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Enquanto Charles e Camilla estavam sob uma convocação rigorosa, os parlamentares observaram o desconforto excruciante dos funcionários públicos. Não costumamos ver altos funcionários públicos circulando livremente por aí. Eles são mantidos longe do olhar do público, sentados atrás de uma mesa tentando persuadir seus ministros a não fazerem nada de muito catastrófico em seus departamentos governamentais. O porquê exatamente de terem sido nomeados cavaleiros ou damas apenas por cumprirem seus deveres é um dos mistérios da vida. O resto de nós tem que se contentar com um e-mail ocasional do chefe. Mas, na última semana, dois altos funcionários públicos foram forçados, a contragosto, a prestar depoimento perante o comitê selecionado de assuntos estrangeiros sobre a decisão de Keir Starmer de nomear Peter Mandelson como embaixador nos EUA — e tem sido algo muito instrutivo também. Especialmente para ver o quanto eles detestam qualquer atenção extra do público. O desconforto óbvio deles ao serem responsabilizados foi angustiante de assistir. Continue lendo...

As ações da Domino’s Pizza, da operadora do KFC Collins Foods e da detentora de franquias de alimentos multimarcas Retail Food Group sofreram quedas de dois dígitos Receba nosso e-mail de notícias de última hora, aplicativo gratuito ou podcast diário de notícias Antes um símbolo de comida barata, o fast food está se transformando em um luxo que muitos não podem mais pagar devido ao encarecimento do custo de vida. Essa mudança se reflete na ASX, onde grandes redes de pizza, frango frito e donuts estão registrando quedas significativas de preços, levantando a questão: os consumidores estão tão desanimados que estão desistindo até mesmo do fast food? Continue lendo...

Mercados financeiros apostam que o Reserve Bank aumentará as taxas de juros pela terceira reunião consecutiva na próxima terça-feira • Receba nosso e-mail de notícias urgentes, baixe nosso aplicativo gratuito ou ouça nosso podcast diário de notícias A inflação saltou para 4,6% no ano até março, partindo de 3,7% no mês anterior, no que especialistas descrevem como o início de um choque de combustíveis ligado à guerra no Irã, que repercutirá em toda a economia nos próximos meses. Mercados financeiros apostam que o Reserve Bank aumentará as taxas de juros pela terceira reunião consecutiva na próxima terça-feira, enquanto as autoridades lutam para gerir o “cenário de pesadelo” de conter a inflação mesmo com a expectativa de que o crescimento desacelere bruscamente. Continue lendo...

• 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...