Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social, his social-media site, that Israel would hand Gaza to America after the war, days after floating the idea. He claimed Palestinians would be “resettled in far safer and more beautiful communities”, with Gaza rebuilt into a luxury development. Earlier, Israel’s defence minister ordered the army to plan for the “voluntary departure” of Gaza’s residents.
The Bank of England cut interest rates by 0.25 percentage points to 4.5%, its third reduction since August 2024. Gilt yields fell on the news. The FTSE 100 hit a record high ahead of the decision, driven by expectations of lower borrowing costs. Strong corporate earnings also lifted stocks, with AstraZeneca’s share price rising nearly 5% after posting better-than-expected results.
A judge delayed the deadline for American federal workers to respond to a buyout offer from Thursday to at least Monday. The “deferred resignation” scheme, devised by Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency, would allow employees who quit to be paid until September. The Washington Post reported that less than 2% of the federal workforce had accepted the deal as of Wednesday.
A separate judge temporarily barred America’s Treasury from sharing sensitive payment data with Mr Musk and some of his DOGE team. Mr Musk claimed last week that DOGE was cancelling “illegal” payments, raising fears he had access to Treasury systems that handle trillions in social security and Medicare payments.
Qualcomm and Arm, two chipmakers, reported better-than-expected revenues of $11.7bn and $983m respectively for the final quarter of 2024. Both firms have benefited from growing demand for smartphones with artificial-intelligence features, such as virtual assistants. Still, the chipmakers’ shares slumped in after-hours trading, in Arm’s case because it cut its revenue projections for 2025.
Tesla’s sales in Europe fell sharply in January. Sales in Germany, home to its only European factory, dropped by 59% year on year; they fell 63% in France, 8% in Britain, and 38% in Norway. Analysts attributed the slump in part to consumer backlash against Mr Musk, who has supported Germany’s far right and made inflammatory remarks on social media.
This January was the warmest on record and the third-hottest month globally, with surface air temperatures reaching 13.23°C—1.75°C above pre-industrial levels—according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. The record heat defied expectations of a slowdown in global warming due to the cooling La Niña phenomenon. Scientists warned of a dangerous climate breakdown.
Greece declared a state of emergency in Santorini after a 5.2-magnitude earthquake struck on Wednesday, the strongest in days of near-constant tremors. The emergency decree, in place until March 3rd, will allow authorities to mobilise resources more quickly. Around 11,000 people have fled the island, but evacuation efforts have been disrupted by strong winds. Authorities fear further quakes in the coming days.
Figure of the day: $12m, the amount Deloitte has earned since 2020 from DEI-related work for America’s Department of Health and Human Services. Read the full story.
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