Flagship

Big US banks earn more than expected

Strong quarterly profits at American banks boosted confidence that the US economy is headed for a soft landing. Executives at JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America said consumers continue to spend at a healthy clip, bucking concerns that inflation and high levels of debt might be squeezing households. And Goldman Sachs, which caters to Wall Street rather than Main Street, reported $3 billion in third-quarter profits despite a slowdown in corporate mergers. Economically, “the world is trending to above average,” a Goldman executive said. A new survey of fund managers found them more optimistic than they have been in years, selling bonds and buying stocks — generally a bullish sign.

US warns Israel over Gaza aid crisis

The US warned it could withhold military assistance from Israel if the country doesn’t address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza within 30 days. In a letter, US officials called on Israel to allow at least 350 aid trucks to enter Gaza daily and to implement “humanitarian pauses” in fighting. The United Nations said last week that no food aid had entered northern Gaza since Oct. 1; private traders are filling the gaps, using black market avenues to get into the enclave and jacking up prices of food and basic goods for Palestinians, the Financial Times reported. Israel relies on US military aid, and the letter marks the most comprehensive list of demands Washington has made since the start of the war, Axios wrote.

Illegal immigration drops in the West

Illegal border crossings in both the US and Europe have dropped precipitously so far this year compared with 2023. Unlawful migration into the European Union fell by 42% in the first nine months of this year, new data showed Tuesday. Left-leaning and centrist politicians are adopting a tougher stance on the issue in a shift The Guardian called the “Orbánisation of European migration policy,” referencing populist Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán. Meanwhile, illegal migration at the US-Mexico border is at its lowest level since 2020, thanks to cooperation between the two countries that involves new patrols and checkpoints in Mexico and changes to US asylum policy. The drop has helped Vice President Kamala Harris rebut Republican attacks that she has a weak record as “border czar.”

New Chinese pandas arrive in US

China began a new chapter in “panda diplomacy” Tuesday, as a new pair of bears arrived in Washington, DC. Their arrival comes about a year after a trio of pandas left the US capital when an exchange agreement expired, sparking concerns that US-China diplomatic tensions would mean fewer furry ambassadors. And starting Wednesday, visitors to the Berlin Zoo will be able to see two rabbit-sized cubs born recently to a panda who arrived in the German capital in 2017. The global panda program is presented as a breeding and conservation effort for an endangered species — but a New York Times investigation found China has removed more pandas from the wild than it has released, and uses artificial breeding methods that have harmed the animals.

Abu Dhabi to get its own Sphere

The Sphere’s sphere of influence is expanding to the Gulf. Abu Dhabi will be the world’s second city to house the massive, glowing LED entertainment venue — the first Sphere opened in Las Vegas in 2023 with a $2.3 billion price tag and a 20,000-person capacity. The expansion reflects the United Arab Emirates’ desire to become a culture and tourism hub. While widely mocked and memed, the Vegas Sphere has proven popular: It’s not yet profitable, but ticket sales for concerts by U2, Dead & Company, and the Eagles have been strong. Business magnate Richard Attias said last month that the venue’s US owner is “overwhelmed by requests — and not just from the rich countries, who want their own Sphere.”

Internet Archive is back after hack

The Internet Archive is back online after hackers took down its 916 billion web pages. The California nonprofit preserves websites, providing a vital service for investigative journalists and would-be internet historians, as well as offering free access to millions of books, videos, and audio files: The site is a “unique, irreplaceable resource recording decades of web history,” Axios wrote. Hackers took it down nearly a week ago, posting a taunting message that said the Archive “is constantly on the verge of suffering a catastrophic security breach,” adding “it just happened.” The Archive’s founder said Monday it was now back up in “a provisional, read-only manner… Please be gentle.” The site also suffered a September data breach affecting 31 million users.

Comet returns to night sky after 80,000 years

A comet last seen 80,000 years ago is visible in the night sky this week. Comet C/2023 A3 was discovered last year, and is likely composed of ice and rock left over from the solar system’s birth about 4.75 billion years ago. As it heads around the sun, our star’s heat is causing it to evaporate, creating a visible “tail.” The space rock should remain visible from the northern hemisphere with binoculars or a small telescope through October. And while you’re gazing at the sky, the annual Orionid meteor shower, produced by Halley’s Comet — perhaps the most well-documented comet ever — peaks this week, with dozens of bright shooting stars expected every hour.

On the latest episode of Mixed Signals from Semafor Media, Ben and Nayeema tackle the critique of bias in the media — a conversation that’s especially timely now, just weeks away from a US election and amid an expanding conflict in the Middle East. They sit down with James Bennet, who has been at the center of the thorny debate around bias and the Middle East since his tenure as the Jerusalem Bureau Chief at The New York Times. Together, they try to make sense of what we perceive as media bias and the moral questions that journalists grapple with every day.

Listen to the latest episode of Mixed Signals now.

Indonesia embraces Dutch soccer players

Indonesia is using its history as a Dutch colony to boost its chances of making its first World Cup appearance since 1938. The country has lagged behind other Asian nations in its soccer ambitions, but it is now taking advantage of a FIFA rule that allows players to represent a country they weren’t born in, as long as their parents or grandparents were from there. Indonesia has started recruiting more players born in the Netherlands, a pool that now outnumbers their teammates born in the Southeast Asian archipelago, Foreign Policy wrote. Passionate Indonesian fans have embraced the new players, and the team has gone further in the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup than it has in previous tournaments.

Sourdough’s rise to the top

Sourdough’s pandemic-era rise to dominance is shaping Britain’s high streets and politics. The upmarket British bakery chain Gail’s, founded in 2005, was bought by a private equity firm in 2021, and has since become ubiquitous with 150 stores around the country. One political party used it as a bellwether during recent elections, knowing that constituencies with a Gail’s were probably full of the upper middle-class voters it was targeting. But local communities are opposed to its expansion: One petition complained that Gail’s will “dismantle the character and diversity” of a London suburb. Meanwhile, some American amateur sourdough bakers turned their pandemic hobby into a business, NPR recently reported: “I love handling the dough. I love how mindful it is,” one baker said.

Rare Viking skeletons discovered

A rare unearthing of 50 well-preserved Viking skeletons could provide vital clues to the Norse civilization’s social patterns and trading links. The discovery, in a village in Denmark, contained the bodies of men, women, and children from the 10th century. One woman was buried in a wagon, suggesting she might be from the nobility. “This is such an exciting find,” a researcher told The Associated Press. “Normally, we would be lucky to find a few teeth in the graves.” The settlement appears to have been a community of farmers, unlike the raiders and warriors usually associated with Vikings. The graves held jewelry from across Scandinavia, suggesting widespread trade, and researchers will DNA-test the bodies to see where they came from and how they were related.

Oct. 16:

• Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee delivers his third annual policy address.
• Morgan Stanley releases third-quarter results.
• Prada and Axiom Space showcase the spacesuit designed for the Artemis III lunar mission.

Seven works by a trailblazing Moroccan modernist will go on display at Art Basel Paris, as a Moroccan gallery exhibits at the fair for the first time. Known for the colorful waves that he called his “handwriting,” Mohamed Melehi, who died in 2020, rejected traditional colonial styles of painting, instead pioneering geometric, pop art-influenced experiments that were “pivotal in shaping the aesthetic of post-independence Morocco,” Arab News wrote. The showcase comes amid surging interest in Moroccan art, the co-founder of Casablanca’s Loft Art Gallery said. “I can see it when we exhibit outside Morocco, like in France or London. People also often say, ‘Oh, we’re coming to Marrakesh next year or next month, and we want to visit your gallery.’”

• Inside Condé Nast’s Gaza war.
• Microsoft Azure CTO: US data centers will soon hit size limits.
• Nigerian airline CEO faces new US charge in $20M fraud case.