FirstFT: US held secret talks with Iran over Red Sea attacks

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The US has held secret talks with Iran this year in a bid to convince Tehran to use its influence over Yemen’s Houthi movement to end attacks on ships in the Red Sea, according to US and Iranian officials.

The indirect negotiations, during which Washington also raised concerns about Iran’s expanding nuclear programme, took place in Oman in January and were the first between the foes in 10 months, the officials said.

The US delegation was led by the White House’s Middle East adviser Brett McGurk and its Iran envoy Abram Paley. Iranian deputy foreign minister Ali Bagheri Kani, who is also Tehran’s top nuclear negotiator, represented the Islamic republic. Omani officials shuttled between the Iranian and American representatives so they did not speak directly, the officials said.

The talks underline how the Biden administration is using diplomatic channels with its foe, alongside military deterrents, in a bid to de-escalate a wave of regional hostilities involving Iranian-backed militant groups that was triggered by the Israel-Hamas war. Read more about the talks.

Here’s what else I’m keeping tabs on today:

• Economic data: Spain releases February consumer price inflation data. The International Energy Agency publishes its monthly oil market report.

• Libor scandal: Tom Hayes, the former star UBS and Citigroup trader jailed for conspiring to rig the benchmark interest rate, will challenge his conviction in London’s Court of Appeal.

• Nato: Secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg holds a press conference to present his annual report for 2023.

• Results: Bridgepoint, Dollar General, John Lewis Partnership, Munich Re, OSB Group, RWE, Savills and Vistry Group report.

Five more top stories

1. UK estate agents are at their most optimistic about near-term growth in house prices in almost two years, according to a survey published by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Its 12-month house price expectations score, which measures the difference between the percentage of estate agents forecasting rises and falls in home prices, doubled to 36 last month, suggesting that improvements in the latest data on house prices and mortgage approvals will continue.

2. Far-right firebrand Geert Wilders says he will not be the next Dutch prime minister. His Freedom party came first in Dutch parliamentary elections in November, but the centre-right NSC party, which Wilders needs to form a coalition government, has made clear that it would not accept him as prime minister, said people briefed on the matter. Read the latest on coalition talks.

3. Borrowing costs for European companies have fallen to a two-year low against benchmark bonds. The average European investment-grade spread — the premium paid by companies to borrow over equivalent German government bond yields — has dropped from 1.36 percentage points to 1.15 percentage points this year, as shifting expectations on interest rates narrows the gap with their US counterparts.

4. President Joe Biden plans to issue a statement expressing serious concern about Nippon Steel’s proposed purchase of US Steel before Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrives for a state visit in Washington on April 10. The move could threaten the deal and anger Japan, one of Washington’s closest allies, as bipartisan backlash grows against the sale of a US manufacturing icon to a foreign group.

5. Entain, one of Britain’s largest gambling companies, has hired advisers to oversee the possible sale of several of its overseas brands. The Ladbrokes owner has hired Wall Street boutique advisory Moelis to review its businesses, including a number bought by former chief executive Jette Nygaard-Andersen, as the group considers unwinding a multibillion-pound acquisition spree that hurt its share price.

The Big Read

Before the war, there were more than 800 schools in Gaza and 17 higher education institutions, including six universities. Many have since been damaged or completely destroyed, decimating the enclave’s education system. For Gaza’s disproportionately young population — about 65 per cent are 24 or younger — returning to their lessons will be one of the biggest challenges, with academics warning of a possible brain drain.

We’re also reading . . . 

Chart of the day

With their attention to detail, understanding of risk management and intense focus on the bottom line, more finance chiefs are becoming chief executives in the UK. About a third of FTSE 100 CEOs have previously served as CFOs, data from executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles shows, up from 21 per cent in 2019. This compares with 19 per cent in markets tracked globally by the firm. “If America is run by lawyers then the UK is run by accountants,” said one headhunter.

Take a break from the news

HTSI peeks behind the doors of Travis & Emery, the cult London retailer selling rare scores, libretti and antiquarian books since 1960, and asks: Is this the best classical music shop in the world?

Additional contributions from Benjamin Wilhelm