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Intelligence for the New World Economy
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The World at a Glance
Updated 7:38am EDT
1
Apple said it would increase the prices of some products in response to a jump in the cost of memory chips.
2Roughly 70,000 voters in a mostly suburban part of northwest England will today determine the fate of the UK government.
3Israeli media condemned the US-Iran truce, which may upend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reelection bid.
4Tehran may have emerged triumphant in its conflict with the US, but its people will take years to recover.
5Countries worldwide scrambled to plot the fallout from the apparent conclusion of the US-Iran war.
6The US and Iran finalized a truce, ending what analysts said was an unnecessary war that strengthened Tehran.
Intel, Apple were in talks for months about chip deal claimed by Trump
The US president’s announcement surprised Intel executives.
Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo/ReutersUS-Iran truce sparks frustration in Israel
Israeli media condemned the deal Washington signed with Tehran as “a catastrophic capitulation.”
Ronen Zvulun/ReutesDivided Montana Senate field helps Republicans
Democrats and independents are divided between two candidates running against Republican Kurt Alme.
Seth Bodnar in 2025. Michael Thomas Shroyer-Imagn ImagesActivist weighs proxy fight at Vail Resorts
Oasis would have a likely buyer in Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince, who has expressed interest in acquiring the struggling Park City resort.
Lucas Jackson/ReutersAmericans increasingly struggle with healthcare costs, survey finds
The share of Americans who are secure about their healthcare costs fell to 49% last year, a new Gallup and West Health poll found.
Jayla Whitfield-Anderson/Reuters Banks opine on new capital rules
Thursday is the last day for banks to weigh in on US regulators’ latest proposal to overhaul capital requirements.
Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters Republicans concerned about Iran deal
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., called the agreement “lousy.”
Annabelle Gordon/Reuters 
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Politics
Annabelle Gordon/ReutersSeth Bodnar in 2025. Michael Thomas Shroyer-Imagn Images Jayla Whitfield-Anderson/Reuters
Trump administration to end PEPFAR funding for South Africa
The State Department is expected to formally notify Pretoria it is cutting off HIV/AIDS assistance as soon as next week.
Annabelle Gordon/ReutersDivided Montana Senate field helps Republicans
Democrats and independents are divided between two candidates running against Republican Kurt Alme.
Seth Bodnar in 2025. Michael Thomas Shroyer-Imagn ImagesAmericans increasingly struggle with healthcare costs, survey finds
The share of Americans who are secure about their healthcare costs fell to 49% last year, a new Gallup and West Health poll found.
Jayla Whitfield-Anderson/Reuters Banks opine on new capital rules
Thursday is the last day for banks to weigh in on US regulators’ latest proposal to overhaul capital requirements.
Republicans concerned about Iran deal
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., called the agreement “lousy.”
The Fed’s Warsh era starts with a flurry of change, but steady rates
The central bank’s new chair reframed the decision as “price stability” while focusing on other projects.
Trump and Thune’s dynamic turns the Senate ‘very chaotic’
The increasing strain between the two Republican leaders is becoming a distraction and a frustration.
Chris Murphy vs. the cults
The Connecticut senator thinks Democrats need to pick bigger fights.
Democrats start forging a post-Trump and post-Biden foreign policy
National security Democrats are eyeing a new future for the party’s foreign policy — and new personnel to run it.
US and Iran officially sign the peace deal
The presidents of both countries signed the deal a day ahead of schedule, Axios reported.
AI CEOs pitch G7 leaders on global standards forum for advanced models
OpenAI’s Altman floated a forum to develop international guardrails over an hours-long lunch.
BusinessLucas Jackson/Reuters
Activist weighs proxy fight at Vail Resorts
Oasis would have a likely buyer in Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince, who has expressed interest in acquiring the struggling Park City resort.
Lucas Jackson/ReutersPrivate equity confronts a goose egg
The cascade of financial loss that happens when companies run out of money is in motion.
Vail Resorts taps bankers to play defense
The ski giant is contending with tough weather, restive labor groups, and an irate billionaire customer who is trying to buy Park City.
Intel, Apple were in talks for months about chip deal claimed by Trump
The US president’s announcement surprised Intel executives.
Trump praises Modi as ‘angel,’ ‘killer’
Whether the thawing is substantive or “performative theater” from two strongman-style leaders remains to be seen.
Technology
Abdul Saboor/Reuters
Anthropic exec Alex Albert at a Code with Claude event. Courtesy of Anthropic.
Apple to raise prices as memory chip costs surge
The rapid rollout of AI infrastructure has sent demand for semiconductors soaring.
Abdul Saboor/ReutersResearch pulls back curtain on Claude
“Only about 1.6% of Claude Code’s codebase constitutes AI decision logic, with the remaining 98.4% being operational infrastructure,” a research paper from April explains.
Anthropic exec Alex Albert at a Code with Claude event. Courtesy of Anthropic.Meta pursues muddled AI strategy
With massive borrowing to build data centers and without and enterprise business like Anthropic’s or OpenAI’s, the company’s AI strategy still doesn’t seem to make sense.
Anthropic takes the path of most resistance
The company has miscalculated how it’s communicated with the Trump administration — and the general public — about its business.
The tech behind agentic commerce
CHEQ’s platform can figure out whether a website visitor is a bot or agent and identify what their intent is.
SpaceX wins big with Cursor
It’s likely xAI will want to develop Cursor into a full-blown harness that competes with Codex, Claude Cowork, and Google’s Antigravity.
Energy
Majid Asgaripour/WANA via Reuters
Steve Marcus/Reuters
Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
Iran’s energy weapon worked
The US-Iran truce proves Tehran’s energy weapon was powerful enough to take on the world’s mightiest military and come out ahead.
Majid Asgaripour/WANA via ReutersSaudi-US mining company turns to Iran
The fund is turning to mineral supplies from Kazakhstan and Pakistan that could be useful for the postwar reconstruction of Iran.
Steve Marcus/ReutersTrump defends Iran deal after markets forced his hand
US officials cautioned that either side could walk away before a final deal, and Trump threatened to bomb Iran if they misbehaved.
Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersGulf
Courtesy of Manal Albarakati
Gulf bosses optimistic over post-war rebound
The region’s sovereign wealth funds “did not step back” during the war, Wael Younan, co-head of sovereign wealth management at US asset manager TCW, said at Semafor’s The Gulf’s Golden Age, Interrupted.
Courtesy of Manal AlbarakatiHow Gulf airlines are luring passengers back despite regional uncertainty
Emirates and Etihad have started offering insurance to travelers, while Emirates’ new policy covers conflict-related medical costs, flight cancellations, and delays.
Qatar eyes return of gas exports
A Qatari LNG tanker sailed through the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday — one of the few transits made since the Iran war began and a hopeful sign for Doha.
How soccer fans in the Gulf are balancing work and the World Cup
Companies around the region are giving employees flexible hours after their respective national teams play.
Trump defends Iran deal after markets forced his hand
US officials cautioned that either side could walk away before a final deal, and Trump threatened to bomb Iran if they misbehaved.
China
Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters
Go Nakamura/Reuters
Joe Skipper/Reuters
EU eyes unified China approach
Europe has long been nervous about cheap, state-subsidized Chinese goods undermining the continent’s manufacturing industries.
Kim Kyung-Hoon/ReutersChinese retail sales fall while industrial output rises
While tech-driven exports soar, domestic retail sales remain paltry.
Go Nakamura/ReutersHow the US wins against China
To win its superpower competition with China, Washington’s push for superiority in space may be its best bet.
Joe Skipper/ReutersAfrica
Carlo Allegri/Reuters
Sodiq Adelakun/Reuters
The distant shocks squeezing African economies
When the US Federal Reserve announces the central bank’s decision on interest rate, the impact will reverberate across African capitals.
Carlo Allegri/ReutersNigeria’s Dangote secures $600M for fertilizer arm
Dangote’s Lagos’ plant produces 3 million metric tonnes of fertilizer annually, a key supplier as the continent seeks to wean itself off imports in the wake of the Iran war.
Sodiq Adelakun/ReutersAfrica renewables projects stalled over credit rating rules
A financial rule known as the “sovereign ceiling” is curbing efforts to fund much-needed renewable energy projects on the continent.
Senegal’s Ousmane Sonko open to IMF debt talks
The comments appear suggest the former premier has eased his hardline stance as the country faces a debt crisis.
Kenya plan to sell citizens’ data draws criticism
Critics say the government is looking to make fast cash, and have raised privacy concerns. Nairobi says the plan will help modernize the economy.
Flutterwave aims to become Africa’s go-to fintech firm
The company was recently valued at $3.3 billion, and despite public interest in an IPO the CEO said a listing is not imminent.
Security
Yves Herman/Reuters
Vessels near Bandar Abbas, Iran. Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA/WANA via Reuters
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Kin Cheung/Pool via Reuters
US’ Mythos restrictions heighten EU tech fears
The US government’s move to suspend foreign access to Anthropic’s powerful AI models injected fresh urgency into Europe’s plans for tech sovereignty.
Yves Herman/ReutersTrump announces peace deal with Iran
President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that the US and Iran had finalized a deal to extend their ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Vessels near Bandar Abbas, Iran. Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA/WANA via ReutersJapan deepens defense ties with Europe
Japan and Europe are deepening defense ties amid growing unease over Washington’s security commitments, Russian aggression, and China’s surging power.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Kin Cheung/Pool via ReutersMedia
Francis Mascarenhas/File Photo/Reuters
Netflix wades into the M&A game
The streamer lost out on Roku, but has its eye on Lionsgate.
Francis Mascarenhas/File Photo/ReutersNew York Times’ Kristof quoted former campaign donors in columns
The paper had promised that Nick Kristof would disclose when someone he reported on was a donor to his Oregon gubernatorial campaign.
Progressive site Zeteo plans UK expansion
Zeteo UK is a standalone site that will begin publishing this week, with a hard launch date in September.
Politico folds E&E News ahead of broader energy push
In September, Politico plans to launch a series of energy-focused newsletters.
Former Gourmet magazine owner sues new Gourmet newsletter
Condé Nast filed a lawsuit against Goulash Unlimited, the LLC set up by the owners of a revived Gourmet site.
CEO Signal
Courtesy of Honeywell/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Courtesy of Smith & Nephew/Graph Massara/Semafor
Courtesy of Cisco/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Honeywell’s CEO on ‘the brutal truth’ about breaking up an industrial giant
Vimal Kapur says delegation and momentum are the keys to splitting a conglomerate.
Courtesy of Honeywell/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforDeepak Nath applies pressure at Smith and Nephew
The medtech CEO is standing by his company’s portfolio strategy despite calls to break it up.
Courtesy of Smith & Nephew/Graph Massara/SemaforHow Cisco’s Chuck Robbins gets his team to ‘disagree and commit’
The longstanding CEO says a bad decision that you reverse is better than a delay.
Courtesy of Cisco/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforAD