Morning, I’m Louise Moon from Bloomberg UK’s breaking news team, bringing you up to speed on today’s top business stories. Just as it was reaching more stable footing, the UK economy is at risk of stumbling. British consumer confidence has plunged to a four-month low since the war in Iran broke out, and economists warn inflation could rise to more than double the Bank of England’s target. Plus, th...
Morning, I’m Louise Moon from Bloomberg UK’s breaking news team, bringing you up to speed on today’s top business stories. Just as it was reaching more stable footing, the UK economy is at risk of stumbling. British consumer confidence has plunged to a four-month low since the war in Iran broke out, and economists warn inflation could rise to more than double the Bank of England’s target. Plus, there are questions over whether support for energy bills — hinted at by Starmer and Reeves — is even affordable , and how much extra borrowing markets will tolerate. About eight in 10 are worried inflation will rise, according to a Barclays survey that gives the first indication of how the Iran war is impacting sentiment. The biggest concerns are fuel and energy bills. Almost half are taking actions to adjust, such as cutting energy use or saving more. Given spending drives about 60% of economic activity, changes are rather crucial. The year had started off a little brighter, with inflation easing and confidence on the rise. “A new, prolonged bout of uncertainty risks snuffing that out before it has had a chance to really get going,” said Jack Meaning, Barclays’ chief UK economist. What’s your take? Ping me on X , LinkedIn or drop me an email at lmoon13@bloomberg.net. Oh, and do subscribe to Bloomberg.com for unlimited access to trusted business journalism on the UK, and beyond. What We’re Watching Housebuilder Persimmon cited “supportive” housing market conditions and expected benefits of government planning reforms, as it reported higher annual sales and profits. It said it’s monitoring the Iran conflict, and the impact that could have on cost inflation and interest rates. Shares surged in early trading. Domino’s Pizza Group got a last minute boost from the Christmas period, helping 2025 sales rise marginally. While it says that positivity has carried over into the start of this year, the chain is still contending with a tough consumer backdrop, plus higher investments and...
Small-budget investing can pay off in the long run, and even an amount of $500 could be a great place to start. Also, investors who employ dollar-cost averaging (DCA) often have a budget in the $500 range when making periodic purchases. Fortunately, the market offers plenty of reasonably priced options for investors with this kind of budget. It will allow one to not only buy stock in Amazon (NASDA...
Small-budget investing can pay off in the long run, and even an amount of $500 could be a great place to start. Also, investors who employ dollar-cost averaging (DCA) often have a budget in the $500 range when making periodic purchases. Fortunately, the market offers plenty of reasonably priced options for investors with this kind of budget. It will allow one to not only buy stock in Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), Dutch Bros (NYSE: BROS), and Realty Income (NYSE: O) but also take advantage of potentially lucrative bargains that could pay off in the long run. Let's take a closer look at this trio of companies. 1. Amazon Admittedly, investors may have a difficult time perceiving Amazon as "reasonably priced." Most investors struggle to see stocks with a 40 price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio as cheap. However, others may see that as cheap considering that the stock rarely trades below 50 times earnings. Also, despite a market cap in the $1.75 trillion range, it offers opportunities for growth that resemble those of much smaller companies. Consumers know it best for online sales. Still, this is likely the least profitable part of the business. Instead, its cloud-computing arm, Amazon Web Services (AWS), accounts for the majority of its operating income. The company does not break down the operating income of its other businesses. Nonetheless, its subscription, digital advertising, and third-party seller businesses consistently report double-digit revenue growth, which should bode well for Amazon stock. In the first half of the year, revenue of $291 billion rose 11%. Also, keeping the growth of operating expenses in check led to a net income of $24 billion during that period. That's an increase of 141%. Obviously, Amazon will probably not sustain triple-digit income growth long term. Still, its fast-growing business segments and rising income should lead to stock gains over time. 2. Dutch Bros Dutch Bros has found a niche in the fast-growing but highly competitive beverage market. It...
Coal Prices Surge As Energy Shock Forces Power Plant Fuel Switching In Exposed Countries Asian benchmark Newcastle coal prices jumped more than 9% to $150/ton ( as per BBG data ) at the start of the week, as energy flows across the Gulf area remain disrupted and transit through the Strait of Hormuz has significantly slowed. The rise in coal prices is being driven by a broader energy shock, with su...
Coal Prices Surge As Energy Shock Forces Power Plant Fuel Switching In Exposed Countries Asian benchmark Newcastle coal prices jumped more than 9% to $150/ton ( as per BBG data ) at the start of the week, as energy flows across the Gulf area remain disrupted and transit through the Strait of Hormuz has significantly slowed. The rise in coal prices is being driven by a broader energy shock, with surging gas prices making coal a more economical substitute fuel for power generators. Last week's IRGC kamikaze drone attack, which shuttered Qatar's massive LNG export facility - responsible for roughly 20% of global supply - has been the driving force behind gas-to-coal switching, especially in Europe, as gas prices have soared 50%. Samantha Dart (Global Co-Head of Commodities Research) penned a note late this weekend on natural gas: "European natural gas prices (TTF) closed the week up 88% from pre-Iran-conflict levels, at 53 EUR/MWh. For context, approximately 20% of global liquefied natural gas (LNG) volumes flow through the Strait of Hormuz, largely produced by Qatar, and no reroutes exist. This flow is 100% halted at the moment, with Qatari production fully down following a drone attack. We base-case that Qatari LNG production will be restored by early April, and we have accordingly raised our April TTF forecast to 55 EUR/MWh, well into the 45 EUR/MWh (fuel oil) to 71 EUR/MWh (diesel) gas-to-oil switching range because we think increased fuel switching away from gas will be required to normalize European gas storage ahead of the next winter. We have not changed our 21 EUR/MWh 2027 TTF forecast. In a scenario where the Qatari supply shock lasts over 1 month, we would expect TTF prices to rally further to the mid-70 EURs/MWh, where diesel is currently priced, to incentivize further switching. A scenario where the shock lasts longer than two months would likely lift TTF above 100 EUR/MWh to incentivize broader industrial demand destruction across Europe and Asia." Notice...
涉紐約市長官邸外擲炸彈 兩男被捕、認效忠ISIS To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video 【有線新聞】美國司法部以恐襲罪控告兩名男子，涉嫌在紐約市長曼達尼的官邸外向人群投擲炸彈，兩名被告承認曾向極端組織伊斯蘭國效忠。 ...
涉紐約市長官邸外擲炸彈 兩男被捕、認效忠ISIS To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video 【有線新聞】美國司法部以恐襲罪控告兩名男子，涉嫌在紐約市長曼達尼的官邸外向人群投擲炸彈，兩名被告承認曾向極端組織伊斯蘭國效忠。 一名極右意見領袖上周六在曼達尼官邸外，帶同燒豬發起反穆斯林示威，18歲疑犯巴拉特當時燃點爆炸物，見到警察後逃跑，最終被拘捕。司法部指巴拉特向示威者投擲首枚炸彈後，跑向其他地點，從另一名疑犯接過第二枚炸彈，在警察旁邊放下炸彈後逃跑，但兩枚炸彈均沒有引爆。巴拉特稱自己宣誓效忠伊斯蘭國，計劃造成較2013年波士頓馬拉松爆炸案更嚴重的死傷。
bo feng/iStock via Getty Images Indexes for US equity real estate investment trusts dropped alongside the broader markets during the first week of March, amid geopolitical concerns between Israel, Iran, and the United States. The Dow Jones Equity All REIT index closed the week down 2.10%, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average also declined 2.02% and 3.01%, respectively. All Dow Jones ...
bo feng/iStock via Getty Images Indexes for US equity real estate investment trusts dropped alongside the broader markets during the first week of March, amid geopolitical concerns between Israel, Iran, and the United States. The Dow Jones Equity All REIT index closed the week down 2.10%, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average also declined 2.02% and 3.01%, respectively. All Dow Jones US real estate property sector indexes closed the recent week in the red, with the industrial REIT index logging the largest decline, down 4.86%. The office and retail REIT indexes followed next with declines of 3.05% and 2.41%, respectively. Data center REIT Fermi Inc. ( FRMI ) recorded the largest share price decline among all US REIT stocks with at least $200 million in market capitalization, down 19.66%. Regional mall REIT Macerich Co. ( MAC ) and office REIT BXP Inc. ( BXP ) followed next with share price declines of 8.16% and 8.06%, respectively. On the other end, communications REIT Uniti Group LLC ( UNIT ) logged the largest share price increase of the group, up 9.97% over this past week. Industrial REIT Industrial Logistics Properties Trust ( ILPT ) ranked second with a share price increase of 6.66%, followed by two office REITs, Net Lease Office Properties ( NLOP ) and SL Green Realty Corp. ( SLG ), with share price increases of 5.35% and 5.16%, respectively. Original Post Editor's Note: The summary bullets for this article were chosen by Seeking Alpha editors.
In this article CAAS UAMY Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Indian social and women's rights activist, educationist, Syeda Saiyidain Hameed during the Iran Embassy opens condolence book on the martyrdom of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei at the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, on March 5, 2026 in New Delhi, India. Hindustan Times | Hindustan Times | Getty Images India face...
In this article CAAS UAMY Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Indian social and women's rights activist, educationist, Syeda Saiyidain Hameed during the Iran Embassy opens condolence book on the martyrdom of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei at the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, on March 5, 2026 in New Delhi, India. Hindustan Times | Hindustan Times | Getty Images India faces a difficult diplomatic balancing act as escalating tensions involving Iran threaten its oil supplies and test New Delhi's traditional neutral foreign policy. The crisis also comes as China pushes for stronger cooperation within BRICS, the bloc that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday urged closer coordination within the group. "We must step up to the plate, and support each other's BRICS presidency over the next two years, so as to make BRICS cooperation more substantive and bring new hope to the Global South," Yi said in Beijing during a press conference. India has not responded to that statement yet. U.S. protectionism in Trump 2.0 has triggered a resumption of ties between India and China, though the realignment has occurred without much aplomb, as both countries look to avoid antagonizing U.S. President Donald Trump. But as the Trump administration choked economic lifelines by attacking Iran , Wang's remarks suggested Beijing sees a stronger role for BRICS cooperation. And yet, India has maintained a stoic diplomatic position. Experts told CNBC that this tightrope walk is tied to the nation's disproportionate economic vulnerability – arguably greater than that of China, which has months-long reserves of critical minerals and oil, compared to India's weeks-long reserves of crude oil and far fewer reserves of gas. It, therefore, may not come as a surprise that India is the only founding BRICS member that has not condemned the attack on Iran. "India, notably, has taken a more pragmatic line — calling for dial...