The Economist.

Hello, you're listening to the free edition of the world in brief from The

Economist. As a reminder, if you subscribe to the economist, you'll get access to a deeper look at the day ahead, updated three times a day.

If you're already an economist subscriber, visit Economist.com slash Espresso,

or visit our Espresso app to start listening.

Here's today's free edition. This is the World in Brief from The Economist.

Our top stories.

President Joe Biden condemned the violence of the protests that have swept university

campuses all over America.

Quote, there's the right to protest but not the right to cause chaos, he said.

Earlier police arrested around 200 people at the University of California, Los Angeles,

after pro-Palestinian demonstrators ignored orders to disperse or face arrest.

The number of college demonstrators arrested nationwide

has surpassed 2000, according to a tally by the Associated Press. Gazprom, Russia's state-owned gas giant, reported a net loss of 629 billion rubles, or 6.9 billion billion in 2023, its first annual loss in around two decades.

The firm had reported a net profit of 1.2 trillion rubles the year before.

Europe bought 40% of its gas from Russia in 2021,

but mild winters and the war in Ukraine

have hurt Russia's exports, which are expected to fall further this year.

John Swinney, a Scottish National Party veteran, announced his intention to run in an upcoming

party leadership contest, the winner of which will become Scotland's first minister.

He is the only candidate so far.

Kate Forbes, who came a close second in the SMP's last leadership contest a little over a year ago,

...