Greek hope, climate change health emergency, and Obama on racism

The daily briefing “FirstFT” from the Financial Times

There’s a glimmer of hope for a Greek deal. After accidentally sending through the wrong draft on Sunday night, Athens presented a proposal that included its first substantial concessions in months. It lacked sufficient detail for a definitive agreement but eurozone leaders have welcomed it as the basis for more talks this week, which could eventually lead to EUR7.2bn in bailout cash.

Markets soared but Greek banks are still under pressure – depositors withdrew $1.6bnyesterday, adding to $2bn in withdrawals on Friday and over the weekend. Some people have stopped paying off their personal debts.

No matter who makes concessions, argues Gideon Rachman, all roads lead to the destruction of the euro. And no matter which road is taken, Greece is likely to be dependent on EU and IMF support for years to come because of the depth of its economic problems. (FT)

In the news

Jimmy Lee memorial Wall Street bankers and corporate chief executives including Jamie Dimon, below, paid tribute to the late investment banker at a memorial service in New York. (FT)

Uber rakes it in The ride-sharing app has raised enough equity and debt in the past six months to bring its total funding to $10bn – a new record for a US tech company before going public. The funds will go towards expansion, driverless cars and its mounting legal fees. (FT)

Call for removal of Confederate flag South Carolina’s governor called for the civil-war era flag to be removed. Defenders say it is an important part of southern heritage but it is increasingly seen as a racist symbol and photos had emerged showing the alleged shooter in Charleston posing beside it. (FT, Atlantic)

#TwitterJobs The messaging service is on the hunt for a new chief executive after Dick Costolo’s resignation and it has enlisted the help of executive search firm Spencer Stuart. The board is looking for a full-time candidate meaning co-founder Jack Dorsey, who runs Square payments, need not apply. (FT)

Global medical emergency Climate change is enough of a threat to human health toundermine the past 50 years of gains in global development, according to a UCL study. The experts on the review called for immediate action to avert the impact of extreme weather, infectious disease and crop failures. “Under such circumstances, no doctor would consider a series of annual case discussions and aspirations adequate, yet this is exactly how the global response to climate change is proceeding.” (FT)

French government slams Altice offer It said if Altice bought Bouygues Telecom, the deal would be bad for consumers, investment and jobs. Economy minister Emmanuel Macron said he could prevent the EUR10bn all-cash bid that would merge France’s second and third-largest mobile operators. (FT)

It’s a big day for

US-China relations Top US and Chinese officials began the seventh annual strategic and economic dialogue today and tensions over cyber security were high. The Obama administration said it would raise the issue with Chinese counterparts after millions of records were stolen from the Office of Personnel Management. Investigators think the attack originated in China. (WSJ)

Turkey’s government Parliament will be sworn in today and politicians have a month and a half to form a coalition government but this could prove a daunting task with politics in Ankara so divisive. Here are the possible outcomes. (FT)

Ukraine The country’s foreign minister will meet counterparts from Russia, Germany and France in Paris for talks on the conflict. Leaders have already clashed over recent breaches of ceasefire. (AFP)

Food for thought

Apple’s Swift change of tune The company’s decision to splash more cash at artists after being called out by Taylor Swift is an ominous development for Spotify, which may be forced to match Apple’s payments to the music industry. The FT reckons the real problem with artist payments is one that even Swift can’t address – the weakness of recorded music’s business model.

Home handout A Sicilian town is giving away houses in an effort to revive the local economy and generate local tourism. A similar scheme in Piedmont was abandoned because efforts to repopulate and raise taxes and were stymied by “enormous bureaucratic problems”. (NYT)

Obama on racism The president sat down with comedian Marc Maron and spoke candidly about the “long shadow” of slavery. “The legacy of slavery, Jim Crow, discrimination in almost every institution of our lives … and that’s still part of our DNA that’s passed on,” he said. “We’re not cured of it. And it’s not just a matter of it not being polite to say n—-r in public.” (WTF)

What’s killing the babies of Vernal, Utah? Rolling Stone finds a spike in stillborn deaths and a gush of unanswered questions in a fracking boomtown.

Built on debt Prime minister Narendra Modi has grand plans to improve India’s dilapidated roads, ports and railways. But they could all be laid to waste by India’s debt-ridden companies. (FT)

Video of the day

Greek crisis in 90 seconds Is this Greek drama starting to go beyond comprehension? Martin Sandbu breaks down why Greece is facing the spectre of default and what happens if a deal is not reached in a lot less time than these negotiations have been going on. (FT)

This article is published in collaboration with The Financial Times. Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum.

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Author: FirstFT is the Financial Times’ editors curated free daily email of the top global stories from the FT and the best of the rest of the web.

Image: A woman waves a Greek national flag and a European Union flag. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis.