FirstFT: Pelosi pledges support for Taiwan

Good morning, and we begin today with our continued focus on Nancy Pelosi’s historic trip to Taiwan.

The House Speaker pledged to “always” stand by the country and not “abandon” it during a meeting with Taiwan’s president Tsai Ing-wen.

“America made a bedrock promise to always stand with Taiwan, and this visit is a reminder of that,” Pelosi said at the presidential office in Taipei today.

The visit has enraged China, which has announced it will begin live fire military exercises in the waters around Taiwan from Thursday until Sunday after Pelosi has left.

The drills could amount to a blockade of a country whose economic lifeblood comes from exports and which is highly reliant on energy imports.

Meanwhile, the commercial ramifications from Pelosi’s trip have already begun. The China customs administration has suspended imports of more than 2,000 food products from Taiwan. The move is seen by observers as the start of a campaign by Beijing to punish Taipei for Pelosi’s visit.

But Tsai praised Pelosi’s visit “under such challenging circumstances” and said it boosted public confidence in the strength of her country’s democracy.

Pelosi, the second in line to the presidency after vice-president Kamala Harris, is the most senior US politician to visit Taiwan for a quarter of a century. She is due to leave for South Korea late in the afternoon.

Thanks for all your comments on this topic. Here are a selection from FirstFT readers submitted ahead of Pelosi’s arrival in Taiwan:

“We need to stand firm with Taiwan and other democratic forces in Asia, against intimidation from the Chinese Communist Party.” David Tran, MD, Washington, DC

“[The visit] makes the US look weak and disjointed with “no one in charge” in the name of democracy.” Mitchell Harris, Sunapee, New Hampshire

“It’s a slippery slope if we start letting China or any other country influence our relations with other countries.” ML Thompson, Central Illinois

Foreign countries shouldn’t dictate the travel plans of politicians from other countries, regardless of the political sensitivities. Ravi Ramdas, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Let Pelosi skip this trip but if we are serious about keeping Tawain our ally send a bi-partisan delegation this fall. Jeffrey Herrmann, St. Petersburg, Florida

Thanks for reading FirstFT Americas. Here’s the rest of the day’s news — Gordon

Five more stories in the news

1. Kansas voters reject anti-abortion amendment to state constitution
According to a projection from the Associated Press, voters in Kansas overwhelmingly rejected the Republican so-called Value Them Both amendment that would have paved the way for lawmakers to ban or restrict abortion in the state. For news from the midterm primary elections go to our live blog, which will keep you updated as results come in.

2. Bain barred from UK government contracts The Boston-based global management consultant was hit yesterday with a three-year ban from tendering for British state contracts because of its role in the “state capture” scandal in South Africa. Britain is the first western country to impose such penalties on Bain and there is already pressure on the US to follow suit.

3. Robinhood to slash headcount by 23% The brokerage announced yesterday it was letting go 780 employees, almost a quarter of its workforce, as part of a reorganisation that would result in the closure of two offices. Shares in Robinhood have fallen nearly 75 per cent since its public listing last year as the stimulus-fuelled trading boom has lost steam.

4. Uber reports positive cash flow for the first time There was better news from Uber, which recorded its first-ever cash flow positive quarter. The ride-hailing app has burnt through $25bn since it was founded 13 years ago in its rush towards rapid global expansion but yesterday said it generated $382mn in the three months to the end of June.

5. Shale patch pioneer Chesapeake is to ditch oil The company most associated with the dramatic ups and downs of the US shale industry is taking another gamble: it is planning to offload prized oil assets and double down on American natural gas. Demand for US liquefied natural gas exports is surging after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the resulting sanctions on oil and gas from Russia.

The day ahead

Opec+ meeting Oil producing countries meet today to determine production levels following pressure from the US and other western countries to increase output and help bring down prices ahead of the northern hemisphere winter. Oil prices were hovering around $100 a barrel ahead of the meeting.

Economic data Durable goods orders are expected to have jumped 1.1 per cent in June from 1.6 per cent the previous month, according to economists polled by Refinitiv. Durable goods orders unexpectedly rose in June because of a surge in orders for defence aircraft and parts. But activity in the services sector is expected to have weakened in July, according to the Institute for Supply Management’s non-manufacturing index.

Company earnings Biotech company Moderna, pharmacy chain CVS, media company New York Times, sportswear company Under Armour and biotech group Regneron are among those reporting earnings before the bell today. Ecommerce site eBay, cleaning goods manufacturer Clorox, and insurance companies Allstate and MetLife report after Wall Street’s closing bell.

Asean foreign ministers meeting South-east Asia foreign ministers will gather in Phnom Penh today to discuss violence in Myanmar, the war in Ukraine and Beijing’s growing ambition in the region. US secretary of state Antony Blinken and Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov both plan to attend.

Join us on Saturday, September 3 in person or online for the FTWeekend Festival, featuring a day of debates, tastings, performances and more. Hear from speakers including Great British Bake-Off winner Nadiya Hussain and psychotherapist Esther Perel. Claim £20 off your festival pass using promo code FTWFxNewsletters.

What else we’re reading

Killing of al-Qaeda’s Ayman al-Zawahiri deals setback to Taliban The assassination of the al-Qaeda leader has revealed Washington’s ability to conduct extensive surveillance and attack in the centre of the Afghan capital and shattered efforts by the government in Kabul to build trust with foreign powers and gain international legitimacy.

The US ‘friendshoring’ experiment risks making enemies Viewed from abroad, Joe Manchin’s U-turn and the subsequent new deal on climate and clean energy is notable for proposing one of the first apparently genuine examples of “friendshoring” — favouring strategic allies when building supply chains — seen in the wild, writes Alan Beattie.

Investors grow frustrated with hedge funds after historic losses Hedge funds are heading for one of their worst years of performance on record, leaving investors frustrated with how many managers have failed to offset sharp falls in equity and bond markets. Funds like Daniel Loeb’s Third Point, which is nursing losses after a bet on software company SentinelOne and electric-vehicle maker Rivian Automotive, are suffering.

How Abe’s killing exposes Japan’s thin line between church and state
The close historic ties between the ruling Liberal Democratic party in Japan and South Korea’s Unification Church, or Moonies, is widely known but rarely discussed in public. But relations between the two institutions are now firmly back in the spotlight after the assassination last month of former prime minister Shinzo Abe.

How listening to uninterrupted noise helped millions to focus Lofi Girl, a music livestream, broadcast uninterrupted for 20,843 hours — more than two years — until YouTube suddenly suspended it last month. These continuous streams are designed for people seeking not silence but peace, writes Dave Lee.

Food & drink

Fizzy water has bewitched humans since ancient times, writes Alice Lascelles, who reviews the best H2O with bubbles for HTSI.