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Intelligence for the New World Economy
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View / Miami draws Wall Street crowd still eager to do Gulf business
View / Energy dominance finds its limits
The World at a Glance
Updated 6:37pm EDT
1
Donald Trump extended his pause on attacking Iranian energy facilities, a move that could calm jittery energy markets.
2US stocks had their worst day since the Iran conflict began, as markets appear skeptical of an Iran ceasefire.
3The OECD forecast a hit to economic growth from the war in Iran, knocking the world’s economy off a path of strong expansion.
4Global investors are pulling a record amount of capital from Asia’s emerging-market stocks, with China posing a notable exception.
5China named the official translation for AI tokens after its own currency, as Beijing looks to shape the rules of the AI economy.
6Population growth is slowing across the US due to a steep drop in immigration, new data shows.
US antitrust officials deny improper lobbying in merger reviews
Under the settlement, Live Nation will have to divest certain venues across the US and pay states which accept the settlement roughly $200 million.
Mike Blake/ReutersTrump goes around Congress to pay TSA, raising questions
Several Republicans told Semafor that they’d been aware Trump had this option for days now.
Brendan McDermid/ReutersUS stocks see worst day since Iran conflict began
Markets appeared skeptical of President Donald Trump’s insistence that the Iran war will end soon.
Jeenah Moon/ReutersPro-crypto group launches midterms offensive
The offensive includes a new “voter hub” where digital assets users can learn candidates’ stances on the digital assets.
Dado Ruvic/Illustration/Reuters ‘Tipping point’: NFL’s streaming shift could put league’s antitrust shield at risk, FCC’s Carr says
The NFL’s move to shift live sports from broadcast channels to streaming services has become a flashpoint in Washington.
Annabelle Gordon/Reuters Oil prices surge again over dwindling optimism of ceasefire
Fuel shortages are spreading worldwide and companies are grappling with the consequences of rising prices and disrupted supply chains.
Alaa Al-Marjani/ReutersOil magnate’s Venezuela detainment spooks industry
Oil tycoon Wilmer Ruperti showed up for a meeting with Venezuela’s intelligence agency last Thursday. A week later, he’s still in custody.
Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters 
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Politics
Nathan Howard/Reuters
Aleksandra Michalska/Reuters
Nathan Howard/Reuters
Senate agrees deal to fund most of DHS
It’s a face-saving move for two parties who’d grown tired of airport chaos and wanted to leave Washington.
Nathan Howard/ReutersScott Brown isn’t leaving New Hampshire’s ‘weird’ Senate race
He lost the Trump endorsement. The national Republican Party wants his rival. He told Semafor he doesn’t really care.
Aleksandra Michalska/ReutersDebatable: Regulating prediction markets
Democrats — and a few Republicans — want to erect rules for the popular platforms.
Nathan Howard/ReutersWhy Trump’s latest Iran moves may signal ground troops
Some experts read the president’s ceasefire talk as a potential head fake — albeit one with the added upside of calming markets.
Trump goes around Congress to pay TSA, raising questions
Several Republicans told Semafor that they’d been aware Trump had this option for days now.
US population growth slows amid immigration decline
Some 40% of US counties experienced a net loss in people
Trump extends deadline for Iran to open Hormuz
Donald Trump extended the pause on strikes against Iranian energy facilities.
‘Tipping point’: NFL’s streaming shift could put league’s antitrust shield at risk, FCC’s Carr says
The NFL’s move to shift live sports from broadcast channels to streaming services has become a flashpoint in Washington.
Funding vote will test GOP appetite for rebellion on Iran
House Republicans are frustrated with the vagueness they’re hearing from the Trump administration on Iran.
State Department sends $1.25B from other programs to Board of Peace
The administration is drawing on funds used for international disasters and peacekeeping to fund Trump’s Gaza effort.
Pro-crypto group launches midterms offensive
The offensive includes a new “voter hub” where digital assets users can learn candidates’ stances on the digital assets.
Business
Courtesy of LSEG/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
LSEG’s David Schwimmer on activists, AI, and a global market test
The exchange operator is juggling investor expectations with the need to reshape its business model.
Courtesy of LSEG/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforSchneider Electric’s Olivier Blum on moving at the pace of Nvidia
Remaking an old industrial giant to meet new energy demands started with defining its mission.
OECD forecasts Iran hit to global economy
The war in Iran is set to weigh on global growth this year, the OECD forecast, knocking the world’s economy off a path of strong expansion.
Investors retreat from oil-reliant Asian markets
Global investors are pulling a record amount of capital from Asia’s emerging-market stocks — with China a notable exception.
US stocks see worst day since Iran conflict began
Markets appeared skeptical of President Donald Trump’s insistence that the Iran war will end soon.
Technology
Mike Blake/Reuters
YouTube, Meta lose landmark social media addiction case
The companies must pay a combined $6 million in damages after being accused of harming kids and teens with platforms as addictive as cigarettes.
Mike Blake/ReutersCalifornia Sen. Wiener on the BASED Act
The legislator spoke to Semafor’s Reed Albergotti about his efforts to rein in the AI industry’s biggest players.
The next ‘affordability’ battle could be over your PlayStation
The price backlash is on the brink of exploding in another sector of the economy, as the AI boom raises the cost of consumer electronics.
Meta ramps up AI adoption push
Meta appointed its chief technology officer to oversee efforts to drive AI adoption across its workforce, The Wall Street Journal reported.
NASA aims to build $20B lunar base
NASA is abandoning efforts to build a space station orbiting the Moon, and will instead put $20 billion toward a lunar base, officials announced Tuesday.
US robot-makers’ push to counter China ‘in a hold’ ahead of Trump-Xi summit
US robotics executives said they don’t expect any major policy action on China until Donald Trump’s now-delayed meeting with Xi Jinping.
Energy
Amit Dave/File Photo/Reuters
Daniel Cole/Reuters
Stringer/File Photo/Reuters
India’s delayed climate plan sets modest emission target
The target would allow India’s carbon emissions to increase by 70% over the next decade if GDP grows at a target rate of 7% per year.
Amit Dave/File Photo/ReutersInvestors still bullish about US renewable market
Private equity giant Brookfield on Wednesday spent $6.5 billion to acquire the Canadian renewable energy company Boralex.
Daniel Cole/ReutersRepair costs for Gulf fossil fuel infrastructure could hit $25B
Rystad Energy expects the bill for restoring LNG trains, refineries, fuel terminals, and key gas-to-liquids facilities to climb even further.
Stringer/File Photo/ReutersGulf
Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
Trump extends deadline for Iran to open Hormuz
Donald Trump extended the pause on strikes against Iranian energy facilities.
Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersMiami draws Wall Street crowd still eager to do Gulf business
Saudi’s US investment conference shows Gulf cash still attracts western finance, even if execs are holding off going back to the region.
Dubai mall hosts annual ski run in bid for normalcy
Ski Dubai said the seventh edition of the DXB Snow Run is on for Sunday, May 17.
Blackstone invests $250M in UAE firm
The move is seen as a vote of confidence in the UAE’s future as it navigates conflict with Iran.
Hormuz closure leads to oil prices diverging globally
DME Oman used to be close in price to Brent, and West Texas Intermediate but since the conflict erupted, it has risen and fallen far more rapidly.
Africa
Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama. Bernd von Jutrczenka/picture alliance via Getty Images.
Christopher Pillitz/Getty Images
Ghanaian president accuses US of erasing Black history
John Dramani Mahama warned that US policies could have ripple effects in other parts of the world.
Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama. Bernd von Jutrczenka/picture alliance via Getty Images.Heat-related deaths in Africa projected to rise
Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and Niger are among those that will see such deaths rise.
Christopher Pillitz/Getty ImagesNamibia blocks Starlink entry into telecoms market
Windhoek is enforcing local ownership rules that have become a point of contention for foreign firms operating in Africa.
Kenya Airways sees passenger numbers surge over Iran war
African aviation is facing a stress test as a result of the conflict, as fuel costs rise and routes are closed in the Middle East.
Supply chain shocks reinforce local production needs
Local production offers “resilience against shocks,” one pan-African industrial park developer told Semafor.
Mobile money apps drive Nairobi stock investment
Kenyan mobile money users have doubled the number of active retail investors on the country’s main stock exchange, executives said at Semafor’s Next 3 Billion event.
Security
DVIDS/Handout via Reuters
USAF B-1 bomber at RAF Fairford airbase. Toby Shepheard/Reuters
Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
US sends more troops to Gulf, despite talk of Iran deal
The arrival of 2,000 more troops suggests that Trump is maintaining the option of escalating hostilities, even as he said talks with Iran were taking place.
DVIDS/Handout via ReutersEurope quietly supports US campaign against Iran
US military bases in the UK, Germany, Portugal, Italy, France, and Greece are fueling and launching American bombers and drones.
USAF B-1 bomber at RAF Fairford airbase. Toby Shepheard/ReutersIsrael kills Iran intel chief
Esmail Khatib’s death came within 24 hours of Israeli strikes taking out Iran’s security chief and the head of its feared paramilitary force.
Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via ReutersMediaAnnabelle Gordon/Reuters
‘Tipping point’: NFL’s streaming shift could put league’s antitrust shield at risk, FCC’s Carr says
The NFL’s move to shift live sports from broadcast channels to streaming services has become a flashpoint in Washington.
Annabelle Gordon/Reuters Vox Media tried to sell its podcasts, and itself
The company now says its podcast network is not for sale.
Newsom calls FCC chairman’s threats ‘sick’
The California governor argued people from all political perspectives should be concerned about federal regulators weighing in on news content.
Why (and how) everyone is cold-calling the president
Plus, what happened when Semafor’s Max Tani gave him a ring.
Oscars mask a Hollywood in crisis
As Hollywood celebrates the Oscars on Sunday, the glitz masks a deeper crisis for the entertainment industry: rising production costs.
CEO SignalCourtesy of LSEG/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor 
Courtesy of Schneider Electric/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Courtesy of IonQ/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
LSEG’s David Schwimmer on activists, AI, and a global market test
The exchange operator is juggling investor expectations with the need to reshape its business model.
Courtesy of LSEG/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforSchneider Electric’s Olivier Blum on moving at the pace of Nvidia
Remaking an old industrial giant to meet new energy demands started with defining its mission.
Courtesy of Schneider Electric/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforWhy CEOs should care about the quantum ‘space race’
IonQ’s Niccolo de Masi says getting quantum security right is ‘a matter of survivability.’
Courtesy of IonQ/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor AD