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BBC Business

Petrol and diesel price rises push UK inflation higher

Image source, Getty ImagesByDearbail JordanBusiness reporterPublished16 September 2026, 07:06 BSTUpdated 1 hour agoRises in petrol, diesel and airfares pushed UK inflation up to its highest level in five months in the year to August. Inflation accelerated to 3.1% from 2.9%, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The cost of filling up a vehicle soared in August as the conflict in the Middle East continued to disrupt global oil supplies. Petrol prices jumped to their highest for nearly four years, the ONS said, while diesel also rocketed. Oil hit more than $91 a barrel as the US-Israel war with Iran went on. That compares to around $73 just before hostilities began earlier this year. As a result, average petrol prices have continued to climb and between July and August, they rose by 9.1p to 161.3p per litre. "This is the highest price recorded since November 2022," said the ONS. At that point, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine had pushed up global energy costs. Capital Economics said, at this point, the effect of higher oil prices has not spilled over into other areas such as food and drink, where the pace of inflation remained at 1.3% in the year to August. But its chief UK economist, Paul Dales, said: "Everyone knows that bigger rises in inflation are on their way." Grant Fitzner, chief economist at the ONS, said: "Rising crude oil and petrol prices increased both the annual cost of raw materials and the price of goods leaving factories respectively." Dales estimates that a combination of higher oil and gas prices and "the eventual 'first-round' effect of businesses passing on some of their higher energy costs" will lead to inflation peaking at 4.2% in January. As well as hitting drivers in the pocket, higher oil prices also affect forecourts. Goran Raven, owner of Essex petrol station RJ Raven, told the BBC: "Things are down. We've got lots of pressure on us at the moment. I'd say we're about 20% down on this time last year."

Petrol and diesel price rises push UK inflation higher
North America
CNBC Finance

Flyers are happier with U.S. airports, despite near record travel levels, J.D. Power report shows

Despite a near record number of people flying in the U.S., it appears travelers are happier with the airports they find themselves moving through. J.D. Power's annual North America Airport Satisfaction Study, released Wednesday, reported that overall airport satisfaction increased significantly this year. Travelers gave higher ratings in part because of the newer gates and terminals many airports have opened in recent years, according to the study. "Overall, travelers are happier with what they are seeing in most airports," said Mike Taylor, managing director of travel, hospitality and retail at J.D. Power. From New York's John F. Kennedy Airport to Kansas City International to Pittsburgh International, airports large and small have opened or are building new facilities to accommodate more travelers. Often, the new terminals and gates are larger, with more light and upgraded amenities, and cost billions to build. This is the third straight year the J.D. Power study has found an increase in airport satisfaction. The latest report is based on responses from more than 24,000 travelers. Among the largest airports, which handle more than 33 million passengers annually, Minneapolis-Saint Paul International received the top score. For airports that serve between 10 million and 32.9 million flyers annually, Tampa International was ranked No. 1, while Charleston International in South Carolina was rated the best among medium airports, which see 4.5 million to 9.9 million passengers a year. 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.

Flyers are happier with U.S. airports, despite near record travel levels, J.D. Power report shows
North America
CNBC Finance

Ford increases V-8 engine availability, lowers performance prices for 2027 F-150 trucks

DETROIT — Ford Motor is expanding the availability of V-8 engines and lowering the starting prices of some performance models for its 2027 lineup of F-150 pickup trucks. The Detroit automaker said the changes are meant to give customers more choice and help expand sales of key models, a strategy Ford has been leaning into under CEO Jim Farley. The changes come as automakers attempt to address industrywide affordability concerns. The moves are also building on some automakers — particularly the Detroit Three — adding more V-8 engines amid weakened emissions regulations and penalties under the Trump administration. The new pricing doesn't mean the trucks are cheap. The 2027 Ford F-150 Raptor will start at $77,800, which is $4,000 less than the current truck. The 2027 Tremor will start about $5,300 lower at $62,400, Ford said Tuesday. Ford officials said the automaker lowered prices by eliminating some standard equipment, such as heated second-row seats as well as using manual instead of power controls for some parts, like the steering column. "For us, it made sense because it just broadens the offer and certainly doesn't take away from either the capability of that new entry or of the model that it came down from," Todd Eckert, Ford Blue senior director of truck consumer marketing, told CNBC. Regarding the V-8 availability, Ford will offer its 5.0-liter engine across every model of the F-150 lineup, Eckert said. That includes having the option for a V-8 engine in the high-end King Ranch and Platinum models for the first time since the 2023 model year. "We heard pretty loudly from both customers and dealers that even on those premium series, that they wanted the option to have a V-8 engine," Eckert said. The changes are part of several updates the company is making to the F-150 lineup for the 2027 model year. It's also rolling out style updates to many models and adding a Carhartt model in collaboration with the Detroit-based clothing company. All the updates for the 2027 F-150 lineup come as Ford continues to increase availability of the crucial pickups after fires at an aluminum supplier severely impacted their output over the past year. Ford's F-Series trucks — which include the F-150 and larger "Super Duty" models such as F-250, F-350 and F-450 — were severely impacted by the supplier issues due to their large aluminum bodies and other components. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.

Ford increases V-8 engine availability, lowers performance prices for 2027 F-150 trucks
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Judiciary committed to protecting students' right to hold peaceful protests: CJI

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Saturday asserted that the judiciary is committed to "protecting" students' fundamental right to hold peaceful protests and that courts will not look the other way when there is an infringement. The CJI made the statement at the Chanakya National Law University (CNLU) in Patna, where he engaged in an "unfiltered interaction" with students, making it clear that he "preferred to have a frank question-and-answer session." According to a CNLU statement, a question was posed by a girl student about "police response to peaceful students' protests." The allusion was to the Jantar Mantar protests in Delhi against NEET exam paper leaks, spearheaded by the Cockroach Janata Party, which, incidentally, began as a satirical online campaign against a remark made by the CJI in the Supreme Court, though he later claimed that his utterances had been reported out of context. The CJI told the questioner that "courts will not look the other way" when faced with cases of alleged brutal repression by the police and "unequivocally reaffirmed the judiciary's commitment to protecting students' peaceful right to protest." Another student sought to know "why dissenting opinions within the collegium were recorded but never made public." The CJI replied, "Disclosure, however well-intentioned, risks placing the individual under consideration in an untenable position." Noting that "transparency has its limits when personal dignity is at stake", the CJI asked, "How can a chief justice or a judge continue to work if a negative observation about him is included in the collegium's minutes?" According to the CNLU statement, the CJI visited the campus along with Patna High Court Chief Justice V Kameswar Rao, who is also the Chancellor of the University. The CJI also lauded as "a new, welcome idea" a proposal by CNLU Vice Chancellor and noted jurist Faizan Mustafa "to compress five-year law degree into four years of academic study and mandatory court apprenticeship in the final year," which could "eliminate the separate one-year practice requirement for judicial service examinations." Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Judiciary committed to protecting students' right to hold peaceful protests: CJI
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Meaningful change is built through countless decisions, sustained efforts, courage to stay the course: Nirmala Lakshman

“Meaningful change is not built in a single moment. It’s built through countless decisions, sustained effort and the belief that what we do today can make somehow make tomorrow different,” says Nirmala Lakshman, Director and Publisher, The Hindu Group of Publications,at the 8th businessline Changemaker Awards. “That willingness to question, to persist, and to act — that is what makes a changemaker,” she adds. Watch more videos and conversations from the businessline Changemaker Awards 2026. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Meaningful change is built through countless decisions, sustained efforts, courage to stay the course: Nirmala Lakshman
North America
CNBC Economy

Inflation is outpacing wage growth again, squeezing Americans’ paychecks

Americans face a renewed squeeze on their paychecks as inflation once again rises faster than wage growth, putting further pressure on consumer wallets. "A substantial number of Americans are worse off, their incomes are not keeping up with the price increases right now," Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, told CNBC. Consumer prices rose 3.4% in August from a year earlier, according to data released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Average hourly earnings, meanwhile, increased just 3.1% over the same period, according to a separate BLS report released Friday. Real average hourly earnings, adjusted for inflation, fell 0.1% from July and were down 0.3% from a year earlier in August. The gap between inflation and wage growth is a stark reminder that workers are losing purchasing power. "The basics are that inflation is wiping out wage gains," said Long, adding that April marked a clear turning point after a lengthy stretch in which wage growth had generally exceeded inflation. From May 2023 until about April of this year, workers had been slowly regaining ground. In fact, Long first started charting the inflation-wage growth relationship a year ago to make the opposite point — that things were improving and even as Americans remained frustrated at the time by the higher overall price level, wages were gradually catching up. "That's what's just hard to watch. Things were getting better, and now that improvement has blown up," she said. Energy remains a major source of pressure now, with gasoline prices rising 3.9% in August alone, accounting for more than one-third of the consumer price index's gain. Diesel touched $6 per gallon on Friday for the first time amid fuel supply disruptions arising from wars in Iran and Ukraine. Long ties the shift in household finances to the surge in energy prices following the war in Iran. Navy Federal previously estimated that gasoline prices jumped 21% in March, helping push its measure of car ownership costs to a record. Long said it is difficult to see inflation falling substantially while geopolitical pressures continue, particularly as wage growth slows.

Inflation is outpacing wage growth again, squeezing Americans’ paychecks
North America
CNBC Finance

Kraft Heinz bets on more flavors for Philadelphia cream cheese as it looks to revive brands

Philadelphia cream cheese will release three new flavors on Tuesday as part of Kraft Heinz's broader plan to reinvest in its iconic brands and win back shoppers. Previously, the 154-year-old brand released about one or two new flavors such as garden vegetable or pineapple every year. Over the next two years, it plans to launch 10 new varieties, with the goal of "creating some excitement" within the cream cheese category, according to Jerome Drolet, Kraft Heinz's president of taste elevation. Drolet's position is a nod to Kraft Heinz's now-paused split. When the packaged foods giant planned to spin off into two separate companies, one had the temporary name of "Global Taste Elevation," which would house condiments, sauces and Kraft Mac & Cheese. For now, Kraft Heinz is sticking together and trying to stage a comeback by making its legacy brands more relevant. In the period since Kraft Heinz announced the split was paused, the company's shares have fallen 2%. Some investors are pessimistic that its well-known but stalled brands can ever regain shoppers' favor, even with a $700 million investment from Kraft Heinz. Some of that money is pouring into Philadelphia. The company's spending on the cream cheese brand is expected to climb 63% this year compared with 2025, including more backing for its research and development, according to Drolet. And investment in new flavors has quadrupled, he said. Philadelphia accounts for about 62% of U.S. cream cheese sales, according to data from Euromonitor International. But its dominance means that it is responsible for growing sales of the overall cream cheese category. Kraft Heinz is hoping that new flavors will drive more cream cheese sales. The first round of new Philadelphia releases includes Mike's Hot Honey whipped cream cheese, salted caramel and a seasonal cranberry orange, which will only be available for a limited time. The Mike's Hot Honey flavor will launch in Walmart exclusively until it hits other retailers' shelves in January. "We want to make sure that the profile of the products we're launching are hitting critical masses," Drolet said. "It needs to be incremental, but it also cannot be too niche so that it only sells a few units." As part of the strategy to widen cream cheese's appeal to shoppers, Philadelphia also launched a lactose-free version earlier this year. Some of Philadelphia's expanded marketing spend will once again focus on the brand's "pure dairy equity," according to Drolet. The strategy recalls the ethos that inspired its Philadelphia cream cheese angel campaigns of the 1990s. In February, it launched its "Really Philly good" campaign. The brand is also trying to reach consumers to encourage them to use cream cheese as more than a schmear for a bagel. Philadelphia's cream cheese brick has already been a cooking and baking staple for decades. Expect to see more TikTok influencers and recipe websites using Philadelphia cream cheese in creative ways. Drolet sees opportunities to use them in dips and even pasta sauce — like swapping out heavy cream for the Mike's Hot Honey cream cheese in a Bolognese.

Kraft Heinz bets on more flavors for Philadelphia cream cheese as it looks to revive brands
North America
CNBC Finance

U.S. auto market predictions for 2030: More hybrids, no Chinese entrants

A new report casts serious doubt on whether a wave of Chinese cars and SUVs will hit the U.S. by 2030, let alone well into the next decade. "I think the near-term dynamics are relatively low, relatively unlikely to support an entry to the U.S. market," said automotive analyst John Murphy, who is releasing his latest outlook for the U.S. auto market on Tuesday. Despite growing speculation that it won't be long until Chinese autos are sold in the U.S., Murphy said he believes there is little appetite among U.S. lawmakers to allow that to happen, mainly because of the impact it could have on U.S. automakers and domestic auto production. "I think an entree of the Chinese with unfettered access in the U.S. market would be incredibly disruptive, even if they produced here in the U.S.," he told CNBC. Vehicles built in China and imported into the U.S. currently face a 100% tariff under the Trump administration's trade policies. That has effectively kept almost all Chinese brands from selling their vehicles in the country. Starting next year, the Commerce Department has said it will ban automakers from importing and selling vehicles in the U.S. that contain technology developed or manufactured by Chinese companies. Beginning this fall, a small number of Chinese automakers, including BYD and Geely are expected to begin selling vehicles in Canada. In part as competition from Chinese automakers grows worldwide, Murphy says he predicts that between five and 10 auto brands currently sold in the U.S. could disappear over the next decade. There are currently 38 auto brands in the U.S. Murphy said he believes the industry's shifting landscape means no brand is 100% safe, but some face a greater risk of dropping out of the U.S. than others. The latest Murphy Automotive Product Pipeline lists Polestar, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar and Fiat as five brands most at risk of being eliminated from sale in the U.S. Polestar, which is owned by Geely, will no longer be able to sell new vehicles in the U.S. starting in 2027 due to the connected-car rules issued by the Commerce Department. The four other brands have not indicated they are considering pulling out of the market. Meanwhile, Murphy said he expects demand for gas-electric hybrids to surge over the next four years, eventually accounting for 34% of the market by 2030.

U.S. auto market predictions for 2030: More hybrids, no Chinese entrants
North America
CNBC Finance

Children's clothing retailer Carter's is rebranding to appeal to a new generation of parents

Children's clothing brand Carter's is undergoing a revamp to better align with the new generation of parents as its namesake company tries to recover from sluggish performance in recent years. The rebrand, announced Tuesday, includes a new logo and marketing campaign that Chief Marketing Officer Sarah Crockett told CNBC aims to keep the 161-year-old company relevant with its core customer. "We recognize that the market difference of our parents in the communities that we're serving is significant," Crockett said. "We had an opportunity to really tap into the values that parents are bringing into the household." Carter's largest brands include its namesake banner and OshKosh B'gosh, which are sold in standalone stores around the U.S. and in retailers including Walmart, Target and Amazon. The rebrand comes as the overall company has shrunk its store footprint and laid off some employees over the past year to try to reposition itself for growth, especially as the market for baby and kids clothing has grown more competitive. Wall Street has taken note of the company's issues. Over the past three years, Carter's stock has plunged more than 50%, bringing its market cap to around $1 billion. For the full 2025 fiscal year, Carter's reported adjusted net income of $126.1 million, down sharply from $210.7 million the year before. Last year, then-CEO Douglas Palladini said elevated product costs, higher tariffs and additional investments "weighed meaningfully" on the company's profitability. Last October, Palladini said Carter's was eliminating 15% of its corporate workforce and shuttering 150 North American stores as leases expired in an effort to "rightsize" the company. Since then, Carter's has started to show more bright spots. And the rebrand aims in part to capitalize on the momentum. In the first quarter of 2026, the company reported a 10.5% increase in U.S. comparable sales and an 8.1% jump in net sales. Shortly before it reported those results in May, Carter's announced it was hiring Sharon Price John, formerly the CEO of Build-A-Bear Workshop, to lead the company as it tried to regain strength. In June, Wells Fargo analysts upgraded Carter's from underweight to hold, saying that while the retailer's performance "isn't perfect," the changes the company was instituting were "driving fundamental improvements." Price John told CNBC the struggles Carter's went through before she joined the company were par for the course and a "natural evolution." "Like any company at our scale, you're going to have a pretty standard process of evolving your retail footprint, and in many ways that's just exactly what the company's doing, which is the right thing to do," she said.

Children's clothing retailer Carter's is rebranding to appeal to a new generation of parents