Finance disruption, Martian microbes and amnesia reversed

The daily briefing “FirstFT” from the Financial Times.

Washington has rejected claims by Moscow that Russian air strikes in Syria were aimed at Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant fighters, as Russia added a dramatic edge to competition for influence with the US in the Middle East.

Russia’s defence ministry said they were “precision strikes against ground targets of the terrorists” from Isis. But the attacks were in western Syria, far from Isis strongholds, suggesting that the aim was to shore up Bashar al-Assad’s regime. “That approach is tantamount . . . to pouring gasoline on the fire,” said Ashton Carter, US defence secretary. (FT)

In the news

The financial wipeout The digital revolution sweeping through the banking sector is set to wipe out almost two-thirds of earnings on some financial products as new technology companies drive down prices and erode lenders’ profit margins. This is one of the main predictions by the consultancy McKinsey in its annual review of global banking, which says the sector faces “a high-stakes struggle” to defend their business model. (FT)

Uber v Transport for London More than 90,000 people have signed a petition in support of the ride-hailing startup, just hours after the city’s transport operator proposed tough new rules that could hit minicab businesses. Among the new proposals from the government is a curious regulation that private hire vehicle would have to wait five minutes after booking before they can pick up a customer. (FT)

Hedge funds hit The political storm in the US over drug pricing has hit three of Wall Street’s largest hedge funds after shares in Valeant, a drugmaker that has come under fire from a Congressional committee, tumbled for a second day. Pershing Square, ValueAct and Paulson & Co have been hit hard this week because of their concentrated bets on the Canadian pharma group. (FT)

Japan’s industrial woes The country is on the verge of a technical recession after data on industrial production raised the prospect of a second consecutive quarter of negative growth. The figures suggest the shock from China’s economic slowdown, combined with sluggish consumption at home, is in danger of overwhelming the stimulus known as Abenomics. (FT)

The end of the patent wars Google and Microsoft have reached a settlement to end some 20 patent lawsuits in a sign that the copyright wars that plagued the early years of the smartphone industry were drawing to a close. The terms of the deal echo a similar settlement between Google and Apple last year and puts to rest a barrage of litigation between some of the techindustry’s biggest names. (FT)

It’s a big day for

The People’s Republic of China, which celebrates its 66th birthday with a giant floral display in Beijing and a televised speech by President Xi Jinping. (LA Times)

Food for thought

The new generation of cyber sleuths The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched a recruitment drive with a mission objective like no other: enlist teenagers into the fight against cyber crime before they fail background checks by smoking marijuana. “I have to hire a great workforce to compete with those cyber criminals and some of those kids want to smoke weed on the way to the interview,” said FBI director James Comey. (FT)

The Martian microbes of doom With the evidence of water on Mars pointing to the likely existence of microscopic lifeforms, the prospect of alien life no longer seems so distant. The challenge now is to ensure any future explorers to the red planet do not return home as the bringers of bacterial doom. (FT)

Markets: Can they really be tamed? Since the financial crisis, investors have sought out new and complex ways to play markets more safely, with many turning to computer-driven “systematic” investment strategies that aim to maximise returns while mitigating risks. But recent stock market turbulence has raised new concerns that these strategies are only compounding problems, not insulating investors from them. (FT)

Total recall After being diagnosed with a brain tumour at the age of 28, Demetri Kofinas saw his life gradually disintegrate before him as the cyst dug into his consciousness, almost entirely erasing his memory. But a daring medical procedure that saw doctors drill into his brain reversed the process and his memories flooded back – each one a revelation, a relentless onslaught of forgotten memories. (Quartz)

The shipwreck that keeps on giving Divers returning to the submerged remains of the ancient Antikythera vessel have unearthed more treasures, including a bronze chair and a Greecian board game. “Every single dive delivers fabulous finds, and reveals how the ‘1 per cent’ lived in the time of Caesar,” said the project director. (The Daily Beast)

Video of the day

What’s priced in After a bad quarter for risky assets across the world, John Authers asks how much deflation has been priced in. (FT)

This article is published in collaboration with FirstFT. 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 Jordanian boy poses with an image of Mars projected on a wall. REUTERS/Ali Jarekji.