How China is breaking down the west’s battery walls

Chinese groups are racing to build a global supply chain as protectionist barriers rise

Letter: We unfairly brand the ‘excesses’ of the online creator economy

From Pavlo Kharmanskyi, Founder, OnlyMonster, Kington, Herefordshire, UK

Letter: Eden’s ticketing innovation during foot-and-mouth

From Jane Swan, Delabole, Cornwall, UK

Letter: Indonesia’s forest fire is a rare scientific opportunity

From Thomas Smith, Associate Professor of Environmental Geography, LSE, London WC2, UK

Letter: Europe’s tech dependency is coming home to roost

From Marco Perugini, Civitavecchia, Rome, Italy

Letter: One irony of parenthood in the capitalist economy

From Joshua Hill, Behavioural Economist & Director of Research & Learning, Population Matters, London SE1, UK

Letter: Some more suggestions on how to fund social care

From Gerald Holtham, London SW8, UK

Letter: With AI, bigger is not necessarily better

From Mauro Macchi, Chief Executive Officer (EMEA), Accenture, Milan, Italy

Japan sends probe to Martian moon Phobos

‘A space probe took a sample from him’

Lula fast-tracks Brazil welfare payments days before run-off vote

Veteran leftwinger aiming to close the gap with rightwing challenger Flávio Bolsonaro before Sunday’s ballot

Pensions invest £11bn in UK private markets despite challenges

Most of the money has been invested in UK real estate

FT Crossword: Number 18,511

UK to approve development of Jackdaw gasfield in North Sea

Ministers to give go-ahead on Wednesday to the project about 150 miles east of Aberdeen

SpaceX and Tesla boards explore potential merger

Elon Musk says combining his two public companies would be a ‘good idea’ as the world approaches an AI singularity

Finnish president hails progress in talks about ending Russia’s war in Ukraine

Volodymyr Zelenskyy participates in discussions in Oslo that also involve Donald Trump’s envoy

Joel Kaplan to step down as Meta global affairs chief

Republican political operative is a key adviser to CEO Mark Zuckerberg

FirstFT: SpaceX and Tesla to study potential merger, Musk says

Also in today’s newsletter: Senior UAE official emerges as late contender to lead UN and new report says Nidec founder ‘neglected his duties’

Can the Democrats win the Senate?

The races, the money and the issues that will determine the final half of Trump’s second term

Submit a question: Could Anthropic’s IPO be a turning point for AI?

Join us for a live Ask an Expert Q&A with Richard Waters, the FT’s tech writer at large, and George Hammond, the FT’s venture capital correspondent, at 8am (PDT)/4pm (BST) on Thursday October 22

Transcript: UK bets on a boring budget

Katie Martin speaks to Chris Giles

Boeing wins approval for Max 10 jet in boost for turnaround efforts

Long-awaited certification will help US group compete with Airbus as airlines seek larger and more efficient aircraft

Netflix gives downbeat outlook as streaming hits dry up

Entertainment giant shakes up creative leadership as viewership growth stalls and current quarter profits set to disappoint

UK bets on a boring budget

Priority number one: Don’t spook the bond market

Trump pledges to spend $400mn on Republican Party midterm campaigns

US president’s announcement comes after former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg donates $80mn to Democratic candidates