Business

Iran war and high living costs fuelling last-minute holiday bookings, Tui says
Posted on Wednesday August 12, 2026

Middle East conflict has cost Europe’s largest travel firm €60m so far, and timing of decisions over trips has shifted

Holidaymakers are waiting until the last minute to book their trips because of the continuing uncertainty caused by the war in Iran and the cost of living crisis, according to Tui, Europe’s largest travel company, which said the war had cost it €60m (£51m) so far.

In the weeks after the outbreak of the war at the end of February, Tui recorded a temporary drop-off in customers wanting to travel to Cyprus or Turkey, in what the company called a “volatile market”.

US inflation cooled slightly to 3.4% in July but prices still elevated
Posted on Wednesday August 12, 2026

Energy is cheaper than at its peak in late April, but gas is still nearly $1 a gallon more expensive than before the Iran war

US consumer prices cooled slightly in July as the annualized inflation rate dipped down to 3.4%, though prices still remain higher than levels seen before the war with Iran.

Though inflation decreased 0.7 percentage points in June during a brief ceasefire between the US and Iran that brought energy prices down, consumer prices have remained elevated. Price increases hit a three-year high in May, with annual inflation reaching 4.2%.

Panama canal fees soar due to Iran war and El Niño as ship ‘pays $4m to jump queue’
Posted on Wednesday August 12, 2026

Falling water levels linked to weather system are expected to limit number of slots to transit shipping lane

Commercial ships travelling through the Panama canal are facing a rise in costs amid disruption triggered by the Iran war and falling water levels linked to this year’s intense El Niño weather system.

Highlighting the fragility of global trade, a container ship reportedly paid about $4m (£3m) to jump a queue of vessels waiting to pass through the vital maritime choke point.

Great Britain braced to pay millions for backup electricity during solar eclipse
Posted on Wednesday August 12, 2026

Event expected to curtail solar power just as summer’s fifth heatwave increases use of air conditioning and fans

Great Britain is braced to pay millions for backup electricity supplies to prevent a shortfall on Wednesday evening as the near-total solar eclipse is expected to wipe out solar power generation.

The government’s electricity grid operator is expected to make multimillion-pound payments to secure electricity at short notice before the moon blocks up to 95% of the sun over parts of the country, the most dramatic solar eclipse visible in Great Britain since 1999.

Trump sued over $100,000-a-month early-access offer to Truth Social posts
Posted on Wednesday August 12, 2026

Suit alleges subscription offer aims to sell privileged access to information generated in president’s official capacity

Donald Trump has been sued after a subscription service charging up to $100,000 a month for early access to his posts on his Truth Social platform sparked allegations of corruption.

The lawsuit, filed in the US district court for the southern district of New York, was brought by the Intercept and the Freedom of the Press Foundation against Trump, two of his aides and the executive office of the president.

Live facial recognition cameras to be used on UK’s busiest shopping street
Posted on Wednesday August 12, 2026

Sadiq Khan has indicated the technology will be deployed on London’s Oxford Street despite human rights concerns

The Metropolitan police are understood to be planning to use live facial recognition (LFR) technology on Britain’s busiest shopping street.

In June, the Met said it would introduce the technology in London’s West End by Christmas and into a further six areas next year. Sadiq Khan, the London mayor, has indicated that the newly pedestrianised Oxford Street will be included.

Greenland forces Trump-linked US oil firm to delay drilling
Posted on Wednesday August 12, 2026

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.