FirstFT: China warns of potential conflict with US

Beijing has warned the US to “put on the brakes” on its efforts to contain China, highlighting the Chinese Communist Party’s concerns about escalating tensions between rival superpowers.

Meanwhile, the US stock market closed the day with a sell-off after the speech of the head of the Federal Reserve Jay Powell before the Senate. The S&P 500 closed 1.5% lower in New York and the Nasdaq fell 1.25%.

Today I’m following:

• World Trade Organization: Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, is scheduled to speak at a World Trade Organization event today.

• Income: The insurance sector will be widely represented today in the reports of Admiral, Royal London and Legal & General. We also expect results from Cathay Pacific and Vivendi.

• International Women’s Day: Join FT for a free webinar Four things women should know about moneyled by the charitable campaign “Financial Literacy and Inclusion”.

Glad to hear any feedback about FirstFT firstft@ft.com. Thank you for reading.

Today’s top news

1. Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang sent a sharp warning to the US about containing China at his country’s annual legislative session, highlighting the Chinese Communist Party’s concerns about escalating tensions between rival superpowers. Probably yesterday’s session of the National People’s Congress.

• Related reading: China will rethink control over its financial system and strengthen science and technology to try and catch up with the West. one of the biggest reforms state apparatus in years.

2. US Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell warns about interest rates. The central bank said it was ready to return to a larger interest rate hike to fight inflation in a speech to Congress on Tuesday. Powell’s remarks provoked a sell-off in the stock market.

3. China agreed to back Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring in a decisive step towards obtaining a $2.9 billion IMF bailout package and bringing the country out of the economic crisis. The fund’s director for Asia and the Pacific, Krishna Srinivasan, said it “paves the way” for the IMF’s board of directors to consider the final version of the aid program at its March 20 meeting. That’s why.

4. Ukraine denies involvement in last year’s bombings which damaged the Nordstream gas pipelines connecting Russia and Western Europe after media in the US and Germany suggested that pro-Ukrainian militants may have been behind the attacks. Mikhail Podolyak, adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, dismissed the messages as “conspiracy theories”.

5. Private lending groups intend to issue the largest direct loan Apollo, Ares and Blackstone are confident they can strike a deal to help Carlyle acquire 50 percent of health analytics firm Cotiviti, sources say. Read full story.

Big Read

E-cigarettes have cemented their status as a less harmful way to consume nicotine, but at a cost to the environment. Tons of e-waste producedwith critical metals inside disposable “vaps” that are more likely to be thrown away rather than recycled.

We also read. . .

Schedule of the day

China’s political leadership announced a modest 5% growth target this weekend despite optimism after three years of Covid shutdown. Why has Beijing set the lowest target in decades? Read our analysis to find out.

Take a break from the news

Towering, timeless and welcoming, David Attenborough stands atop the white cliffs of Dover. After spending eight decades traveling to some of the most remote and exotic places on the planet, the 96-year-old returns home in a new BBC documentary. wild islands. Read Dan Einav’s review.

Additional contributions by Darren Dodd and Ti Zhuo.