• Oil hits $100 for first time since May while US stocks slide — Financial Times - 19:26
• Reality Bites Elon Musk and His Tesla, SpaceX Believers — Wall Street Journal - 18:40
• How Andy Burnham’s rise to PM was helped by those axed by Starmer — Financial Times - 18:35
• EU fines Google €890mn in test of Trump’s threats to protect Big Tech — Financial Times - 17:58
• Trump’s dubious nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia — Financial Times - 17:56
• US justice department to streamline company merger reviews — Financial Times - 17:56
• North Sea oil and gas industry looks for answers from new energy secretary — Financial Times - 17:49
• ‘Odyssey’ Popcorn Buckets Help Fuel a $100 Million Market — The New York Times Business - 17:48
• Harley-Davidson Raises Forecast, but Remains Pressured by European Sales, Tariffs — Wall Street Journal - 17:22
• Google Hit With $1 Billion Fine By EU Over Search Engine Practices — The New York Times Business - 17:21

Oil prices are surging due to Houthi attacks on Saudi tankers and two ongoing wars creating a stranglehold on global energy supplies, leading to diesel shortages impacting farmers and US refineries running at peak capacity amidst threats of military action in the Strait of Hormuz.

• Oil jumps to $96 after Houthis attack two Saudi Arabian oil tankers — Financial Times -
• Two Wars Put Stranglehold on Global Energy Supplies — Wall Street Journal -
• Global Oil Prices Rise as Conflict With Iran Deepens — The New York Times Business -

• Global Oil Prices Rise as Conflict With Iran Deepens — The New York Times Business -
• Diesel Crisis Puts Poor Farmers Around the World at Risk — The New York Times Business -
• Military briefing: can the US reopen the Strait of Hormuz by force? — Financial Times -
• US oil refineries run at breakneck speeds as wars choke fuel supplies — Financial Times -
• Russia forced to import fuel from India as Ukrainian strikes damage refineries — Financial Times -
• US oil refineries race against dwindling supply — Financial Times -
• Trump threatens to destroy Iranian bridges and power plants — Financial Times -

Multiple companies report varied quarterly results, with energy firms like TotalEnergies and Repsol boosting earnings from high crude prices, easyJet experiencing profit drops due to lower demand, and **Nestle pursuing a $3.4 billion water unit sale alongside Thales securing strong defense orders and banks like UniCredit and BNP Paribas exceeding profit targets**.

• Apollo Target easyJet Posts Profit Drop on Lower Demand, Fuel-Price Volatility — Wall Street Journal -
• TotalEnergies Uses Cash From War-Induced Price Rises to Cut Debt — Wall Street Journal -
• Nestle Sells Half of Waters Unit to Platinum Equity For $3.4 Billion as Shakeup Hits Profit — Wall Street Journal -

• Repsol Sets Out Fresh $571 Million Buyback as Earnings Surge on Higher Crude Prices — Wall Street Journal -
• Thales Books Strong Orders as Defense, Aerospace Growth Continues — Wall Street Journal -
• UniCredit Raises Profit Targets, Expects Further Boost From Commerzbank — Wall Street Journal -
• BNP Paribas Lifts Dividend as Revenue, Profit Beat Estimates — Wall Street Journal -
• Kuehne + Nagel Lifts Earnings Guidance Again on Strength in Air Logistics — Wall Street Journal -
• English football is for sale — Financial Times -
• US and Japan clash over meltdown liability in $40bn nuclear power deal — Financial Times -

Significant investment in AI infrastructure is highlighted by **Google burning through $6 billion and chipmakers like STMicroelectronics raising sales goals, while Nokia capitalizes on AI and data-center spending, Dassault Systemes acquires ArisGlobal to bolster AI offerings, and XPeng integrates EVs with robotics** for future growth.

• China’s XPeng Charts Course From EVs to Robots — Wall Street Journal -
• Nokia Continues to Ride the Wave of AI and Data-Center Spending — Wall Street Journal -
• SpaceX Supplier STMicroelectronics Lifts AI Data-Center Sales Goal Again — Wall Street Journal -

• Dassault Systemes to Buy ArisGlobal for Up to $2 Billion — Wall Street Journal -
• FirstFT: Google burns through $6bn in cash amid AI infrastructure splurge — Financial Times -
• Buyout groups hunt for software bargains after ‘SaaS-pocalypse’ — Financial Times -
• New Zealand’s ‘rocket man’ takes on Musk and Bezos — Financial Times -
• IBM CEO Says Company Culture Was Too Slow to Change — Wall Street Journal -

The Chinese car market is asserting dominance in Europe with a surge in monthly sales, Tesla's profits are plunging despite discounts, and Hyundai faces declining profits amid weak demand and labor unrest, as XPeng charts a course from EVs to robotics.

• China’s XPeng Charts Course From EVs to Robots — Wall Street Journal -
• Hyundai Profit Falls as Weak Auto Demand, Labor Unrest Weigh — Wall Street Journal -
• Chinese Carmakers Log Surge in European Monthly Sales — Wall Street Journal -

• China’s assault on Europe’s car market has barely begun — Financial Times -
• Tesla’s profits plunge as Musk’s carmaker uses discounts to boost sales — Financial Times -

Inflation expectations remain high in the US, while **Japan's economy shows signs of awakening with 1% interest rates, EU carbon plans face warnings of industrial decline, and debates rage over trade tariffs and crypto regulation amidst broader questions about Nato's future leadership**.

• BASF warns EU carbon plans risk accelerating industrial decline — Financial Times -
• Household inflation expectations in the US are worryingly high — Financial Times -
• Japan awakes — Financial Times -

• Inflation data gives Burnham’s cost of living pledge a boost — Financial Times -
• EU urged to use more ‘clout’ against Beijing — Financial Times -
• Is Trump winning the tariff wars? — Financial Times -
• Does Nato have a future without US leadership? — Financial Times -
• Can Lina Khan Make Peace With New York’s Business Community? — Wall Street Journal -
• Clarity Act Mired In Debate Over Whether to Bar President From Selling Crypto — The New York Times Business -

India's Prime Minister Modi vows swift justice for exam leaks, Europe experiences a flash drought impacting water flows, and the UK grapples with challenges in social care funding, while Taco Bell addresses a cyclospora outbreak and three airports consider privatizing TSA agents.

• Modi vows ‘swift’ justice for India exam leaks — Financial Times -
• A practical problem with Andy Burnham’s postcode power-up plan — Financial Times -
• Europe’s flash drought comes as heat causes ‘atmospheric thirst’, scientists say — Financial Times -

• Why is England unable to fix social care? — Financial Times -
• Three Airports Plan to Ditch T.S.A. Agents Amid Push for Private Security — The New York Times Business -
• Stop the Trucks: Inside Taco Bell’s Rush to Contain Cyclospora — Wall Street Journal -