U.K.’s Keir Starmer on the verge of quitting
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hosts the first roundtable of regional English mayors with Andy Burnham (R) Mayor of Greater Manchester, at Downing Street on July 9, 2024 in London, England.
Ian Vogler | WPA Pool | Getty Images
Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from London. Welcome to today’s edition of the Daily Open newsletter.
Monday is barely underway in London, and already there is a lot for investors to digest.
The pressure on British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to map out his departure is growing, from within his own party — and from U.S. President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, negotiators have agreed to a 60-day roadmap for an Iran peace deal, a remarkable feat after a weekend of threats from both sides.
What you need to know today
Lake Lucerne in Switzerland hosted the latest round of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran this weekend, leading to the agreement of a 60-day roadmap to a final peace deal.
“The Lake Lucerne Summit was conducted in a positive and constructive atmosphere. Encouraging progress has been made, including the creation of a mechanism for further technical talks,” according to a joint statement by mediating parties Qatar and Pakistan.
It’s a remarkable outcome after the weekend saw an escalation in tensions. On Saturday, Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz and boycott talks, while U.S. President Donald Trump warned he would “hit Iran very hard again,” if Tehran did not “stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble.”
Crude prices are lower on the news that peace talks are progressing, while tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz continues to rise. But futures for major U.S. stock markets are also in the red, as Wall Street returns from a long weekend trading break.
It’s a mixed picture across Asia Pacific stocks, while European futures are lacking direction.
— Leonie Kidd
And finally…
Pixar’s ‘Toy Story 5’ lassos biggest opening weekend in franchise history with $160 million haul
Disney’s Toy Story franchise still has some buzz.
The fifth installment in the Pixar film series tallied $160 million during its opening weekend, the highest in franchise history. Internationally, “Toy Story 5” snared $152 million, bringing its estimated global haul for the three-day period to $312 million.
“Toy Story 4” was the previous record holder for the franchise, generating $120.9 million at its opening in 2019, according to Rentrak data. In total, the film series has collected more than $3 billion at the global box office since the first film debuted in 1995, with two of its installments surpassing $1 billion each worldwide.
— Sarah Whitten