ECB Set for Last Easy Rate Cut as Trade Fuels Inflation Discord
The European Central Bank is about to lower interest rates for the final time before an increasingly complicated inflation outlook risks bringing internal divisions to the fore.
As price risks recede, officials have cut seven times in the last year with little friction on the 26-strong Governing Council. An eighth move is expected Thursday, bringing the deposit rate to 2%.
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Wall Street Journal
28 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
The Grand Slam Semifinalist Who Escaped Disqualification Despite Hitting a Line Judge
Paris Lorenzo Musetti was playing the greatest Grand Slam of his life on Tuesday when a single moment nearly saw him unceremoniously drummed out of Paris. Musetti, a 23-year-old Italian ranked No. 7 in the world, was in the second set of his quarterfinal against American Frances Tiafoe, when he was momentarily overcome by frustration. Seeing a loose ball between points, he kicked it toward the back of the court—and straight into the chest of a line judge. The line judge remained stoic, but a momentary shock rippled through the crowd. Tennis fans have seen plenty of other players, including 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic, immediately disqualified for similar reactions. This time, however, the chair umpire only issued Musetti a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct. 'It was a really unlucky coincidence,' Musetti said. 'I was a little bit, honestly, scared, because I really didn't want to harm anybody.' Even Tiafoe reacted with disbelief, looking at the umpire and pointing in Musetti's direction with his racket. The message was clearly, 'Did you see what just happened?' Later, Tiafoe hinted that Musetti should have been made to forfeit the match. 'Obviously he did that and nothing happened,' he said. 'I think that's comical, but it is what it is…Obviously it's not consistent.' Tiafoe's call for consistency was referring to at least a couple of moments at recent Grand Slams when angry or careless players have accidentally struck people on court with a ball and immediately been kicked out of the tournament. The most stunning came when Djokovic was sent home from the 2020 U.S. Open after he struck a stray ball and hit a line judge in the throat. The line judge fell to the floor and Djokovic apologized immediately. But after a long discussion on court, officials decided that it constituted a serious enough violation of the players' Code of Conduct and ejected him. More recently, a Roland-Garros umpire arrived at the same conclusion in 2023 when Japanese doubles player Miyu Kato knocked a ball away and inadvertently struck a ball girl in the shoulder, leaving her in tears. Kato apologized to the ball girl, but was still required to forfeit her prize money and ranking points. 'Even though you don't mean it, you're still responsible for that action,' an on-court official explained to Kato at the time. 'If you hit someone and they're injured, then you're responsible for that action.' How the rules are applied in these situations theoretically leave plenty of discretion to the chair and tournament umpires. But in practice, the question of whether someone is actually hurt tends to be the deciding factor between a simple warning and a default. And in Musetti's case, the line judge hardly reacted at all. 'I think the umpire saw that there was no intention about that,' Musetti said, 'and that's why [they] probably just let me continue my game.' Write to Joshua Robinson at
New York Times
29 minutes ago
- New York Times
Claudia Pina brace sees Spain Women beat England 2-1 in Nations League group stage
England Women have been knocked out of the UEFA Nations League after falling to a 2-1 defeat to Spain in the group stage. Arsenal striker Alessia Russo's 22nd-minute goal gave the away side an early lead in the first half, but a second-half brace from Barcelona's Claudia Pina earned Spain the victory at the RCDE Stadium. Advertisement The win sees Spain extend their lead at the top of Group C and qualify for the semi-finals. They end the group stage with 15 points after winning five of their six games, while England sit in second with ten points. Sarina Wiegman's England side will now turn their focus to Euro 2025, which kicks off in Switzerland on July 2. A battle out in Spain but it ends in defeat for the #Lionesses. Another step in our preparation for #WEURO2025 👊 — Lionesses (@Lionesses) June 3, 2025 Analysis by Charlotte Harpur It was a lacklustre performance from England, who could have conceded far more than just two goals. They started poorly, struggled to clear their lines, and were sloppy in defence. England sat back, absorbed a lot of pressure, and struggled to get any rhythm but scored completely against the run of play with a fine finish from Alessia Russo. In the second half, however, Spain upped the intensity and were far more fluid in their play. Substitute Claudia Pina was the game changer and showed what impact subs can make, an aspect England lacked, as Wiegman opted to bring on Missy Bo Kearns for her debut. Ultimately, England grew weaker as the game went on and were outplayed in midfield as Spain found their stride. Analysis by Laia Cervello Herrero At the press conference prior to the match, both Mariona Caldentey and Montse Tome were asked about the importance of winning or losing this match in terms of morale, with the Euros in mind. England and Spain are two of the major favourites for the tournament, so this match seemed like more than just a qualifying match for the Nations League playoffs. After FC Barcelona — who form the core of the Spanish team — lost the Champions League final to Arsenal, this match was seen as crucial for regaining self-confidence. Although the result will not determine anything in Euros terms, Spain can now head into the summer with renewed energy.
Fast Company
33 minutes ago
- Fast Company
China's critical mineral export ban gets pushback from global auto industry
Alarm over China's stranglehold on critical minerals grew on Tuesday as global automakers joined their U.S. counterparts to complain that restrictions by China on exports of rare earth alloys, mixtures and magnets could cause production delays and outages without a quick solution. German automakers became the latest to warn that China's export restrictions threaten to shut down production and rattle their local economies, following a similar complaint from an Indian EV maker last week. China's decision in April to suspend exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets has upended the supply chains central to automakers, aerospace manufacturers, semiconductor companies and military contractors around the world. The move underscores China's dominance of the critical mineral industry and is seen as leverage by China in its ongoing trade war with U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump has sought to redefine the trading relationship with the U.S.' top economic rival China by imposing steep tariffs on billions of dollars of imported goods in hopes of narrowing a wide trade deficit and bringing back lost manufacturing. Trump imposed tariffs as high as 145% against China only to scale them back after stock, bond and currency markets revolted over the sweeping nature of the levies. China has responded with its own tariffs and is leveraging its dominance in key supply chains to persuade Trump to back down. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to talk this week and the export ban is expected to be high on the agenda. Shipments of the magnets, essential for assembling everything from cars and drones to robots and missiles, have been halted at many Chinese ports while the Chinese government drafts a new regulatory system. Once in place, the new system could permanently prevent supplies from reaching certain companies, including American military contractors. The suspension has triggered anxiety in corporate boardrooms and nations' capitals – from Tokyo to Washington – as officials scrambled to identify limited alternative options amid fears that production of new automobiles and other items could grind to a halt by summer's end. 'If the situation is not changed quickly, production delaysand even production outages can no longer be ruled out,' Hildegard Mueller, head of Germany's auto lobby, told Reuters on Tuesday. Frank Fannon, a minerals industry consultant and former U.S. assistant secretary of state for energy resources during Trump's first term, said the global disruptions are not shocking to those paying attention. 'I don't think anyone should be surprised how this is playing out. We have a production challenge (in the U.S.) and we need to leverage our whole of government approach to secure resources and ramp up domestic capability as soon as possible. The time horizon to do this was yesterday,' Fannon. Diplomats, automakers and other executives from India, Japan and Europe were urgently seeking meetings with Beijing officials to push for faster approval of rare earth magnet exports, sources told Reuters, as shortages threatened to halt global supply chains. A business delegation from Japan will visit Beijing in early June to meet the Ministry of Commerce over the curbs and European diplomats from countries with big auto industries have also sought 'emergency' meetings with Chinese officials in recent weeks, Reuters reported. India, where Bajaj Auto warned that any further delays in securing the supply of rare earth magnets from China could 'seriously impact' electric vehicle production, is organizing a trip for auto executives in the next two to three weeks. In May, the head of the trade group representing General Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen, Hyundai and other major automakers raised similar concerns in a letter to the Trump administration. 'Without reliable access to these elements and magnets, automotive suppliers will be unable to produce critical automotive components, including automatic transmissions, throttle bodies, alternators, various motors, sensors, seatbelts, speakers, lights, motors, power steering, and cameras,' the Alliance for Automotive Innovation wrote in the letter.
