Author: News Desk

Interest rates likely to fall to pre-Covid levels, IMF predicts A new International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast suggests that interest rates in major economies are expected to fall back to pre-pandemic levels. It says low productivity and ageing populations will be factors likely to reduce inflation, which will result in central banks easing monetary policy. The Bank of England has raised interest rates since December 2021 from 0.1% to 4.25%, with the UK experiencing its highest inflation rates in almost 40 years. Other central banks – in the US, Europe and other nations, have also raised interest rates to combat…

More people entertaining at home amid cost of living crisis Sales of home accessories and furniture increased sharply in March, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), which helped to boost total retail sales by 5.1% compared with the previous year.  The cost of living continues to put pressure on households, with inflation rising 10.4% in the year to February.  The BRC said that Mother’s Day drove sales of jewellery, flowers and fragrances, but that wet weather held back demand for gardening, DIY and fashion items. Sales of home accessories and furniture saw the strongest growth of any category in…

Europe migrant crisis: Italy attempts to save 1,200 people on overcrowded boats off coast of Sicily Two large-scale operations are being conducted by the Italian coastguard to rescue approximately 1,200 migrants from overcrowded boats off the coast of Sicily. One boat is carrying around 800 people, while the other has around 400 passengers.  Since Friday, the coastguard has already saved about 2,000 individuals from other operations. Despite the right-wing coalition government’s efforts to curb irregular migration, migrant arrivals to Italy have increased steeply compared to the same period last year. An unofficial hotline for migrants in distress, Alarm Phone, reported…

Kentucky mass shooting: Gunman kills 5 in bank shooting, live streams shooting on Instagram Five people were killed and nine others were injured, including a rookie police officer, in a shooting at Old National Bank in Louisville, Kentucky, on April 11. The attacker, identified as 25-year-old Connor Sturgeon, opened fire with an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle and live-streamed the attack on Instagram. He was an employee at the bank and had no previous contact with law enforcement. Sturgeon had been recently informed that he was going to be fired from his job and had written a note describing his plans…

Manchester City v Bayern Munich: Sleepless nights for Thomas Tuchel before Champions League quarter-final Bayern Munich manager Thomas Tuchel has admitted to experiencing sleepless nights ahead of his team’s Champions League encounter with Manchester City.  Tuchel, who was sacked by Chelsea in September, has beaten a team managed by Pep Guardiola only three times in their 10 previous meetings. The last time Tuchel beat Guardiola was in 2021 when Chelsea beat City in the Champions League final. Tuchel believes that his team will have to play at the “top of their game” to defeat City, who have won their past…

Today’s news summary – Paper Talk  Many of Tuesday’s front pages report on Tuesday’s four-day doctors’ strike in England that could see thousands of doctors strike and many patients having operations cancelled. Joe Biden is pictured on several of the newspapers this morning as he heads to the island of Ireland to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. Several of the tabloids lead with reports that the late Queen wanted both Prince William and Prince Harry to go to Afghanistan, but it was later ruled too dangerous for the future king. The Daily Telegraph reports that PM…

The United States on Monday officially determined that Russia had wrongfully detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and urged his immediate release, stepping up pressure on his behalf

We live in a war zone and shouldn’t have to – Louisville, Kentucky shooting

Russian jets apparently launched a missile within 15ft of the British spy plane.

The trenches suggest Russian commanders fear they could lose much of southern Ukraine to a major counterattack.