Category: World

Copper prices slid in late morning trade on Tuesday as investors locked in profits after a strong run and renewed scrutiny fell on consumption prospects in China, the world’s largest user of the industrial metal. The pullback left the market near its lowest point in a week, underscoring how quickly sentiment can turn when demand signals soften.Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down more than 1% by mid-session in Europe, reversing part of the gains built earlier

Global investors are being urged to rethink long-held assumptions about United States stock market dominance after Goldman Sachs projected that emerging market equities and select European stocks are positioned to deliver stronger returns over the next five years. The investment bank’s outlook points to a combination of lower valuations, stronger economic growth prospects and a gradual narrowing of the earnings gap with the US, challenging strategies that have been heavily concentrated in large-cap American technology shares.Goldman Sachs expects US equities

Average petrol prices across the United States have dropped to about $2.79 a gallon, marking the lowest national level in roughly five years and delivering tangible relief to households after a prolonged period of volatility at the pump. Data compiled from nationwide fuel surveys show the decline has been broad-based, with most states reporting steady week-on-week falls as winter demand ebbs and supply conditions improve.The slide in prices reflects a confluence of factors rather than a single policy shift or

African carriers outperformed global peers as air travel demand climbed to a November peak, underscoring a broad-based recovery in cross-border movement and a steady recalibration of airline capacity. International travel drove the expansion, with revenue passenger kilometres rising 7.7% year on year, while total international capacity increased 7.1%, lifting the load factor to 84.0%, the highest recorded for the month.The data point to a market where airlines have largely matched supply with demand, avoiding the overcapacity that has dogged earlier

Walmart plans to scale its drone delivery programme with Alphabet-owned Wing, aiming to serve about 40 million people across the United States by 2027 as it pushes automated logistics deeper into everyday retail. The expansion is designed to shorten delivery times for small items to under 30 minutes and sharpen competition with Amazon in fast fulfilment.The retailer intends to add drone operations to roughly 150 additional stores by 2026 and more than 270 by 2027, building on pilots already running

Federal regulators have approved a major expansion of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network, clearing the company to deploy up to 7,500 additional second-generation spacecraft and lifting the authorised constellation to about 15,000 satellites, a decision that deepens the company’s lead in the fast-growing satellite broadband market while tightening safeguards around orbital congestion and interference.The Federal Communications Commission’s order allows SpaceX to activate the first tranche of its Gen2 system in low-Earth orbit, a step the agency said would advance high-speed internet

Indonesia has moved to block access to Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by xAI, marking one of the first national-level actions taken specifically against a generative AI system over deepfake and synthetic sexual content risks. The decision places Southeast Asia’s largest economy at the centre of a growing global debate over how far governments should go in regulating AI tools that blur the line between expression and abuse.Officials cited concerns that Grok could be used to generate or amplify

African policymakers and market operators are accelerating efforts to deepen trade within the continent by leaning on digital payment systems that promise faster settlements, lower costs and broader access for businesses of all sizes. The push comes as governments and private players seek to convert the African Continental Free Trade Area from a legal framework into a functioning commercial ecosystem that moves goods, services and capital more efficiently across borders.At the centre of this shift is the growing use of

False social media posts masquerading as official council announcements have highlighted how generative artificial intelligence can be weaponised to mislead voters, placing new strain on public trust as political campaigning intensifies across the United Kingdom. The fabricated messages, which mimicked the tone, branding and urgency of genuine local authority notices, circulated widely before being taken down, prompting concern among regulators, councils and election specialists.Several of the posts claimed changes to polling arrangements, emergency local measures or altered eligibility rules, using

President Donald Trump announced the cancellation of a planned second wave of military attacks on Venezuela, pointing to improved cooperation from the country’s interim leadership and gestures such as the release of political prisoners and discussions on oil infrastructure. The decision marks a shift in the U. S. approach after its forces ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro earlier this month, and underscores Washington’s focus on stabilising relations and leveraging Venezuela’s energy resources.Trump made the announcement via social media and

 Authorities in Iran cut internet connectivity and restricted mobile phone services overnight as demonstrations flared across several cities, a move that marks a sharper phase in efforts to contain public dissent. Crowds were reported in neighbourhoods of the capital Tehran and in provincial centres, with security forces deployed around key junctions, universities and government buildings.The digital blackout, which activists said began late in the evening and continued into the morning, disrupted messaging platforms, slowed access to websites and interfered with

Nvidia chief Jensen Huang has dismissed concerns over California’s proposed billionaire tax, signalling that the potential personal cost would not alter his commitment to building the company’s artificial-intelligence business in the state where it was founded. Speaking in public remarks this week, Huang said he was “perfectly fine” with the idea of paying higher taxes, framing the debate as secondary to access to talent and the long-term importance of Silicon Valley to the technology industry.Jensen Huang, whose personal fortune has

 President Donald Trump has unveiled a proposal to bar large institutional investors from purchasing single-family homes from 2026, framing the move as a bid to ease housing affordability pressures and tilt the market back towards owner-occupiers. The announcement, delivered during a campaign-style address, triggered immediate market reactions and reopened a contentious debate over the role of corporate capital in the US housing market.Under the plan outlined by Trump, major investment firms and large landlords would be prevented from acquiring detached

France’s trade deficit widened to €4.2 billion in December 2025, reversing some of the narrowing seen earlier in the quarter as imports accelerated faster than exports, according to official customs data released this week. The shortfall, up from a revised €3.5 billion in November, broadly matched market expectations and underscored the uneven recovery in external trade as domestic demand picked up while overseas sales faced mixed conditions.The deterioration was driven primarily by a rise in imports of energy products and

Internet access and telephone networks across Iran were cut late on Thursday after crowds poured onto streets and residents shouted from rooftops in multiple cities, according to witnesses and digital rights monitors, marking a sharp escalation in nationwide unrest.Demonstrations flared after an appeal by exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi for a coordinated show of defiance, prompting gatherings in the capital Tehran and other urban centres. Within hours of the calls to mobilise, mobile networks faltered, fixed-line telephones fell silent in

Brussels has directed European Union regulators to compel X to retain internal records linked to its Grok chatbot through the end of 2026, widening a probe into allegations that the tool surfaced antisemitic material and generated non-consensual sexual content. The preservation order, issued under the bloc’s digital rules, is designed to prevent the loss or alteration of documents while investigators assess whether safeguards were adequate and whether platform obligations were breached.The decision intensifies scrutiny of Grok, an artificial-intelligence assistant integrated

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has intensified pressure on the Federal Reserve to expand interest rate reductions as policymakers and markets grapple with divergent views on the path of monetary policy. Bessent has framed his stance around concerns that ongoing high borrowing costs are weighing on key sectors of the economy and that more aggressive rate cuts are necessary to support growth and stability, a perspective that has sharpened debate within financial and political circles in Washington.Bessent, who assumed office

US schools are increasingly replacing full-length novels with short excerpts in literature classes, a shift driven by falling reading proficiency, shorter attention spans and the pull of digital media, according to educators and curriculum specialists. The change has stirred debate over whether students are being denied the sustained engagement needed to build critical thinking, cultural literacy and empathy.Data from national assessments show that reading scores among school-age children have struggled to recover after pandemic-era disruptions, with teachers reporting wider gaps

Britain’s new car market crossed the two-million mark in 2025 for the first time since the pandemic, signalling a broad-based recovery powered by electric vehicle uptake and steady fleet demand, according to industry data compiled across manufacturers and dealers. Registrations reached about 2.02 million units, lifting volumes above levels seen during the disrupted years of supply shortages and subdued consumer confidence.Britain’s auto market clears two million mark, a threshold that underscores how battery-powered models are reshaping buying patterns. Electric vehicles