Good morning and welcome to FirstFT. In today’s newsletter:
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Russia expands shadow LNG fleet ahead of EU ban
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Italy and Germany’s censure of Spain’s migrant amnesty is ‘hypocritical’
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Inside Google’s $200bn Wall Street finance machine for Anthropic
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The FT’s guide to the 2026 US midterm elections
You can listen to today’s top news stories in the FT News Briefing podcast.
Russia has been increasing its shadow fleet of gas-carrying ships, adding second-hand vessels and its first domestically built tankers ahead of an EU ban on the country’s liquefied natural gas cargoes that comes into force next year.
What to know: At least eight second-hand LNG tankers have been sold and subsequently used to carry Russian cargoes in the past six months, according to maritime data company Windward. That brings the size of the fleet to 25 ships, including two new vessels built at Russia’s Zvezda shipyard.
Russia’s oil shadow fleet now numbers more than 1,000 ships. Moscow though has been slower to venture into gas carriers, which are more complex.
Why it matters: The growing fleet will allow Moscow to keep shipping gas when restrictions tighten in 2027, mirroring how Russia has used a “dark fleet” of oil tankers to evade western sanctions.
Europe has imposed restrictions intended to cut the fossil-fuel revenues helping the Kremlin fund its war in Ukraine. Read the exclusive story from Alice Hancock and Anastasia Stognei.
Here’s what else we’re keeping tabs on today:
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Middle East: Israel and Lebanon are due to resume peace talks in Rome.
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EU: The bloc’s home ministers hold a video conference over developments in Spain’s Ceuta.
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Results: SpaceX, BP, Spotify and Saudi Aramco are among the companies reporting earnings. The Week Ahead has a fuller list.
Five more top stories
1. Exclusive: Italy, Germany and other countries that accused Spain of attracting migrants with its amnesty scheme have also legalised the status of people who arrived irregularly in their own territory. Madrid received sharp criticism after 60,000 people swam over the border into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta last week.
2. Google has assembled one of the largest infrastructure financing programmes in history to sell more than $150bn of AI chips destined for Anthropic. The effort brings together Google, Broadcom and Wall Street companies in a web of transactions that stretches from chip manufacturing to data centre development.
3. Exclusive: Revolut founder Nik Storonsky is being sued for €17.5mn by one of the world’s top luxury yacht brokers, which claims that he went “behind its back” to avoid paying commission on a €350mn superyacht. Read the full story.
4. Exclusive: Novo Nordisk’s chief executive wants the Ozempic maker to take risks as he pushes to revive its fortunes against a backdrop of stiff competition and disappointing trial results. Read more remarks from the FT’s interview with Mike Doustdar.
5. Exclusive: Aston Martin’s creditors are threatening legal action against the carmaker after learning that the company plans to sell a portion of its branding and naming rights as part of a contentious £550mn debt-financing deal. Read the full report.
The UAE’s imperial push into Africa
As it bids to harness trade and resources for a post-oil future, the United Arab Emirates is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into Africa, investing heavily in land, ports and influence across the continent. But some question whether the Gulf state’s entangled goals undermine fragile states.
We’re also reading . . .
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Fifa commercialisation plan: Gianni Infantino is not the problem, writes Miguel Maduro, former chair of the football body’s governance committee.
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Currency support: Investors say US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent’s yen intervention has ushered in a new era of government activism.
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Wetland paradise lost: Drought has left parts of Hungary semi-arid but the country has few resources to restore its natural water system.
Chart of the day
US voters go back to the polls in November to elect state officials and members of Congress. Democrats face an uphill battle to take back control of the Senate, where 35 seats of the 100-member legislature are up for grabs. Read the FT’s guide to US midterm elections 2026.
Take a break from the news . . .
Fan jackets are a ubiquitous sight across Japan during the summer months, worn mostly by construction workers, delivery drivers and mail carriers. With designers’ takes on the outerwear hitting the runways, will the rest of the world finally warm to air-conditioned clothing?
The FT Weekend Festival returns to Kenwood House Gardens in London and online on September 5. Join Richard E Grant, Paul Smith, Mary Beard, Francis Fukuyama, Peter Capaldi and Angela Hartnett, with many more speakers to be announced. Save your seat at ft.com/festival and use code FTNewsletters to save 10% off your pass.
