Italy says ‘no’, Opec optimism and advice for young Muslims

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In another blow to the European establishment, Italian voters said a resounding no to prime minister Matteo Renzi’s constitutional reforms in a referendum on Sunday. As the defeat became apparent, Mr Renzi announced that he would resign. The result has plunged Italy into political crisis and raises fears of turmoil in the country’s banking system. The euro briefly dropped to its lowest since March 2015 in Asian trading but both the currency and shares in Italian banks later rallied after the initial losses.

Despite the setback to centrist politics in Italy, Europe’s mainstream politicians were heartened by a weekend vote in Austria, where the march of populism hit a snag with the victory of a pro-European liberal. Voters rejected far-right Freedom party candidate Norbert Hofer in favour of Alexander Van der Bellen, a Green politician who ran as an independent. (FT, Politico, Economist)

In the news

Tweeter-in-chief A diplomatic firestorm was kicked off at the weekend after president-elect Donald Trump’s phone call with Taiwan’s president, the first between a leader of Taiwan and a US president or president-elect in more than 30 years. A rattled Beijing initially played down the impact on relations but Mr Trump then had a late-night outburst on Twitter, using language that will be difficult for China to ignore. Stay tuned. (FT, Reuters)

John Key resigns New Zealand’s prime minister, citing family reasons and the need to make room for new political talent, said it felt like “the right time to go” and that he wanted to leave on his own terms ahead of next year’s general election. (FT)

Gambia transition Gambians are digesting the news that their longtime president, Yahya Jammeh, is actually leaving power after his electoral defeat last week. The strongman was in power for 22 years and was defeated by political outsider and returning migrant, Adama Barrow. (FT)

Opec optimism Oil prices rose above $55 a barrel in trading on Monday as optimism spread over the tightening of the market after Opec last week agreed to cut production. (Reuters)

Carl Icahn and the EPA One of the billionaire investor’s companies is facing hundreds of millions of dollars in costs to comply with an Environmental Protection Agency regulation. Mr Icahn has been a harsh critic of the EPA — and now he is helping his friend Donald Trump pick its next leader. (WSJ)

It's a big day for

Brexit The Supreme Court is due to hear the government’s appeal against a ruling that Prime Minister Theresa May cannot trigger Article 50 to leave the EU without approval from MPs in one of the biggest constitutional cases for decades. All 11 justices at the UK’s highest court will hear four days of arguments starting with the government, which will say the earlier court was wrong to back claimants led by Gina Miller, co-founder of fund manager SCM, and hairdresser Deir Dos Santos. (FT)

Keep up with the important business, economic and political stories in the coming days with the FT’s Week Ahead.

Food for thought

Fake embassy shutdown Ghana has set a new standard in counterfeiting over the years. Not confining itself to fake watches and handbags, the country maintained a fake US embassy for a decade. Run by local and international organised crime rings, it even issued visas. Its closure over the summer has just been made public. (FT)

Advice for young Muslims Omar Saif Ghabash, the UAE ambassador to Russia, explains in a series of letters to his young son how Muslims can navigate a world of extremism and Islamophobia. (Foreign Affairs)

The weight of corporate debt After Donald Trump’s pledge to push for an aggressive fiscal stimulus of the US economy, recent blockbuster corporate debt sales suddenly look like hallmarks of a very different market environment. As investors and markets try to anticipate what a Trump presidency will mean, one early conclusion is that a dose of fiscal shock treatment will result in much higher interest rates and accelerating inflation. (FT)

Eel fraud Although cultured eels account for almost all the world’s supplies, they cannot be bred in captivity. Eel farmers are willing to pay handsomely for elvers born in the wild but patchy enforcement of quotas means that poaching is rife and stocks are endangered. (NAR)

The best books of 2016 From Sebastian Mallaby’s The Man Who Knew to Paul Beatty’s Man Booker-winning The Sellout, from science to the arts to poetry, the FT names the best tomes of the year. (FT)

Video of the day

A look at the week ahead Seb Morton-Clark looks at the big stories in the coming week, including a meeting of Nato's foreign ministers following Donald Trump’s election victory, the health of Europe's tourism industry on the back of tour operator Tui's full-year results, and eurozone business data. (FT)