Tuesday 1 April 2025
The Mighty Headlines
Economics: Italy’s birth rate at lowest level since 1861
Business: Competition regulator rules in favour of Virgin Group
Markets: S&P 500 falls to lowest level since September before rising again
Foreign Affairs: Hard-right candidate set to win Romania’s election
Security and intelligence: Poland signs $2 billion defence deal with US
Domestic politics: Bank of England increases deposit protection scheme
The Mighty Stats
FTSE = 8,582.81 (down 0.88%)
S&P 500 = 5,611.85 (up 0.55%)
Nasdaq = 17,299.29 (down 0.14%)
CAC40 = 7,790.71 (down 1.58%)
£1 = $1.29 / €1.20
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*France update: Marine Le Pen has been given a four-year prison sentence and has been banned from holding public office for five years. The leader of the National Rally was found guilty of using EU funds to finance her national party. It is understood she will appeal. Le Pen reached the final two in elections for the French Presidency in 2017 and 2022.
The Mighty Detail
Economics: The number of births in Italy has declined to its lowest recorded level since the country was unified in 1861. In 2024, there were 370,000 births in Italy and 651,000 deaths. The total population fell by 37,000 in 2024 and has fallen by nearly 1.9 million since 2014. The declining birth rate could lead to economic and social security issues.
Business: Virgin Group has said that there are "no more major hurdles" to it operating cross-Channel rail services. It comes as the competition regulator said that Eurostar should make room at a north-east London depot for more trains. Eurostar had previously blocked new operators by saying that the depot was full.
Markets: The S&P 500 briefly fell to its lowest level since September yesterday in anticipation of the US administration's large scale tariffs due to come into effect tomorrow. The Trump administration is also expected to announce reciprocal tariffs on all countries that impose tariffs on US goods tomorrow.
Foreign Affairs: New polling suggests that a hard-right candidate is on course for victory in a re-run of Romania's presidential election in May. Ultranationalist George Simion supports returning Romania's borders to their pre-World War Two area which includes parts of Ukraine, Bulgaria and Moldova. The election in December was declared void on the grounds of Russian interference.
Security and intelligence: Poland is signing a $2 billion deal with the United States to support its air defence systems. The agreement will see the US provide further technical support for Poland’s Patriot defences against short-range ballistic missiles. Poland is the biggest defence spender in NATO relative to GDP and is due to spend 4.7 per cent of GDP this year.
Domestic politics: The Bank of England is proposing to increase the level of bank deposit insurance to £110,000. This is the maximum amount that savers are entitled to from their account if a bank collapses. It currently stands at £85,000. It follows a review of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank two years ago.
The Mighty Calendar
What’s happening today?
NASA press conference with astronauts Wilmore and Williams
UK Home Secretary hosts Border Security Summit
Foreign Office Questions in the UK Parliament
Russia and China’s Foreign Ministers meet in Moscow
Forbes publishes its global billionaires list
UK house price index (March)
Eurozone CPI inflation data (March)
US manufacturing data (March)
Company results from: CLS Holdings
Lookahead to tomorrow
US tariffs on steel, aluminium and cars expected to take effect
EU Defence Ministers meeting, Brussels
Prime Minister’s Questions in UK Parliament
Chancellor Rachel Reeves attends Treasury Committee hearing
China, Japan services growth data (March)
Company results from: Raspberry Pi, Blackberry
The Mighty Finale
🌤️Weather today
Sunny and dry across England. High of 15C and low of 6C in London. Same fine weather in Belfast and Edinburgh.
✏️Life coaching quote of the day
“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.” – Henry Ford, entrepreneur
Mighty takeaway: Nothing more to add!
That’s it for this Tuesday morning. See you tomorrow.
Bye!
The Mighty Memo team