Bite

Alors que Charles et Camilla étaient soumis à une injonction de présence stricte, les députés ont observé le malaise atroce des hauts fonctionnaires. On a rarement l'occasion de voir des hauts fonctionnaires en liberté. Ils sont tenus à l'abri du regard du public, assis derrière un bureau, tentant de persuader leurs ministres de ne pas infliger de catastrophes à leur ministère. Pourquoi diable ont-ils été anoblis ou faits dames simplement pour avoir fait leur travail reste l'un des mystères de la vie. Le reste d'entre nous doit se contenter d'un e-mail occasionnel de son patron. Mais la semaine dernière, deux hauts fonctionnaires ont été contraints à contrecœur de témoigner devant la commission parlementaire des affaires étrangères sur la décision de Keir Starmer de nommer Peter Mandelson ambassadeur aux États-Unis, et cela s'est avéré très instructif. Notamment pour voir à quel point ils détestent toute attention supplémentaire de la part du public. Leur malaise évident à l'idée de devoir rendre des comptes était atroce à observer. Lire la suite...

• Les actions de Domino’s Pizza, de l'opérateur de KFC Collins Foods et du propriétaire de franchises multi-marques Retail Food Group ont toutes subi des chutes à deux chiffres • Recevez notre e-mail d'informations de dernière minute, notre application gratuite ou notre podcast d'actualités quotidien • Autrefois symbole de repas bon marché, la restauration rapide se transforme en un luxe que beaucoup ne peuvent plus se permettre en raison de la hausse du coût de la vie

Les marchés financiers parient sur le fait que la Reserve Bank augmentera les taux d'intérêt pour la troisième réunion consécutive mardi prochain •Recevez notre e-mail d'actualités urgentes, notre application gratuite ou notre podcast d'actualités quotidien L'inflation a bondi à 4,6 % sur l'année s'achevant en mars, contre 3,7 % le mois précédent, ce que les experts décrivent comme le début d'un choc pétrolier lié à la guerre en Iran qui se propagera dans l'économie au cours des prochains mois. Les marchés financiers parient sur le fait que la Reserve Bank augmentera les taux d'intérêt pour la troisième réunion consécutive mardi prochain, alors que les responsables s'efforcent de gérer le « scénario cauchemardesque » consistant à contenir l'inflation alors même que la croissance devrait ralentir brusquement. Lire la suite...

• CDC data indicates 71 per 100,000 emergency room visits for tick bites in the most recent week, highest in Northeast followed by Midwest, Southeast, West, and South Central. • Rising tick activity signals increased Lyme disease and other vector-borne risks as warmer weather extends season. • Public health experts warn of prevention needs amid Northeast ER surge.

Consumer spending on travel is down for the first time in five years while card spending edges up in MarchUK consumers have cut back on travel spending for the first time in five years, as they worry about the rising cost of living amid the Iran war.Overall consumer card spending increased 0.9% year on year in March, down from February’s 1%, according to data from Barclays. Continue reading...

Chris Kempczinski’s taste test was mocked online, to which he said his mother had taught him: ‘Don’t talk with your mouth full’The chief executive officer of McDonald’s recently blamed etiquette guidance from his mother for a February on-camera taste test that made him a target for ridicule – and summarily recorded another video of him eating one of the fast-food giant’s offerings in a manner potential consumers found awkward.Chris Kempczinski suggested to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) earlier in April that he was simply heeding maternal advice to never talk with his mouth full when he took the humorously small bite at the center of a viral video which depicted him discussing and sampling the new Big Arch burger from McDonald’s. Continue reading...

The prime minister clearly believed that Trump’s threat of mass bombings of bridges and power plants crossed a new lineGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAnthony Albanese has adopted a careful and deliberate strategy for dealing with Donald Trump since his return to the White House in early 2025: don’t buy-in, don’t bite back.The approach is a calculation that there is little to be gained from responding to Trump’s every Truth Social post, lest it distract the government, provoke the president or, heaven forbid, threaten the Aukus pact. Continue reading...

Oliver Tokic-Bensley, 16, says he had been in the water mere minutes when a shark bit his footGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA teenage surfer bitten by a shark at a South Australian beach has described how he “flicked it off” and “legged it back to shore”.Oliver Tokic-Bensley, 16, was bitten on his foot while surfing on Good Friday near his family beach house at Middleton, 80km south of Adelaide. Continue reading...

The US is recklessly spreading economic havoc among global friends and foes while suffering little harm itselfTo shield ordinary Indians from the war in Iran, the government in Delhi redirected supplies of liquefied gas to Indian families, for which it is the main cooking fuel, limiting supplies to the plastics industry. The Nepalese government rationed gas and the Philippines trimmed the government workweek to four days. Bangladesh closed universities and rationed fuel.They have been hardest hit by Iran’s closure of the strait of Hormuz. Economies in Asia import over a third of the energy they consume, on average. Korea imports four-fifths; Japan nine-tenths; Thailand 55%. Most of this comes from the Gulf. About 80% of oil and oil products transiting through the strait in 2025 was destined for Asia, according to the International Energy Agency. But traffic through its waters has collapsed by 90%. Continue reading...

PM Sanae Takaichi says about 80m barrels of stockpiled oil to be provided to refiners – equivalent to 45 days of domestic demand • Middle East crisis – live updatesJapan will begin the biggest-ever release of oil from its strategic reserves this week, the prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, has said, as the country braces for possible shortages caused by the US-Israel war on Iran.The government last week approved the release of 15 days’ worth of private-sector reserves, amid concern that the conflict in the Middle East will continue to hinder the flow of tanker traffic along the strait of Hormuz. Continue reading...

The price of popular branded eggs has risen by over 40% in some cases while some have also shrunk in sizeShoppers are shelling out for smaller eggs again this Easter as shrinkflation takes another bite out of the favourite seasonal treat.The price of popular branded chocolate eggs has risen by more than 40% in some cases while some have also shrunk in size, according to research by the consumer champion Which?. Continue reading...