Brazil’s record recession, Zuckerberg’s $45bn pledge and why virtual reality is a big deal

This article is published in collaboration with FirstFT.

Fears that Brazil is on track for its worst recession since the Depression were bolstered after it reported a record 4.5 per cent year-on-year drop in GDP in the third quarter. Lower commodity prices, fiscal contraction and the fading of a consumer credit boom have battered what was once one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. (FT)

In the news

Zuckerberg pledges $45bn giveaway The birth of his first child has promoted a pledge from Facebook founder and president Mark Zuckerberg to give away 99 per cent of his shares in the company, worth about $45bn. However, the donation will not affect his majority voting position in the company or his control of the shares. (FT)

EU may reimpose Greek border controls The bloc warned Athens that it faces suspension from the Schengen passport-free travel zone unless it overhauls its response to the refugee crisis by mid-December. (FT)

‘Corbyn and a bunch of terrorist sympathisers’ The UK opposition party has accused Prime Minister David Cameron of a “desperate slur” after he urged Tory MPs not to vote alongside Labour in today’s vote on Syria. “You should not be walking through the lobbies with Jeremy Corbyn and a bunch of terrorist sympathisers,” the prime minister said. (FT)

Isis arrests in the US American authorities have arrested 56 people for helping to support the jihadi group, the largest number of terrorism-related arrests in the country in a single year since September 2001. The Isis recruits defy categorisation, “from hardened militants to teenage girls, petty criminals and college students”. (NYT)

Football with Chinese characteristics Chinese investors have made their first foray into English football, snapping up a 13 per cent stake in the parent of Premier League leaders Manchester City. Football, both at home and abroad, has become a target for Chinese conglomerates and their wealthy founders, which some see as an effort to curry favour with Beijing. (FT)

It’s a big day for

Fifa , which begins a two-day meeting in Zurich to discuss potential reforms, including term limits for senior officials. Five sponsors of football’s world governing body, including Adidas and Coca-Cola, have written to Fifa to demand “independent oversight” of reforms. (BBC)

Rate watchers Investors will be keenly watching speeches by a trio of Fed policymakers — chair Janet Yellen in Washington, San Francisco Fed president John Williams in Portland and Atlanta Fed president Dennis Lockhart in Florida — for clues about this month’s monetary policy meeting, where they are expected to raise rates for the first time since 2006. (Reuters)

Food for thought

Why virtual reality is a really big deal Tech columnist Jonathan Margolis has an apology for FT readers. In April, he said consumer virtual reality could become as big as cinema and television. Well, now he thinks he under-exaggerated the situation: the reality is more sensational. (FT)

Understanding the new global oil economy Martin Wolf argues that if US imports fall, its interests in a stable Middle East will shrink as those of China and India rise. What is already clear is that “the global supply capacity is not only enormous but expanding”, and the world “has far more [oil] than it can burn”. (FT)

Chile’s mass whale grave The coast of southern Chile has become a grave for 337 sei whales that were found beached in what scientists say is one of the biggest whale strandings ever recorded. (The Guardian)

Pharma’s harsh dose of reality Mike Pearson upended big pharma with Valeant and investors applauded, but now critics say it risks collapse under a $30bn debt pile. (FT)

The peculiar cult of Bill Murray The actor has transcended his 1970s comedic roots and late-career dramatic rebirth to become something of a secular saint. No other entertainer inspires coasters, T-shirts and prayer candles, while simultaneously evoking the sense that they could crash your wedding photos or appear out of nowhere to join a kickball game. (NYT, Daily Beast)

Video of the day

Syria vote shows Labour’s deep divisions On Monday Jeremy Corbyn had a chance to try to stop Britain going to war in Syria but in the end he granted Labour MPs a free vote on air strikes. The FT’s George Parker and Jim Pickard discuss how the move has revealed deep divisions in the Labour party. (FT)

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: An attendee tries out Sony’s Morpheus virtual reality headset. REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian.