Author: Arabian Media staff

John Maynard Keynes once called it a “barbarous relic”, an ancient metal with little relevance in the modern world. When the gold-backed global monetary architecture came to an end in the early 1970s, central banks started selling their holdings — and they continued doing so for decades.For the guardians of the global economy, gold — which has been used as a store of value since the first gold bars were created in Mesopotamia thousands of years ago — seemed destined for irrelevance. Yet bullion has made a roaring comeback, not just among speculators and so-called gold bugs who mistrust modern paper currencies, but…

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Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldAn American financier invested $100mn in the Trump family’s flagship bitcoin project just nine weeks after a probe into his crypto business was dropped by the Trump administration.DRW Investments, a Chicago-based company founded and controlled by trader Don Wilson, bought almost 4mn shares in Trump Media & Technology Group last month, according to public filings, as part of a funding round for the purchase of more than $2bn in cryptocurrency.The investment in TMTG, which is behind the Truth Social app…

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The spectre of renationalisation has loomed over private and listed entities within the transport sector for several years, but Labour’s election victory last July truly spelled the end of privately operated train services, leaving quoted ticketing company Trainline and public transport provider FirstGroup looking vulnerable. Trainline is threatened by the government’s plan to launch its own ticket booking service, while FirstGroup, the last remaining quoted train company, will see its train operating companies (TOCs) eventually transferred to new state rail company Great British Railways when their current contracts expire. Its South Western Railway franchise has already been plucked from its control.Other…

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Howden Joinery’s recent performance has been as solid as one of its kitchens. Although revenue and pre-tax profit were flat last year — and a fifth below the £406mn peak achieved 12 months earlier — this should be set in context. Demand for kitchens in the UK (where Howdens generates 97 per cent of its revenue) fell for the third year in succession in 2024, yet the company managed both to increase its market share and widen its gross margin by 80…

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Jane Street has struck one of Hong Kong’s largest prime office leases since before the Covid-19 pandemic, underlining how the New York-based trading firm has emerged as a challenger to Wall Street’s biggest banks.Under the deal, which relates to a central business district complex still under development, Jane Street will pay an estimated rent of more than HK$30mn per month ($3.8mn) for a five-year lease of six floors starting in 2028.Jane Street, which already has modest office space in Hong Kong, will…

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.The world’s largest publicly listed oil tanker company is refusing new contracts to sail into the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz following Israel’s attack on Iran, its chief executive has said.The decision by Lars Barstad of Frontline is an early sign of the widespread disruption to global shipping patterns expected as a result of the outbreak of conflict early on Friday.The concerns are focused on movements through the Hormuz Strait, the narrow stretch of water between Iran and Oman that links…

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