FirstFT: Russia to halt gasoline circulation to Poland and Bulgaria

Russia is to halt the circulation of gasoline to Poland and Bulgaria from right now, in accordance with authorities in each EU nations, as Moscow steps up efforts to weaponise power provides following its invasion of Ukraine.

PGNiG, the Polish state-controlled gasoline group, mentioned yesterday that Russian provider Gazprom had knowledgeable it of a “full suspension of provides” underneath its Yamal contract efficient from 8am Polish time.

Late yesterday, Bulgaria’s power ministry mentioned Gazprom had instructed its state gasoline firm, Bulgargaz, that it might halt gasoline provides. Sofia mentioned it had taken steps to seek out different preparations for pure gasoline provide.

The spat between PGNiG and Gazprom is the primary check within the stand-off over rouble funds for Russian gasoline provides, and suggests Moscow is prepared to chop off a supply of billions of {dollars} of income.

Warsaw additionally needs EU allies to agree new powers to make it simpler for sanctions-hit Russian belongings, together with property, to be seized and offered to assist cowl the huge prices of rebuilding Ukraine after the battle.

Have you ever been affected by rising European gasoline costs? Share your expertise with me at [email protected]. Thanks for studying FirstFT Europe/Africa — Jennifer

The most recent from the battle in Ukraine

• Army assist: Germany has agreed to permit exports of heavy weaponry to Ukraine, a U-turn that adopted weeks of strain on Olaf Scholz’s authorities.

• Meals safety: Disruption to Ukraine’s agriculture trade has upended the European breadbasket. Check out how with our interactive.

• Oil: EU member states are contemplating a cap on the value they might pay for Russian oil to hit Kremlin revenues whereas avoiding a complete embargo.

• Sanctions: Switzerland has mirrored all of the US and EU sanctions in opposition to Russian oligarchs. Nevertheless it has frozen solely $8bn of belongings. Why?

• Russia’s warning: The nation’s safety council secretary warned that Ukraine will “break up into a number of states” if the west doesn’t finish its assist for Kyiv.

• Opinion: The battle, which is inflicting a many-sided financial shock, is in sum a multiplier of disruption in an already disrupted world, writes Martin Wolf.

5 extra tales within the information

1. Elon Musk can stroll away from Twitter deal utilizing $1bn break payment The Tesla chief government can stroll away from his $44bn takeover of the social media platform for a considerably decrease penalty than within the typical leveraged buyout, a regulatory submitting by Twitter yesterday revealed.

• It’s not all good: Tesla shares slid greater than 12 per cent yesterday, wiping greater than $125bn off its valuation, which might pose issues for Musk’s margin mortgage secured in opposition to his stake within the electrical carmaker.

• In Nigeria: Customers concern that the much less politically progressive stance of Twitter’s new management will have an effect on their freedom of speech. (Al Jazeera)

2. Boris Johnson threatens to privatise public our bodies The UK prime minister mentioned our bodies together with the Passport Workplace and the Driver and Automobile Licensing Company might face privatisation until they sorted out important backlogs, accusing the companies of falling sufferer to a “post-Covid mañana tradition”.

3. UBS’s finest first-quarter income in 15 years Merchants propelled the Swiss financial institution to its finest first-quarter efficiency since 2007 as beneficial properties by unstable markets made up for lacklustre efficiency by its wealth managers.

4. Prime US financial institution buyers refuse to again local weather proposals Traders refused to again resolutions demanding stricter fossil gasoline financing insurance policies at three large Wall Avenue banks yesterday, in a blow to environmentalists hoping to use extra strain to lenders over local weather points.

5. Cupboard break up on plan to chop UK meals tariffs Tensions have damaged out amongst senior Tories over a plan to unilaterally minimize tariffs on meals imports after the value of groceries within the UK rose 5.9 per cent up to now 12 months.

The day forward

Liz Truss to name for strain on Vladimir Putin In a keynote international coverage speech at London’s Mansion Home, the UK international secretary will push for reform to a world safety structure that has failed Ukraine.

Outcomes Boeing, Credit score Suisse, Deutsche Financial institution, GlaxoSmithKline, Mattel, Mercedes-Benz, Meta, Puma, and Spotify are among the many firms reporting earnings right now. Extra in our Week Forward e-newsletter.

Madeleine Albright’s funeral President Joe Biden is set to talk on the funeral of the primary feminine US secretary of state, who died final month on the age of 84. Learn the FT’s obituary of Albright right here. (CNN, FT)

Anniversaries It will likely be a day of commemorative occasions, as South Africa marks when the date when Nelson Mandela was elected president in 1994. Sierra Leone celebrates 61 years since independence and Israel observes Holocaust Martyrs and Heroes Remembrance Day.

Be part of us together with main figures from Tesla, Volkswagen, Ford Professional, Nissan, Mercedes and Vauxhall on the Way forward for the Automotive occasion on Might 9-12. Register right here.

What else we’re studying

ECB opens door to July charge rise Christine Lagarde has spent days persuading buyers that the European Central Financial institution will take a extra “gradual” strategy than the Federal Reserve to struggle inflation. However that has not stopped markets pricing the opportunity of its first charge rise in a decade as quickly as July.

It’s time to reform Britain’s non-dom tax regime Rich residents being allowed to shelter abroad earnings from British tax is just not a phenomenon of right now’s globalisation — it dates again to 1799. Complete reforms to modernise the non-domicile regime are lengthy overdue, writes our editorial board.

Berkshire Hathaway must be damaged up When Warren Buffett leaves his put up after greater than 50 years on the helm, nobody else will be capable to run the corporate as efficiently as he has. The behemoth conglomerate needs to be damaged up, argues Francine McKenna, editor of The Dig.

Don’t let Heathrow puncture the journey ‘bubble’ The journey trade is again in enterprise. But Britain’s busiest airport needs to behave as celebration pooper, arguing yesterday that the rebound was “momentary”. Its pessimism stands out, writes Cat Rutter Pooley.

Tips on how to keep away from a recession A paper by Alex Domash and Larry Summers identified that, since 1955, there have been eight situations the place US wage inflation was above 5 per cent and the unemployment charge was under 4 per cent, as they’re now. In all eight, a recession adopted inside two years. Historical past is just not future, although, writes Robert Armstrong in our Unhedged e-newsletter. Signal as much as obtain it right here.

Vogue

Girls’s model throughout Britain’s horseracing season will get quite a lot of consideration, typically of the unfavourable form. However what of males? From tailor-made separates to merino shirts, listed here are successful seems to be for Ascot.