like the time he told Chancellor Olaf Scholz to “stop being such a prima donna”. Or when he told a leftwing politician to “shut your gob”. But in Melnyk’s view the end always justified the means. “I think I’ve shaken people awake,” he told

Deutsche Bank staff broke regulatory rules and company policy to enable clients to siphon off millions of euros in government revenues, according to an internal investigation on its role in one of Europe’s biggest tax scandals. More than 70 current and former employees are under investigation by public prosecutors in Cologne over the scandal, highlighting

This week, the Conservative leadership contest caravan moves from parliament to the membership in the country. Ballots are expected to land on the doormats of 150,000 Tory party members in the next few days, while the finalists Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak will go head to head in another televised debate on Sky News on

Rishi Sunak sought to burnish his tax cutting credentials in the race to be the next UK prime minister with a new pledge to slash income tax in the next parliament. The former chancellor, who is facing foreign secretary Liz Truss in the Conservative party leadership contest, announced on Sunday he would cut the basic

Property tycoon Christian Candy has sold his luxury estate just west of London for about £125mn, one of the biggest housing deals this year, according to people briefed on the transaction. Christian and his brother Nick Candy made their names selling expensive apartments in London to the super-wealthy in the years after the 2008 financial

England’s women’s football team have won their first major trophy after beating Germany 2-1 in extra time in the sellout Euro 2022 final. The teams went into half-time level at 0-0 after an even first 45 minutes that saw a handful of half chances. But just after the hour mark, substitute Ella Toone latched on

European governments have eased back on efforts to curb trade in Russian oil, delaying a plan to shut Moscow out of the vital Lloyd’s of London maritime insurance market and allowing some international shipments amid fears of rising crude prices and tighter global energy supplies. The EU announced a worldwide ban on the provision of

Companies in England are heading for an “iceberg” next spring with business rates set to rise by up to £3bn because of soaring inflation, industry groups have warned. They said those businesses that gain from an upcoming revaluation could see those benefits eroded as a result, while those that lose out will see their losses

When the pandemic began, most analysts predicted that commercial real estate would be one of the hardest hit industries. The exodus from urban centres and the collapse of high street retailers left property companies reeling. Another cloud hung over office real estate, as staff switched to working from home and anchor tenants threatened to move

The writer is co-chief of KKR’s Americas Private Equity business and founder of Ownership Works My story used to be a familiar one. I’m a first-generation college graduate from a hardworking, blue-collar family. My parents scrimped and saved and made a small real estate investment. While we lived day to day on my Dad’s construction

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged residents of the country’s easternmost Donetsk region to leave the province as Russia continues its offensive to conquer the area. In a regular nightly video address to the nation, Zelenskyy said hundreds of thousands of people were still living in the industrial heartland where “the fiercest fighting” was taking

Sri Lanka’s new president said that securing an IMF loan would take until at least September after weeks of protests and political turmoil sparked by the country’s economic crisis. Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took over as president this month after protesters forced his predecessor Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country, said in a speech that finalising