Good morning from Brussels.
Events in Washington DC this weekend caught Brussels off guard as officials were enjoying the start of spring.
A 31-year-old man named as Cole Tomas Allen has been arrested after opening fire Saturday evening outside the reception hall of the annual White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA gala), which Donald Trump was attending for the first time. The White House says it was a targeted attempt at the life of Trump and his officials.
Fortunately, no one was killed.
In Europe, EU leaders quickly voiced support for the US President, who had skipped the event for years before agreeing this time to attend, despite strained relations between the White House and the press corps under his second term.
“I just spoke to @POTUS Donald Trump to express my solidarity with him and @FLOTUS after the attempted attack,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X. She added that “political violence has no place in our democracies”.
French President Emmanuel Macron called the incident “unacceptable”, while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said: “We decide by majorities, not by the gun.”
Transatlantic tensions briefly faded, even as Reuters reported the US could seek to suspend Spain from NATO over its refusal to back the US and Israel’s war in Iran.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez played down the threat and joined EU leaders in condemning the attack. “Violence is never the answer,” Sánchez wrote on X. “Humanity will only move forward through democracy, coexistence and peace.”
On Sunday, Trump rejected any link between the armed intrusion at the WHCA dinner and the Middle East war. He said the incident would not “deter” him from “winning the war”.
Earlier in the weekend, Trump cancelled a trip to Pakistan planned for envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, writing on social media: “Too much time wasted on traveling, too much work!” He added, referring to Iran: “There is tremendous infighting and confusion within their ‘leadership’.”
On his side, after going to Oman and Pakistan over the weekend, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghtchi landed in Russia to meet Vladimir Putin.
According to the Iranian news agency Fars, Tehran has sent, via Pakistan, written messages to Washington regarding its “red lines” in the negotiations.
After talks with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, Araghchi wrote on Telegram that he had briefed his French counterpart on ceasefire developments and ongoing diplomatic efforts “to end the imposed war”. He stressed “the importance of European countries playing a constructive role in this process”.
Meanwhile, in Lebanon, the situation remains fragile. Over the weekend, Israel and Hezbollah accused each other of violating the ceasefire.
The Shia Islamist political party and military organisation released several statements on Sunday saying its fighters targeted Israeli troops and positions in response to Israeli ceasefire violations and attacks on Lebanese villages.
On Sunday evening, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a group of ministers and senior security officials to discuss both Iran and the situation in Lebanon, according to local media. One option under consideration is escalating strikes against Hezbollah, including targeting areas beyond southern Lebanon.
At least 2,509 people have been killed and 7,755 injured in Lebanon since the start of Israeli strikes in early March, the country’s health ministry said.
Lebanon’s Minister for Displaced Persons, and Technology and AI, Dr. Kamal Shehadi told Euronews’ Europe Today that “the truce is not holding” but there are “clear signs that both sides are making an effort” to avoid escalation beyond the current level of violence.
Shehadi said the government’s most important leverage to help disarm Hezbollah is having the vast majority of the Lebanese people backing them and calling for Hezbollah to surrender its weapons to the Lebanese Armed Forces.
“The international community is supportive of Lebanon’s intention to control all the weapons on Lebanese territory. Now, that’s not enough, clearly, and so what we need to do is continue to put pressure on Hezbollah to get Hezbollah to accept and to relinquish its weapons, because the weapons today are only going to bring more retaliation from Israel,” Shehadi said. Watch the full interview here.
Meanwhile, Brussels is preparing for the visit of Péter Magyar, whose opposition party won Hungary’s 12 April election.
“I will travel to Brussels on Wednesday for informal talks with the President of the European Commission on unlocking EU funds,” he wrote on X. “We have no time to waste.”
A honeymoon now begins between Budapest and Brussels after 16 years of tension under outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who announced on Saturday he won’t take up his seat in parliament after his Fidesz party suffered a heavy loss in the 12 April vote.
Meanwhile, incoming Prime Minister Magyar said on Saturday he had information that wealthy figures linked to Orbán’s outgoing government were moving assets abroad and called on authorities to detain fleeing oligarch families.
“I am aware that Hungary’s National Tax and Customs Administration (NAV), based on reports from banks, has suspended several high-value transfers linked to Antal Rogán’s circle on suspicion of money laundering. I call on the leadership of NAV to immediately freeze these stolen funds,” Magyar wrote on X, referring to the outgoing top minister under Orbán’s administration.
As Ukrainians marked the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of “nuclear terrorism”, alleging it repeatedly sends attack drones over the site.
On social media, Zelenskyy warned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has once again pushed the world to “the brink of a man-made disaster”.
He also said drones now regularly fly over Chernobyl. “The world must not allow this nuclear terrorism to continue, and the best way is to force Russia to stop its reckless attacks.”
Russian strikes on Ukraine continued through the anniversary, with Moscow launching 144 drones in a barrage during the night between Saturday and Sunday.
Read the full story by Lucy Davalou.
The German government believes Russia is behind a new phishing campaign targeting lawmakers and senior officials via the Signal messaging app.
The incident is the latest in Moscow’s hybrid war targeting Europe.
Victims are said to receive messages posing as Signal support, prompting them to enter a PIN, click a link or scan a QR code. If successful, the scam gives hackers access to messages, group chats, and any photos or files shared by the user.
Media reports say at least 300 accounts belonging to political figures were compromised. Civil servants, diplomats, military personnel and journalists were also targeted.
Vice-President Andrea Lindholz (CSU) has ruled out banning Signal, saying MPs should be free to decide how they communicate.
You can read the story of Sonja Issel & Evelyn Ann-Marie Dom here.
Zelenskyy says he is ready to meet Putin in Azerbaijan. On a visit to Azerbaijan, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he is ready to meet Vladimir Putin there, as US-led diplomatic talks have stalled in recent weeks. Read **Sasha Vakulina’**s story here.
Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe becomes first person to run marathon in less than two hours. In London, Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe made history by becoming the first athlete ever to break the two-hour barrier in the marathon. Jesús Maturana has the full story.
– European Parliament plenary session kicks off in Strasbourg. A debate on the “Importance of consent-based rape legislation in the EU” is scheduled later today.
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Germany’s Dax, France’s CAC 40, Italy’s FTSE MIB and the UK’s FTSE 100 are expected to open in the green, according to IG data, despite peace talks between the US and Iran coming to a halt.
The White House called off plans to send envoys to Pakistan for more negotiations and US President Donald Trump cited a lack of progress over the weekend.
“If they want, we can talk but we’re not sending people,” Trump told Fox News on Sunday. He said earlier on social media: “All they have to do is call!!!”
In addition to monitoring progress in the Middle East, investors will also be keeping across central bank decisions this week, including from the ECB and Federal Reserve.
Meanwhile, markets were mixed overnight in the Asia-Pacific region. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index hit a fresh record, surging 1.4% to 60,564.18. The Kospi in South Korea jumped 2.1% to 6,617.94. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index edged 0.1% lower to 25,951.86 and the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.2% at 4,089.04. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.3% to 8,759.40.
Taiwan’s Taiex rallied 2.6%, helped by a revival of buying of tech shares driven by the boom in artificial intelligence.
In other dealings early Monday, the price for a barrel of Brent crude to be delivered in July, rose $1.44 to $100.57, while US benchmark crude oil added $1.28 to $95.65.
The dollar fell to 159.34 Japanese yen from 159.59. The euro climbed to $1.1723 from $1.1701.
U.S. oil sanctions swings add uncertainty for markets, global trade
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U.S. shale industry reluctant to boost oil production in response to Iran war 'chaos'
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Bailey Zimmerman performed Friday night at Stagecoach, where his set mixed post-grunge country hits like “Religiously” and “Where It Ends” with a cover of Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” and an appearance by BigXthaPlug on their duet “All the Way.” Before Zimmerman’s set, I met with the 26-year-old singer inside a denim-bedecked pop-up presented by American Eagle, for whom Zimmerman serves as an official spokesbro.
Did you only agree to become an American Eagle ambassador because you thought you might be able to meet Sydney Sweeney?
I would understand why you would think that. But honestly, no — it was a full circle moment in my life. Before my American Eagle deal, I had all the American Eagle underwear. They couldn’t send me new ones — I had ’em all.
Do you get free jeans?
They give me everything for free.
Could you get me some free jeans?
Maybe? I could do one of those things where I’m like, “Oh, it’s for me,” but it’s really for you.
By my count, this is your fourth Stagecoach in a row.
Yep.
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You never miss this, bro.
It’s my favorite time of the year — it’s sick. I come out here the whole weekend. The first year, I brought my best friends, and we’ve done it every year since — all my friends and their fiancees now because we’re getting older and they’re getting married. So it’s just a big party all weekend. It’s something I look forward to.
Speaking of getting married, last year you you told me you were looking for a wife. Any progress?
Well, you know, honestly, I’m still just kind of doing my thing. I’m on God’s timing, truly —I’m just letting it roll.
You’re a Justin Bieber guy.
Beliebe it.
“Swag” or “Swag II”?
I was hesitant to want to listen to “Swag II” because I love “Swag I” so much. But then once you get into “Swag II,” it’s like, Dude, this is so fire, bro. Both albums are so fire — I’ll listen to either one.
Did you watch Bieberchella?
Yes!
What did you think of the YouTube of it all?
I thought it was really cool. I loved it — it was just something way different. I’ve never seen that done like that. Iconic — I would call it iconic. That’ll go down in history.
Bailey Zimmerman on Stagecoach’s main stage.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
You have a current radio hit, “Chevy Silverado.” What was your first truck?
A 2005 white Chevy Silverado. That’s what the song’s about.
Yes, of course. But I didn’t know it was true to life — I thought you were using writerly inspiration.
No, true to life, man. My grandpa had a 2005 crew-cab short-bed Chevy Silverado, and I bought it off of him. I had to borrow money from my bank in my hometown, and I bought it of him because times weren’t good at the time. When the used car dealership was going good, maybe he would’ve given it to me, but at that time, it wasn’t going good, so I had to borrow money and have a payment at the bank. Adult things.
You know where that truck is now?
I still have it. Honestly, I didn’t think anybody would resonate with the song — I didn’t think anybody would listen to it just because it was so personal to me. Every single line is a real life story from my life, so to see it resonating with everybody and seeing it do what it’s doing — it’s so cool, man.
Musk fraud claims against Altman, OpenAI dismissed
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I WORK in travel and look at holiday pricing data every single day – and there are a few patterns that I see constantly.
Small booking habits that feel completely normal, but quietly push prices up. We’re not talking about a few quid either. Get these wrong, and you can end up paying 20–30 per cent more for the same holiday.
Follow The Sun’s award-winning travel team on Instagram and Tiktok for top holiday tips and inspiration @thesuntravel.
Here are the three biggest mistakes – and exactly how to fix them.
This one surprises people the most.
Booking your holiday first thing – on your commute, before work, or when you sit down at your desk – feels productive.
But it’s actually one of the worst times you can choose.
According to the data, the most expensive time to book a holiday is between 9am and 10am.
In fact, booking in that window came in at around 30 per cent more expensive than the cheapest time of day, which is actually 2:47am.
And it makes sense when you think about it – because that’s a peak demand window when everyone is searching at once.
Flight prices react to this demand first, then package holiday prices follow.
So while you think you’re being organised… you’re actually booking at the busiest, and often most expensive, moment of the day.
In one example, I found a 5-night all-inclusive stay at the Catty Cats Garden Hotel in Turkey was priced at £133pp in the early hours – but just a few hours later, that had jumped to £165pp for the exact same holiday.
That’s a 24% increase (£64 more for two people) simply from booking later in the day.
This is the classic “I’ll just check again later” mistake: you find a good price, but instead of booking it, you leave it.
You come back later. Maybe the next day. Maybe after asking a few people.
It feels like you’re being careful or thrifty, but the data shows the opposite.
Every search feeds demand into the system, demand pushes flight prices up, and flight prices push package prices up.
But the reality is: if you’ve found a good deal, it’s very likely other people have found it too.
So while you’re waiting, those seats and rooms are disappearing, filling up and pushing up the package cost pretty quickly.
In one real example, a luxury all-inclusive stay at the Titanic Deluxe Lara in Antalya,Turkey was priced at £558 per person.
But after waiting just 24 hours, that same holiday increased to £606 per person.
That’s an extra £48pp – or £192 more for a family of four – just for not booking when the price was lower.
Prices change, availability drops, and that deal you liked is gone forever.
This is where people leave the biggest savings on the table.
I see it every day: most searches are locked into the same dates, same duration, no flexibility.
But pricing doesn’t work like that – it fluctuates constantly based on demand.
Flight and hotel combinations are constantly shifting, and the price you see is based on very specific availability – not a fixed “cost” for that trip.
That means sticking rigidly to one duration can actually stop you from seeing better-value options.
Sometimes, adding or removing just one night can completely change the price – because it opens up different flight combinations or cheaper room availability.
In one search I did for a Corfu holiday, a 7-night stay was coming in at £874 per person.
But by simply increasing the stay to 8 nights, the price dropped to £720 per person for the same package.
That’s a saving of £154pp – or £308 for two people – just by adding one extra night.
It goes against what most people expect, but it shows how pricing really works.
You’re not just paying for nights – you’re paying for the combination of flights and hotel availability behind them.
Yet most people never check – they search once, see one price, and assume that’s what the holiday costs.
One of the easiest ways to save money is to stop manually checking prices over and over again.
Every time you search, you’re adding to demand signals – and you’re far more likely to miss the moment a price drops.
Instead, set up price alerts or track a holiday and let the price come to you.
That way, you’re not feeding the surge – and you’re ready to act when the price is right.
I sometimes see short-term dips of up to £50 per person on the same holiday when demand softens briefly – but these windows can last hours, not days.
The people who catch them aren’t constantly searching – they’re notified. But how do you actually do it?
At On the Beach, if you save a holiday, you’re automatically tracking it, and they’ll email you to let you know when the price changes.
On Google Flights, you can search your route, then just toggle “Track prices” – then you’ll get email alerts whenever fares move up or down.
On Skyscanner, hit the heart or bell icon on a flight, and it’ll notify you when the price changes.
It takes about 10 seconds – and it means you’re not guessing when to book.
There’s no perfect moment to book – but there is a bit of a sweet spot.
According to the data, booking around 33 days before departure can unlock savings of up to 10%.
That’s because it sits between two high-demand groups: early planners who book far in advance and last-minute bookers chasing limited availability.
In this middle window, demand is lower, and prices often reflect that.
Which means on a £700 holiday, that 10% saving means paying around £630 instead – a £140 saving for a couple without changing anything else.
It’s not about waiting as long as possible. It’s about timing it right.
Most people have a “default airport” – the one they always fly from without really thinking about it.
But sticking to the same airport can quietly cost you more than you realise.
Flights to the same destination can vary massively in price depending on where you depart from – even on the exact same day, for the exact same hotel.
And often, the cheaper option is only a short drive or train journey away.
In one search I did this week for a family holiday to Majorca, the same 5-night stay at the Sea Club Mediterranean Resort was priced at £260pp flying from Manchester.
But switching to Liverpool Airport for the exact same trip brought the price down to £235pp.
That’s a saving of £25 per person – or £100 for a family of four – just by changing the departure airport.
It’s a simple check most people skip, but it can make a real difference to the total cost.
These aren’t big sacrifices, and you’re not downgrading your hotel or cutting your trip short. You’re just booking smarter.
But these small tweaks of timing, confidence and flexibility can easily save you hundreds over time.
And once you see how the pricing actually works, you won’t book the same way again…
Los Angeles City Council member Traci Park has raised more than $1.2 million for her reelection campaign in the city’s June 2 primary, more than double the amount collected by challenger Faizah Malik, according to finance reports filed this week.
Malik, a civil rights attorney, reported raising roughly $454,000 in her bid for the District 11 seat that skirts along the Westside, including Mar Vista, Pacific Palisades, Venice and Westchester, the reports show.
At nearly $1.7 million, the money raised in the race is the highest for the eight council seats, out of 15 total, on the ballot in the June 2 primary. Any candidate who wins a majority in the election will win the seat outright, otherwise the top two vote-getters will compete in the Nov. 3 general election.
Two of the eight races are open seats to replace termed-out incumbents, and in five other races, incumbents Eunisses Hernandez, Park, Hugo Soto-Martínez, Tim McOsker and Katy Yaroslavsky posted large fundraising leads against their challengers. One incumbent, Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, is running unopposed.
In the west San Fernando Valley’s 3rd District, three candidates are seeking to replace termed-out Councilmember Bob Blumenfield.
Insurance company founder Tim Gaspar was leading the pack in fundraising, reporting nearly $430,000. Barri Worth Girvan, an aide to Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsay Horvath, has raised about $235,000. Tech entrepreneur Christopher Robert “CR” Celona was far behind with about $12,300.
In Council District 1, which includes Highland Park and Pico-Union, incumbent Hernandez topped the field with about $319,000 in contributions. Challenger Maria Lou Calanche, a former Los Angeles police commissioner, reported raising about $182,000.
Among other challengers in the race, Sylvia Robledo, a small-business owner and longtime City Council aide, reported about $75,000 in contributions. Raul Claros, founder of a nonprofit called California Rising, listed $70,500 in contributions and entrepreneur Nelson Grande reported raising about $55,000.
There are six candidates vying to replace incumbent Curren Price in the 9th District, which includes USC and communities along the Harbor Freeway corridor.
Jose Ugarte, a former deputy chief of staff for Price, led the field in reported financial contributions, amassing $477,000.
Estuardo Mazariegos, head of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment Los Angeles, reported roughly $200,000 in contributions and Elmer Roldan, director of a nonprofit, has raised about $114,000.
Entrepreneur Jorge Nuño and therapist Martha Sanchez trailed with about $25,000 and $13,000, respectively. Educator Jorge Hernandez Rosas did not report any contributions.
In the other races:
The outcome of the Park-Malik contest in District 11 will be determined in the June 2 primary because there are only two candidates in the race.
In a statement, Councilmember Park credited her fundraising lead to her efforts to clear homeless encampments.
“I raised an historic number of donations from local Westside residents because I’ve been on the ground since Day One solving our number one priority: getting people off the streets into housing and treatment and removing dangerous encampments from our neighborhoods,” Park said. “Residents, workers and visitors all see the difference.”
Kendall Mayhew, communications director for Malik’s campaign, said in a statement that Park and her supporters are spending unprecedented money because “we are winning and they simply don’t know what else to do.”
“What our campaign has demonstrated so far, and what we will demonstrate at the ballot box in just a few weeks, is that corporate money cannot defeat an honest, people-powered campaign,” Mayhew said.
The fundraising totals reported this week represent money given by individual donors, who are limited to contributions of no more than $1,000 in this election cycle. While the reports offer a glance at fundraising, money is also coming in through independent expenditures, which have no limit on how much can be given.
For example, in District 1, the L.A. County Federation of Labor has reportedly spent more than $226,000 in support of Hernandez. Calanche is also receiving supporting funds: the Fix Los Angeles PAC Supporting Calanche, Ugarte and Park for City Council 2026 has spent about $46,000 on her campaign to unseat Hernandez.
The advent of autonomous treasury has ignited a competitive push, complete with aggressive industry targets. Not all companies will want to proceed at the same speed.
The shift to an autonomous treasury is reshaping the world of corporate finance, driven by new strategies and technologies—from self-healing cash forecasts to AI-driven liquidity engines—that are replacing legacy systems and maximizing yield.
To fully realize the potential, corporate finance leaders are strategically investing in the key areas that will accelerate the transition. The next phase of autonomous treasury will be defined by three investment-focus areas, says Sayantan Chakraborty, head of Digital Payments at Fiserv. “Treasurers don’t lack visibility anymore; they lack widgets that can act on that visibility in real time,” he says. “The gap isn’t analytics. It’s execution.”
Although agentic AI can forecast cash positions and draft funding instructions, Chakraborty notes, current corporate infrastructure often runs in batch mode. The first essential missing link is comprehensive, real-time cash positioning, second, it’s combined with rule-based, just-in-time money movement across multiple payment rails—including instant and traditional—and third, integration of new features like tokenized deposits and programmable payments.
The technological journey still requires human expertise, however. And Chakraborty advises building around legacy ERP systems rather than waiting for a complete modernization.
“Think of it as an AI-powered autopilot added to an older cockpit,” he says. “Policies are enforced, actions are executed, and audit trails are preserved without forcing a full-core replacement on day one, under the watchful eyes of a trained cockpit and cabin crew.”
The era of multi-year, big-bang upgrades is over, Chakraborty argues. Instead, the best course is to implement a lightweight, 24/7 automation layer to handle real-time balances, rules, and payments.
As instant payment rails and real-time reporting become more widespread, Chakraborty predicts the current practice of pre-funding accounts before cut-offs will become obsolete. Instead, “agentic AI will push treasury from once-a-day instructions to continuous, just-in-time funding: as soon as execution matches intent across all rails.”
This shift will impact float, causing idle-balance float to decrease and driving banks to focus their earnings on 24/7 clearing services, intraday credit, and real-time liquidity.
Siemens, a leader in autonomous treasury, adopted J.P. Morgan’s programmable payment feature (formerly Onyx, now Kinexys) in late 2023. Siemens shifted to advanced programmable payments using the blockchain-based ledger, JPM Coin. This allows their bank accounts to autonomously manage cash and execute transactions based on pre-defined rules. Addressing the inefficiency of idle pre-funded balances, Siemens implemented a just-in-time mechanism. Funds are only moved into a specific account the moment a payment is due. If a balance drops below a set threshold, the system autonomously sweeps funds from a central cash pool, enabling Siemens to operate with near-zero balances in local accounts.
“In my experience, the biggest challenge is not technology, but the mindset shift in finance and treasury,” states Heiko Nix, global head of Cash Management and Payments, Siemens. “For almost every technical problem, there is a solution. But simplifying entrenched processes and changing how people think about treasury and its role takes significantly more time and effort. In practice, you do not need to convince everyone at once, what matters is building sufficient momentum across the organization to enable real transformation.”
AI creates a strategic opportunity, argues John Stevens, senior vice president, global head of Capital Markets, Financial Institutions & Working Capital at Kyriba.
“AI can transform working capital management from a retrospective reporting function into a forward-looking control tower,” he says. “Instead of focusing on past events, you can optimize for the future in real time. This is because tasks that previously required manual, analog effort, or demanded analysts to spend long hours consolidating reports, can now occur instantaneously. This real-time capability allows for significantly more sensible and timely decision-making.”
Companies still need to work closely with vendors to build AI safely, he cautions: “We don’t see a single out-of-the-box ‘autonomous’ product replacing the diversity of treasury needs.” The future will be “composable,” he predicts, although it is important to be precise about what this means.
While Kyriba App Studio serves as an extensibility layer for building bespoke integrations and workflows on the Kyriba platform, Stevens stresses that it is not an agent-building toolkit. The agentic AI layer is TAI, which provides Kyriba-developed agents with “a clear human in the loop posture.”
Using a third-party model doesn’t automatically make an AI tool less intelligent and using only in house-models doesn’t automatically make it more intelligent, he argues.
“In treasury, the deciding factor is whether the AI can be used safely and consistently in a regulated environment,” Stevens says. TAI isn’t positioned to avoid external LLMs. “We use a leading external model [Anthropic’s Claude] within a controlled, governed deployment. The difference is the wrapper around the model: strict limits on what data it can access, clear rules on what it’s allowed to do, and a full audit trail of activity.”
Practically, that means the AI can help generate insights—summaries, explanations, flag anomalies, scenario narratives—while anything that could affect payments, liquidity, or risk stays under platform controls, approvals, and policy-driven workflows.
“So it’s not a binary choice between open and sovereign,” he notes. “Some organizations will require sovereign options for policy or jurisdiction reasons, but most regulated treasuries are looking for governed AI: strong models, used in a way that is secure, auditable, and designed for real operational control.”
The potential benefits to treasury have ignited a competitive push for autonomy, complete with aggressive industry targets and a race for “fully autonomous” platforms.
HighRadius recently updated its agentic AI platform with the goal of achieving over 90% automation for the Office of the CFO by 2027. The initiative involves deploying AI agents across six product suites and 20 products within accounts receivable, payables, treasury, close, and consolidation. The release of 186 agentic AI agents, announced last February, moves HighRadius closer to the “fully autonomous platform vision” it first announced in 2019, with cash application and cash forecasting already demonstrating 90% touchless automation.
HighRadius prioritizes “measurable value creation,” which it validates with clients through mutually agreed success criteria (MASC). This value is delivered via automated agents, aiming for 90%-plus automation, and assisted agents, designed to triple user effectiveness.
CEO Sashi Narahari views agentic AI as an interim step toward HighRadius’s goal of ensuring that all its products are “fully autonomous”—defined as 90%-plus touchless end-to-end process—by 2027. Narahari stresses the critical nature of this goal, to the point that failing to achieve it would lead to the company’s demise.
What about mid-tier banks that may not want to jump to a comprehensive transformation? For them, Chakraborty advises that a single, reliable orchestration endpoint is better than many disparate APIs.
“Essential to this is a real time balance plus payment execution API,” he says “exposing positions, limits, and instant movement through a single, resilient interface. That’s what lets AI driven treasury systems act as agents, not just analysts.” Integrating such a process with tokenized deposit movement is also beneficial where possible, he adds.
That said, the journey toward the autonomous treasury, spearheaded by pioneering companies like Siemens and driven by the rapid evolution of agentic AI, is fundamentally redefining corporate finance.
The shift is not merely about incremental efficiency gains but is coming to be seen as a strategic imperative for maximizing yield, securing real-time liquidity, and moving beyond the constraints of legacy systems. Corporate treasurers who are embracing the transition are attracted by a promised tactical roadmap to a future-proofed role. For the financial institutions that serve them, autonomous treasury is an urgent call to align their offerings with a new era of continuous, intelligent, and just-in-time financial control.
CrowdStrike (NASDAQ: CRWD) dropped 5.55% to $440.78 in Thursday afternoon trading, breaking a six-day rally.
The stock had gained more than 17.11% over that stretch, outpacing the S&P 500’s 2.45% increase. Despite that run, shares are down 4.52% year to date versus the index’s 4.27% rise.
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French liberal MEP Christophe Grudler told Euronews the Commission’s proposed European preference, once adopted, covering public procurement in strategic sectors such as clean tech, cars and energy-intensive industries (aluminium and steel) should be limited to a core group of non-EU countries.
The “Made in Europe” provisions of the so-called “Industrial Accelerator Act” have triggered a fierce political battle between supporters, led by Germany and Nordic countries, of a broad definition including “like-minded” partners, and those, led by France, pushing for a narrower approach.
In its proposal unveiled on 4 March, the Commission leaned towards the broader interpretation.
“The Commission’s option is very poor. It reflects a completely outdated view of trade policy,” Grudler said, adding, “When the Americans introduced the Buy American Act, they didn’t worry about whether it would strain ties with Europe. At some point, we need to stop being naive.”
The MEP is set to be one of the lead negotiators on the proposed new rulesin the European Parliament as talks begin shortly.
The European preference aims to counter foreign competition, notably from the US and China. The Commission proposes excluding non-EU countries depending on how open they are to the EU taking part in their procurement markets as well as existing trade agreements.
But Grudler argues geography should be the guiding principle, limiting “Made in Europe” to countries closest to the EU — first and foremost the European Economic Area: Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
Switzerland could also be “a good candidate”, he said.
“Switzerland has had a public procurement agreement since 1989. It is a bilateral agreement stating that all European companies have access to the Swiss public procurement market, and that all Swiss companies have access to the European public procurement market. It is therefore a rather good candidate.”
The UK could also be considered to some extent, but “conditions will need to be examined” following Brexit, he added. “There is also a point where Europe has to make sure it comes out financially ahead.”
He wants the law to send “a strong signal” to investors backing key EU industries, “particularly energy-intensive sectors and clean technologies.”
“It is another step in Europe’s resilience against unfair competition from other continents.”
However China has voiced strong opposition to the Commission proposal, seen in Beijing as restricting its access to EU procurement and investment.
“This legislation is Europe standing firm for its strategic industries,” Grudler said.
“China has overcapacities in cars or in steel. They are relying on the naivety of Europeans to do business, to generate double-digit growth again, and then to invest in research and development and get ahead on everything, all the while cheating through direct subsidies to destroy our industries.”
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Météo-France has initiated an inquiry to determine whether the meteorological infrastructure managed by them was targeted by individuals seeking to influence prediction markets.
This development follows reports of highly unusual temperature spikes that triggered significant financial payouts on the blockchain-based site Polymarket, where users place wagers on real-world events.
Investigators are examining if the integrity of the national weather network was breached through physical or digital interference, as the precision of the winning bets suggests the actors involved may have had direct control over the reported data.
Online rumors, which remain unverified for the time being, claim the temperature reading was manipulated by someone using a hair dryer to generate a higher temperature.
Polymarket reportedly settles Paris temperature bets on a single Météo-France sensor sitting near the Charles de Gaulle airport perimeter.
On 6 April, the reading from the sensor abruptly rose 4°C in twelve minutes, crossing the 22°C threshold despite data from other sources showing different figures.
A user on Polymarket aggressively bet on readings above 21°C on that specific day, even though the consensus was lower at 18°C, and profited almost €30,000.
A second similar anomaly occurred on 19 April leading to suspicions that the sensor was tampered with.
Météo-France announced that it has filed a complaint with the Roissy air transport gendarmerie brigade “for [the] alteration of the operation of an automated data processing system,” after an analysis of sensor data.
Polymarket suspended its reliance on the compromised weather data source for Paris, shifting its resolution metric from the sensor in Charles de Gaulle airport to the one in Paris-Le Bourget airport.
However, it did not cancel the contracts or refund the bets, leaving the resolved contracts final, even though on previous occasions it has suspended the resolution of certain bets until further clarification on the rules and circumstances.
This incident has reignited the debate over the reliability of the “oracles” that feed data to prediction markets in order to settle bets.
In decentralised finance, an oracle is the mechanism that feeds external, real-world information into a smart contract to determine a financial outcome.
Polymarket relies on these feeds to settle its contracts, often pulling data directly from official government websites. If the primary source of that data is corrupted, the betting market lacks any internal mechanism to verify the truth.
Additionally, the decentralised nature of these platforms makes it difficult to freeze assets even if an investigation identifies the individuals behind suspicious trades.
This is the latest case that highlights a new frontier of white-collar crime, where the manipulation of the physical world is used to exploit the vulnerabilities of automated prediction markets in order to win bets on real-world events.
It felt like the Olympics. Crowds cheering. The American flag standing tall above the bleachers. Trainers jumping with anticipation. A swimmer staring in disbelief at the clock after his final stroke. The Jumbotron announced: Kristian Gkolomeev — 20.89 seconds. A new world record in the 50-meter freestyle.
Well, kind of.
I’ve left out some details. There was only one swimmer. The crowd? Just doctors, trainers and filmmakers. This was not in an Olympic city nor an Olympic year, but in Greensboro, N.C., in 2025. And there were no iconic rings on the banners, just “Enhanced Games.”
Yes, Gkolomeev swam faster than César Cielo, the official record holder at the time (20.91 seconds). But he did it “enhanced” — a polite way to say that he used performance-enhancing drugs. At the Enhanced Games, doping isn’t punished. It’s required.
The concept, as described by the organization: “to create the definitive scientific, cultural and sporting movement that safely evolves mankind into a new superhumanity.”
Backed by investors such as Peter Thiel and Donald Trump Jr.’s 1789 Capital, the Enhanced Games embodies a techno-utopian ideal: athletes as canvases for chemical optimization, testing the limits of human health for a lot of money. Gkolomeev earned $1 million for his record.
So far, the competition has happened at one-off pop-up events. But in May, Las Vegas will host the first full-scale Enhanced Games, a four-day meet in swimming, track and field, and weightlifting. The group advertises a “potential prize purse of $7.5 million for just a single day of competition,” plus appearance fees.
Does it need to be said? Apparently yes: The Enhanced Games glorifies the risky use of enhancement drugs.
Steroids can harden arteries, elevate stroke risk, damage the liver and permanently alter hormone systems. They are not electrolyte tablets or a little preworkout creatine. If Lance Armstrong had been rewarded — rather than sanctioned — for doping, what would have happened to competitive cycling?
Fans — and especially kids — mimic their idols. As risky as the drugs are for athletes at the Enhanced Games, with its “medical commission” to give the illusion of safety, the substances are even more dangerous when used by people without medical supervision.
The games also expose the economic neglect that drives athletes toward such competition. As Benjamin Proud, the British silver medalist who recently joined the Enhanced Games, put it: “It would have taken me 13 years of winning a World Championship title in order to win what I could win in one race at these games.”
Indeed, the Enhanced Games might look like an easy way out. Only nine swimmers worldwide received prize money and performance bonuses above $75,000 in 2025, according to World Aquatics.
Investors clearly hope to make money off the games as well. The organization is moving closer to becoming a publicly traded company. The economics are not mysterious.
But the Enhanced Games are not just another sporting event. They are an arena for biomedical experimentation and should be regulated as such. The games should face limits similar to those imposed on other high-risk industries, including age restrictions and strict advertising rules.
We already know how to govern legal, profitable activities that carry serious health risks.
In the United States, that means oversight from the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission — bodies that regulate drug protocols and police misleading commercial claims. A steroid-based competition should not be treated as a sport but as a medical experiment and a marketing stunt.
Regulations on pharmaceutical advertising offer a useful model for the Enhanced Games. Prescription drugs are advertised every night on television, but only under strict rules. They require fair balance (content must present benefits and risks with comparable prominence, readability and duration) and a “major statement” of risks (most serious risks must be spoken aloud and not obscured by visuals or music).
Right now, when you play Gkolomeev’s “world-record” video on YouTube, a medical-risk warning appears for barely five seconds — then vanishes. If a cholesterol drug must audibly warn viewers of stroke risk, why shouldn’t a steroid-based competition do the same?
Enhanced Games content should be accompanied by clear warnings of the risks of performance-enhancing drugs and be clearly labeled, age-gated and distributed as high-risk content more akin to pornography than to a boxing match.
Prohibition is not the answer. Trying to shut down these games only fuels a controversy-driven brand. Just recently, the Enhanced Games sued organizations such as World Aquatics and the World Anti-Doping Agency, alleging antitrust violations and that blocking athletes from participating at the Enhanced Games is illegal. As those organizations fight back, they will be seeking to protect the integrity of mainstream sports, but they will also inadvertently be promoting the Enhanced Games.
If we want kids to admire clean athletes rather than those using banned drugs, the Las Vegas launch must not reach the world as a Super Bowl would. The Enhanced Games should not be televised or allowed to stream online to minors. Otherwise, Las Vegas, in May, risks becoming an unregulated public-health experiment mislabeled as a sporting event.
Fabricio Ramos dos Santos is a lawyer, entrepreneur and sports investor.
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SAN FRANCISCO — With the California governor’s race quickly approaching, six candidates will face off Wednesday evening in the first debate since former Rep. Eric Swalwell dropped out of the race in the aftermath of sexual assault and misconduct allegations.
The debate takes place at a critical moment in the turbulent contest to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom. Ballots will start landing in Californians’ mailboxes in less than two weeks, and voters are split by a crowded field of eight prominent candidates. The debate also takes place after former state Controller Betty Yee ended her campaign because of a lack of resources and support in the polls.
Two Republicans — Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and conservative commentator Steve Hilton — and four Democrats — billionaire Tom Steyer, former Biden administration Secretary Xavier Becerra, former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan — will take the stage at Nexstar’s KRON4 studios in San Francisco. Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, both Democrats, were not invited to participate because of their low polling numbers.
As the candidates strive to distinguish themselves in a crowded field, the debate could include fiery exchanges about the role of money in politics and potential heightened attacks on Becerra, who has surged in the polls since Swalwell dropped out. With the debate taking place on Earth Day, environmental issues are also likely to be raised.
The Wednesday night gathering is the first televised debate in the gubernatorial contest since early February. Last month, USC canceled a debate hours before it was set to begin over mounting criticism that its criteria excluded all major candidates of color.
The 7 p.m. debate is hosted by Nexstar and will be moderated by KTXL FOX40 anchor Nikki Laurenzo and KTLA anchor Frank Buckley. It can be viewed on KRON4 (San Francisco), KTLA5 (Los Angeles), KSWB/KUSI (San Diego), KTXL (Sacramento), KGET (Bakersfield) and KSEE (Fresno). NewsNation will also air the debate.
Kevin Warsh, the man nominated to lead the Federal Reserve, the world’s most important financial institution, told the US Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday that he had made no secret agreements with the White House over interest rate policy, defending his professional integrity.
He said he would act independently if confirmed to succeed Jerome Powell, despite continued public pressure from US President Donald Trump for lower borrowing costs.
The question of that independence was put sharply to him during the hearing, when Republican Senator John Kennedy asked whether he would be Trump’s “human sock puppet”. Warsh replied: “Absolutely not.”
His comments came amid broader concerns on Capitol Hill about the future direction of the central bank, with lawmakers divided over his past record and approach to monetary policy.
Warsh insisted that the President had never asked him to commit to any specific interest rate path and said he would not have agreed to such a request.
The hearing highlighted the significant pressure facing the Federal Reserve as it maintains its independence while addressing inflation, which remains at 3.3%.
Just hours before the session began, US President Donald Trump stated in a CNBC interview that he would be disappointed if Warsh did not immediately implement rate cuts.
This current friction suggests that the White House may struggle to secure the necessary votes to confirm Warsh before Powell’s term as Fed Chair expires on 15 May.
Democratic senators were particularly vocal in their scepticism, accusing Warsh of shifting his economic stance to suit the political climate.
US Senator Elizabeth Warren labelled the nominee a “sock puppet”, suggesting his installation would facilitate an “illegal takeover” of the institution.
Critics also pointed to his historical record, alleging that he favoured higher rates during Democratic administrations but has become more dovish under Republican leadership.
US Senator Ruben Gallego cited reporting from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), which claimed the President had previously urged Warsh to reduce borrowing costs. Warsh responded by stating that such reports were based on inaccurate sources and reiterated that the independence of the Fed is “essential” for economic stability.
Despite Trump’s backing, the nomination also faces a critical roadblock within the Republican Party.
US Senator Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina, reiterated his refusal to support Warsh as long as a Department of Justice investigation into Jerome Powell continues.
The probe, led by Assistant US Attorney Jeannine Pirro, is examining whether Powell committed perjury during testimony last year regarding the budget of a Federal Reserve building renovation project.
Tillis and other Republican colleagues have expressed their support for Powell, arguing that the investigation is meritless. According to Tillis, he will not vote for a successor until the “investigation is dropped,” a stance that effectively freezes the nomination in a closely divided committee.
Federal prosecutors have reportedly continued their efforts to access Fed records as recently as last week, even after a judge previously found no evidence to support the charges.
The proceedings also delved into Warsh’s personal financial interests and the logistical challenges of a potential leadership transition.
US Senator Elizabeth Warren raised questions about the nominee’s investments in private entities, including SpaceX and Polymarket, noting that the specific size of these holdings had not been fully disclosed to the public.
Warsh defended his position by stating that the Office of Government Ethics has already approved his plan to divest all assets within 90 days of his confirmation.
Compounding the uncertainty is the unique situation involving Jerome Powell.
Unlike most departing Chairs, Powell has indicated he intends to remain on the Federal Reserve’s governing board until his separate term ends in 2028, or until the perjury investigation is concluded.
This could create an awkward power dynamic where the former Chair sits alongside his successor, a scenario not seen in Washington since the late 1940s.
While US President Donald Trump has threatened to remove Powell from the board entirely, legal experts suggest such a move would be difficult, particularly given recent US Supreme Court precedents relating to the protection of Fed governors from political dismissal.
Private credit faces mounting stress from liquidity mismatches, fraud concerns, and macro pressures, even as bullish sentiment persists.
Private credit has avoided a “Lehman moment,” but pressure is building across liquidity, leverage, and transparency—raising doubts about how long the asset class can withstand its visible cracks.
Some investors have had enough. Consider the surge in redemption requests at firms like Morgan Stanley, Apollo Global Management, BlackRock and Blue Owl Capital. Each firm capped withdrawals at 5% per fund, and saw their stock prices plummet. At a glance, this exodus of money signals that an endgame could be near.
Larry Fink, the billionaire CEO of BlackRock, attempted to quell fears on an earnings call last week, insisting that institutional demand is accelerating. Meanwhile, financial regulators are raising red flags. Financial Stability Board Chair Andrew Bailey warned in an April letter to the G20 that geopolitical tensions, such as the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, could reduce asset quality and further strain private credit funds.
The dichotomy has finance pros scratching their heads, wondering what to make of a key part of the $15 trillion private markets ecosystem. If data from U.K.-based data company Preqin is correct, private credit could exceed $30 trillion by 2030. Even with solid fundamentals, private credit’s mounting liquidity concerns, leverage risks and macroeconomic pressures are testing its resilience.
“This is not a single-firm story,” Former Nasdaq Vice Chairman David Weild told Global Finance. “It is sector-wide.”
Fink may be right; private credit offers compelling risk-adjusted returns, Weild, now an advisor at private-credit platform KoreInside, said. “However, if the claim is that you can deliver those returns inside a vehicle that promises quarterly or monthly liquidity to retail investors, one will inevitably discover that in times of market stress, the demand for liquidity will exceed the short-term supply of liquidity.”
Recent turmoil in private credit has raised questions about whether 2026 could bring a broader retrenchment. The industry faces growing scrutiny over fraud risks, regulatory pressure, and the impact of AI-driven disruption. Transparency concerns are also weighing on investor confidence, highlighted by automotive parts supplier First Brands Group, which has filed for bankruptcy protection and has allegedly concealed billions of dollars in debt from lenders, including exposure in private credit accounts held by BlackRock.
Software lending has come under particular focus, given its large share of private credit portfolios. AI-driven disruption is now raising concerns about future credit losses.
“The combination of AI-driven disruption in enterprise software valuations, tighter lending standards, and redemption pressure on the very BDC vehicles that would normally provide refinancing capacity creates a compounding problem,” Weild said. “Some private credit funds are already turning away software companies outright, given the impact of AI on that industry.”
Private credit bulls need to rethink “real structural challenges,” such as how capital is raised, how vehicles are structured, and what level of education advisors need going forward, said Prath Reddy, President of Percent Securities. A lack of accessible data, limited liquidity, and insufficient options for tailored exposure also give him pause.
“We are certainly in a stress scenario now,” said Reddy. “Leaving [these issues] unaddressed leaves a tremendous amount of capital on the table from wealth management channels.”
Private credit might be under the microscope, but some private equity players continue to cash in. Ares Management raised $9.8 billion for an opportunistic credit strategy, Adams Street Partners closed its $7.5 billion Private Credit III fund, and Carlyle Group raised $1.5 billion in initial funding for a new asset-backed finance vehicle.
“For private credit to keep working at this scale, liquidity structures, leverage levels, and repayment timelines all need to remain aligned as exits take longer and refinancing becomes more selective,” said Jun Li, EY’s Global and Americas Wealth & Asset Management Leader. Stress arises when those assumptions break down simultaneously.
“A true stress scenario would likely involve refinancing risk colliding with slower exits and shifting liquidity expectations, particularly if capital is locked up longer than anticipated and operating models are not built to absorb that pressure,” Li added.
Big banks—both competitors and partners to nonbank lenders—are trying to project calm.
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, for example, downplayed concerns about the private credit sector on an April 14, 2026, earnings call. That’s in stark contrast to his take last year, when Dimon referred to the bankruptcy proceedings of First Brands and TriColor—two companies that relied on private credit—as “cockroaches.“
JPMorgan Chase is now tightening certain relationships with private credit funds to limit exposure amid volatility. Goldman Sachs and Barclays are taking a similar risk-management stance.
“On one side, fundamentals still look supportive with institutional capital stepping in as banks pull back,” Li said. On the other hand, pressures are building around liquidity, leverage, and refinancing, which naturally raises systemic questions.
As Li put it: “This doesn’t look like an endgame, but it does look like a decisive moment.”
From here, Li is predicting that private credit will separate into managers who can operate through longer cycles, tighter liquidity, and greater scrutiny, and those who cannot.
“Some strategies may struggle, but the broader market is still evolving rather than unwinding,” Li added. “The outcome will depend less on a single shock and more on how well firms adapt to a more demanding environment.”
Other observers are more bullish. Attorney Derek Ladgenski, a partner specializing in private credit at Katten Muchin Rosenman, argued that experienced market participants will ultimately work through the sector’s challenges.
“The Avengers are closer to an endgame than private credit,” said Ladgenski. “The tombstone for private credit has been written many times before.”
Ladgenski said that while cyclical pressures exist across all asset classes, the deeper challenge in private credit is liquidity mismatch—an outcome, in part, of significant investor inflows chasing its strong historical track record and forward-looking returns.
Still, any “stickiness” will ultimately strengthen the sector, he added. “And the current sound bites and headlines regarding any death knells will be forgotten soon enough.”
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The cost of living in the UK accelerated throughout March, propelled by a significant increase in petrol and diesel prices following the outbreak of the Iran war.
According to the Office for National Statistics, the annual consumer price inflation rate moved to 3.3% from 3% the previous month, a shift that matched the forecasts.
This inflationary pressure is largely attributed to an 8.7% monthly jump in motor fuel costs, which represents the sharpest rise seen since the summer of 2022, following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Beyond the petrol stations, the fallout from higher energy prices has trickled down into airfares and food supplies, complicating the economic landscape for the government and the Bank of England.
UK Treasury chief Rachel Reeves noted that while the conflict is not a domestic one, it is directly pushing up bills for families and businesses across Britain.
Lindsay James, an investment strategist at Quilter, observed that “this morning’s inflation data showed CPI creeping back up to 3.3%, confirming that price pressures are re-accelerating rather than fading away since the outbreak of the war in Iran.”
While international markets have shown some signs of recovery in equity prices, the physical market for oil delivery into Europe remains under immense strain.
Experts suggest that a swift reopening of the Strait of Hormuz is the only viable path to unwinding the current inflationary trend, yet the situation remains volatile and unpredictable.
The timing of this inflation surge is particularly problematic because it coincides with a period of cooling in the domestic economy.
Recent data from the labour market indicates that payrolled employment is falling and economic inactivity is on the rise, while wage growth has started to ease.
For the average British worker, the combination of rising essential costs and stagnating earnings growth creates a challenging environment for real purchasing power.
As for the Bank of England, this sudden spike in prices has disrupted the projected path of beginning to lower borrowing costs this spring.
Prior to the escalation of the Iran war, there was a growing consensus that the central bank would reduce its main interest rate from 3.75% as inflation appeared to be heading back toward the official 2% target.
However, with inflation now expected to potentially hit 4% in the coming months, the Monetary Policy Committee faces a much more difficult decision during its meeting next week.
There is a growing debate among economists regarding whether traditional interest rate hikes are the correct tool to address this specific crisis.
According to James “a rise in rates risks misdiagnosing the problem. This inflationary pulse is being driven by supply disruption, not excess demand. Higher interest rates will do nothing to increase the flow of oil or other goods from the Middle East.”
This sentiment suggests that the Bank of England may choose to maintain its current stance, keeping rates on hold while monitoring whether these price increases begin to manifest in higher wage demands across the broader economy.
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EU Trade Chief Maroš Šefčovič is visiting the US on Thursday and Friday in a bid to unlock negotiations over EU steel and aluminium exports still hit by the 50% US tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump shortly after his return to power last year.
Scrapping those tariffs was part of the EU-US trade deal struck in July 2025, which included commitments to discuss quota arrangements for steel and aluminium to replace the 50% duties.
However implementation of the broader accord — including cuts to EU tariffs on US industrial goods — has been delayed by MEPs, effectively stalling talks on metals.
European Commission Deputy Chief Spokesperson Olof Gill said on Tuesday that the trip will be an “opportunity to take stock of the broad sweep of EU/US trade deal and investment relations”.
He added that the focus will be on where both sides “stand” on the implementation of their “respective commitments” under the deal.
Resolving issues over the trade of steel and aluminium will be top of the agenda, Euronews has learned.
The agreement was clinched in summer 2025 in Turnberry, Scotland, by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Trump after weeks of trade tensions, during which Šefčovič made repeated trips to Washington to defuse the dispute and avert steeper tariffs.
The Commission ultimately accepted 15% duties on European exports to the US in a deal widely seen as unbalanced in Europe. The agreement is now under discussion among EU countries and MEPs before full implementation.
Šefčovič’s visit will be his first since the Turnberry accord. The deal has since been frozen several times by EU lawmakers following fresh tariff threats by Trump over Greenland.
A ruling by the US Supreme Court also reshuffled the deck, finding that most US tariffs imposed in 2025 were illegal. In the days following, the White House shifted legal grounds to maintain tariffs as part of its nationalist ‘America First’ trade agenda. However, those measures are set to expire in July, after which they will require approval from US Congress.
In the coming days, Šefčovič aims to ensure the US sticks to the agreed 15% tariffs. His agenda includes meetings with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. He will also head to Capitol Hill to meet members of the US Congress.
Washington has also tied the removal of steel and aluminium tariffs to EU moves to relax digital rules it sees as targeting US Big Tech firms.
While the Commission has always defended its sovereign right to legislate — insisting rules are applied without discrimination — discussions on setting up an EU-US forum on digital issues have recently surfaced.
Whether that still-vague concession will be enough to secure US movement on metals remains to be seen.
April 21 (UPI) — European airline Lufthansa announced Tuesday that it will chop 20,000 “unprofitable” short-haul flights through October, a move the company says will save more than 40,000 metric tons of jet fuel.
The company, which is based in Germany, said fuel costs have doubled since the start of the conflict in Iran. This follows a move last week to retire the 27-plane fleet of its CityLine subsidiary ahead of schedule, Politico reported.
Lufthansa canceled the first 120 flights, which were to take place through the end of May, on Monday and said it had alerted affected passengers.The 20,000 cancelations include the former CityLine flights and affect the airline’s hubs in Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna, Brussels and Rome.
“Passengers will therefore continue to have access to the global route network, particularly long-haul connections,” Lufthansa said in its announcement. “However, due to the increase in jet fuel prices, this will be achieved significantly more efficiently than before.”
The airline said that it will post the schedule “optimizations” from June onward in late April.
Politico reported that other airlines, including SAS Scandinavian Airlines and Air France- KLM, have turned to similar measures to deal with fuel costs.