Flagship

‘Sell America’ gathers steam

The dollar plunged to a three-year low, as a US trade war and threats against the Federal Reserve drove “Sell America” trades. President Donald Trump’s renewed push to fire the Fed chair, in particular, has undermined the haven status of US assets, resulting in a combined stock, currency, and bond weakness not seen since 1981, according to Sherwood News. Pension funds worldwide are reassessing whether to keep betting on the US, while Chinese state investors are pulling back from US private equity. Traders have flocked to gold, which hit a fresh record Monday, as well as German bonds. The “exorbitant privilege of the US,” Commerzbank’s chair said, “may not be carved in stone.”

The World Economy Summit 2025 is bringing together the decision-makers who are shaping the future of global economic policy. The three-day summit, taking place from April 23-25, 2025 in Washington, DC, will focus on ways leaders across business, finance, tech, and beyond are navigating the complexities of tariffs, shifting trade dynamics, and evolving policy landscapes.

Featuring on-the-record conversations with Mary Barra, Chair and CEO, General Motors; Scott Kirby, CEO, United Airlines; Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO, Uber; Ted Sarandos, Co-CEO, Netflix; Evan Spiegel, CEO, Snap; Kathy Warden, Chair, CEO and President, Northrop Grumman, and more, the summit will facilitate in-depth discussions on how countries are adapting to these challenges and building resilience in a rapidly changing world.

April 23-25 | Washington, DC | Learn More

Modi’s growing global heft

India’s Narendra Modi hailed progress in trade talks with the US vice president before heading to Saudi Arabia, showcasing his growing role in global diplomacy. India has historically sought international leadership roles, but its prime minister has ramped up that effort, building embassies and deepening trade links. In recent years, American leaders across party lines have courted New Delhi, viewing it as a bulwark against China. JD Vance’s four-day trip is the latest in a string of diplomatic overtures: Already this year, Modi has welcomed the European Commission cabinet, the crown prince of Dubai, and the emir of Qatar, and while in Saudi Arabia he will meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto ruler.

Kenya’s Ruto in Beijing

Kenyan President William Ruto arrives in Beijing today looking to shore up Chinese investment after US tariff threats upended global commerce. Though Ruto’s visit is expected to focus on infrastructure financing, it comes with Beijing seeking to deepen its relationships across Africa, part of a decades-long bid for influence on the continent. China has focused on gaining control of key commodities, seeking to outmuscle the US even before President Donald Trump imposed — and later paused — tariffs, with many of the most punishing ones falling on African nations. Africa’s trade with China is now several times larger than with the US, leaving it at risk of becoming too dependent on Beijing. “Most African states wish to avoid being pigeonholed,” an expert told Semafor.

Pope’s funeral draws world leaders

The presidents of the US, Ukraine, and France were among world leaders planning to attend the pope’s funeral, with the somber event likely to be seen as a diplomatic summit of sorts. Pope Francis’ death on Monday was met with an outpouring of grief globally, and his funeral on Saturday promises to be a major gathering — which is increasingly in keeping with such events: Politico in 2022 described world leaders scrambling for pride of place at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, while commemorations for Nelson Mandela in 2013 also drew major figures. “Because death is always with us,” one expert wrote, “there is little doubt that the working funeral is now the most important ceremonial occasion in the world diplomatic system.”

Trump’s foreign policy revision

The “great power competition” that defined US President Donald Trump’s first term is giving way to a “great power collusion,” the cover story of the latest issue of Foreign Affairs argued. Trump’s first National Security Strategy in 2017 had declared “great power competition returned,” positing that post-Cold War cooperation had ended, giving way to an all-encompassing focus on rivalries with Beijing and Moscow. Yet Trump’s second presidency is fast evolving into more of a “concert” akin to 19th-century Europe, resulting in a “world managed by strongmen who work together,” the political scientist Stacie Goddard wrote. Yet, she warned, “if history sheds any light on Trump’s new approach, it is that things may end badly.”

Sheinbaum bans US ‘propaganda’

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said foreign “propaganda” would be banned after US anti-migrant ads ran on national TV. The commercials showed US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem warning that anyone crossing the US-Mexico border illegally would be prosecuted and deported. Washington’s tough measures have pushed illegal crossings to their lowest level since the 1960s, while Mexican troops — deployed in response to pressure from the White House — have prevented many from reaching the border in the first place. “The door is closed,” a Venezuelan migrant stranded in northern Mexico told The Wall Street Journal.

Water fears over Asia ice shortage

Snow levels in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya region hit a 23-year low, threatening the water supplies of 2 billion people. The mountain ranges, which stretch from Afghanistan to Myanmar, hold the world’s largest ice reserves outside the Arctic and Antarctic, and their meltwater is a vital source of fresh water in much of Asia. “Snow persistence,” the time snow lasts on the ground, is 23.6% below normal, the third year of low snow, raising the risk of drought in areas already affected by more regular heatwaves. Ice is on the retreat everywhere: The World Meteorological Organization said recently that five of the last six years have seen rapid glacier retreat, and sea ice near both poles is at record lows.

China-US AI talent war

DeepSeek’s rapid ascent highlights the global battle for artificial intelligence talent, Stanford University’s Hoover Institution argued. The Chinese startup shocked the world in January with the release of a model that achieved cutting-edge results using a fraction of the resources of US rivals. A new Hoover paper noted that 89% of DeepSeek’s researchers were affiliated with Chinese universities. Some had trained in the US, but returned, treating American institutions as “a launchpad, not a destination.” US innovation policy focuses on boosting computing power and limiting chip exports, but to win “the future of technological leadership,” Hoover experts warned, “it must now confront the harder challenge — winning the global competition for talent.”

Oscars to allow AI-made films

The Oscars are officially open to artificial intelligence. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said it had changed its voting rules, and the most notable addition was that for the first time it explicitly addressed the use of generative AI in the making of films, saying that it would “neither help nor harm” a movie’s chances, although the degree of human creativity involved would be taken into account. Filmmakers already use AI — Adrien Brody’s Hungarian accent in The Brutalist was AI-assisted, as were some effects in Dune: Part Two — although it remains controversial. Another change was that members must now watch all nominated films in a category in order to vote: Readers may be surprised that this was not already the case.

‘New color’ seen for first time

Scientists said they have discovered a never-before-seen color. Our color vision relies on three kinds of “cone” cells in our eyes, each sensitive to different wavelengths — roughly blue, red, and green. Normally, light falling on one will stimulate the others too, meaning perceived colors involve signals from all three cones. The new research involved lasers stimulating only the green-perceiving cells, creating a super-saturated blue-green color which the researchers called “olo” and which, they said, would never be seen in the real world: It was, one told the BBC, as though someone had only seen pastel pinks, and then saw “the most intense baby pink you’ve ever seen, and they say it’s a new colour and we call it red.”

• Early voting begins in Australia’s federal election, ahead of the ballot on May 3.
• Tesla releases its first-quarter earnings.
• People across the world gather to mark Earth Day.

The number of skeletons unearthed at a Roman horse cemetery in Germany. The burial ground likely belonged to a cavalry unit, stationed at a major military base at Bad Cannstatt, in what is now a suburb of Stuttgart, in the second century AD. Most of the horses were disposed of with little ceremony, archaeologists said, but in one notable exception the animal was buried with two jugs and a small oil lamp, goods often found in human graves: “Even after around 1800 years,” a researcher said, “the grief over the death of this one animal is still evident.”

Mass in C Minor, K. 427: Et incarnatus est, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The late Pope Francis was a music buff, noted Slippedisc: In a 2013 interview with a Jesuit magazine, he said “I love Mozart, of course. The ‘Et incarnatus est’ from his Mass in C minor is matchless; it lifts you to God.” He also enjoyed Edith Piaf, among other things. Listen to Mass in C Minor, K. 427: Et incarnatus est on Spotify.