Latest Developments

Europe
BBC Business

Panama Canal to cut number of ships passing through due to El Niño

Image source, Anadolu via Getty ImagesByPeter HoskinsBusiness reporterPublished5 hours agoPanama Canal's operator is to cut the number of vessels passing through the key waterway due to low rainfall caused by El Niño. The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) told shipping firms on Thursday that 32 vessels a day will be able to pass through it from 15 September, compared to 36 currently. El Niño, a pattern of periodical sea surface warming, affects weather systems globally. This year is expected to be particularly strong, with its effects made more intense by climate change. The shipping industry is already dealing with severe disruptions due to the Iran war causing a large reduction in the number of vessels passing through the crucial Strait of Hormuz. The ACP said the measures were being put in place to preserve service reliability and safeguard water resources for human consumption. It added that despite the arrival of the rainy season in Central America and some water-saving measures already being put in place in the canal, additional action was needed "to support the long-term sustainability of transit operations". The Panama Canal greatly reduces the time and distance ships have to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. About 14,000 ships per year use the artificial waterway - which operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. As well as being a crucial route for global trade, it is also a key source of income for Panama, bringing in about $3bn (£2.2bn) a year. In 2023, the ACP cut the number of vessels using the waterway during the last El Niño period after Panama was hit with its driest October since records began in 1950. Since then, the authority has introduced measures to cut the amount of water it uses. Many forecasts suggest that this year's El Niño, which is a naturally occurring pattern, could be one of the strongest ever recorded, with disruptions to weather, food supplies and economies.

Panama Canal to cut number of ships passing through due to El Niño
Europe
The Guardian

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

A ship anchored in the strait of Hormuz near Larak Island, Iran. Photograph: Majid Saeedi/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenA ship anchored in the strait of Hormuz near Larak Island, Iran. Photograph: Majid Saeedi/Getty ImagesOilOil prices jump after US-Iran ceasefire expires and Trump threatens OmanBrent crude rises above $90 a barrel for the first time since 30 July after US president tells Tehran to surrender 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. Trump also threatened to bomb Oman if it “gets in the way” of his effort to end the war, the second time he has directed such a threat at the longtime US strategic partner. “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them,” Trump told Fox News on Monday. Brent crude rose above $90 a barrel for the first time since 30 July, and was trading at $91.63 on Tuesday morning. Angeline Ong, a senior technical analyst at the investing and trading platform IG, said: “Trump’s threat to bomb Oman could be the moment the oil market shifts from pricing a temporary disruption to pricing a prolonged one. “If Muscat pulls back from talks with Tehran, the diplomatic route to restoring normal flows through Hormuz narrows considerably. That would be a signal to add to energy longs rather than fade the rally – with roughly a quarter of global seaborne oil normally passing through the strait, even a small reduction in the probability of reopening warrants a higher geopolitical premium in crude.” A cargo ship was attacked while travelling through the strait early on Tuesday, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency, after an Iranian official told Reuters that it would shift to a “fully offensive” military stance. Fox News reported on Tuesday that the Iranian military spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari said vessels attempting to pass through the strait would “find several beautiful holes in their hulls”. Just six commodity ships travelled through the waterway on Monday, according to Kpler, a ship tracking company. That was slightly up compared with the weekend, when five ships transited on Saturday and Sunday combined. Analysts at Deutsche Bank wrote on Tuesday that the rising oil prices were a sign of investors pricing in “a more extended closure” of the strait. Trump made the threat against Oman as he struggles to draw the conflict to a close almost six months after it began. But the US president also claimed during Monday’s interview that he was “not in a hurry” to reach a deal.

Oil prices jump after US-Iran ceasefire expires and Trump threatens Oman
North America
CNBC Finance

Credit card issuer Synchrony announces partnership with OpenAI

Editor's note: A previous version of this story, based on information provided by a Synchrony Financial executive, mischaracterized the collaboration between Synchrony and OpenAI. Details, quotes and characterizations attributed to Synchrony and the executive have been removed. A corrected version is below. Synchrony Financial, the credit card issuer for brands including Amazon, Walmart and Lowe's, on Monday announced a collaboration with OpenAI allowing the artificial intelligence company's models to power the card company's consumer portals. "AI is creating an opportunity to reimagine the entire commerce experience, from how customers discover products to how they pay, earn rewards, and build loyalty," said Kaylin Voss, vice president of Americas and Industries at OpenAI, in a press release. "Synchrony is approaching that opportunity from both sides: bringing OpenAI into the experiences it creates for customers and partners, while deploying our most advanced models and tools across its own enterprise," she said. By using OpenAI's models, Synchrony hopes it can remain relevant in a future where AI agents help to research and purchase items. The partnership, which is in its early stages, is a step toward enabling Synchrony customers to have smoother online shopping experiences. Separately, Synchrony said it is launching a ChatGPT plugin that lets consumers browse its marketplace deals, promotional financing and partner offers, and that it is deploying OpenAI's latest models internally to speed up product development. The moves come as OpenAI prepares for its massive potential initial public offering, adding pressure on the company to turn ChatGPT into a broader platform for online commerce. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Credit card issuer Synchrony announces partnership with OpenAI
Europe
BBC Business

Millennials are struggling to buy a home - but is it actually getting easier?

ByDharshini David, Deputy economics editor, Raphael Sheridan, Economics reporter and Jess Carr, Data designerPublished4 hours agoLeaving education, getting a job, buying a home and perhaps starting a family: the path previous generations followed may seem a distant dream to many now. But is it getting a bit easier - at least when it comes to getting on the housing ladder? Today's prospective first-time buyers may well feel hard done by; they are still worse off than recent generations. If you were born in the UK in the mid-1990s you've about a 25% chance of owning your own home, as this chart shows. Twenty-somethings in the 1990s were almost twice as likely to be on the housing ladder, the previous generation even more so. In the chart below, housing economist Paul Cheshire puts it starkly, comparing the rise in egg prices with house prices over the past 71 years. Changes in the mortgage markets have contributed, but ultimately it's about a lack of housebuilding. The government previously estimated that England alone needs another 300,000 dwellings per year to keep up with population change and our preference for living in smaller households. But only 208,000 were added last year. We've not built close to 300,000 new homes in a year for at least three decades. There are many reasons why, but inflation has been key - from the price of land, to builders' wages and bricks. Our analysis shows that the cost of raw materials like timber, steel, plasterboard, concrete and insulation rose in line with general inflation from the 1990s until the Covid-19 pandemic, when they became harder to source. That was compounded by the impact of the war in Ukraine, which drove up both the cost of energy - 15% in a single year - for making these materials and for use in construction itself. The war in Iran has pushed prices up further.

Millennials are struggling to buy a home - but is it actually getting easier?
Europe
BBC Business

Stifling heat and broken toilets: TUI River Cruise passengers tell of their holiday hell

Dozens of people have accused TUI River Cruises of operating vessels with faulty facilities including persistently broken air conditioning, after they spent thousands of pounds on holidays. Earlier this year passengers on the Skyla, a ship operated by TUI, contacted BBC Your Voice to say they had been stranded in Budapest during a heatwave with little to no air conditioning. Following that report more people got in touch to say they faced similar problems on both the Skyla and its sister vessel, the Isla. They criticised TUI's customer service and said the refunds offered were inadequate. TUI apologised to customers where trips "fell short of the standards we aim to deliver". A spokesperson for TUI, said: "We understand the disappointment and frustration caused to affected customers." Passengers described stifling conditions as well as problems with plumbing after paying thousands of pounds for European cruises, including on the Danube River. Andy Peach and his wife booked a seven-day trip on the Skyla in June, travelling through Budapest, Vienna and Linz. Instead of air conditioning, Peach said there were "big blowers" on board, expelling hot air. "One was in the middle of the corridor, blocking the exit," he said. "It didn't seem to cool the place down." Temperatures onboard climbed as the holiday went on leaving him "exhausted", he said. By the end of the week, Peach said the air conditioning in cabins had broken too. On the second-to-last day passengers were transferred to hotels, which Peach said were "really basic". He and his wife had paid nearly £4,000 for the holiday but they were offered only £300 as a refund and given 72-hours to accept it.

Stifling heat and broken toilets: TUI River Cruise passengers tell of their holiday hell
North America
CNBC Finance

What will TV look like in three years? Media insiders share their predictions

Deals, spinouts and partnerships are all reshaping the landscape for traditional TV. While the industry is no stranger to turmoil, the recently rapid pace of change is keeping media investors and onlookers on their toes. This is the backdrop for CNBC's Future of TV survey: an update from our 2023 exercise that asks media insiders and executives to forecast the next three years in TV. Depending on who you ask, the TV industry may be in crisis. The number of cable TV subscribers has been declining for more than a decade. Streaming services are now profitable, but subscriber growth, for the most part, has plateaued. Pondering the future of TV isn't just a thought experiment. It's the underpinning of hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of mergers and acquisitions. In February, Paramount Skydance agreed to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, following a sale process that saw Netflix nearly acquire WBD's film studio and HBO Max. That deal is now held up due to politicians' antitrust fears. In June, Fox said it would acquire streaming platform Roku for $22 billion. Comcast plans to separate out NBCUniversal in 2027, a swift follow-up to the spinout of Versant, its portfolio of cable TV networks, including CNBC. And Charter Communications recently received final regulatory approval for its $34.5 billion merger with Cox Communications, which would create the biggest cable company in the U.S. Media companies are also thinking about partnerships to generate revenue as the cable TV ecosystem continues its decline. NBCUniversal has already announced a partnership between its Peacock and YouTube. Disney has a new CEO and is focused on tying together its broad swath of media assets, including ESPN, ABC, FX, Disney+ and Hulu. And Netflix — the company that upended the pay-TV model more than a decade ago with binge-watching, password-sharing, and no advertisements — has reversed course on many of its previous strategies in an effort to keep investors happy. And yet, its stock is down more than 35% in the past year. All the while, YouTube continues to take viewing share as the rest of the media industry adjusts to how younger audiences want to consume content. To get a read on where TV goes from here, CNBC asked the same five questions of 10 media executives. Some of the 2023 predictions unearthed by our previous canvassing proved quite accurate: Most executives correctly predicted linear pay TV would still be around, albeit with fewer customers; several correctly predicted bundling streaming services together would be challenging; and more than one even predicted Paramount+ and HBO Max, specifically, would be consolidated. Chris Winfrey, Charter Communications president and CEO: I think it's going to decline dramatically, because the cost of free, over-the-air [retransmission] is now over $30 per customer for something that's essentially free. But what you're seeing already is all of that broadcast content and cable content is really all available inside of these apps, and it's available inside of big streaming bundles that I think will develop over time, and I think that will include Netflix. When you really think about it, Netflix is essentially a big cable programmer that could end up being bundled together with the other streaming apps to provide more choice, more value, and more utility for customers over time.

What will TV look like in three years? Media insiders share their predictions
Europe
BBC Business

US-Canada trade talks 'intense' as new tariff deadline looms

Image source, ReutersByJessica MurphyCanada digital editorPublished3 hours ago"Intense" trade talks are going down to the wire as Canada seeks to avoid a fresh round of tariffs from the Trump administration due to come into effect in less than 48 hours. Canadian negotiators have been camped out in Washington for a week, trying to pin down some agreement before new 50% tariffs on some $20bn (C$28bn) worth of Canadian imports come into effect on Wednesday. Prime Minister Mark Carney kept details of the talks close to his chest when pressed by reporters on Monday, saying that given the "very delicate and intense" negotiations, it is "not the time to negotiate in public". While he said Canada was negotiating from "a position of strength", the stakes are high for the prime minister and his team to reach a deal before the Trump administration's latest financial squeeze, on about 5% of all Canadian imports, takes hold. Despite a flurry of meetings between Canadian negotiators and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in recent days, the two sides have yet to reach a final agreement. "Our job is not yet done," US-Canada Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said on Monday as he left Greer's office. Both sides have been clear the talks have been tough. Trump has described Canada as "nasty" on trade - a characterisation of negotiations that Carney did not entirely dispute., external He has also warned that "the time to get tougher" will be if the countries fail to reach a deal. Even if one is reached, Carney will need to sell any concessions made to a public frustrated with - and skeptical of - the administration south of the border. The US has been asking for a number of concessions from Canada, including removing its remaining retaliatory tariffs on American autos and adjusting its dairy quotas. It has also asked for the ban on US alcohol sales, imposed early last year by most Canadian provinces in retaliation for Trump's tariffs, be removed. That concession would depend on the agreement of the provinces, which are in control of the alcohol in their respective jurisdictions.

US-Canada trade talks 'intense' as new tariff deadline looms
Europe
BBC Business

Royal Mail misses delivery targets again but hails 'encouraging' signs

Image source, Getty ImagesByFaarea MasudBusiness reporterPublished34 minutes agoRoyal Mail has once again missed its delivery targets for first and second class post, but said it is making progress towards the goals as its turnaround plan continues. The postal service delivered 85% of first class deliveries the next day between March and June, up from 76% in the same three months of 2025, but below regulator Ofcom's 90% target. Second class mail was delivered within three days 91% of the time, another improvement from the previous year, but short of Ofcom's 95% target. Royal Mail said the results are "encouraging and show that the work we are doing to improve the service is having an impact". Royal Mail, which is owned by International Distribution Services (IDS), has struggled with rising competition in the delivery market, fewer people sending letters and fines from the regulator for missing targets in recent years. But it said that, compared with the same period last year, the portion of first class mail delivered next-day had risen significantly while the amount of second class mail delivered within three days had improved slightly. Chief operating officer Jamie Stephenson said: "These results are encouraging and show that the work we are doing to improve the service is having an impact. "First Class performance is well ahead of where we expected to be at this stage of our Improvement Plan, while Second Class is tracking in line with the plan." Stephenson added that there is "more to do", pointing to a £500m investment plan to improve the firm over the next five years. The plan includes a commitment to meet Ofcom's delivery targets by May 2027. The postal service has faced years of criticism from politicians and the public over the slowness of its letter delivery. It is currently under investigation by Ofcom for the second year running for failure to meet its delivery targets. The regulator fined it a record £21m in October last year for missing targets in 2024-25.

Royal Mail misses delivery targets again but hails 'encouraging' signs
North America
CNBC Finance

Lakers governor Jeanie Buss says siblings cannot sell family’s stake to Bob Iger, Joshua Kushner

Los Angeles Lakers governor Jeanie Buss is opposing the potential sale of her family's stake in the NBA team, contradicting an earlier ESPN report about the family's decision to sell to Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner. In a letter obtained by CNBC addressed to law firms representing Jeanie Buss's siblings — Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey and Jesse — her lawyer Adam Streisand says Jeanie Buss has not agreed to sell the team and that any vote suggesting the Buss family is selling "would be and is void." Streisand argues in the letter that Jeanie Buss remains the controlling shareholder of the Lakers, pursuant to a 2017 court order, and that no sale can take place without her consent. "No sale of the JAB Trust's 17.8% ownership interest in the Los Angeles Lakers, Inc. can be effectuated without approval by the current co-trustees, i.e., Jeanie, Janie and Joey Buss. Pursuant to the JAB Trust and the attached Court Order, the co-trustees are bound to vote the Los Angeles Lakers, Inc. shares to ensure that the minimum 15% ownership requirement is maintained in order to ensure that Jeanie Buss may remain Controlling Owner," Streisand says in the letter. "Any attempt by the co-trustees to do otherwise, and any attempt to aid or abet the co-trustees as such, would constitute a breach of trust, breach of fiduciary duty and be in contempt of court," he says. Last week, Iger and Kushner agreed to buy Mark Walter's majority stake in the Lakers. That deal valued the team at $12.5 billion, CNBC reported at the time. The Buss family stake would have meant an overall team ownership share of approximately 83% for the former Disney CEO and Thrive Capital founder, ESPN reported. But Jeanie Buss doesn't want to sell the family's stake in the team at this time, according to a person familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity about confidential matters. She wants to hold onto the team stake for value reasons as well as to maintain her role as governor, the person said. Correction: A previous headline on this article misidentified one of the potential buyers of the Buss family stake in the Los Angeles Lakers. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Lakers governor Jeanie Buss says siblings cannot sell family’s stake to Bob Iger, Joshua Kushner