FirstFT: Fed holds rates, FBI swamped by tips and Trump falters

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Slower jobs growth and overseas hazards such as a possible UK exit from the European Union prompted the Federal Reserve to keep rates unchanged  and trim back its longer-term interest-rate forecasts, in a sign of greater caution at the central bank.

The US central bank held the target range for the federal funds rate at 0.25 per cent to 0.5 per cent, where it has been since the Fed lifted rates by a quarter point from near-zero levels in December, as it assesses a mixed set of economic indicators. (FT)

In the news

FBI swamped by avalanche of terror tips The FBI’s near-miss investigation of Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen reflects a US counterterror effort swamped by potential targets and struggling to separate lethal Islamic State recruits from hotheads venting their spleen. (FT)

Is Donald Trump's schtick falling flat? The former reality TV star may be finding that the same attributes that propelled him to the top of the Republican party — bombast, controversy and xenophobia — don't play in a general election. Fresh polls showing him falling in the race — down 12 points to Hillary Clinton — while another shows 70 per cent of Americans view him unfavourably. Keep track of the race with our daily US politics newsletter. Sign up here. (FT)

MSCI delays inclusion of China A-shares China’s domestic markets were denied entry to international stock benchmarks for the third year in a row, delivering a blow to Beijing and frustrating those investors keen to see the world’s second-largest market included in MSCI’s globally followed indices. (FT)

Didi Chuxing raises new capital  China’s rival to car-booking pioneer Uber has raised more than $7bn from investors and lenders, capping off a month that has seen an unprecedented wave of funds pouring into such apps. (FT) 

Oil industry faces $1tn in spending cuts Oil and gas companies will spend $1tn less on finding and developing reserves between 2015 and 2020 because of the crash in crude prices, a leading consultancy says, stoking fears about potentially tight supplies towards the end of the decade. (FT)

Foreign investors fleeing Japanese stocks They are pulling out because of poor earnings and the effects of the Bank of Japan's negative interest rate policy, according to a Nikkei survey of 224 of the 225 companies that make up the benchmark Nikkei Stock Average. (NAR)

It's a big day for

UK rates The Bank of England is expected to keep rates steady at a record low 0.5 per cent ahead of next week's Brexit referendum. (FT)

Japanese rates The Bank of Japan is also expected to keep rates steady.  (FT)

Food for thought

Mixing drinks Combining the corporate cultures of Japanese whisky group Suntory and US spirits maker Beam after a $16bn merger has proved far from easy. (FT)

How Yahoo derailed Tumblr Marissa Mayer bought the blogging site for $1bn and promised "not to screw it up". Then her company did just that. (Mashable)

Guns, slavery and the lessons of history “The best thing that can come out of the Orlando massacre is not hand-wringing; it’s political action. And I think that’s the lesson we can take from abolitionists — political abolitionists, Garrisonians and anti-slavery politicians — who in their own ways were trying to effect political change,” writes Rebecca Onion. (Slate)

Redefining the sharing economy The gig economy is neither “sharing” nor “collaborative”, argues Sarah O’Connor. Rather, it is a handful of companies trying to make money by creating and controlling markets for our labour or our stuff. (FT)

Voices from the past Although archaeology provides details of daily life, the voices of medieval commoners are largely silent. However, one area of medieval studies has had a massive rise in the past five or six years: medieval church graffiti. New digital imaging technologies, and the recent establishment of numerous volunteer recording programmes, have transformed the field. (Aeon)

Video of the day

Wolf on Brexit's economic shocks Martin Wolf explains the potential high costs of a Brexit vote for the UK economy in contrast with the great gains achieved under EU membership. (FT)