President Donald Trump backed away from threats to force a quick reopening of the US economy by unveiling guidelines for states, and US stock market futures rose 3 per cent late on Thursday after a report suggested a Gilead coronavirus drug had shown positive results in a clinical trial. Then, in an interview with the FT, French president Emmanuel Macron warned of the collapse of the EU as a “political project” unless richer states help economies such as Italy recover from the coronavirus pandemic. Plus, the FT’s Middle East editor, Andrew England, explains how Gulf sovereign wealth funds are mobilising to buy assets whose valuations have been hit hard by the outbreak.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.