FirstFT: ‘Watershed moment’ as Eli Lilly drug shown to slow Alzheimer’s progression

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Good morning. Today’s stop story is on the latest landmark in the treatment of Alzheimer’s, as Eli Lilly released trial results that showed its new drug significantly slowed memory loss and cognitive decline.

The US pharmaceuticals group on Monday reported full findings of its phase 3 clinical study of donanemab at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Amsterdam, showing that the antibody treatment slowed progression by about 35 per cent in the early stages of the disease.

The peer-reviewed results follow similar phase 3 findings released last November by US biotech Biogen and Japan’s Eisai for lecanemab, another antibody drug, which received full marketing approval from the US Food and Drug Administration this month under the brand name Leqembi.

Eli Lilly announced on Monday that it had submitted donanemab for FDA approval and expected a decision before the end of this year. Submissions are under way to other global regulators.

Experts on dementia called Lilly’s donanemab presentation, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a landmark in the field.

“This is a watershed moment but it is just a start,” said Howard Fillit, chief scientist at the US-based Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation. “We must continue advancing the drug pipeline to develop the next class centred around the biology of ageing to ultimately stop Alzheimer’s in its tracks.”

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

• Economic data: Canada reports June consumer price index inflation rate figures, the US releases retails sales and industrial production figures and the UK publishes Kantar grocery market share figures and price inflation.

• Results: Second-quarter earnings are due from Bank of America, BNY Mellon, Charles Schwab, Lockheed Martin, Morgan Stanley, PNC Financial Services and Prologis.

• Meetings: The G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors in Gujarat, India concludes. Meanwhile Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida is expected to travel to Qatar, the third stop of a Gulf tour that has included visits to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. (Reuters)

Five more top stories

1. Russia has formally withdrawn from a UN-brokered deal to export Ukrainian grain across the Black Sea, potentially imperilling tens of millions of tonnes of food exports around the world. Russia’s move is the second time that it has withdrawn from the grain deal, yet people involved in the grain talks said Moscow had appeared more set on derailing the deal in the run-up to Monday’s deadline. Read the full story.

2. China’s outspoken foreign minister Qin Gang has not been seen in public for more than three weeks, missing important diplomatic engagements and prompting growing speculation about his whereabouts. A Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman said she had “no information” about when Qin may return to his post. Here’s more on Qin’s mysterious absence.

• More China news: China’s economy lost steam in the second quarter, with gross domestic product expanding 0.8 per cent against the previous three months. Here’s what’s behind China’s slowing growth.

• China Focus: To help you find our best work on China we have created a special page on FT.com to serve as a hub for the latest news, analysis and opinion on Asia’s biggest economy.

3. Exclusive: Millions of US military emails have been misdirected to Mali through a “typo leak” that has exposed highly sensitive information, including diplomatic documents, tax returns, passwords and the travel details of top officers. A common spelling error is behind the misdirected Pentagon messages, which have been collected by a company running Mali’s internet domain.

4. Taiwan’s vice-president and the ruling party candidate for January’s presidential elections is to make two stops in the US on a trip to South America next month, risking further threats from China. Lai Ching-teh plans to stop over in the US on his way to and from the inauguration of Paraguay’s president Santiago Peña on August 15. Read more on Lai’s planned US stopover and Beijing’s reaction.

5. Bank analysts are sharply divided over just how bad Goldman Sachs’ second-quarter earnings will be. While it is not uncommon for analysts to disagree, the debate over what Goldman will report on Wednesday is more divided than usual. Here’s why analysts are so uncertain.

The Big Read

As China’s economic growth has failed to pick up post-Covid, calls are growing louder for president Xi Jinping to resort to the playbook of the past by launching a large-scale stimulus package to support the traditional, debt-fuelled growth engines of infrastructure and property. But Xi and his top policymakers are adhering to a stance they call dingli, or “maintaining strategic focus”. The question is, with the engines of growth stalling, will Beijing be able to stay the course?

We’re also reading . . .

• Thailand’s political deadlock: Once a taboo topic, the role of the Thai monarchy is suddenly at the heart of a decades-long struggle between liberal democracy and traditional conservative rule.

• Talking to Moscow: Ukraine fears being sold out but the US and its allies can use secret talks to convince Putin of their resolve, writes Alec Russell.

• Why childhood is getting longer: Technology, demography and culture are all pushing society to extend how long people are considered young for, writes Stephen Bush.

Chart of the day

For the number of female CEOs in the US and UK to increase there must be a significant shift in recruitment practices. Data analysed by the Financial Times shows the common route to becoming boss is still overwhelmingly through finance and operational roles — areas dominated by men.

Take a break from the news

Who is the all-time greatest Chess player? An eye-catching run of success from Magnus Carlsen, the world No1, has revived the long standing debate. Tell us what you think, and solve this week’s puzzle: White mates the king in three moves.

Additional contributions by Tee Zhuo and Gordon Smith