Baltic Dry index shows two-thirds drop in vessel leasing rates since start of December

French transport group says factories coming back online but investors bet company will default

‘Slow steaming’ options for imports gain popularity as coronavirus lockdowns sap demand

Spate of arson attacks on telecoms masts fuelled by disinformation over pandemic’s origins

Look behind the doors of a medieval Swiss castle that’s piquing much curiosity

From an 18th-century farmhouse in the US to a traditional Deià-style home in Mallorca

Warmly burnished and gently cryptic, this is easy listening at its most enjoyable

Indigenous protests over gas project are snarling rail traffic and hurting businesses

First time in five years that rail groups have not paid into state coffers

Safety and commercial concerns remain but football, rugby and cricket begin talks to resume play in pandemic

The actor on playing jerks, his new Netflix specials and life as a comedian in lockdown

Documents seen by FT show demand for face masks and aprons was close to outstripping national supplies

Pandemic has added to pressure on companies already facing tough financial conditions

Fears of food shortages as coronavirus forces facilities to shut and US cases top 1m

Kellogg and Kraft Heinz see chance to win back customers who had shifted to healthier brands

Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods spy retail opportunities as meat industry struggles with virus

Even without scale, the fake meat industry is challenging the economics of its blood and guts rivals.

Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss Lloyds Bank and its offshore banking problems, the latest on the regulatory tests facing Facebook's Libra initiative, and how banks have fared in this year's US Fed stress tests.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, Nick Megaw, retail banking correspondent, Hannah Murphy, technology correspondent, and Kiran Stacey, US regulatory correspondent. Producer: Fiona Symon

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss a surprise candidate to succeed Ross McEwan as head of Royal Bank of Scotland, Goldman Sachs's nascent Marcus brand and Igor Kolomoisky's bid to reverse the nationalisation of Ukraine's PrivatBank. With special guest Harit Talwar of Goldman Sachs.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, David Crow, banking editor, and Max Seddon, Moscow correspondent. Producer: Fiona Symon

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss the retrial of former Barclays bankers over the bank's arrangements with Qatar at the height of the financial crisis, the poor level of support among banks for a climate change initiative backed by Bank of England governor Mark Carney, and the Fed's decision to drop the introduction of tougher liquidity rules for foreign banks. With special guest, Erkin Nosinov, a director at BCS Consulting.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, Caroline Binham, financial regulation correspondent, David Crow, banking editor, and Laura Noonan, US banking editor. Producer: Fiona Symon

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss what the latest stress tests tell us about the health of UK banks, racism in US banking after recent revelations about the treatment of black customers at JPMorgan Chase, and predictions for the year ahead. With special guest Laurie Mayers, associate managing director at Moody's.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, David Crow, banking editor, Nicholas Megaw, retail banking correspondent, and Laura Noonan, US banking editor. Producer: Fiona Symon

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss why protesters in Hong Kong are targeting HSBC, whether Société Générale is in a position to merge with other banks and the challenges facing banking in 2020. With special guest John Garvey, Global Head of Financial Services at PWC.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, David Crow, banking editor, George Hammond, finance reporter, Stephen Morris, European banking correspondent, Robert Armstrong, US finance editor and John Garvey, Global Head of Financial Services at PWC. Producer: Persis Love

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How are banks dealing with the market chaos caused by coronavirus and the new oil price war? Also, Bob Diamond has appointed his flamboyant former right-hand man at Barclays, Rich Ricci, as chief executive of Panmure Gordon, the lossmaking UK stockbroker he bought two years ago. What are the two musketeers now up to? And we also hear from special guest Katie Murray, chief financial officer of RBS.

Contributors: Host, Matthew Vincent, regulation correspondent, Stephen Morris, European banking correspondent, Laura Noonan, US banking editor, and Nicolas Megaw, retail banking correspondent. Producers: Andrew Georgiades and Breen Turner.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Secretary of state Mike Pompeo says strategic dialogue to determine future role will begin in June

Prime minister designate says government could be unable to pay half of the salaries of 3m-strong workforce next month

In Iraq and Syria, citizens have been hard to persuade of the need to stay inside

Nightlife, resilient to war and terrorism, has been paralysed by coronavirus

Shady Habash died in prison aged 22 and had been held without trial for two years

Rami Makhlouf’s complaints against his cousin show strains in power structure

Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s appointment gives country its first functioning government in 6 months

Teens who don’t want to miss the rite of passage are dressing up for leavers’ balls on TikTok

Tech-savvy stylists offer virtual consultations and algorithm-matched dyes

Why one of the biggest names in fashion also designs furniture textiles

Policymakers should use this opportunity to broaden, not trim, health benefits

Conservative activists vow to step up street demonstrations against business closings

Our predicament is that wealth has become the only apparent source of safety

Rising number of low-paid staff are contracting Covid-19 or leaving posts as death toll mounts

The less well-off will be the most exposed to Covid-19 infection

After months of lockdown, citizens are keen to move around but not across borders

Factories reopen but economy still faces challenges from weak services sector

It’s awards season in the music industry, with the Brits in London following hot on the heels of the Grammys in LA. The Brits have been revamped this year – but will they lose the unscripted edginess of previous years? How can they compete with the might of the Grammys? And is Tinie Tempah better than Mumford & Sons? FT pop critics Ludo Hunter-Tilney and Richard Clayton join deputy arts editor Neville Hawcock to discuss the hype and the hopefuls. Produced by Griselda Murray Brown.  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Will Colin Firth take the Oscar for best performance? Will The Social Network win best film? Is awards season trend-spotting a dangerous game? And, what makes an Oscar-winning film? On the eve of the 83rd Academy Awards, Jan Dalley, FT arts editor, puts these questions and others to FT film critics Nigel Andrews and Leo Robson. Produced by Griselda Murray Brown  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Established in 1895, the Venice Biennale has been called anachronistic - with its focus on separate national pavilions despite the international nature of today's art market. Is it an outdated model? If so, why are more countries than ever taking part this year? It is a series of exhibitions not an art fair - yet Venice has long been a centre of trade. Just how commercial is its Biennale? Jan Dalley puts these questions to Jackie Wullschlager and Peter Aspden, and picks some highlights ahead of the 54th Venice Biennale. Produced by Griselda Murray Brown  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Established in 1895, the Venice Biennale has been called anachronistic - with its focus on separate national pavilions despite the international nature of today's art market. Is it an outdated model? If so, why are more countries than ever taking part this year? It is a series of exhibitions not an art fair - yet Venice has long been a centre of trade. Just how commercial is its Biennale? Jan Dalley puts these questions to Jackie Wullschlager and Peter Aspden, and picks some highlights ahead of the 54th Venice Biennale. Produced by Griselda Murray Brown  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Edinburgh Festival – the world’s largest arts festival – is really a collection of different festivals that take place across the Scottish capital every year throughout the month of August. There is the stately International Festival and the so-called “Fringe” festival – a more unruly, sprawling affair with a reputation for experimental theatre and bawdy stand-up. There’s also an acclaimed Book Festival, as well as an Art Festival and even a Festival of Spirituality and Peace. Jan Dalley, FT arts editor, turns her attention to the Edinburgh’s theatrical offerings. She is joined in the studio by Ian Shuttleworth, FT theatre critic, and Matt Trueman, theatre blogger and critic for Time Out. Produced by Griselda Murray Brown  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As performance artist Marina Abramovic showed, the paradox of our digital age is our hunger for personal presence, says the FT's arts editor  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Doha’s aspiration to become a global centre for culture is admirable – its squeamishness over ancient Greek sculptures less so, says the FT’s arts writer  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Visa problems and nervousness on the part of potential sponsors have made life hard for London’s festival of contemporary Arab culture. But as the Arab Spring gives way to harsher realities, such forums are needed more than ever, says the FT’s arts writer  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Braving Daleks and Cybermen at the Royal Albert Hall, the FT’s arts writer reflects on the unlikely synergy between classical music and a children’s sci-fi series  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Christian Bale’s hairpiece in the Oscar-nominated movie caper epitomises the preposterousness of the 1970s – but the decade’s unabashed lack of polish looks increasingly appealing in our technology-dependent age  

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.