FirstFT: US and Europe prepared to escalate Russia sanctions

The White House has signalled that the US and its European allies intend to escalate sanctions on Russia this week as it warned the conflict in Ukraine would “not end easily or rapidly”.

“[President Joe Biden] will join our partners in imposing further sanctions on Russia and tightening the existing sanctions to crack down on evasion and ensure robust enforcement,” said Jake Sullivan, US national security adviser, during a press conference yesterday.

Sullivan declined to provide details of the sanctions, but said Biden would announce the measures during his visit to Europe, which begins in Brussels on Wednesday. The president is scheduled to meet Nato partners and attend European Council and G7 summits.

As Russia neared the end of its first month of fighting in Ukraine without any major population centres under its control, Biden accused Vladimir Putin of having his back “against the wall”. The US president also warned that Russia’s military might resort to increasingly desperate tactics, such as more indiscriminate bombing and the use of chemical weapons.

The war in Ukraine:

How do you think this war will end? Email me at [email protected] and share your views. Thanks for all the emails we have received so far. Here’s the rest of today’s news — Emily

Five more stories in the news

1. Exclusive: Archegos quietly built stake in Deutsche Bank Archegos Capital Management quietly amassed a stake in Deutsche Bank after its founder Bill Hwang forged ties with the German lender’s leaders before the family office imploded last year, the Financial Times can reveal.

2. Yen hits six-year low against dollar The currency fell to ¥121 against the greenback yesterday, its lowest point since February 2016, as the hawkish tone of the US Federal Reserve and its determination to curb inflation convinced investors that Japan’s currency may have further to fall.

3. China’s Evergrande says lenders have claimed $2bn in cash Lenders to a property services unit of China Evergrande Group have claimed more than $2bn of its cash, dealing a blow to international investors in the heavily indebted real estate developer who were hoping to recoup some of their losses through the subsidiary.

4. No survivors found from Boeing 737 crash in China Hopes of finding survivors among the 132 people on board the Boeing 737 that crashed in China yesterday are fading fast as investigations into the country’s worst air disaster in more than two decades are launched.

5. Tokyo blackout averted after earthquake shuts power plants Tokyo businesses and residents were told to limit their use of electricity yesterday to avoid plunging the world’s biggest metropolitan sprawl into a power blackout. The warning affected the capital as well as surrounding areas that are home to about 45mn people.

Coronavirus digest

• Shanghai yesterday hit a new daily record for asymptomatic Covid-19 cases transmitted locally, marking the city’s fifth consecutive record-breaking day. (Reuters)

• As pandemic travel restrictions loosen, Air New Zealand announced it would begin nonstop flights between New York and Auckland in September. (Bloomberg)

The day ahead

Volodymyr Zelensky addresses Japanese Parliament The Ukrainian president is set to deliver an address to members of the Diet virtually. He is also set to speak in front of French lawmakers, as he did US and German government officials last week. (Reuters, Politico)

UK Spring statement Chancellor Rishi Sunak will present his Spring Statement to the Westminster parliament. Here are five things to look for in his statement

Join us on April 7 for our Energy Source Live Summit where we will take a deep dive into the issues set to reshape the US energy industry in the years to come. Register here.

What else we’re reading

HK expats drive demand for Singapore school places International schools across Singapore told the Financial Times that they had received multiple times more inquiries than normal from expatriates fleeing Hong Kong’s draconian pandemic restrictions.

The politics behind Pakistan’s inflation Living standards are deteriorating as the country faces one of the worst inflation crises in Asia. As frustration mounts, prime minister Imran Khan faces a no-confidence vote that he will need to survive if he is to become the first Pakistani leader to complete a full term in office.

The yield curve might be wrong And we’d better hope so, writes Rob Armstrong in his Unhedged newsletter, since the yield curve shows some troubling signs. The worry is that returning to normal at the same time the Federal Reserve digs in for a fight against inflation might trigger a recession.

Is gold the safest place to invest? Gold is traditionally seen as a “haven investment” during volatile times so it will come as no surprise that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as rising global inflation, has caused a jump in its price. But how do you invest in the precious metal? The FT’s consumer editor Claer Barrett explains.

A four-day week might benefit employers Given the average full-time working week in the UK is only 36.3 hours, a campaign for more time off probably sounds decadent. But the “leakiness” of modern work combined with parenting have left many starved of time, writes Sarah O’Connor.

Books

From a ragtag group of extravagantly alcoholic teenagers to a collection of short stories on the lives of women in Ukraine’s Donbas region and more, see Leah Quinn’s list of the five best works of fiction about Ukraine. Plus, Ukrainian Sex, “the most influential Ukrainian book [since] independence”.