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Crude Oil

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sports

Moses Itauma v Filip Hrgović: IBF heavyweight championship – live

Itauma faces Hrgović for vacant IBF title Reality check: just how good is Itauma? Reach out to Bryan on Bluesky or by email Elsewhere in England, Caroline Dubois has retained her WBC and WBO lightweight titles with a unanimous-decision win over Amelia Moore in Birmingham. Dubois dropped Moore in the fifth round before the challenger rallied to make the fight more competitive than the 99-90, 99-90 and 98-91 scorecards suggested. Afterwards, Dubois became embroiled in a heated exchange with Alycia Baumgardner, the WBA, WBO and IBF champion at 130lb, adding the latest chapter to the simmering war of words between the promotional stablemates that has been building for the past year...

The Guardian • 8/29/2026, 9:17:27 PM
science

Remaking the biscuit: from Doritos to digestives, why the UK’s snacks are being ‘reformulated’

Healthy eating rules are forcing brands to recook their recipes. Are consumers noticing the difference? Bite into a Ritz cracker today and you’re eating 80% less saturated fat than you would have been just a few years ago. The biscuit looks and snaps the same, and tastes close enough that most buyers have no idea they’re eating a new recipe. One of the biggest changes was swapping palm oil for sunflower oil, but there was much more to it than that. The reformulation took years to perfect in a laboratory, where scientists tested everything from density to how the cracker responds to heat, moisture and packaging...

The Guardian • 8/29/2026, 11:00:25 AM
power

Trump announces new US oil agreement with Venezuela

US president says US will have ‘majority’ control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves Donald Trump announced Friday a new US oil agreement with Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez, saying the US will have “majority” control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves. The terms of the agreement remain to be seen, but the US president said on his social-media platform that it had been brokered “through a partnership with ⁠private business” by his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and defense secretary, Pete Hegseth...

The Guardian • 8/28/2026, 11:34:36 PM
culture

London Science Museum cuts links with BP after decades of partnership

Campaigners say ‘seismic shift’ follows years of pressure to sever ties with oil and gas firm The London Science Museum has ended its decades-long partnership with the oil and gas company BP in what has been described as a “seismic shift” for the museum. The Science Museum Group academy, which was established in 2018 to provide training and resources, announced on Friday that it would be ending its partnership with BP. In a statement, the director and chief executive of the Science Museum Group, Sir Ian Blatchford, said the partnership had “drawn to a close at the end of the current contract term”...

The Guardian • 8/28/2026, 4:57:06 PM
world

Reports that US wants big stake in Venezuelan oil and gas spark anger

Critics call move to gain long-term access to country’s massive energy reserves ‘predatory’ and ‘unconstitutional’ Reports that the US is preparing to claim a big stake in Venezuela’s massive energy reserves have sparked an outcry, with critics describing the move as “predatory” and “unconstitutional”. Several media outlets this week reported that the Trump administration – which abducted Venezuela’s authoritarian president, Nicolás Maduro, in January and has steered the South American country ever since – hopes to secure long-term access to its oil and gasfields...

The Guardian • 8/28/2026, 4:30:23 PM
sports

Aston Villa’s squad is crumbling while Spurs splash out. Are the financial rules fair?

Winning the Europa League and finishing fourth did not inoculate Villa and Spurs were not hampered by a season of woe In theory Aston Villa supporters should have been rubbing their hands together at the prospect of a Champions League season. Equally, Tottenham fans could have been despondent after a relegation battle that went to the wire. A 17th-place finish meant Spurs earned about £35m less in Premier League merit payments, which are based on final league position, than Villa. Yet the mood in the two camps is reversed. Spurs have spent an estimated £322m in the transfer window, and that excludes the loan of Manchester City’s Omar Marmoush, for whom they are committed to paying £55m after this season. Sales have reduced the outlay to a net £140m, but Spurs fans seemed buoyant, at least until the first match, when they were soundly thrashed by one of the data scientists’ teacher’s pets, Brentford...

The Guardian • 8/28/2026, 9:00:01 AM
power

How the Iran war unfolded: every attack and oil price change – visualised

From the first US and Israeli strikes six months ago to the battle for Hormuz, this timeline plots how Trump’s war on Iran quickly became a regional conflict with global economic consequences On 28 February 2026, the US and Israel began large-scale strikes on Iran. Tehran responded by attacking Israeli and US allies across the Gulf. Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed on the first day of strikes, and the strait of Hormuz – a crucial waterway for transporting oil – was effectively closed soon after. The conflict quickly became a regional war with global economic consequences. Donald Trump: EPA/Trump Vance transition team US CENTCOM: AP Abbas Araghchi: AP Esmail Baqaei: Getty/Anadolu Masoud Pezeshkian: AP Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf: Getty/NurPhoto Iran flag: Alamy..

The Guardian • 8/28/2026, 6:00:50 AM
health

How do you define good health – and achieve it – in a broken US medical system?

In a new book, Dr Lucy McBride aims to help us navigate US healthcare – and tread carefully in the wellness industry Most of us want to be healthy, but it’s easier said than done. In the US, people are caught between a broken medical system and a well-resourced wellness industry. The failings of the former – cost barriers, rushed appointments, impersonal attention – push them towards the snake-oil solutions of the latter. Over 25 years of practicing medicine, running a primary care practice in Washington DC, Dr Lucy McBride has seen patients struggle to navigate the medical system...

The Guardian • 8/27/2026, 4:00:32 PM
sports

Spurs paying price for World Cup and pre-season trip to Australia

Too many players are off the pace and Roberto De Zerbi has had no hesitation in naming names Jan Paul van Hecke was among those given an unwanted name-check by Roberto De Zerbi after Tottenham’s 3-0 defeat at Brentford on Saturday. Not at the right level physically, was the gist of the manager’s comments. De Zerbi also mentioned Marcos Senesi and Sandro Tonali, two more of the club’s new signings. Their condition had to come as no surprise. It certainly did not to De Zerbi...

The Guardian • 8/27/2026, 3:27:04 PM
sports

Dortmund best of the rest as Bundesliga clubs grasp at Bayern Munich’s coattails | Andy Brassell

BVB are re-energised while Leverkusen have stabilised but the question remains: can anyone stop the champions? The Franz Beckenbauer Supercup has a modicum more intensity than most of its European equivalents. There are many reasons for this. The Bundesliga’s traditional season curtain-raiser pitting league champions against cup winners is not played on neutral territory, giving it the feeling of a domestic game with proper stakes. German fans would also never accept it taking place on foreign soil, as the Borussia Dortmund managing director, Carsten Cramer, reiterated in clear terms over the course of the weekend. It feels like a match, rather than a showpiece. It had one other factor to ratchet up the adrenaline this year. It was the sense that the two teams that most expect to be the season’s best, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, were the participants, with last term’s second-placed side hosting the champions. There was enough in the game to suggest that the latter might be able inconvenience the former, as Bayern held on to win the season’s first trophy after BVB followed a thoroughly dominant first half from the visitors with a vastly improved second period of their own in reply...

The Guardian • 8/27/2026, 11:14:22 AM
culture

‘The technique was revolutionary’: Ha Chong-Hyun, the 91-year-old South Korean artist who turned painting inside out

In his trailblazing work, paint is pushed through the back of hemp to create spare, striking paintings. Abstraction is a form of rebellion, he says – and he has no intention of slowing down In the early 1970s, the Korean artist Ha Chong-Hyun had a simple but novel idea: why not apply oil paint to the back of a surface rather than the front? Instead of canvas, he stretched pieces of hemp, a coarse and loosely woven fabric, and pushed the thick oil paint through the holes in the cloth. For each work he used a single colour, in a neutral or muted tone such as white or brown. On the “front” side, he then moved the paint around with various handmade tools to create something akin to brushstrokes. Ha, now 91, has remained dedicated to this technique, known as the “back-pressure method” (bae-ap-bub in Korean), ever since. He titles every piece Conjunction – because for him the work is essentially about the coming together of artist and material – along with numbers denoting the date of its creation. “The technique he developed was really revolutionary. It hadn’t been done before,” says Max Bossier, director at Lisson Gallery in London, where a selection from this decades-spanning body of work, alongside several of Ha’s earlier artistic experiments, will go on view in September...

The Guardian • 8/27/2026, 7:00:07 AM
sports

Sávio savours debut goal as Spurs coast to emphatic Carabao Cup win over Charlton

A new season at the snazziest modern stadium in England and something extremely welcome for Tottenham. A home win over domestic opposition. There were only four of them last season; three in the Premier League with the final one – over Everton on the last day – helping them to avoid relegation. Had they lost that, this Carabao Cup fixture against Charlton would also have been played in the Championship. Spurs needed this tonic for another reason – to begin the clean-up operation after Saturday’s awful 3-0 defeat at Brentford. The season could not have started any worse. With no European football, a decent cup run or runs are imperative and Spurs got themselves up and running in this competition on a night when everything came together perfectly...

The Guardian • 8/26/2026, 8:58:36 PM
business

Wiped out: US faces surging toilet paper prices amid trade war with Canada

Paper products among hardest-hit sectors after trade negotiations broke down, with 25-50% tariffs estimated Are you a Canadian boycotting US products? We’d like to hear from you Using the bathroom or having a cry is about to become more expensive for North Americans as the US and Canada enter a full-fledged trade war that threatens to flush away decades of peaceful trading between the two nations. After trade negotiations broke down between the two countries last weekend, Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, vowed to match US tariffs “dollar for dollar” and unveiled a list of nearly 900 American goods that will face 25% to 50% tariffs starting on 8 September...

The Guardian • 8/26/2026, 10:00:41 AM
power

Around the world, people are rejecting divisive and dangerous politics. We can – and must – build on that | Gordon Brown

The vast majority of the global public wants international cooperation on human rights, climate and AI. Like-minded countries must stand together to deliver Britain’s new prime minister, Andy Burnham, is already having to make one of his gravest decisions. He has to issue the instructions that he alone gives to the military, setting out the UK response in a doomsday scenario of a nuclear weapons attack on us. He will, as I did two decades ago, sign a piece of paper telling commanders whether or not to retaliate and, if so, whether through targeting civilian conurbations or military sites. These instructions are written down in the aptly named “letter of last resort”. Now, more than at any time since the 1960s Cuban missile crisis, the European public fears a third world war. With the nuclear Doomsday Clock developed by atomic scientists moving ever closer to midnight, and Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, Poland and Germany contemplating either acquiring nuclear weapons or siting them on their soil, our world is descending from a rules-based order to a power-based one, where might is deemed right and brute force dominates. Gordon Brown is the UN’s special envoy for global education and was UK prime minister from 2007 to 2010 The future starts with us: Gordon Brown in conversation On Thursday 10 September, join Hugh Muir and Gordon Brown to discuss the intricate connections between global instability and civic decline, as explored in Brown’s new book, The Future Starts With Us. Book tickets here..

The Guardian • 8/26/2026, 5:00:35 AM
power

Japan expands Fukushima soil recycling project to Sendai, Saitama

Japan’s Environment Ministry says it plans to reuse soil collected in decontamination work near the disaster-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex at national government branch offices in Miyagi and Saitama prefectures. The government has already reused the soil at 12 sites in Tokyo since July last year, including the prime minister’s office and other buildings in the Kasumigaseki district. Excluding demonstration projects in Fukushima prefecture, the expansion to the cities of Sendai and...

South China Morning Post • 8/26/2026, 1:58:33 AM
climate

Record-breaking heat dome expected to bring dangerous temperatures to US south-west

As wildfires rage and intense heat builds across the region, daytime highs of 110-11F (43-46C) are forecast Surging temperatures are expected to broil more than 45 million people as a heat dome settles in across the south-western US through the end of August and into early September, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). As wildfires rage in some parts and intense heat builds across the region, daytime highs of 110-115F (43-46C) are forecast, with limited cooling relief in the evenings and overnight. Experts predict that some record highs could be tied or broken this month and the weather agency warned of the scorching late summer heat as a potential health hazard...

The Guardian • 8/25/2026, 10:40:43 PM
power

US economic D-Day sanctions: 'Repeated attacks of bombing across Iran failed to change the calculus'

Genie Godula is pleased to welcome Imran Bayoumi, Deputy Director & Resident Fellow at the Atlantic Council. He sees the Trump administration’s new sanctions strategy toward Iran as an attempt to seek economic leverage where military force has so far failed to produce any results. But its effectiveness rests on several unresolved assumptions. Chief among them is whether Washington can compel China, Iran’s largest oil customer, to comply despite Beijing’s growing economic resilience. Iran, meanwhile, has decades of experience curtailing sanctions and is again threatening regional escalation.

France 24 • 8/25/2026, 1:44:24 PM
power

China denounces US threat of sanctions over trade with Iran

Beijing says it will take ‘all necessary measures’ to protect its interests as US steps up efforts to isolate Tehran Explainer: could US sanctions threaten China-Iran ties? China has denounced the threat of US sanctions for its trade with Iran, saying any such measures would be illegal, and warned it will take “all necessary measures” to protect its national interests. Beijing’s rejection of the US threat of secondary sanctions for any country or entity continuing to trade with Tehran had been predicted. China buys an estimated 80% of Iran’s oil exports and it has defied previous US efforts to limit the flow of revenue to the Tehran regime...

The Guardian • 8/25/2026, 11:43:14 AM
health

Food has turned into a class war – and it’s ruined my appetite | Zoe Williams

More than half of what Brits eat is ultra-processed. Now we’re a nation of food snobs – with no ingredient safe from judgment Lewis Bassett is a young sociologist and chef who I first encountered through his podcast, The Full English, where he thinks about the cultural meaning of, say, Delia Smith; gazpacho; whelks. This was thinking you didn’t know you needed until you heard it. Now he’s written a book of the same name, asking: why do we eat the way we do in Britain, and why do we think the way we do, even about the stuff we wouldn’t be caught dead eating? About 57% of all the food eaten in Britain is ultra-processed, which feels familiar from at least a decade of hand-wringing about it, but is radically defamiliarised when set against the rest of Europe. In France it’s 14%, and Italy is also in the teens. It’s amazing they don’t all live to be 150. And while this plainly has its roots in inequality, there is a hefty side order of attitude, which Bassett contemplates while working through the history of sourdough, curry and olive oil, and describing his own life cheffing in fancy kitchens and gastropubs...

The Guardian • 8/25/2026, 10:00:34 AM
business

Gold hits highest level in three months as traders worry about US inflation and bond market jitters – business live

Spot gold touches almost $4,700 an ounce and Bitcoin tops $80,000 while oil prices fall despite threat of heavy US sanctions on Iran and any country trading with it Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, has sent us her thoughts on gold. Renewed appetite for gold despite elevated long-term US yields is striking and sends a clear message: investors are moving back to the precious metal as: A hedge against unclear US fiscal plans and the lack of conviction in the US administration’s capacity to rein in exploding debt when military expenses are adding to already heavy bills. A hedge against inflation, amid questions over the Fed’s willingness, or ability (!), to fight inflation independently. A hedge against a potential rout across global risk assets on worries about high valuations, massive AI spending and the growing financing web around the companies involved in building the AI ecosystem – the circularity. The question is: will gold gather enough momentum to return sustainably above the $5,000 mark? Possibly, yes. The broad de-dollarization trade that’s quietly building in the background, justified by global institutions’ efforts to diversify away from US Treasuries and toward gold, remains supportive of gold in the longer run. In the shorter run, overbought conditions could lead to downside corrections, giving dip-buying opportunities to long-term bulls. Well, we are giving everyone the opportunity to remedy bad behaviour. Why would I want to blow up the global financial system? We believe that it is important to level set and give people a cure period, but they should know that that will move very quickly and that we are serious...

The Guardian • 8/25/2026, 6:49:36 AM
climate

Climate damage would obliterate any economic benefits of new North Sea fields, analysis shows

Exclusive: Economic harm of CO2 pollution from Rosebank and Jackdaw forecast to far outweigh any boost to UK The climate damage caused by developing the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields under consideration by the UK government would destroy their economic benefits many times over, according to an analysis. It estimates the economic damage caused by the carbon pollution from the oil and gas produced would be between £119bn and £336bn in the coming decades, compared with the £28.7bn in value to the UK estimated by Adura, the fossil fuel company promoting the new fields...

The Guardian • 8/25/2026, 5:00:48 AM
power

China is the biggest buyer of Iran’s oil. Could US sanctions threaten those ties?

The US has put the world on notice to cease doing business with Iran, but experts say Washington is wary China could retaliate against any sanctions The US has unveiled an expansion of sanctions that it says will cut off Iran’s economic lifeline but stopped short of the most punishing measures, instead putting the world on notice to cease doing business with the Islamic republic. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent ⁠warned other countries would need to sever ⁠business ties with Iran or risk being ​forced out of the dollar-based financial system. He previously urged cooperation from China – the biggest buyer of Iranian oil for several years – although the US blockade of Iran’s ports, renewed in mid-July, has already cut much of the Iranian oil flows to China...

The Guardian • 8/25/2026, 2:44:59 AM
climate

Our climate is changing rapidly – and our politicians sound increasingly surreal | Zoe Williams

On a panel show last week, everyone in the audience wanted to talk about the climate emergency, but the lines rolled out by a Tory MP simply dissolved on contact with reality As it is August, and everyone with stronger opinions is currently on holiday, last week I went on Any Questions?, the BBC Radio 4 panel show. I had prepared beforehand with a friend whose life’s work it is to make sure people don’t say anything stupid on the radio (or TV), and we’d talked about everything – the strait of Hormuz and energy prices; bus fare caps and the relative price of eggs; racism in the press and in public life; the AI bubble and the next financial crash; how many bathrooms Harry and Meghan currently have in the US, and whether a property even exists in the UK with that amount of toileting hardware. Predictably, perhaps, the audience’s questions did not spread themselves neatly across the full suite of current affairs, though Harry and Meghan’s return did come up – it was more a matter of which question about the climate crisis best represented the fact that everyone wanted to talk about the climate crisis. The news had just dropped that El Niño would deliver us an unprecedentedly wet autumn, but that was unlikely to soothe the parched earth of the record-breakingly hot, dry summer. Crops are failing, the land is on fire and nobody has not noticed...

The Guardian • 8/24/2026, 3:17:07 PM
power

US sanctions 'unlikely to get Tehran to bow down' despite effect on population

Iran has warned that Tehran would respond harshly to expanded U.S. sanctions, including measures against countries it sees as cooperating with Washington. The expanded sanctions come after weeks of impasse. The United States has not dislodged Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s traded oil passed before the war started nearly six months ago. Now, Washington is hoping the extra sanctions will bring change. FRANCE 24's Reza Sayah tells us about the atmosphere in Iran, from Tehran.

France 24 • 8/24/2026, 12:34:40 PM
climate

Can Burnham justify giving the go ahead to oil drilling? Yes, but these must be the conditions | Michael Jacobs

Carbon capture and storage could make the Rosebank site compatible with UK net zero commitments – if its owners are willing to pay the price The British government must soon decide whether it should give consent to two oil and gasfields, Rosebank in the North Atlantic and Jackdaw in the North Sea. Amid both insecurity of energy supplies and deadly evidence of the climate crisis, the prime minister, Andy Burnham, is facing pressure from the oil and gas industry and unions on one side, and environmentalists on the other. Labour’s manifesto commitment not to approve new drilling licences offers little help, because the fields already have licences, granted by the previous Conservative government in 2022 and 2023. But last year, Edinburgh’s court of session ruled that the environmental impact assessments on which this decision relied were unlawful. The Conservative government had, the court ruled, failed to include the emissions generated when the oil and gas from the fields is burned. The court allowed work to continue on the fields, but a new assessment had to be done and approval sought again. Michael Jacobs is professor of political economy at the University of Sheffield and a former energy and climate change adviser to Gordon Brown when he was prime minister..

The Guardian • 8/24/2026, 9:00:29 AM
climate

No fridge, no fans, just blocks of ice: improvising to survive in Pakistan’s searing heat

With limited electricity and poor ventilation, many families in Nasirabad have little to shield them from temperatures of up to 50C As the first light reaches Nasirabad, a queue of men, women and children has already formed outside the town’s ice factory, with their buckets, sacks and plastic containers. Among those hoping to buy some ice to help their families endure another scorching day is 12-year-old Taimoor, in his school uniform. He says it is his most important task of the day. “If I do not bring the ice, how will we endure the heat at home?” he says. “And how will we drink water that feels as though it is boiling?”..

The Guardian • 8/24/2026, 8:00:56 AM
sports

Leeds deliver timely Super League showcase while NRL investment hangs in balance

Wigan and Leeds tussle at the top but can all clubs come to an agreement over the investment the sport needs? Three rounds to go until the Super League playoffs begin, and it is difficult to know whether to keep your eyes fixed on the pitch or off it. Leeds sit top after their impressive win at York on Sunday afternoon ended Wigan’s 48-hour stay at the summit, but the Rhinos are embroiled in a two- or perhaps even three-way battle for the League Leaders’ Shield in 2026. The Rhinos and Wigan are level on points and have intriguing games against St Helens and Hull KR respectively this week. Should either or both slip up, Warrington could yet come into the picture for a top-two finish but you would be forgiven for your eyes already veering past this coming weekend’s fixtures and to the penultimate round on two fronts...

The Guardian • 8/24/2026, 7:00:55 AM
business

The PM is promising to fix our everyday annoyances – and I have a list to get him started | Emma Beddington

Andy Burnham hopes we’ll forget the big stuff if he sorts out our minor frustrations and low-level gripes. Pothole politics hasn’t won me over yet, but I know some changes that could This is a vulnerable confession, but I spend way too much time on the social media of the New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani. Whether he is seemingly effortlessly speaking Mandarin, hanging out with kids or charmingly accepting that he should wear a cycle helmet, the man with the million-watt smile is my antidepressant. (Even more vulnerable confession: I believe, irrationally, he is looking after my elder son, who lives there.) This means that I know all about Mamdani’s fight against what Business Insider recently deemed the “annoyance economy” – daily frustrations that make you poorer or drive you slowly, miserably mad. These include the absurd complexity of cancelling subscriptions; hidden fees; getting charged more for something you looked up last week, because of cookies; never being able to find a public toilet; and potholes. He has taken to responding when he gets tagged in people’s “Mamdani, fix this” posts to the point where Britons online are even jokily asking him to take on their problems...

The Guardian • 8/23/2026, 1:00:33 PM
business

Drill, Burnham, drill? The oil basin that is a totem for Trump - and a headache for Britain’s new PM

North Sea oil, once the driving force of the UK economy, may be dwindling but it remains a symbol of prestige and a rich resource for political debate When oil was first discovered off the north-east coast of Scotland in September 1969, industry folklore has it that the duty superintendent on the rig carefully poured it into a pickle jar commandeered from the canteen and took it back to Amoco’s Great Yarmouth office in Norfolk. There, it was emptied into an ash tray, sniffed and then set alight. From that modest start, North Sea oil – as the huge basin of oil and gas reserves quickly became known – emerged as a driving force of the British economy and a symbol of national power and renewal as the UK emerged from the Opec oil crisis...

The Guardian • 8/23/2026, 5:00:23 AM
power

Iran’s new security chief says neighbours who join US economic war will be considered ‘enemies’

Hardliner Mohsen Rezaei also threatens American economic interests in first interview since appointment to supreme national security council The new leader of Iran’s top security body has warned its neighbours against joining new US efforts to squeeze Tehran’s economy, and threatened US commercial interests in the region, as Donald Trump doubled down on his fanciful view that the strait of Hormuz was a new US territory. Mohsen Rezaei, the hardline new leader of Iran’s supreme national security council, told state television that Iran would target oil-shipping routes out the Gulf – alternatives to the strait of Hormuz – if its neighbours joined what he called the “economic war” waged by the US. Those neighbours would be “considered an enemy” and “we will target their interests”, he said...

The Guardian • 8/23/2026, 3:34:27 AM
business

Hook, hold, harvest and hide: Meta’s alleged strategy laid out in first week of landmark trial

In trial that opened on Tuesday, California and 28 other states accused the company of designing addictive sites and violating laws protecting children’s privacy Meta’s business can be boiled down to four words that begin with the letter H: hook, hold, harvest, hide, according to a lawyer who is prosecuting the world’s largest social media company. The owner of Facebook and Instagram “hooks” in users, “holds” them on its platforms for as long as possible, “harvests” their data and then “hides” the truth from the public, she argued...

The Guardian • 8/22/2026, 8:00:58 AM
culture

David Harbour has blown Tony Stark’s cover in Avengers: Doomsday. It might just be what Marvel needs

The actor, who plays Red Guardian in the film, made a cryptic comment to Variety that raised more Robert Downey Jr-shaped questions than answers. But was it a clanger, or expert trolling? Nobody knows exactly what solemn blood oaths Marvel uses to prevent spoilers. But we do know that Andrew Garfield spent most of the run-up to 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home – in which he would eventually turn up as one of two secret Spideys – behaving as if Kevin Feige was standing behind him, holding up a giant card saying: YOU HAVE NEVER MET TOBEY MAGUIRE. So we can imagine it’s pretty full on. Why, then, has Avengers: Doomsday star David Harbour this week apparently blurted out the biggest Marvel secret since Ben Kingsley’s Mandarin in Iron Man 3? Invited by Variety magazine to offer up a line from Doomsday “completely out of context”, Harbour thought for a moment, adopted the Russian accent of his Red Guardian character and came out with: “You … are Tony Stark.” Which is quite a thing to say about a film whose entire marketing campaign so far has depended on us accepting that Iron Man remains dead, and that the actor who used to play him, Robert Downey Jr, is playing Victor von Doom instead...

The Guardian • 8/21/2026, 3:37:53 PM
world

Millions in Cuba face water shortages as oil crisis deepens

In Cuba, seven months of an effective oil blockade imposed by the Trump administration has not only increased power outages but is also leaving more and more people without running water. In August 2025, 2.6 million people on the Caribbean island nation had difficulty accessing water, according to the Cuban Institute of Hydraulic Resources. Today, that figure has risen to 3.5 million – around a third of the population. FRANCE 24’s Ed Augustin reports on the health risks rippling through the island.

France 24 • 8/21/2026, 3:28:52 PM
culture

Spa Weekend review – female answer to The Hangover spreads the slush with the massage oil

Despite stars Leslie Mann, Anna Faris and Isla Fisher and the writers behind The Hangover, this tale of friends at a luxury hotel is a dud Jon Lucas and Scott Moore are the screenwriters who struck gold nearly 20 years ago with The Hangover, a brilliant stag-weekend nightmare comedy about what happens in Vegas, which sadly spawned a terrible (though lucrative) franchise. Now, as writers and directors, they have tried turning it around and making a movie about how middle-aged women behave on a longed-for spa weekend at a luxury-porn hotel. The result is a comedy without gags, a comedy which, for all the strenuous high-jinks, is afraid to be flippant or mean or, indeed, funny in any way. Leslie Mann plays a hotshot lawyer called Jane who can’t make room in her life for romance; Anna Faris is goofy Sophie, PA to a rich asshole; Michelle Buteau is outspoken badass Coco, angry at her ex-husband dating again; and Isla Fisher is landed with the stridently unfunny role of Mel, a wild child who makes the other three nervous, but whose life-affirming no-filter honesty is going to break everyone’s emotional logjam and sort out their lives. As for Jane, it looks as if the hotel’s super-hot super-sensitive yoga teacher, Kai (Adam Demos), is going to hook up with her...

The Guardian • 8/21/2026, 4:00:24 AM
power

Ukraine a 'genuine', 'fragile' democracy: 'Internal political turmoil will weaken political system'

Oliver Farry is pleased to welcome Dr. Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher, journalist, author and President of PEN Ukraine. According to Dr Yermolenko, Ukraine is confronting serious threats to its democracy. Suspending elections during wartime carries real dangers as political power is increasingly centralized around President Zelensky. Yet holding elections while cities remain under attack could unleash precisely the political turmoil Ukraine can least afford. The challenge is not simply whether Ukraine should choose democracy or wartime unity, but how it can preserve democratic accountability without allowing internal political conflict to weaken its resistance to Russia.

France 24 • 8/20/2026, 8:32:28 PM
money

Why is US bond market turmoil hitting governments worldwide? | Richard Partington

As yields are dragged higher in the UK, Europe and Japan, the impact for consumers and businesses will be far-reaching Government borrowing costs around the world have surged to the highest levels in decades amid growing fears over US bond market turmoil. Anxiety about Donald Trump’s handling of the US economy, and concern that the US president’s war with Iran is driving up inflation, are triggering a sell-off in the US bond market...

The Guardian • 8/20/2026, 4:14:59 PM
sports

‘Republicans ran up the tab’: Democrats outraged over $40tn national debt – live

US national deficit has doubled over the past decade with spending growing under Trump and Biden US gross national debt tops $40tn for first time Sign up for the US Breaking News email As the third leg of NBC’s Sunday Night Football crew alongside play-by-play man Al Michaels and the tart-tongued analyst Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya was a paragon of deference and neutrality for 11 years as an NFL sideline reporter, dutifully relating boilerplate tactics, talking points and injury updates when she wasn’t nodding along to softball interviews or fumbling through hammy production gimmicks for viewers who might have been too offline to get the bit. She was almost pathologically committed to not doing anything to draw attention to herself or her gender in an era when sideline reporting was a fast track to national celebrity. Even her football takes hewed to the middle. (“New Orleans doesn’t want to lose to Atlanta twice in a season …”) Anyone who says they saw the 61-year-old emerging as a rightwing firebrand was watching a different game...

The Guardian • 8/20/2026, 11:57:39 AM
sports

Premier League: nine newcomers to watch in the top flight this season

Newcastle, Arsenal, Brentford, Everton, Leeds, Coventry, Aston Villa, Hull and Ipswich have all brought in exciting players By Opta Analyst Anthony Gordon will be a difficult act to follow at Newcastle, but Touré could be a shrewd replacement. Blessed with electric pace, the 20-year-old is a bit more of an old-fashioned winger in that he predominantly plays from the left and is left-footed. As a result, he was more of a creator than a goalscorer for Hoffenheim last season...

The Guardian • 8/20/2026, 7:00:46 AM
power

Libyan government in Tunisia for crisis talks

On Tuesday, Libya's national oil corporation said the country needs around 40 billion dollars in investment to make the most of its energy resources. The country's unreliable access to energy is feeding into instability stemming from fighting between rival factions and political rivalries. Members of one of the country's governments, the one internationally recognised and led by PM Abdulhamid Dbeibah met for crisis talks in Tunisia this week, as FRANCE 24’s Lilia Blaise reports.

France 24 • 8/19/2026, 3:40:46 PM
power

Labour ‘could lose up to 50 seats’ to Greens if new drilling in North Sea approved

Greens say analysis shows government failure to take bold climate action could lead to big gains for party at election UK politics live – latest updates Labour could lose dozens of seats to the Green party if the government allows new drilling in the North Sea, according to internal research shared with the Guardian. Green party analysis suggests up to 50 Labour MPs – including key Andy Burnham ally Louise Haigh – could lose their seats at the next election if the government fails to make urgent climate action a priority or allows new drilling for oil and gas in the North Sea...

The Guardian • 8/19/2026, 9:28:36 AM
business

UK inflation increases in July driven by a surge in gas costs; oil prices rise again – business live

Brent crude approaches $92 a barrel; Asian shares slump after Wall Street chip sell-off Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the global economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business. It’s UK inflation day! 9.30am BST: UK Private rents and house prices for July 8.10am BST: European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde speaks 10am BST: Eurozone inflation final for July 7pm BST: US Federal Reserve minutes of last meeting..

The Guardian • 8/19/2026, 6:12:54 AM
business

Trump hits pause on Canada tariffs threat, and hints at revival of Keystone XL oil pipeline project

US president delays 50% tariffs by three days, and says contentious oil project ‘may be awoken from the grave’ Canada has temporarily avoided a bruising 50% US tariff, reaching a Tuesday evening agreement with Trump officials, hours before a hike that would have affected $20bn worth of goods was set to take effect. Trump posted late Tuesday on social media that he had paused the tariffs for three days “based on the fact that Canada and the USA, subject to the finalization of documents, have a DEAL!”..

The Guardian • 8/19/2026, 3:12:07 AM
climate

‘Prepare early’: bushfire authorities sound alarm for NT, NSW and Queensland

Effects of global heating in NT worsened by ‘dangerous and fire-promoting buffel grass’, expert says Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Fire authorities have warned large parts of the Northern Territory are facing heightened fire danger throughout spring, with above average fuel loads leaving much of the territory vulnerable. Low soil moisture has also led to elevated fire risk for parts of New South Wales, including some areas that were badly burned during the black summer fires, and south-east Queensland as an El Niño system continues to strengthen in the country’s south-east...

The Guardian • 8/19/2026, 1:00:01 AM
business

Cooling UK labour market ‘questions need’ for Bank of England rate hikes; grocery inflation slows to two-year low – business live

Brent crude climbs above $91 a barrel as US-Iran ceasefire ends Grocery inflation in the UK has slowed to the lowest rate in almost two years, bringing some relief to households, a monthly survey shows (ahead of tomorrow’s official inflation data). Inflation at supermarkets and other grocers eased for a fifth month, to 2.1% in the four weeks to 9 August – the lowest since October 2024, according to Worldpanel by Numerator. With inflation slowing again, this marks the fifth consecutive month of easing prices. Shoppers are feeling the relief with 39% now feeling financially comfortable, marking the highest level of financial confidence since November 2021. But it’s by no means the same picture for all, with 20% reporting that they are struggling, and this has a clear impact on spending decisions. Among these households, 30% are more likely to prioritise grocery essentials over additional summer spending such as holidays and travel. The continued heat across the UK has certainly impacted the way people are eating and drinking. Earlier this summer we saw that mealtimes were being pushed later in the day, with 13% of evening meals now eaten after 8pm. Shoppers have been trying to stay cool this month, with soft drinks growing 15.1% in spend, while the freezer aisle saw shoppers stocking up on ice cream, sorbet and frozen fruit to beat the heat. A brighter spot was that the rate of youth unemployment came down to 16.2% in June. This is relatively good news, but the data are volatile and so we would perhaps not place too much weight on one month’s data. Moreover of course this is a high level, which has climbed by over 2.5 percentage points over the past two years. It’s encouraging to see signs of progress in the latest figures, with employment on the up and a continued fall in unemployment rate. We will continue to reform welfare and employment support so that more people can live independently and restore opportunity across the country...

The Guardian • 8/18/2026, 8:06:25 AM
power

Oil prices jump after US-Iran ceasefire expires and Trump threatens Oman

Brent crude rises above $90 a barrel for the first time since 30 July after US president tells Tehran to surrender Business live – latest updates Oil prices have risen again after the two-month window to negotiate a peace deal in the US-Israel war on Iran expired on Monday with no end to the conflict in sight. Iran said on Monday that it would take a more aggressive stance if talks with the US failed, while Donald Trump demanded Tehran “put up the white flag of surrender” in an interview with Fox News...

The Guardian • 8/18/2026, 7:04:12 AM
climate

Ithaca: a scintillating eco-thriller RPG that aims to confront our violent moment

The latest game from ‘reality-inspired’ studio the Pixel Hunt sees you transporting precious human cargo – and deciding what to do with it Ithaca has one hell of an opening: Penelope, a disillusioned environmental lawyer, stops her car at a petrol station. But upon returning, she discovers something shocking: the unconscious body of an oil company CEO in her boot, his hands hog-tied together, dangling limply towards the vehicle’s number plate. This tantalising eco-thriller setup is a long way off the typical knights-and-castles fantasy fare of most role-playing games, more How To Blow Up a Pipeline than Dragon Quest. But road-trip RPG Ithaca arrives via refreshingly original developer the Pixel Hunt, a French outfit that specialises in what it calls “reality-inspired” games. The studio has made a number of arresting works in recent years. One was about a Syrian refugee couple making a perilous migrant journey across Europe; another tackled the life-shattering effects of child sexual abuse. The climate crisis was always in the back of Pixel Hunt founder and Ithaca writer Florent Maurin’s mind. After all, he says, it is the uber problem of our day, the problem that touches all others. It was just a case of when, and, more importantly: “What do we say about it?”..

The Guardian • 8/17/2026, 1:00:55 PM
power

Massive Attack and Paris Paloma join musicians urging Burnham to reject new North Sea drilling

Brian Eno and Olly Alexander also among signatories saying exploitation of Rosebank and Jackdaw fields defies reality More than 200 musicians including Massive Attack and Brian Eno have written to Andy Burnham, urging him to reject plans for more oil and gas drilling in the North Sea. The letter, signed by artists such as Olly Alexander and Paris Paloma, called on the prime minister to reject the Rosebank oilfield, warning the project will fail to lower energy bills or provide energy security as most of the oil is likely to be exported...

The Guardian • 8/17/2026, 9:00:50 AM
business

Interest rate dilemma for central banks as inflation rises but growth slows

The Federal Reserve, the ECB and the Bank of England appear unclear on how to tackle inflation amid the Iran war New UK cost of living crisis looms as rising energy bills lift inflation Inflation rates have been falling across the industrialised world, but fears that the Middle East war will raise oil prices means central banks are sitting on their hands when they should be raising interest rates to subdue inflationary pressures. The US Federal Reserve, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank are still smarting from the criticism of their inaction in 2022 when inflation soared above 10% in the UK and eurozone, and over 9% in the US...

The Guardian • 8/16/2026, 2:00:27 PM
culture

AI cheating, leaked papers and marking errors: how exam protests went global

Student unrest sweeps India, Portugal and Mexico as grievances and pressure for good grades in tough job market collide Families with teenagers in education know the private, hidden pain of exam season. But this year, what might have been a summer of quiet family anxiety has erupted in several countries into public unrest. Exam-related turmoil has led to mass student protests in Mexico after nearly 60,000 university applicants were forced to resit tests amid suspected cheating, while Portugal’s disastrous attempt to digitise school exam marking sparked the country’s worst education crisis in decades...

The Guardian • 8/16/2026, 7:00:19 AM
world

Moroccan police arrest more than 100 people as they attempt to enter Ceuta

Border security tightened after social media posts call for another mass crossing into Spain’s north African territory Moroccan police have arrested 111 people as they tried to enter Spain’s north African territory of Ceuta, amid ⁠tightened security on both sides after social media posts ​called for another mass crossing. The attempted crossing on Saturday came two weeks after more than 72,000 migrants surged into Ceuta, causing tensions within the EU and prompting anti-immigration rhetoric among far-right parties worldwide. At least 96 people died trying to ⁠reach European soil...

The Guardian • 8/15/2026, 6:08:21 PM
culture

He Had It Coming review – this messy crime-comedy has all the subtlety of a mallet to the crotch

It’s sporadically very funny, but the tone of this blackly comic murder-mystery is all over the place. It wants to tackle big issues, but seems afraid of its own politics ‘But I can’t get an F,” wails Elise (Lydia West) in the first episode of the Australian campus comedy He Had It Coming, shoulders slumping like soufflés as her tutor peers pityingly at her terrible paintings. “I’m here on a scholarship? I’m here to be an artist?!” Alas, poor Elise. No amount of wounded upspeak can disguise the fact that she is an aspiring artist in much the same way a bag of flour is an aspiring pastry. Her “work”, bless it, consists of daubing clothes on to impressionist nudes – a “protest”, apparently, against the patriarchy and its preoccupation with “ancient bush”. Unctuous Professor Phoenix (Harry Greenwood) is unimpressed. “Hmm,” he sighs, pouting affectedly at Elise’s “feminist reimagining” of Manet’s Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe; the picnic’s enigmatic nude now sporting a pair of jeans and oversized novelty spectacles. Mon Dieu! The problem, explains Phoenix, slowly, is a lack of ambition. Feminist art isn’t for amateurs. “Be radical,” he smirks, as Elise quietly broils with rage. “Don’t settle for mediocrity.” The nerve! “These men are holding us back,” she roars later at new pal Barbara (Natasha Liu Bordizzo), a prickly fashion influencer who is being slut-shamed by the campus jocks for having tipsily humped a stranger’s thigh at a party. “Yes,” agrees Barbara. “Let’s go vandalise something!” And so to the quadrant, where, in the dead of night, a mallet is applied to the genitals of the statue of the university’s hopelessly male namesake. He Had It Coming aired on BBC Three and is available on iPlayer in the UK and on Stan in Australia..

The Guardian • 8/14/2026, 10:40:39 PM
science

BP to develop offshore gasfield in Venezuela with firms linked to Trump administration

Move will be one of first large-scale foreign investments in country since US ousted leader Nicolás Maduro in January BP has answered Donald Trump’s call for oil companies to help rebuild Venezuela’s fossil fuel industry with new plans to develop a large offshore gasfield. BP will partner with two oil firms with close links to the Trump administration to develop the second phase of the Loran gasfield, in one of the first large-scale foreign investments in Venezuela since the US ousted its leader Nicolás Maduro in January...

The Guardian • 8/14/2026, 2:04:49 PM
culture

‘Murakami saw his book come alive!’: the Japanese company bringing the author’s science fiction masterpiece to the stage

A play based on the writer’s dreamlike novel Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World is touring the world, riding a wave of interest in Japanese culture. Its creators talk about how they adapted the famously cryptic tale Tatsuya Fujiwara is no stranger to London’s Barbican theatre. It was here nearly 30 years ago that one of Japan’s biggest film stars, now 44, made his stage debut. He was just 15, plucked out of an audition of more than 5,000 hopeful youngsters by the revered theatre director Yukio Ninagawa for his play Shintoku-Maru. It kickstarted Fujiwara’s career, and three years later he landed a role in the cult dystopian film Battle Royale, going on to star in hit TV dramas and blockbuster films, all the while continuing to perform in Ninagawa’s acclaimed productions. Now, Fujiwara returns to where it all began, to perform in a stage adaptation of Haruki Murakami’s science fiction novel Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World. The story alternates between two seemingly unrelated narratives: a cyberpunk thriller set in Tokyo, and a surreal fantasy that unfolds within a mysterious walled town. Directed by the French choreographer Philippe Decouflé, the play premiered in Tokyo in January, toured Japan until March, then Singapore in April. After the Barbican run this autumn, the tour will wrap up in Paris...

The Guardian • 8/14/2026, 12:00:27 PM
health

Parkrun is a joy for many. Get involved | Letters

Bill Hunter says the weekly 5k race at locations across the UK and beyond is for everyone, and should be celebrated, while Helen Beioley says it is the perfect excuse to meet friends and consume a croissant after I am sorry that the parkrun spoils Janet Knowlson’s experience of her local park (Letters, 7 August). I wonder if she has ever spoken to a parkrunner or a volunteer? Many would tell of the camaraderie and their improved physical and mental health. Strangers become friends and even partners. We do not take over the park, as she alleges, rather we recognise that we share the space with other park users and are respectful of their rights and needs. Parkrun is for everyone and anyone, from children upwards, and not only runners. It is only competitive if you want it to be, and is equally welcoming to walkers. Parkrun is a huge success story, both in the UK and many other countries, and should be celebrated. It receives no public funding and each event relies on an army of volunteers, without whom it wouldn’t happen. Long may it continue. Bill Hunter Honley, West Yorkshire • In response to Janet Knowlson’s letter complaining about the disruption to her daily peaceful walk through her park by parkrun, please can I suggest that she avoid just this one specific hour a week? Parkrun is an inclusive joy for hundreds of thousands of runners and walkers of all shapes, sizes, ages and levels of fitness. For me, it’s the perfect excuse to meet up with mates and wallop down a huge almond croissant as a post-run(walk) reward. Helen Beioley France Lynch, Stroud..

The Guardian • 8/13/2026, 4:38:53 PM
business

Trump turns to economic pain as US bombings fail to sway Iran

The US military campaign against Iran has so far failed to force Tehran to capitulate. The Trump administration is betting once again that suffocating economic pressure will do the job. Facing a shortfall of necessary munitions and wary of continuing an unpopular war, Trump and his top officials are returning to a familiar playbook with Iran: relying on a steady increase in economic sanctions and a naval blockade to stifle oil exports. The renewed emphasis on economic pain – it was dubbed...

South China Morning Post • 8/13/2026, 6:28:04 AM
climate

Potatoes ‘boil’ in the ground as record heatwave sweeps across swathes of Asia

South Korean farmers are suffering in record heat, as Hong Kong reports its highest ever temperature and Japan swelters through newly designated ‘cruelly hot’ days In a potato field in Yanggu county, 80 miles (130km) north-east of Seoul, Lee Sang-hyuk dug into the soil and found nothing worth saving. A week earlier the crop, located in Gangwon province, had looked fine. Now the potatoes came up soft and collapsing, “like boiled potatoes”, spoiled by heat that had turned the ground into something closer to an oven...

The Guardian • 8/12/2026, 11:34:13 PM
business

Greenland forces Trump-linked US oil firm to delay drilling

US envoy had claimed Americans could be extracting crude by as early as next year Greenland authorities have forced a US oil company connected to Donald Trump to postpone drilling wells in the Arctic territory, defying claims by the US president’s envoy that Americans could be extracting crude by next year. Amid Trump’s imperialist threats, tensions have been rising on Greenland’s eastern coast after the oil company brought drilling equipment ashore in July without permission, drawing a “strong warning” from the government...

The Guardian • 8/12/2026, 6:00:41 PM
science

Halting the march of the armyworm: fungus discovery offers hope to African farmers

South African scientist’s breakthrough research shows soil fungus could be used in fight against devastating crop pest Hearing about fields full of dead caterpillars enveloped in a mysterious white substance intrigued the South African scientist Letodi Luki Mathulwe. Something was killing off the African armyworm – one of the most devastating pests for farmers in east and southern Africa. The white substance was a naturally occurring fungus and it was wiping out the caterpillar, which gained its name from its march-like advance through fields of crops...

The Guardian • 8/12/2026, 11:00:27 AM
climate

I was enjoying growing vegetables. Then the climate crisis raised its ugly head | Bim Adewunmi

My child and I were bonding over our hit-and-miss approach to reaping crops. But with heatwaves pushing more of Britain into drought, it’s starting to feel like a luxury we can’t afford For the first time in my life, I live in a home that has real outdoor space. What a concept! There are no downsides to a garden. Back in spring, I made grand plans – I watched all the TikToks, I bought seeds and trays and pots and grow bags, I ordered soil, a trowel and a watering can. I knew what I was after: super-tiny-scale subsistence farming with a side of Zen. A little fruit, a little veg, lots of flowers to attract pollinators. And I knew I wanted my elder child to gain an understanding of how things come to be and how to cope if and when they fail. We love a tomato side salad, so that was the first thing we attempted. The seedlings flourished and then died in the first heatwave of the season. An omen, surely. The dahlias, ranunculus and freesias refused to grow, let alone bloom. My enthusiasm began to wane...

The Guardian • 8/12/2026, 10:00:26 AM
business

Oil prices climb as Iran talks hit new impasse; Tui hit by high fuel costs – business live

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..

The Guardian • 8/12/2026, 6:59:37 AM
climate

AI’s potential climate benefits outweighed by role in boosting fossil fuels, study finds

Modelling finds AI-driven productivity gains in coal, oil and gas enable more emissions than applications in renewables avoid AI-driven productivity gains enable more planet-heating pollution from fossil fuels than they avoid from renewables, a study has found. Researchers modelled the technical potential for AI to boost clean power generation along with projections for how it can help produce coal, oil and gas. Across 64 scenarios, they found net yearly carbon pollution rose by 0.47-1.8 gigatonnes, or about 1-5% of the energy sector’s annual emissions...

The Guardian • 8/11/2026, 9:15:45 AM
climate

Reader Q&A: ask our reporters anything about fossil fuel profits and the climate crisis

Last week reporters Jillian Ambrose and Damian Carrington published a piece which revealed that biggest oil firms made $93bn in profits in three months amid the war in Iran and the climate crisis. They will be online at 2pm BST to discuss their story and any other questions you might have Ask a question: log in or They will be online at 2pm to answer your questions about their reporting – and any others you might have about how the oil markets work – and how many of these companies have withdrawn from their commitments to a clean energy transition...

The Guardian • 8/11/2026, 7:23:20 AM
power

Oil prices rise and gold hits two-month high after Trump makes new deal demands on Iran – business live

US president demands compensation for damage incurred by US, complicating standoff with Tehran Consumer confidence hit its highest level in almost two years in July, according to research that indicated the closing stages of the men’s football World Cup and more people holidaying in the UK lifted summer spending. A truce in the Middle East conflict in June and the arrival of a new prime minister in No 10 also gave a lift to consumers after a long period of heightened uncertainty...

The Guardian • 8/11/2026, 6:59:36 AM
power

Trump extends Jones Act waiver for 90 days, narrows scope

US President Donald Trump has extended for 90 days a waiver allowing foreign-flagged ships to transport oil and other commodities between US ports but imposed new limits after shipbuilders and their allies in ‌Congress argued the policy was undermining the domestic maritime industry, the White House said. The extension, finalised on Monday, comes as the war with Iran disrupts global crude flows and pushes up fuel costs, increasing pressure on the administration to find ways to ease transport...

South China Morning Post • 8/10/2026, 10:06:50 PM
climate

Western Europe sets new temperature record as heat waves pummel the region

The heat waves roiling Western Europe this summer toppled an average temperature record for the June-July period set in 2022, according to the European climate agency Copernicus. The extreme heat began in May and has contributed to major wildfires, prolonged drought and new national temperature records across the region, as well as thousands of projected heat-related deaths. Globally, so far this is the third-hottest year, behind 2024 and 2025, climate statistics show.

France 24 • 8/10/2026, 6:49:52 AM