
Turkey’s Runoff Election Has Investors Bracing for More Pain
Financial markets are signaling that more pain is to come in Turkey’s financial markets, as long-time leader President
1970-01-01 08:00

Yen at 140 Opens Door to More Weakness But Not Intervention This Time
The yen is close to hitting a bottom against the dollar, and is unlikely to weaken to levels
1970-01-01 08:00

Lewis Hamilton has shut the door on Ferrari – will he come to regret it?
The denials came from all angles on media day in Monaco. Speculation that Lewis Hamilton could move to Ferrari next year, in a £40m deal no less, has ramped up this week but was quickly quashed on Thursday by both Hamilton and Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur. In fact, Hamilton went further, revealing his representatives are “almost there” in agreeing a new deal with Mercedes. The 38-year-old’s current contract with the Silver Arrows – where he has won six of his seven world titles since joining in an inspired decision a decade ago – expires at the end of this season. Despite the wait, the noise from both the Brit and team boss Toto Wolff has been that an extension is a simple inevitability. Not a case of if, but when. “My team is working closely behind the scenes with Toto and we are almost at the end of having a contract ready,” Hamilton stated, affirmatively. These fresh revelations come – coincidentally? – ahead of a huge fortnight for the Brackley-based team. Highly-anticipated upgrades have been long in the making, ever since Wolff finally dismissed the no-sidepod philosophy at the season opener in Bahrain. While the unique streets of Monaco this weekend, due to last week’s cancellation of the race in Imola, represent a somewhat unideal debut for new sidepods, a new floor and a new front suspension, next week in Barcelona will give a genuine representation of any progress made. And, more pertinently, how much the gap is reduced to Red Bull, presently a good distance down the road. Hamilton is, undeniably, reaching the twilight of his career with a record-breaking eighth world championship further away than ever. Links to Ferrari have popped up throughout his 16 years in the sport and Hamilton himself has spoken with confusion, at times, as to why a move has never materialised. The sport’s most prestigious team working in tandem with the sport’s joint-most successful driver? Not now, it seems. But if not now… when? Previous flirtations have been just that. There was no need for Hamilton to broaden his horizons when sat comfortably on his throne. Mercedes were the top dogs for eight years, with Hamilton personally collecting the season gong six times and missing out in the final race twice. Ferrari, meanwhile, have not won a drivers’ title since Hamilton was pipped as a rookie by Kimi Räikkönen way back in 2007. However, now the landscape of the sport is different. Red Bull are the clear frontrunners – perhaps to a level that even surpasses the Mercedes juggernaut. Ferrari and Mercedes are scrapping away to catch up, with Aston Martin this year joining the party. The parallels between now and 11 years ago, when Hamilton shocked the paddock by ditching his boyhood McLaren team to join Mercedes, are comparable. The Brit, as McLaren started their downward spiral, took a Niki Lauda-directed gamble to join the Silver Arrows. “Isn’t that not a bit like moving from Manchester United to West Ham?” asked a jovial Jeremy Clarkson on Hamilton’s second appearance on Top Gear, in 2012. Yet after a season of transition, Hamilton won six world championships in seven years – a streak only split by team-mate Nico Rosberg. His instinct to change paths was justified. To jump at something new. To break with convention. While Ferrari are perhaps on a par with Mercedes currently, they have shown greater potential than their rivals in this new ground-effect era. A 2022 campaign that started with such promise fell away, but the fundamentals of the car seem present. Converting qualifying pace to Sundays seem their current predicament. Hamilton shifting to Maranello next year – which now seems improbable – should not be as unfeasible as it may seem. It would be a plunge in the dark, for sure. A more comfortable decision would be to trust the process at Mercedes, for sure. But these upgrades and their effectiveness in Monaco and Spain, and by extension in Canada, Austria and Silverstone thereafter, will be the clincher. It just depends which way. The likelihood is that improvement will be made, triggering Hamilton signing on the silver dotted line. The man himself has said as much. But until such transformations are made, the driver who made his name by boldly switching sides should not rule out the prancing horse. Has he, perhaps, spoken a little too soon? Not least because, should Ferrari speed away from Mercedes in the coming months, the underlying taste of what if would deny him, and us, of a concluding career narrative as dazzling as it now seems fantasy. Read More Lewis Hamilton provides Mercedes contract latest amid Ferrari links Ferrari boss gives Lewis Hamilton update after reports of shock move Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes are the biggest losers from Imola Grand Prix cancellation F1 Monaco Grand Prix: Why is practice no longer on a Thursday? Bernie Ecclestone would be surprised if Lewis Hamilton wanted to leave Mercedes
1970-01-01 08:00

EV Battery Leader CATL Joins BYD, Tesla to Tap Solar’s Boom
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd., the world’s biggest electric vehicle battery producer, is joining Tesla Inc. and BYD
1970-01-01 08:00

German Football’s Nein to Private Equity Leaves Bundesliga Adrift
German football fans are gearing up for a dramatic showdown this weekend, when the Bundesliga title race will
1970-01-01 08:00

UK Retail Sales Bounce Back More Than Expected After Wet March
UK retailers saw sales jump more than expected last month, recovering from heavy rain that kept people home
1970-01-01 08:00

MUFG’s $4 Billion Bond Deal Is Japan’s Biggest This Year
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. raised 570 billion yen ($4 billion) worth of debt in what is Japan’s
1970-01-01 08:00

New Jersey police officer who authorities say shot and killed a 911 caller is charged with manslaughter
A grand jury has indicted a New Jersey police officer on a manslaughter charge more than a year after authorities say he fatally shot a homeowner who called 911 to report two burglars, the state attorney general's office said.
1970-01-01 08:00

Turkey election: What five more years of Erdogan would mean
President Erdogan is tipped to win Turkey's presidential vote after a deeply divisive election.
1970-01-01 08:00

Britain Loses its Luster for Job Seekers From Poland to Portugal
It’s not just Brexit that’s dried up the flow of European Union workers the UK used to depend
1970-01-01 08:00

BOJ’s Ueda Says Wages Aren’t the Goal, Keeps Speculators in Dark
Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda indicated his desire to hold on to policy flexibility by playing down
1970-01-01 08:00

Hyundai Motor, LG Plan $4.3 Billion EV Battery Plant in US
South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution Ltd. will invest 5.7 trillion won ($4.3 billion) to
1970-01-01 08:00