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China’s $1tn Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure finance programme has been hit by spiralling bad loans, with more than $78bn-worth of borrowing turning sour over the past three years. The scheme made China the world’s largest bilateral creditor, but the figures suggest it has become a financial millstone for Beijing and its biggest banks. About

The fighting that has erupted in Sudan between the country’s armed forces and a paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces pits the president against his vice-president in a struggle for control of Africa’s third-largest country. Both men had emerged as leaders of the transitional government after a 2019 coup that ousted Omar al-Bashir,

The wave of strikes that has swept the UK is hitting the economy harder than initially expected — and the disruption is set to continue, as health and teaching unions lay plans for industrial action that could stretch until Christmas. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt argues that while the impact of NHS strikes on patients is “incredibly

The writer is a former CIA analyst and author of ‘Damascus Station’ At first glance, the long-rumbling Syrian conflict and the front-page war in Ukraine have little in common. The former is a multi-sided civil war fought in the Middle East, while the latter is a contest between states at the gates of Europe. But

It is “the economy, stupid”. James Carville coined this phrase in Bill Clinton’s campaign of 1992. He was right. The economy is not everything. But it is almost everything. Modern democracy itself would not have been born if it were not for the opportunities created by sustained growth. Political stability, too, depends on the positive-sum

Poland and Hungary have temporarily halted imports of Ukrainian grain despite a warning from Brussels that such unilateral action would contravene EU trade policy. After Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, the EU scrapped customs duties and quotas on Ukrainian grain imports and rerouted some shipments from blockaded Black Sea ports via Polish

More than 50 civilians have died and hundreds more were injured in Sudan as intense fighting between the army and a rival paramilitary group continued for a second day. The Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors, a pro-democracy non-governmental group, put the total number of civilian deaths at 56 as of Sunday morning, with “dozens” of military personnel

Nurses strikes in England could continue until Christmas if the government does not return with a higher pay offer for the NHS, the leader of the Royal College of Nursing said on Sunday, as health employers warned that further walkouts would pose significant risks to patient safety. Pat Cullen, general secretary of the RCN, told

Companies have committed more than $200bn to US manufacturing projects since Congress passed sweeping subsidies last year, as president Joe Biden’s effort to spark a new industrial revolution gains momentum. The investment in semiconductor and clean tech investments is almost double the commitments made in the same sectors in the whole of 2021, and nearly

Congratulations might be in order: I now have a side hustle. It’s my very own new line in part-time work, bringing variety to the mid-life grind. But keep the champagne on ice — it turns out it’s a job nobody wants: dealing with the admin that follows a bereavement. We lost my beloved Dad just

US climate envoy John Kerry has defended the United Arab Emirates against “unfair” criticism of its role as the host of this year’s COP28 conference in Dubai, saying it was important to bring oil-producing nations into the UN environment talks. Climate campaigners have been increasingly critical of the growing influence of the global fossil fuel

BT held “war games” to prepare for the disruption from a potential conflict between China and Taiwan, in a sign of companies’ growing unease over escalating tensions in the region. Staff at the telecoms group’s Dublin-based procurement business took part in the two-day exercise last year, during which they modelled how they would secure BT’s

Countries must exert greater control over gold imports and companies dealing in contraband supplies of the precious metal from the Amazon region should be punished, Brazil’s government has said. Sonia Guajajara, the country’s first indigenous affairs minister, called for more support from foreign governments and industry in tackling illegal gold mining, a priority for the

NHS data specialists have warned against the rollout of Palantir’s software across the organisation, as the US tech company vies for a £480mn contract to build the UK health service’s operating system. Palantir, led by chief executive Alex Karp and co-founded by Peter Thiel, the tech investor and prominent backer of Donald Trump, became the

A rise in the number of costly apprenticeships given to older employees has led to fears that younger workers are being excluded from the UK government’s flagship training scheme. The proportion of over-25s starting apprenticeships increased from 43 per cent in 2015 to 47 per cent last year, according to government figures. Meanwhile, the number

The head of the IMF’s Africa department has called for a significant increase in international support to help countries overcome a funding squeeze that is jeopardising the continent’s economic development. Abebe Selassie told the Financial Times that reform of the current mechanisms for dealing with unsustainable debts of African countries was “desperately needed”. “Do we

On one side will be around 35,000 Ukrainian soldiers, bolstered by western battle tanks. They will face more than 140,000 enemy troops along a 950km frontline. Separating the two forces will be a deadly obstacle course of mines, earthworks and tank-stopping bollards set by the Russians. The day is soon approaching when Ukraine will attempt

The author is managing director for Europe at Eurasia Group The French-German “motor” that has been at the EU’s heart for six decades has broken down. The biggest culprit is the new government in Berlin. Chancellor Olaf Scholz is mostly concerned with the unity of his coalition and Germany’s economy. If he lifts his head

Jamie Dimon and Larry Fink have warned investors to brace for the Federal Reserve keeping interest rates higher for a longer period of time, bucking the view that the central bank will cut rates later in 2023. The comments from two of Wall Street’s most prominent executives made the case that the collapse of Silicon

Finance ministers from some of the world’s largest economies refused to have their optimism dented by the gloomy message delivered by top IMF officials at the fund’s spring meetings in Washington this week. Despite IMF forecasts highlighting the potential for a hard landing for the global economy, Bruno Le Maire, France’s finance minister, said the

Hedge funds and other parts of the shadow banking system should face greater scrutiny after last month’s upheaval in US government bonds, the country’s top markets regulator has said, reflecting concerns that speculative investors pose a risk to financial stability. Gary Gensler, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, told the Financial Times that taming