Oil prices tick up amid Middle East tensions June 24, 2019 Oil prices rose this morning as markets reacted to increasing tensions in the Middle East. The price of international standard Brent Crude reached highs of $65.74 this morning, before giving back some gains later in the day. At around 10.45am the black stuff was up 0.3 per cent to $65.39. Read more: Trump cancelled Iran [...]
President Trump names Bolton replacement September 18, 2019 Donald Trump has named Robert O’Brien, the country’s chief hostage negotiator, as his new national security adviser. O’Brien replaces John Bolton, who the US President sacked last week after the pair fell out over Iran and other tactics. Trump announced the news by tweet, telling his followers: “I have worked long & hard with Robert. [...]
Oil prices steady after Saudi attacks sparked record rise September 17, 2019 Oil prices steadied this morning after markets shouldered a massive shock yesterday when prices rocketed at their fastest rate ever. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, was more or less unchanged at $69 per barrel this morning. Read more: Saudi oil attack: How high could oil prices go after record-breaking rise? Yesterday’s shock [...]
Brent crude soars after Gulf of Oman tanker attack June 13, 2019 An attack on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman sent crude prices up on Thursday, putting the industry at the core of rising tensions in the region. As the US Navy said it was assisting the tankers in waters close to the Strait of Hormuz, Brent crude surged as much as 4.5 per [...]
The Covid-19 crisis can move us past the politics of easy answers March 13, 2020 The Black Death begat the end of feudalism and the start of the Renaissance. In the seventeenth century a golden age of architecture and science emerged from a London ravaged by fire and plague. Pestilence can be the cradle of creative destruction, and perhaps it can move us past the age of populism and the [...]
Saudi oil attack: How high could oil prices go after record-breaking rise? September 16, 2019 Analysts are this morning coming to terms with the implications of an attack on two Saudi processing plants after they pushed up oil prices as much as 20 per cent. The price of Brent crude rose as high as $71.95 per barrel this morning, however its have since given back most of those gains, trading [...]
It’s no mystery who is behind the Gulf of Oman attack, or why June 14, 2019 “Crime is terribly revealing. Try and vary your methods as you will, your tastes, your habits, your attitude of mind, and your soul is revealed by your actions.” So wrote Agatha Christie, beloved author of the Hercule Poirot crime novels. At the time of writing, there is a good deal in the foreground that remains [...]
US security adviser John Bolton to lobby UK over Huawei stance August 11, 2019 US national security adviser John Bolton has arrived in London for talks at which he is expected to urge Britain to take a tougher stance against Chinese tech firm Huawei. Bolton is set to take part in two days of talks, as US President Donald Trump looks to strengthen ties with the new government under [...]
Boeing 737 Max ‘designed by clowns supervised by monkeys’, internal memos say January 10, 2020 Boeing staff joked about possible flaws in the 737 Max model and mocked regulators in hundreds of messages the jet manufacturer has handed over to investigators. The messages also saw an employee say of the plane in April 2017: “This airplane is designed by clowns who in turn are supervised by monkeys.” Read more: World [...]
Boris Johnson’s election majority set to pass Brexit bill – but second phase challenges loom January 9, 2020 Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill is expected to pass its final stage in the Commons this afternoon, bringing to a close months of wrangling over the UK’s exit from the European Union. The Withdrawal Agreement Bill – which Theresa May spent over a year trying and failing to get backing for during her premiership – is [...]