Nationwide violence broke out two years ago following a knife attack in the northern England city of Southport, which left three young girls dead at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class
International News via Reuters:
Tech firms in Britain will need to have plans to respond to surges in illegal content during crises such as the 2024 Southport riots which threaten public safety under strengthened rules set out by the regulator on Tuesday.
Nationwide violence broke out two years ago following a knife attack in the northern England city of Southport, which left three young girls dead at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class. Authorities said inflammatory and misleading content circulating widely online had fuelled that unrest.
Under the new measures announced by regulator Ofcom, social media and other online platforms would be expected to put in place crisis-response protocols to handle sharp increases in illegal content.
“Given the speed at which online harms can escalate during a crisis, and the serious risks this can pose to public safety, we have decided to accelerate our work on these crisis response measures to ensure that services can begin to take appropriate steps,” it said in its protocol published online.
The watchdog said companies should be ready to deploy temporary response teams, boost moderation resources and carry out post-crisis reviews. Larger platforms would also be expected to set up dedicated communication channels for law enforcement during a crisis.
The Online Safety Act, one of the world’s strictest online regimes, ties such illegal content to around 140 offences which relate to terrorism, hate, harassment and threats, rather than a broader category of unlawful material.
Companies are responsible for deciding how to act on such risks, based on the regulator’s guidance.
Reporting by Sam Tabahriti. Editing by Sarah Young
“The decision not to roll out Siri AI in the EU is Apple’s and Apple’s only,” spokesperson Thomas Regnier told reporters in Brussels
International News via Reuters:
Apple decided not to roll out its new Siri AI tool in the European Union after it had unsuccessfully requested to be exempted of interoperability obligations for the tool, a spokesperson for the EU Commission said on Tuesday.
“The decision not to roll out Siri AI in the EU is Apple’s and Apple’s only,” spokesperson Thomas Regnier told reporters in Brussels.
“Apple was simply unable to develop interoperability solutions that meet essential EU privacy and security standards,” Regnier said.
“Instead of trying to find a suitable compliance solution, Apple simply made a request to the European Commission to be exempted from their interoperability obligations. That’s not an option.”
Reporting by Inti Landauro, editing by Bart Meijer
In Europe, the STOXX 600 edged up 0.5%, led by tech heavyweights ASML and Infineon. U.S. stock futures rose 0.4% to 0.6%, as a broad range of shares gained in pre-market trading, including Nvidia, Eli Lilly and Goldman Sachs, all of which were up around 0.6%
International News via Reuters:
Global stocks rallied on Tuesday as investors rushed to buy the latest dip in tech stocks, while oil prices fell after Israel and Iran agreed to halt attacks on one another for now.
In Europe, the STOXX 600 edged up 0.5%, led by tech heavyweights ASML and Infineon. U.S. stock futures rose 0.4% to 0.6%, as a broad range of shares gained in pre-market trading, including Nvidia, Eli Lilly and Goldman Sachs, all of which were up around 0.6%.
Excitement about artificial intelligence was front and centre, with ChatGPT maker OpenAI confidentially filing for a U.S. initial public offering on Monday, days before SpaceX’s hotly anticipated market debut this week.
“Wall Street bankers and CEOs are beside themselves with excitement about these mega-cap listings, however, on the street there is some caution setting in,” XTB research director Kathleen Brooks said.
“Although we fully expect the SpaceX IPO to be successful, the IPO itself is probably the least interesting event; what is far more interesting will be SpaceX’s future earnings reports, which will need to be big to justify a valuation that is 56 times forward earnings.”
The next big test for tech will be results from Oracle on Wednesday. Apple shares, meanwhile, failed to get a boost from a long-delayed AI overhaul of Siri, unveiled at the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference.
Investors are also wary about the risks stemming from rising borrowing costs. U.S. 10-year Treasury yields are above 4.5% and, crucially, 30-year yields have spent more days north of 5% this year than in any year since 2007, according to LSEG data.
In the Middle East, tensions are running high and maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is well below normal levels, which is keeping oil prices above $90 a barrel.
“Inflation remains sticky enough that 46 of 68 global central banks are overshooting targets, which helps explain why bond markets are repricing for tighter policy, and why long-duration assets, private credit, and several EM currencies are struggling,” analysts at Bank of America said in a note.
“Our Global Breadth Rule shows nearly half of equity markets already overbought, led by Korea, Taiwan and Finland.”
The prospect of the Federal Reserve raising rates this year to curb unwelcome pickups in inflation has dented bonds and boosted the dollar, which has gained about 2% in the last four weeks. Friday’s May payrolls report helped cement the view that at least one hike this year is a possibility. Data on U.S. consumer prices, due Wednesday, are expected to show surging energy costs kept pushing headline inflation higher in May.
Futures imply around a 60% chance of a Fed rate rise as soon as October, and a quarter-point move is almost fully priced for December.
Markets are also fully priced for a quarter-point hike to 2.25% by the European Central Bank when it meets on Thursday, and they see the key rate at 2.5% or 2.75% by the end of the year.
The surprising strength of U.S. employment kept the dollar underpinned at 160.2 yen, above the 160 mark that many believe could trigger more buying by Japanese authorities.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama on Tuesday said officials are “always prepared to take decisive measures.”
The euro was last up 0.1% at $1.1546, just above a nine-week low of $1.15, while the pound edged up off a three-week trough to trade at around $1.338.
In commodity markets, Brent crude futures fell 1.75% to $92.60 a barrel. The price of oil has retreated from late April’s four-year high of $126, but it is still nearly 30% higher than where it was in late February, while futures for the delivery of crude in six months’ time are 21% above those levels.
Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Kevin Buckland, Himani Sarkar and Thomas Derpinghaus
Images available on Elon Musk’s X platform on Tuesday linked through to web pages showing a pretend BBC News article which promoted a financial trading scheme which the article claimed could turn £250 ($335) into £1 million within 11 weeks
International News via Reuters:
The Bank of England warned the public to be alert for scams on Tuesday after a fake video and images circulated on social media purporting to show Governor Andrew Bailey brawling with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage on a TV set.
Images available on Elon Musk’s X platform on Tuesday linked through to web pages showing a pretend BBC News article which promoted a financial trading scheme which the article claimed could turn £250 ($335) into £1 million within 11 weeks.
“Unfortunately, fake adverts impersonating the Bank of England and other central banks are on the rise. These scams are designed to criminally exploit the public, especially the vulnerable, when they are online,” Bailey said in a statement issued by the central bank on Tuesday.
In a post on X late on Monday, Farage — whose populist party leads opinion polls — said: “You may have seen some bizarre AI videos on this platform today. Whilst Andrew Bailey and I have our disagreements, I would never take it that far!”
One image circulating on Tuesday showed Farage appearing to kick Bailey while he was on the ground, while another showed the politician pulling a gun on the BoE governor in a scene made to look like the set of BBC discussion show “Question Time”.
Other images showed Farage throwing a glass of water at Bailey or the pair jostling, with Farage being restrained by security guards or police.
In real life, the disagreements between Farage and Bailey have been more civil, centring around the BoE’s handling of bond sales, a lack of business people on its rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee and its work on climate change.
($1 = 0.7472 pounds)
Reporting by David Milliken and Muvija M, Editing by William Maclean
Leo, who has adopted a more forceful tone recently against the direction of global leadership, also told Spain’s parliament on Monday that the “moral greatness” of any country depended on how it treated migrants and other vulnerable populations
International News via Reuters:
Pope Leo set off on Tuesday for the second stop of his visit to Spain, flying from Madrid to Barcelona as part of a week-long tour in which he has warned that escalating conflicts have pushed the world into a profound crisis.
Leo, who has adopted a more forceful tone recently against the direction of global leadership, also told Spain’s parliament on Monday that the “moral greatness” of any country depended on how it treated migrants and other vulnerable populations.
In a farewell speech on Tuesday before leaving Madrid, the first U.S. pope urged Catholics in the city to be selfless and help those in need.
“In a world that is constantly influenced by a logic of self-interest and profit … it is important to think and live according to a more authentic mentality,” he said.
Leo was due to land in Barcelona after around an hour-long flight, before meeting the leader of the northeastern region of Catalonia and a prayer vigil with young people at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium.
SAGRADA FAMILIA TOWER
The centrepiece of Leo’s visit to Barcelona will be on Wednesday, when the pope will visit an abbey in nearby Montserrat and inaugurate the newest tower of the Sagrada Familia, the modernist basilica that has become the world’s tallest church.
The visit to the basilica is also celebrating the legacy of its architect, Antoni Gaudí, whose designs were mocked in his lifetime but are now being praised. A fervent Catholic who died on June 10, 1926, he is on the path to Catholic sainthood.
The pope, who met six victims of sexual abuse by members of Spain’s clergy on Monday, has been criticised by some abuse survivors for his plans to visit the abbey in Montserrat.
It was included in a 2023 report by Spain’s human rights ombudsman that estimated that hundreds of thousands of victims had been abused by Spanish clergy over decades. In 2019, the abbot of Montserrat publicly apologised to victims of sexual abuse at the abbey’s school.
Leo’s visit to Spain will culminate on Friday in the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off western Africa, where the pope will meet some 1,000 migrants who have crossed dangerous Atlantic waters on small dinghies to reach Europe.
In his speech to parliament on Monday, the pope said a lack of help for the world’s migrants was challenging “the ethical foundation of the international order”.
Reporting by Joshua McElwee; Editing by David Latona and Alison Williams
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index slipped 0.3% to 10,341 points by 0810 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 edged up 0.2%
International News via Reuters:
UK’s blue-chip FTSE 100 slipped on Tuesday, weighed by shares of GSK after the healthcare company announced plans to acquire shares of U.S.-based drug developer Nuvalent for $10.6 billion as it seeks to boost its lung cancer treatments.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index slipped 0.3% to 10,341 points by 0810 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 edged up 0.2%.
• Shares of GSK lost 2.8% and weighed on the broader FTSE 350 Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology index that fell 1.6% and was the biggest sectoral decliner.
• Global markets were also eyeing signs of de-escalation in the Middle East after Iran and Israel said they had halted attacks on each other following an appeal from U.S. President Donald Trump, who also said that he could have “an idea” for an Iran deal within a few days.
• Inflation concerns, stemming from higher energy costs due to the conflict, have had investors price in a 25 basis point interest rate hike by the Bank of England in September, according to LSEG-compiled data.
• The main FTSE indexes have underperformed their peers in Asia and the U.S., given their minimal exposure to AI stocks. Against this backdrop, Britain set out a new £1.1 billion ($1.47 billion) plan to build domestic AI computing capacity.
• Among other stocks, BP slipped 1%, tracking a slip in crude prices. Attention on the company has piqued after the firing of former chair Albert Manifold and a latest report said investors and former executives at the oil major were in the dark about the precise circumstances that led to his departure.
• Venture Capital firm Molten Ventures gained 9.5% after announcing annual results, Fever-Tree Drinks gained 6.4% after the carbonated mixer supplier said it is confident of meeting full-year market expectations for revenue and core profit and announced an increase in share buybacks.
• Homebuilder MJ Gleeson lost 3.5% after projecting annual adjusted pretax profit below market expectations.
The pound is seen as a risk-sensitive currency, given Britain’s reliance on global trade and capital flows
International News via Reuters:
Sterling rose against the dollar and hit a two-week high versus the euro on Tuesday as risk appetite improved and the U.S. currency eased on hopes for a Middle East peace deal.
The pound is seen as a risk-sensitive currency, given Britain’s reliance on global trade and capital flows.
The dollar edged down as investors weighed hopes for a peace deal and the U.S. rate outlook, while global stocks rallied as investors bought the latest dip in tech stocks.
The pound fell sharply on Friday, largely due to dollar strength, as expectations for higher U.S. rates and safe-haven demand increased amid escalating Middle East violence.
On Tuesday, sterling rose 0.36% to $1.3385, after hitting $1.33065 on Monday, its lowest since May 18.
Some market participants said focus is shifting away from political concerns, with sentiment towards the UK economy improving.
“Whilst investors have remained focused on the UK’s fragile public finances, the second part of the ‘dual deficit’ narrative, the balance of payments, has been largely overlooked,” Kamal Sharma, forex strategist at BofA, said.
“A higher capital-intensive mix of foreign direct investment inflows should be seen as a medium-term positive for the pound valuation trends,” he added, citing AI-linked inflows alongside financial services and biotech investment.
The June 18 Makerfield by-election could revive concerns about fiscal policy if Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham returns to Westminster, potentially paving the way for a leadership challenge to Prime Minister Keir Starmer later this year.
Investors will closely watch GDP data on Friday for clues on the economic outlook.
“A notable upward revision in the PMI business indices last week suggests that the initial confidence drop was overstated and that the UK economy is more resilient to the Middle East events than first feared,” Enrique Díaz-Alvarez, chief economist at global financial services firm Ebury, said.
The S&P Global Purchasing Managers’ Index for Britain’s services sector fell to 49.3, though the reading was stronger than the flash estimate of 47.9.
Bank of England policymaker Megan Greene said last week she saw a growing case for raising interest rates as the Iran war drags on and increases the risk of broader price rises across the economy.
The euro was down 0.13% to 86.33 pence, after hitting 86.27 pence, its lowest since May 26.
reporting by Stefano Rebaudo. Editing by Mark Potter
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measured the quake at a magnitude 6.1 at a shallow depth of 26 km (16 miles) and its epicenter 104 km west-northwest of Mantua, Cuba, about two to four hours by car from the capital Havana
International News via Reuters:
A historically strong earthquake struck off Cuba’s northwest coast on Monday, according to official reports, shaking parts of Cuba, Mexico and Florida that are typically not prone to quakes.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measured the quake at a magnitude 6.1 at a shallow depth of 26 km (16 miles) and its epicenter 104 km west-northwest of Mantua, Cuba, about two to four hours by car from the capital Havana.
Monday’s earthquake was unusual for this area of the Caribbean, said Paul Earle, a seismologist at the USGS, noting that the quake occurred within a tectonic plate, where earthquakes are usually more scattered and less frequent than when they occur along plate boundaries.
An earthquake this strong had not hit within 322 km (200 miles) of Monday’s quake since 1880, when a 6.0 temblor hit near San Cristobal, Cuba, said Earle.
Authorities have not yet reported any major damage or casualties, but the quake spiked concern in Cuba, where decades of economic crisis have left buildings in severe disrepair. Ongoing widespread blackouts across the region have made communications difficult.
“It felt strong. I had never felt anything like that,” said Yusmila Hernandez, 44, at her home in Pinar del Rio, in western Cuba.
“People ran outside, everyone scared. I can’t even explain it. It felt like no earthquake has ever felt here before,” Hernandez said.
USGS reported that shaking was also felt in Florida. In Mexico, the quake was felt in the tourist hubs of Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum on the country’s Yucatan peninsula. Residents and workers in Cancun’s city center, unaccustomed to strong quakes, evacuated buildings.
Emergency protocols were activated in Mexico’s Yucatan and Quintana Roo states, but there were not yet reports of damage, the state’s governors both said on social media.
No tsunami warning or watch was issued after the earthquake, according to the U.S. National Weather Service.
Reporting by Annet Rios, Ayose Naranjo and Dave Sherwood in Havana, Cuba; Paola Chiomante in Cancun, Mexico, and Brendan O’Boyle and Cassandra Garrison in Mexico City; Writing by Brendan O’Boyle; Editing by Chris Reese and Nick Zieminski
The dollar eased, although uncertainty remained as Tehran said it would resume strikes if Israel continued to hit Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon
International News via Reuters:
MSCI’s global equities index fell slightly on Monday but Wall Street saw some support from a bounce in technology stocks while oil futures pared earlier gains as Iran and Israel said they had halted attacks on each other after an appeal from U.S. President Donald Trump.
The dollar eased, although uncertainty remained as Tehran said it would resume strikes if Israel continued to hit Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel had struck a petrochemical plant in southwestern Iran and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it retaliated with a strike aimed at a similar Israeli plant in the city of Haifa.
In energy markets, U.S. crude futures settled up 0.84%, or 76 cents at $91.30 a barrel after earlier trading above $95 a barrel, while Brent ended the session at $94.25 per barrel, up 1.25%, or $1.16, after earlier rising above $98 a barrel.
Wall Street main indexes staged a comeback as investors looked for bargains after Friday’s selloff when the heavyweight technology sector put pressure on the entire market. The sector had suffered its largest daily decline since April 2025 after a hot May jobs report fueled fears the U.S. Federal Reserve would need to raise interest rates.
“The profit takers did their work on Friday,” said Bruce Zaro, managing director at Granite Wealth Management in Plymouth, Massachusetts. “New buyers have come in and said, that was overdone.”
Aside from worrying about geopolitics and interest rates, Zaro said that investors were also preparing for this week’s hotly anticipated SpaceX IPO and reacting to tweaks to membership of the S&P 500. The index is adding Marvell Technology, helping to boost the chip sector, which sold off sharply on Friday.
The S&P 500 technology index finished up 1.5% on Monday after tumbling 5.8% on Friday.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 80.77 points, or 0.16%, to 50,786.01, the S&P 500 rose 21.99 points, or 0.30%, to 7,405.73 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 220.23 points, or 0.86%, to 25,929.66.
MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe fell 4.84 points, or 0.44%, to 1,100.96.
Earlier the pan-European STOXX 600 index had finished down 0.15%.
U.S. and European trading sessions were in stark contrast with Asia where South Korea’s chip-heavy KOSPI, the world’s best-performing market this year, had tumbled 8.3% while Japan’s Nikkei fell almost 4%, with market darlings across the computer-chip production supply chain falling furthest, while Taiwan’s benchmark sank 3.5%.
In currencies, the dollar retreated from its highest level in nearly two months as the halt of Iranian and Israeli attacks reduced safe haven demand.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.08% to 100.00, with the euro up 0.1% at $1.1531.
Against the Japanese yen, the dollar weakened 0.07% to 160.17.
In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin gained 2.23% to $63,248.36. Last week it had notched its heaviest weekly drop since the collapse of crypto exchange FTX in late 2022, falling about 16%.
In government bonds markets, the yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 2.8 basis points to 4.564%, from 4.536% late on Friday while the 30-year bond yield rose 3.9 basis points to 5.0384% from 4.999% late on Friday.
The 2-year note yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations for the Federal Reserve, rose 0.2 basis points to 4.164%, from 4.162% late on Friday.
In precious metals, gold was close to flat as hopes for a potential Israel-Iran ceasefire helped it bounce from session lows but expectations for a Federal Reserve rate hike kept it in check.
Spot gold fell 0.03% to $4,327.63 an ounce.
Reporting by Sinéad Carew in New York, Samuel Indyk and Tom Westbrook; Editing by Shri Navaratnam, Thomas Derpinghaus, Ros Russell, Joe Bavier and Nia Williams
The outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola was announced on May 15, though officials have since said it went undetected for weeks, leaving health authorities behind the curve and struggling to bring it under control
International News via Reuters:
Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday said confirmed Ebola deaths had climbed to 101 and that the presence of armed groups was continuing to hinder the response in the hardest-hit province.
The outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola was announced on May 15, though officials have since said it went undetected for weeks, leaving health authorities behind the curve and struggling to bring it under control.
It is unfolding in three provinces long beset by armed conflict: Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu.
In its latest situation report published on Monday, Congo’s government said there had been 35 new confirmed cases in the previous 24 hours, including 10 deaths. That brought the total number of confirmed cases to 550 and the total number of confirmed deaths to 101.
The cases have been recorded in 17 of Ituri’s health zones as well as in seven health zones in North Kivu and one health zone in South Kivu.
Mistrust and resistance have hampered the response, with attacks on burial teams and treatment centres reported. The latest such attack occurred on Sunday, a source familiar with the government response said, with a burial team targeted at the Nyamurongo cemetery in Bunia, leaving two people seriously injured and two vehicles damaged.
The situation report said the presence of armed groups in Djugu, Irumu and Mambasa – all in Ituri – was continuing “to limit humanitarian access in multiple health zones affected or at risk.”
It said that Bunia, the capital of Ituri, was relatively calm.
Earlier on Monday, Africa’s top public health agency said the number of confirmed Ebola cases in Congo had risen to 544.
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention gave Congo’s confirmed Ebola deaths as 88.
Reporting by Congo newsroom and Anait Miridzhanian; Writing by Robbie Corey-Boulet; Editing by Alexander Winning and Daniel Wallis
The Financial Conduct Authority said it was seeking an injunction against Woodford and W4.0, the online subscription-based service he launched last year, to stop them carrying on “the potentially unlawful activities”
International News via Reuters:
Britain’s financial regulator said on Monday it was suing former fund manager Neil Woodford and his new investment service, accusing them of providing regulated investment advice and making financial promotions without authorisation.
The Financial Conduct Authority said it was seeking an injunction against Woodford and W4.0, the online subscription-based service he launched last year, to stop them carrying on “the potentially unlawful activities”.
Woodford and W4.0, which is registered in the United Arab Emirates, did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment. W4.0’s website says it exists “to explain active investment strategies”, rather than to provide financial advice or investment management.
The website also says: “We are not regulated by the FCA or any other regulatory body, and we do not provide financial advice. That’s deliberate.”
Last August, the financial watchdog fined Woodford and his company, Woodford Investment Management, a combined £45.9 million over management failures of a one-time flagship fund that collapsed in 2019.
Reporting by Muvija M and Sam Tabahriti; additional reporting by Sarah Young; editing by Andrew Heavens
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
