Latest Developments

Europe
BBC Business

Apple issues new challenge against UK order for access to private user data

Image source, Getty ImagesByChris Vallance, Senior technology reporter and Liv McMahon, Technology reporterPublished1 hour agoApple has confirmed it has launched a new legal complaint against the UK government at a court that deals with objections to the use of covert surveillance powers. The tech giant has not told BBC News what the complaint relates to but the Financial Times, external has reported it is another challenge to a Home Office demand for so-called "backdoor" access to highly encrypted Apple user data. The row, which centres on the government's desire to be able to see material protected by an advanced data protection system - which currently even Apple itself cannot access - has been rumbling on since early 2025. The government said it would not comment on legal proceedings or what it called "operational matters". But it added in a statement: "The UK supports strong encryption and robust privacy protections, but it is also vital that law enforcement can access communications when necessary and proportionate to protect the public from terrorism, serious crime, and child sexual abuse." Apple has meanwhile referred reporters to a statement given last year, after its initial challenge to the UK government's request. This said it was "gravely disappointed" it could still not offer its Advanced Data Protection feature to new UK users, following its decision to withdraw it in February 2025. "As we have said many times before, we have never built a backdoor or master key to any of our products or services and we never will," the company added. Image source, AppleImage caption, Since last February, UK iPhone users have been met with a notice on the Advanced Data Protection settings page which says the tool cannot be enabled. Advanced Data Protection is an opt-in feature that allows users to turn on a higher level of protection for data stored in iCloud, such as back-ups, Drive storage, photos and voice memos. It is secured using end-to-end encryption - meaning not even Apple would be able to see its contents. The government's requests for Apple to permit it access to data held under this system were issued under the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA).

Apple issues new challenge against UK order for access to private user data
North America
CNBC Finance

FAA clears smallest Boeing 737 Max to fly after years of delays

The Federal Aviation Administration has certified the Boeing 737 Max 7, the smallest model in the bestselling family of aircraft, after nearly a decade of delays for safety reviews. Carriers including Southwest Airlines expected to fly the plane before the pandemic, but increased regulatory scrutiny following the fatal crashes of the in-service Max 8, in 2018 and 2019, other safety and manufacturing crises, and the redesign of an engine anti-icing system delayed certification. The agency on Monday said the approval "reflects years of sustained work to resolve complex technical issues and complete a thorough review of the airplane's design and supporting safety analyses." Airlines can finally start flying passengers soon after planes are certified, but it can take them months to work them into schedules. The already-built Max 7 planes for Southwest, which make up the bulk of the Max 7s in inventory, will need to be outfitted with the carrier's new extra legroom seats. Southwest won't likely start flying the planes until next year. "This important certification validates the rigor of our airplane's design and recognizes the determination and resilience of our 737 MAX development team," Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said in a statement. The FAA said it required other changes to the plane beyond the redesign of the engine anti-ice system, including to the flight control software and crew alerting system. Boeing is also awaiting certification from the FAA of another long-delayed model, the 737 Max 10, which is the largest in the family and one that some carriers expected to start flying in 2020 as well as the manufacturer's largest plane, the 777X. The plane maker has about 40 of the 737 Max 7s and 737 Max 10s built and in inventory already, and the FAA approval could help the manufacturer bring in much-needed cash, Jefferies analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu said in a note Sunday. Boeing and other manufacturers receive the bulk of an airplane's price when they hand it over to customers. The manufacturer, a top U.S. exporter, has been working to ramp up production of its 737 Maxes and 787 Dreamliners, key to its recovery after years of crisis since airlines and other customers pay the bulk of the aircraft's price upon delivery. Boeing opened a fourth production line in Everett, Washington, in July for its 737 Max airplanes. The company has been working to win back the trust of the FAA, and has made strides, including in mid-July, when the FAA said it could once again issue airworthiness certificates for its bestselling 737 Max aircraft and 787 Dreamliners. The agency stripped that from Boeing after the Max 8 crashes, which killed 346 people. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.

FAA clears smallest Boeing 737 Max to fly after years of delays
North America
CNBC Finance

Michigan confirms first two deaths in cyclospora outbreak

Michigan health authorities on Monday reported the first two deaths from the ongoing cyclospora outbreak. The Michigan Health Department said that both individuals had "significant underlying health conditions" that may have been affected by cyclosporiasis and dehydration, citing medical records. Michigan health officials said that cyclosporiasis is generally not considered life threatening, and it is unusual for fatalities to occur in the U.S. Michigan has reported 11,234 cases and 193 hospitalizations tied to the outbreak. Based on reported cases, the state seems to be the hardest hit by the outbreak, and its number of reported cases has outpaced those reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC has received more than 6,700 laboratory-confirmed cases since May 1, according to the agency. That count does not include cases that have not been confirmed by a laboratory, which includes many reported by Michigan and Ohio, among other states. The CDC has been updating its case count on a weekly basis, while Michigan has been reporting every weekday. In mid-July, Taylor Farms recalled iceberg lettuce from central Mexico that was believed to be the source of the outbreak. The recall included bagged salads sold in grocery stores and served in restaurants, including Yum Brands' Taco Bell. Cyclospora, a waterborne parasite, is often found on fresh produce, like iceberg lettuce, herbs and raspberries. Outbreaks are more common during the summer, although the ongoing outbreak is the worst in recent history. The Food and Drug Administration is also investigating at least one more outbreak of cyclosporiasis. 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.

Michigan confirms first two deaths in cyclospora outbreak
Europe
BBC Business

Half price rail travel extended to 18-year-olds

Image source, Getty ImagesByJennifer MeierhansBusiness reporterPublished4 hours agoEighteen-year-olds will be able to buy half price train tickets for most services when railcard rules are changed later this month, the Department for Transport (DfT) has announced. It's an extension of the 16-17 Saver railcard which currently expires when the holder turns 18. From 17 August, they will be valid for a full year from the date of purchase. It means 17-year-olds will be able to buy the railcard up until the day before they turn 18, making it valid until the day before they turn 19. The existing rule meant more than 70,000 students each year were an average of £175 worse off than those in the same academic year who hadn't yet had their 18th birthday, the DfT said. The 16-17 Saver Railcard costs £35 per year and entitles the holder to 50% off most train fares. Rail minister Lord Hendy claimed this "common sense change" is "exactly what passengers should expect from the railway". He said the change would "lower the cost of travel at a critical time for teenagers, whether they're pursuing further education, vocational pathways or getting their footing in the jobs market". Jacqueline Starr, chief executive of industry body the Rail Delivery Group, said the change demonstrates the sector's commitment to "offering better value fares and delivering a more joined-up railway". Kaynat Ahmad, vice president for further education at the National Union of Students, described the railcard as "essential for young people reliant on trains to get to college, work or training". Eighteen-year-olds were already entitled to a 16-25 Railcard, but that only entitles them to a third off the cost of travel. The announcement comes after the government said the cap on most single bus fares in England will be cut from £3 to £2 next year. Get in touchWill you use a 16-17 railcard when you're 18 and how much money will it save you?

Half price rail travel extended to 18-year-olds
Europe
BBC Business

Zinc dresses and ice creams - how to survive a heatwave wedding

Aimie Seale is one of hundreds of brides whose weddings landed in the middle of a heatwave this summer. She had chosen a July weekend in the hope of avoiding any wet weather. Instead, she faced 30C heat with her ceremony in a sweltering West Yorkshire church, predominantly made of glass. "It was just unbearably hot," says Aimie. "I remember looking at my husband at one point, and he was just dripping with sweat, so everybody kept passing him tissues halfway through the service." Aimie and her now-husband Ryan had to book an emergency marquee to offer extra shade and an ice-cream van to keep their guests cool. An additional cost on an already expensive day, with the average wedding in the UK costing more than £20,000., external But this last-minute battle to cope with the heat is only going to get worse. Half of the years between 2015 and 2024 saw temperatures above 35C - up from one in ten - as climate change increases the risk of heatwaves. Zoe Burke, head of brand at wedding planning app, Bridebook, says the behavioural data - what people are talking about online - shows this is an issue couples are increasingly concerned about. "On platforms, like Reddit, people are discussing what they are going to do to navigate the heatwave," she says. Searches by brides for fans were up five times last summer compared with what they had been in 2019, she says. Sourcing some additional fans might feel like a relatively minor cost overall, but for those hosting, catering and supplying weddings, the financial impact of coping with this summer's heatwaves has spiralled. "It has affected the industry massively. You are talking into the thousands [of pounds] for businesses," says Michelle Miles, board adviser to the UK Wedding Association and founder of the Sustainable Wedding Alliance. One of the biggest costs wedding venues are facing is the equipment and energy costs of trying to keep a space and food cool, she says.

Zinc dresses and ice creams - how to survive a heatwave wedding
North America
CNBC Economy

Manufacturing survey shows inflation worries 'worse than pandemic era,' adding to Fed pressure

A burst in factory activity shows the U.S. economy may be escaping the burden of tariffs and gaining manufacturing jobs, while at the same time laboring under the geopolitical uncertainty that some industry leaders say is worse than the Covid pandemic. In its July survey of the manufacturing landscape, the Institute for Supply Manufacturing reported the fastest pace of growth in more than four years — a 55.6 reading that was the best since May 2022 and above Wall Street expectations for 54.0. The index measures the percentage of companies reporting growth, so anything above 50 represents expansion. Leading the way were strong gains in new export orders, backlogs and a 6.3-point spike in production. At the same time, the employment gauge hit its highest since August 2022 and marked an expansion for the first time in 33 months, ISM officials said. The prices index edged lower, but only to 71.1, indicating that nearly three-quarters of all respondents reported that prices were heading still higher, the 22nd straight month that has happened. Moreover, the commentary pointed to a highly volatile environment in which purchasing managers were struggling to stay ahead of events like the Iran war and tariffs. "No normalcy in sight in the world of metals," an executive in the primary metals sector said. "It makes me yearn for the coronavirus pandemic chaos, which was more manageable than whatever this is that we are in." A manager in the electrical equipment, appliances and components industry voiced similar concerns. "The pricing volatility and lead-time extensions in this market are arguably worse than the pandemic era," the respondent said. "During Covid-19, we saw a surge of price hikes and inventory buy-ups, which caused constraints that eventually leveled out." This time around, "We are seeing nothing but consistent upward trends for both pricing and lead times that show no signs of slowing down," the manager said. From a policy standpoint, the manufacturing industry dynamic presents a challenge to the Federal Reserve that several analysts found likely to bolster the case for an interest rate increase soon. A solid economic picture with ongoing price pressures could push Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh and his colleagues into a hike as soon as September, particularly considering the seeming stability of the labor market. Around this time last year, officials were expressing substantial worry over a flat hiring picture, leading to three consecutive rate cuts starting in September. Inflation data for June was fairly positive, as a short pause in Middle East tensions drove down energy prices and shelter costs continued to moderate. However, virtually all pricing gauges show inflation still well above the Fed's 2% target.

Manufacturing survey shows inflation worries 'worse than pandemic era,' adding to Fed pressure
Europe
The Guardian

Oil prices plunge and Europe’s markets rally after Trump calls off Iran strikes

Oil supertankers and merchant marine ships in the Fujairah anchorage, just off the strait of Hormuz. Photograph: Barry Iverson/AlamyView image in fullscreenOil supertankers and merchant marine ships in the Fujairah anchorage, just off the strait of Hormuz. Photograph: Barry Iverson/AlamyOilOil prices plunge and Europe’s markets rally after Trump calls off Iran strikesBrent crude drops by 5% after US president claimed talks on Middle East peace deal would resume Crude oil prices fell sharply while stocks and government bonds rallied on Monday after Donald Trump cancelled planned strikes on Iran and claimed peace talks were about to resume. Brent crude was trading 5% lower at $83.47 a barrel by lunchtime, after falling as much as 7.3% to $81.55 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate dropped more than 5% to $79.47 a barrel. Both global oil benchmarks jumped more than 20% in July after fighting between the US and Iran resumed, and as attacks on several tankers in the strait of Hormuz revived fears for the safety of vessels transiting the important shipping passage. Trump said late on Saturday on his Truth Social platform that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked for time to complete a deal that would lead to “the Immediate, Complete and Total” reopening of the strait and “an end to Iran’s nuclear threat”. On Sunday, he said talks would start on Monday, a claim denied by Tehran. Fuel prices for UK motorists continued to rise over the weekend at a time when families are heading off on their summer breaks. Petrol hit an Iran-war high of 160.85p a litre on Monday, surpassing its previous high on Friday, and diesel rose above 180p for the first time since 9 June, according to the RAC. The motoring group’s head of policy, Simon Williams, said: “Unleaded has now risen more than 10p a litre – 7% – since bottoming out at 150.59p on 6 July while diesel is up 16p (15.8p) a litre, or 10%, almost fully reversing June’s 16.6p reduction which was the biggest monthly drop on record.” He said prices at the pump should begin to stabilise this week, though diesel could reach 185p over the next week. Kathleen Brooks, the research director of the broker XTB, said the drop in oil prices should help support markets. “This will ease inflation fears and could also act as a dampener on bond yields, which rose sharply last week, especially at the long end, where 30-year US Treasury yields jumped to their highest level for 19 years,” she added. In a positive start to August, European shares rose and US stock futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street later. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index rose 0.5%. Energy stocks slid 2%, while travel and leisure shares gained 2.1%. The UK’s FTSE 100 index gained 30 points by midday, despite being dragged back by negative reaction to AstraZeneca’s talks about a tie-up with its US rival Bristol Myers Squibb. In bond markets, US Treasuries increased, pushing the yield on the benchmark 10-year bond down five basis points to 4.68%, a retreat from the highest level since January.

Oil prices plunge and Europe’s markets rally after Trump calls off Iran strikes
Europe
The Guardian

Yen hits three-month high after Trump helps prop up currency

Japan’s prime minister Sanae Takaichi met Donald Trump in March. Photograph: Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersView image in fullscreenJapan’s prime minister Sanae Takaichi met Donald Trump in March. Photograph: Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersYenYen hits three-month high after Trump helps prop up currencyUS and Japanese governments confirm they carried out a rare joint intervention late last week The yen has hit its highest level in three months after Japan and the US launched a combined operation to support the Japanese currency. The yen strengthened to ¥155 to the US dollar on Monday, its highest level since early May, after Tokyo and Washington confirmed they had carried out a rare joint currency intervention late last week. Tokyo’s finance ministry said on Monday the two governments had conducted coordinated yen-buying intervention and would not hesitate to take further action. The intervention came after the yen had weakened to a 40-year low of almost ¥164 to the dollar last week. Donald Trump told reporters on Sunday: “They have a weakening yen, and they wanted a little bit of help. And we’re always there for Japan.” The yen had weakened in recent months as Japanese borrowing costs remained lower than in other advanced economies. This disparity fuelled a so-called “carry trade”, in which investors borrowed cheaply in yen to buy higher-yielding dollar assets. The yen has also suffered from investors’ concern about Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi’s push to use tax and spending measures to stimulate the Japanese economy, and her criticism of the Bank of Japan setting higher interest rates, which have also pushed up the country’s borrowing costs. The US Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, said Washington “will not hesitate to ⁠participate in further joint intervention”, while repeating calls for further interest rate rises from Japan’s central ​bank. On Saturday, a photograph of Bessent’s notebook taken during a cabinet meeting showed that his “to do” list included buying $5bn-$10bn ⁠worth of Japanese yen. However, the Financial Times reported that Washington had sold euros to buy yen, rather than using dollars – perhaps to avoid suggesting it wanted a weaker US currency. Bank of Japan data suggested Tokyo spent as much as $36.58bn last Friday to buy yen and strengthen the local currency, Reuters reported. This is the first collaboration involving Japan and the US since March 2011 when a joint intervention was made to weaken the yen after the March Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.

Yen hits three-month high after Trump helps prop up currency
Europe
BBC Business

Almost £200,000 of fuel stolen from UK forecourts every day since Iran war began

Image source, PA MediaByJemma CrewBusiness reporterPublished2 hours agoUK drivers have stolen almost £200,000 of fuel from petrol stations on average every day since the Iran war broke out and sent prices soaring, according to industry analysis. Incidents of fuel being taken from forecourts without payment have risen by a fifth in the five months since 28 February, figures from Forecourt Eye suggest. The conflict in the Middle East severely disrupted oil supplies across the region, triggering a rise in wholesale prices and subsequent increase in costs at the pump in the UK. Forecourt Eye said the value of the stolen fuel is estimated to have risen by 48% compared with the five months before the war - to reach an estimated daily average of £194,000. The fuel theft prevention company added petrol stations are reporting an increase in "abuse, intimidation and violence from frustrated customers". The figures are based on a representative sample of 550 forecourts, comparing the five months prior to the outbreak with the five months after it started, and extrapolated to the UK's 8,359 forecourts. The number of incidents recorded at the forecourts in the sample equates to 2,872 daily incidents on average at forecourts across the UK in the months after war began, up from around 2,400. They include people driving off without an attempt to pay, and people claiming they have no way to pay after filling their vehicle. The volume of stolen fuel rose by 24% - up from an estimated 87,000 litres to 108,900 litres a day across all forecourts. In response, Forecourt Eye said it would partner with facial recognition company Facewatch to offer more than 2,000 retailers free access to crime reporting technology from the autumn. Fuel prices peaked in April, before falling back when US and Iran agreed to a framework deal to end the conflict in June, but they have risen again since the collapse of peace talks. Last week petrol reached a new high since the conflict in the Middle East started – and its highest level since 2022.

Almost £200,000 of fuel stolen from UK forecourts every day since Iran war began