China’s EV sales slide again amid fading incentives, weak demand and persistent price war

Brent crude prices hover near $90 per barrel, as fallout from Iran war hits travel firm Tui’s profits Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy. Oil prices are still on the rise, as fresh attacks on ships raise concerns about disruptions to Middle Eastern fuel supplies, adding to doubts over the prospects of a US-Iran peace deal. Yesterday, the rally in US crude paused for a minute after Pakistan’s Defence Minister said that they were getting “close to some sort of arrangement”, but the relief remained short-lived after Iran added that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until the conditions it demands from the US are met. And the conditions that both parties demand from each other suggest that the problems won’t be solved by tomorrow. 1.30pm BST: US inflation data for July..

It’s a great betrayal: poor communities neglected while multimillionaires peddle a global Maga agenda. How is that America first? “THE CORRUPTION IS AT LEVELS RARELY SEEN BEFORE,” Donald Trump posted on Truth Social in February 2025. He was not referring to his own administration, but to the US Agency for International Development (USAID). “CLOSE IT DOWN!” the president added. Just a few hours later USAID was in effect closed down, with most of the staff placed on indefinite administration leave. This was framed as part of Trump’s “America first” agenda. USAID, the Trump administration and his sycophants in the rightwing media had argued, was wasting taxpayers’ hard-earned money on ridiculous projects abroad instead of improving life at home. In the lead-up to the shuttering of USAID, for example, one of the most shameless lies about the agency, repeated without any evidence by the likes of Fox News, was that it was spending millions on condoms for Gaza. Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist..

Exhibition in Port Talbot is part of project exploring how communities experience endings and transitions Margaret Heggett, 95, does not remember a time when Port Talbot was ever quiet. Born and raised in the shadow of the steelworks, with a father, brother and husband who worked there, she never imagined what the town could look or sound like without its blast furnaces. “I’m not saying it was beautiful, but there were jobs. We did know the closure was coming and we have to move with the times but it’s affected the town a lot and it’s very sad,” she said...