Plus, UK's Reeves nears moment of truth with tax-heavy budget.

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Daily Briefing

Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Hello. The US and Russia hold peace talks as missiles pound Kyiv, Finland clings to its happiness crown as economic gloom deepens, and how a US home insurance fix is becoming a problem.

Plus, our markets team takes a closer look at the $4 trillion club and the surprising resilience of the dollar in today's Morning Bid podcast.

 

Today's Top News

 

An apartment building hit by a Russian drone strike is seen through a broken window, Kyiv, Ukraine, November 25, 2025. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko 

Europe

  • US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has held unannounced talks with Russian officials in Abu Dhabi as part of an intense new push by President Donald Trump's administration to end the war in Ukraine and more meetings were expected.
  • French pollster Odoxa predicted for the first time that 30-year-old far-right leader Jordan Bardella would win the next presidential election, scheduled in 2027, no matter who his opponents would be.
  • Finland is grappling with economic stagnation, rising joblessness and strained public finances, but still managed to secure the title of world's happiest country for the eighth year in a row in this year's annual World Happiness Report. 
  • The EU's highest court ruled that same sex marriages must be respected throughout the bloc and rebuked Poland for refusing to recognise a marriage between two of its citizens that took place in Germany.

In other news

  • The US formally designated Venezuela's Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization, layering additional terrorism-related sanctions on the group it has said includes President Nicolas Maduro and other high-ranking officials.
  • Israeli forces killed three Palestinians in Gaza near the line demarcating areas of Israeli control, underlining the struggle to broaden a fragile ceasefire deal approved over six weeks ago to global acclaim.
  • The head of Sudan's Rapid Support Forces said that his paramilitaries would immediately enter into a three-month humanitarian truce, after Trump said last week that he would intervene to seek an end to a war that has plunged the country into famine.
  • Pope Leo will embark on his first trip outside Italy as the leader of the Catholic Church, traveling to Turkey and Lebanon, where he is expected to make appeals for peace in the region and urge unity among long-divided Christian churches.
  • Australia's Senate suspended far-right Senator Pauline Hanson for seven sitting days after she wore a burqa to Parliament as a political prop in her campaign to ban the Muslim garment in public, triggering condemnation from lawmakers.
 

Business & Markets

 
  • When Britain's finance minister Rachel Reeves presents her second annual budget, she is expected to announce another round of hefty tax increases, testing the confidence of the governing Labour Party and drawing scrutiny from an uneasy bond market. Here's how the UK economy has fared since Reeves' first budget.
  • Meanwhile, British retailers have reported the sharpest drop in confidence in 17 years and their sales fell again ahead of the budget which is likely to include tax increases, according to a survey.
  • Novo Nordisk says its pill version of weight-loss drug Ozempic has failed to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s. Health and Science Correspondent Julie Steenhuysen tells the Reuters World News podcast that despite this setback there is hope for future studies.
  • The US government is expected this week to announce negotiated prices for 15 of the highest-cost prescription drugs under its Medicare health plan, a potential signal of the Trump administration's commitment to bring down healthcare costs.
  • Alphabet is on track to hit a historic $4 trillion market valuation, powered by an impressive year-long rally fueled by the Google parent's sharpened focus on artificial intelligence tools.
  • Russia's depressed car market has shown weak signs of recovery as 2025 draws to an end, but is set to hit near-record lows early next year as higher scrappage fees drive up prices, dealers and experts say. Stay up to date with the global automotive industry with the Reuters Auto File newsletter. 
  • The world’s oldest asset is at the heart of political debate and underpins the modern financial system. In this episode of The Big View podcast, Peter Thal Larsen talks to Mike Bird, author of “The Land Trap”, about why property is such an enduring issue – and why it’s so hard to reform.
 

How a US home insurance fix is becoming a problem

 


Across the US, the number of homes covered by so-called “insurers of last resort” has been steadily increasing for the past five years.

These FAIR (Fair Access to Insurance Requirements) plans were designed as a stopgap measure, but as climate change fuels stronger disasters, these insurers are increasingly relied on.

See our interactive graphic
 

And Finally...

Manjuari fish, a critically endangered fish according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Zapata Swamp, Cienaga de Zapata. REUTERS/Norlys Perez

Buzz, buzz, slap!

This mosquito-ridden lagoon deep in the Zapata Swamp, the Caribbean's largest intact wetland, is ground-zero for a humble but dedicated restoration effort that aims to save the manjuari, or Cuban gar, from extinction.