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Intelligence for the New World Economy
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The World at a Glance
Updated 8:02am EDT
1
The US carried out fresh strikes on Iranian military targets, diminishing hopes for an imminent peace deal.
2A period of relative calm following the initial turmoil of the Iran war means that monthly oil prices are set to dip.
3India raised the price of gasoline and diesel amid fuel shortages prompted by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
4The Kremlin urged foreign diplomats to leave Kyiv, warning of a major forthcoming attack.
5China’s leader reportedly complained about Japan’s increased defense spending in an ‘intense diatribe’ in his recent meeting with Trump.
6China’s EV exports surged 40% year-on-year in April, further cementing its global dominance of the industry.
The US relied on a spurned friend during the Iran war: Canada
The US embassy in the UAE had to improvise to help Americans without passports after its facilities came under fire.
Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersRepublican Congress faces major pileup before midterms
It’s not clear how Republicans will handle opposition to the Trump administration’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund.
‘Life by 1,000 Band-Aids’: Trump has no good options to tame inflation
The economic reality that could doom his party in November is not easy to fix, as Joe Biden learned.
Kylie Cooper/ReutersIran deal status remains uncertain
The fate of an Iran peace deal remained uncertain Monday, as both Washington and Tehran offered conflicting signals on progress.
US-Saudi venture to build Shahed drone clones in Riyadh
The made-in-Saudi SKYWASP attack drones are part of a Gulf-wide push to localize military manufacturing.
Courtesy of SR2VectorThe quiet influence of Qatari minister Al Thawadi
Qatar’s Ali Al Thawadi is a minister without his own department, but he’s become an important cog in the Gulf’s diplomatic machinery.
Trump administration clarifies new green card policy
Most people seeking green cards will have to leave the country to apply for permanent residency, rather than do it from inside the US, the Trump administration said Friday.
Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
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Politics
Kylie Cooper/Reuters
Sen. Schiff takes on Trump’s ‘anti-weaponization’ fund
The California Democrat called the fund “the most brazen act of self-dealing corruption we’ve ever seen.”
Republican Congress faces major pileup before midterms
It’s not clear how Republicans will handle opposition to the Trump administration’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund.
‘Life by 1,000 Band-Aids’: Trump has no good options to tame inflation
The economic reality that could doom his party in November is not easy to fix, as Joe Biden learned.
Kylie Cooper/ReutersIran deal status remains uncertain
The fate of an Iran peace deal remained uncertain Monday, as both Washington and Tehran offered conflicting signals on progress.
No ‘immediate’ tariffs on semiconductors
The US will not impose tariffs on semiconductors in the near future, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Friday.
Trump administration clarifies new green card policy
Most people seeking green cards will have to leave the country to apply for permanent residency, rather than do it from inside the US, the Trump administration said Friday.
Gabbard resigns, adding to Trump’s long to-do list
Any successor to the departing national intelligence director would have to get through an increasingly frustrated Senate Republican Conference.
Senators pitch bipartisan affirmation of US-Taiwan ties amid arms sale pause
The president has described a paused $14 billion weapons package for the self-governing island as a “negotiating chip” with China.
Trump faces further Republican rebellion
The latest displeasure comes over an “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” wth Trump’s standing among GOP legislators is at its lowest point of his second term.
Debatable: Taiwan arms sales
Members of Congress broadly support defensive weapon sales to Taiwan, but there’s friction over how far US support for the self-governing island should go.
Ebola outbreak prompts scrutiny of Trump cuts
Congressional Democrats and health experts say slashing USAID hampered the virus response
Business
Rachel Wisniewski/Reuters
US consumer sentiment falls as Dow hits record
The gulf between US stocks and Americans’ spirits keeps widening.
Rachel Wisniewski/ReutersWhy an anxious AI romantic now drives Match Group’s dating apps
CEO Spencer Rascoff uses digital “personas” to help the Tinder owner understand its users.
How syringe-maker BD is infusing AI into its medical devices
CEO Tom Polen is turning his 65,000 employees into lean manufacturing “problem-finders.”
Retail signals portend trouble for US consumers
Major US retailers suggested shoppers are reining in spending as the Iran war raises prices on essential goods.
We need a new AI vocabulary
CEOs’ vocabulary about the technology is at turns rosy and robotic, maddeningly passive, and tin-eared.
Technology
Screenshot/YouTube/Semafor and Think with Google 
Mike Blake/Reuters
Google’s Nick Fox on remaking its search engine
“It’s been clear that people don’t want incorrect information — and so that bedrock of trust and accuracy has served us well.”
Screenshot/YouTube/Semafor and Think with Google Waymo suspends services in six US cities after flooding
Waymo suspended service in six US cities after its driverless cars drove on flooded roads during storms last week.
Mike Blake/ReutersPope calls for ‘disarming’ of AI in first encyclical
Pope Leo XIV warned humanity against creating “new digital slaveries” in a 42,300-word encyclical about AI, the first major teaching document of his papacy.
Why SpaceX defies valuations
With a 93x sales multiple, SpaceX won’t really be a stock when it goes public, it will be a wager on the future.
Some job seekers have worse odds than Harvard applicants
Deel received 1.3 million job applications last year.
Big names missing from Trump’s quantum investment
Google, Microsoft, and IonQ were left out of the latest government funding round in quantum firms.
Energy
Joyce Zhou/Reuters
Jim Young/File Photo/Reuters
Ferrari unveils new EV model
The company’s share price crashed 6% after the Luce was revealed.
How to win an energy war
The past few weeks have revealed more of the strengths and limitations of energy-centric warfare.
Joyce Zhou/ReutersRepublicans split on ethanol share in national fuel mix
High US gasoline prices are increasing pressure on the Senate to pass legislation increasing the share of ethanol into the fuel mix, but not all agree.
Jim Young/File Photo/ReutersGulf
Steve Nesius/Reuters
Gulf’s SpaceX investors could be set for windfall following IPO
SpaceX’s IPO filing last week didn’t disclose details about regional investors, but even a 1% holding is set to be worth around $15 billion.
Steve Nesius/ReutersKuwait’s caution looks prescient in face of Iran war
While Abu Dhabi, Doha, and Riyadh pursued rapid transformation, Kuwait quietly built up its financial buffers.
The US relied on a spurned friend during the Iran war: Canada
The US embassy in the UAE had to improvise to help Americans without passports after its facilities came under fire.
Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca begins
Saudi Arabia has modernized some of the structures to accommodate more pilgrims and lower the heat, which can reach more than 50 degrees Celsius.
Iranians attend Hajj despite war
The fact that any Iranians are being allowed this year reaffirms Riyadh’s policy of not politicizing its guardianship of Islam’s holiest sites.
China
Carlos Barria/Reuters
Tyrone Siu/Reuters
Tingshu Wang/Reuters
China bets on rural spenders
For decades, China’s migrants built its megacities while being excluded from them. Now, officials want to change that.
Carlos Barria/ReutersIndian, Chinese firms ramp up foreign acquisitions
Indian and Chinese companies are racing to buy foreign firms amid mounting domestic economic and business headwinds.
Tyrone Siu/ReutersChina overhauls hukou system
China’s overhaul of its social insurance program for migrant workers could narrow urban-rural divides in the country and unlock new streams of economic growth, analysts said.
Tingshu Wang/ReutersAfrica
A campaign poster depicting Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko. Zohra Bensemra/File Photo/Reuters.
Senegal’s political avalanche
Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye decision to fire his popular prime minister, Ousmane Sonko, has sparked a political crisis.
A campaign poster depicting Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko. Zohra Bensemra/File Photo/Reuters.Benin’s new president focuses on economic prosperity
Romauld Wadagni, the former finance minister, promised to ensure citizens benefit from the growing strength of the country’s economy.
South Africa seeks 15-year AGOA extension
South African officials warned that short extensions of the free trade deal undermine investor confidence and disrupt regional manufacturing plans.
African Development Bank meets amid Iran war, Ebola
The week-long gathering is the first since Sidi Ould Tah, Mauritania’s former finance inister, was elected the lender’s president a year ago.
Kenya’s mobile money tax plans threaten M-Pesa growth
President William Ruto’s administration wants to impose a new 16% value-added tax on services by payment platforms.
How China forced Europe to reconsider Africa’s industrialization
As Europe seeks alternatives to Chinese manufacturing dominance, Africa has a chance to renegotiate its place in the global economy.
Security
Anastasia Barashkova/Reuters
Adnan Abidi/Reuters
US carries out fresh Iran strikes
American officials said an agreement with Tehran was still possible, arguing that the latest attacks were defensive.
Russia blocks online access to criminal records
The 15 million records showed an explosion in convictions for treason, espionage, and “cooperation with foreigners,” Meduza reported.
Anastasia Barashkova/ReutersRubio questioned in New Delhi on US green card policy
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the policy was “not targeted at India.”
Adnan Abidi/ReutersMedia
Courtesy of Proton
Thousands of journalists’ data exposed to dark web
More than half of the exposures contained personal information such as names, phone numbers, dates of birth, and addresses, per a new study from Proton.
Courtesy of ProtonGoogle’s Nick Fox on remaking its search engine
“It’s been clear that people don’t want incorrect information — and so that bedrock of trust and accuracy has served us well.”
California influencer disclosures offer a glimpse at how secret money distorts American politics
Tom Steyer’s campaign is making use of paid astroturfed social media support.
Democrats move to restore military paper’s independence
The new legislation from Senate Democrats aims to insulate Stars and Stripes from the Trump administration’s efforts to assert control.
New arts magazine Totei to focus on the ‘creative process’
The online magazine will publish content weekly, including profiles of artists and musicians, photo essays, reported features, and interviews.
CEO Signal
Courtesy of Match Group/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Courtesy of Becton Dickinson/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Why an anxious AI romantic now drives Match Group’s dating apps
CEO Spencer Rascoff uses digital “personas” to help the Tinder owner understand its users.
Courtesy of Match Group/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforHow syringe-maker BD is infusing AI into its medical devices
CEO Tom Polen is turning his 65,000 employees into lean manufacturing “problem-finders.”
Courtesy of Becton Dickinson/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforWhy Allstate’s Tom Wilson thinks CEOs should create more jobs with AI
The insurance industry veteran says executives have an obligation to do hard things.
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