As tech firms make huge profits and investors fear losing out, both are doing their best to hold off the day of reckoningOpenAI staggers AI model release after White House requestEvery couple of decades, investors will ask themselves how long can the stock market keep climbing. Is it safe to buy more shares? Is their pension or equity portfolio vulnerable should financial markets, and especially those in the US, come crashing down to earth?When stock markets rise to historically high levels – and beyond the level when normal profits can sustain share prices – a few “experts” typically warn of an impending crash. Continue reading...

27 Jun 2026 15:00 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsEuropean stock markets are dropping today, as a sell-off in technology shares on Wall Street yesterday rattles investors’ nerves.In London, the FTSE 100 is down 80 points, or 0.77%, falling away from its highest closing level in two months.Apple and Microsoft’s price rises have struck at the market’s fear of inflation, raising worries that, far from being deflationary, the AI boom might be inflationary, particularly for the hard-pressed consumer, hurting rather than aiding economic growth.Meanwhile, OpenAI seems to have little stomach for market volatility either, reportedly put off by SpaceX’s travails. Having piled in to AI and tech since the end of March, there is a desire to protect profits, and investors continue to be in a mood to sell first and ask questions later.”We find a 1.0°C El Niño shock drives a 9.55% peak increase in global wholesale food prices after two years. Scaled to the expected 2026 “very strong” event (implying a 1.65°C temperature increase), our model projects a cumulative 15.8% surge in food commodity prices, fully realised by 2028H2. Continue reading...

26 Jun 2026 15:46 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Economist Prof Mariana Mazzucato says governments must ‘get back their mojo’ and believe they can change the world Good governments have a vision. They know what they want to achieve, can articulate why, and work out in public how to get there. They don’t just spout slogans about economic growth – because growth is meaningless unless we know what it is for. They understand that there is no trade-off between solving social problems and boosting the economy, and aim to do both, while avoiding rigid fiscal rules that defeat their own purpose by strangling public investment.If this sounds like a critique of what went wrong with Keir Starmer’s government, it is also a lot more. Mariana Mazzucato, a professor in the economics of innovation and public value at University College London, is a world-renowned economist, adviser to governments, chair of international commissions, prolific author, and PhD supervisor to at least one poet. She was the thinker who inspired Starmer to fashion his political project around five key “missions”, now largely forgotten in the mire of scandals, U-turns and infighting that beset his premiership. Continue reading...

26 Jun 2026 12:05 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

High temperatures make some workplaces dangerous, with economists warning disruption will dent growthMonique Mosley is used to sweltering conditions at the food factory in Yorkshire where she works, but June’s record-breaking heatwave has made conditions unbearable. “We make hot filled food products and it’s common that we see temperatures in the high 30s,” she said. “Thanks to our union, our employer is offering extra breaks, but not every workplace is the same.”The latest heatwave to grip the UK and much of western Europe has presented significant challenges to employers and their employees, from sweltering offices, disrupted commutes and school closures to dangerous construction sites where workers are at risk of dehydration, heatstroke and other injury. Continue reading...

26 Jun 2026 05:00 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

The former Manchester mayor could be installed as prime minister in weeks if no other MP puts themselves forwardIn her Q&A this morning Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, confirmed that she wants the government to approve the licences for the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields in the North Sea.She said:I’ve been very clear that I think that the North Sea is a crucial asset for the UK, and that oil and gas will be an important part of our energy mix for years to come. And I’m very keen to make sure that we use that resource, to ensure our energy security.There are decisions to be made shortly on both Rosebank and Jackdaw. Those are quasi-judicial decisions. But in our manifesto two years ago, we committed to honour existing licences, and I hope that we do. Continue reading...

25 Jun 2026 16:35 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsQ: Some people are backing Andy Burnham because they think he’ll rip up your fiscal rules…Reeves replies that Burnham has been “really explicit” that he backs those fiscal rules [they dictate that day to day spending is funded through tax receipts, and that debt falls as a share of the economy].So yes, there is more to do, but all of that has to be anchored around that stability, that high return to the economy. Continue reading...

25 Jun 2026 16:12 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Stock markets on both sides of Atlantic up as concerns ease over prospect of another inflationary shockBusiness live – latest updatesOil prices have fallen to pre-Iran war levels as more oil tankers exited the strait of Hormuz.Brent crude, the global benchmark, fell to a low of $72.24 a barrel on Thursday, slightly lower than the day before the US and Israel launched missile attacks on Tehran on 28 February. Prices have fallen more than 20% this month. Continue reading...

25 Jun 2026 15:41 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN