IMF on Greece, Chinese GDP, and an air mile millionaire

The International Monetary Fund has sent a strong signal that it may walk away from Greece’s new bailout programme, arguing that it will not be able to participate if European creditors do not offer Athens substantial debt relief. The move again raises the pressure on Germany, which has opposed any debt relief, just as it prepares to seek the approval of its parliament to negotiate the details of a new bailout hashed out in a summit at the weekend.

Meanwhile, economists remain sceptical that the EUR86bn agreement, which has ensured that Greece remains in the eurozone, will be enough to restore it to good health. (FT)

In the news:

Chinese GDP

China’s economy grew faster than predicted in the second quarter, a sign that a series of stimulus measures launched late last year has helped to stabilise growth. GDP grew at an annual rate of 7 per cent, just ahead of forecasts, although this is still the slowest pace in six years. (FT)

Deal delight

Thousands of Iranians poured onto the streets to celebrate the nuclear deal agreed with world powers on Tuesday, amid hopes that it will bring prosperity and pave the way for normalisation of ties with the US. The deal between six world powers and Iran, if it survives the objections of opponents in Washington and Tehran, will reverse almost a decade of economic isolation for the Islamic republic in return for limits on its nuclear programme. (FT)

Petrobras probe

Brazilian police raided the homes of former president and current senator Fernando Collor and two other sitting congressmen on Tuesday, in a sharp escalation of an investigation into corruption at state oil company Petrobras. As part of the operation police confiscated a Porsche, Lamborghini and Ferrari. (FT)

Still too big to fail

Taxpayers could end up footing the bill if a big bank failed despite seven years of efforts to regulate the industry more tightly, the governor of the Bank of England has suggested. “Too big to fail” lenders still exist and the authorities could not, without government support, adequately wind down a big bank if it collapsed Mark Carney said. (FT)

Shares a flutter

Shares in Twitter leapt by as much as 8 per cent on Tuesday after traders reacted to a fake online story that claimed the messaging company had received an offer valuing it at $31bn. (FT)

US economic recovery

The recent performance of two US lenders showed evidence of the US economic recovery, with JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo reporting increases in mortgage lending in the first quarter as the banks reporting season kicked off. (FT)

It’s a big day for:

Burberry, which reports first-quarter results. More than a set of figures for a single company, the numbers will provide a barometer of the luxury goods market. The sector has come under pressure from the economic slowdown in China and tensions with Russia – the recent turmoil in the Chinese stock market and the Greek crisis could amplify this.

Janet Yellen, who will make her semiannual monetary policy testimony to the Senate Banking Committee (FT).

Food for thought:

Cyber insecurity

US agencies responsible for vital national interests have been revealed tolack basic IT defences. Although the US technology sector leads the world, the computer systems of the US government are woefully unprepared for the frequency and sophistication of today’s cyber attackers. (FT)

DSK 2.0

Could Dominique Strauss-Kahn return to public life, after four years fighting sex-related allegations? Recent polls suggest those scandals have not dented the popularity of the former IMF chief in his native France. (FT)

Population pickle

As Australia’s mining investment boom winds down, the central bank has been relying on a steady flow of new migrants to boost the economy. But the appeal of a life Down Under is waning as wages stagnate. (Bloomberg)

In from the cold

The story of one of the UK’s most brilliant wartime spies, who infiltrated Nazi sympathiser networks in Britain. However, Eric Roberts was poorly treated by colleagues at MI5 in the paranoid years of the cold war and was left gripped by fear that he was suspected of being a traitor. (BBC)

Air mile millionaire

A researcher has received 1 million air miles as a reward from United Airlines, which runs a scheme for people who report flaws in its website and apps. So-called “bug bounty” programmes are increasingly popular. (Wired)

Video of the day:

FT editor Lionel Barber and foreign editor Roula Khalaf discuss the breakthrough agreementbetween world powers and Iran – what it means for the region, and who the winners and losers are.

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: Traffic lights are seen at the Pudong financial district in Shanghai. REUTERS/Carlos Barria.