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Half the harvest, twice the bills: how drought hit farms
Farmers gathered much less wheat in 2026 and dairy farmers' costs rose.
Puffin island on cusp of closure as it runs out of water
Lundy is in "real jeopardy" and could be evacuated if supplies run out, bosses say.
Landlord's heartbreak as pub shuts down
Jon Dean, who ran The Alma Tavern in Worcester, said he has been crippled by rising costs and has had to let 15 staff go.
India's central bank hikes interest rate to 5.5pc
The Indian central bank raised its benchmark repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.5 percent on Wednesday, marking the first rise in nearly four years amid mounting inflation and strong economic growth. India has joined major central banks in raising rates as higher oil prices triggered by the Iran war fuel inflation, squeeze purchasing power and weigh on currencies. Weak monsoon rains linked to El Niño have compounded price pressures in Asia's third-largest economy. The six-member rate panel voted unanimously in favour of the rate hike. The monetary policy stance was changed to "calibrated tightening" from "neutral". It is clear that the outlook for inflation is no longer benign, Governor Sanjay Malhotra said in his policy address. Nearly 60 percent of economists in a Reuters poll expected a 25 bps increase in the repo rate. Consumer inflation accelerated in August to 4.82 percent from a year earlier, above the Reserve Bank of India's four percent medium-term target for a third consecutive month. Higher prices of fuel and food are now rippling through the economy with nearly half of the consumer basket seeing inflation above four percent. At the same time, economic growth remains strong, giving the central bank greater leeway to raise the cost of borrowing for consumers and businesses. GDP growth for the April-June quarter stood at 7.8 percent, well above the central bank's forecast of seven percent. (Reuters) Edited by Tony Sabine
Amazon Great Indian Festival Smartphone Deals: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, iPhone 16 Get Big Discounts
Amazon is all set to kick off its Great Indian Festival sale tomorrow. It is the e-commerce giant’s biggest festive sale event of the year, bringing a range of smartphone deals across price segments. Customers can avail of price cuts, bank discounts, exchange bonus options, and no-cost EMI benefits during the sale. If upgrading to a new smartphone is on your wishlis...
Smart glasses privacy concerns grow: Norway, Australia, UK and US curb Meta Ray-Ban use
Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses are raising privacy concerns because they make it easier to capture photos, videos and audio without others knowing. Norway, Australia, the UK and the US are considering or enforcing restrictions on camera-equipped smart glasses in public and sensitive spaces.
Finland halts Google data center work over environmental assessment
A Finnish supervisory authority on Tuesday ordered environmentally significant preparatory work at two planned Google data center sites in northern Finland to be halted until legally required environmental impact assessments are completed.
Sony’s Next PlayStation Portal May Get an OLED Screen, New Listings Suggest
Sony could be preparing a significant refresh of its PlayStation Portal with an OLED display among the upgrades. Newly surfaced information suggests that the Japanese tech conglomerate is developing two versions of its video game streaming device. Launched in 2023, the PlayStation Portal lets users stream games from a PlayStation 5. While it is not a fully standalone ...
Stocks flat as investors await signals from the Fed
Trading in local and regional markets was flat on Wednesday morning as investors turned their focus to the release of the Federal Reserve's September meeting minutes on Thursday. The Hang Seng Index lost 108 points, or 0.45 percent, to open at 24,172 points on Wednesday. The Nikkei Index in Japan was flat in early trading session, hovering around the 70,700 level. South Korean shares fell on Wednesday, as investors took a wait-and-see stance ahead of Samsung Electronics' earnings release to assess the outlook for AI demand. The benchmark Kospi was down 43 points, or 0.62 percent, at 6,898 during the morning trading session. Financial markets in Shanghai and Shenzhen were closed on Wednesday for the final day of the National Day Golden Week holiday. (Agencies) Edited by Tony Sabine
EU unveils measures to curb high energy costs
High energy costs are putting growing pressure on European households and businesses, prompting the European Union to step up efforts to stabilize supplies, contain prices and reduce its reliance on imported fossil fuels.