Author: admin@primenews

Food prices saw their first monthly fall in two years in September, but fuel prices rose sharply, official figures show. It came as the overall rate of inflation held steady at 6.7%, ending a run of three consecutive monthly falls. The price of milk, cheese and eggs all decreased, easing the pressure at supermarket tills, the Office for National Statistics said. But petrol increased by 5.1p per litre, hitting drivers at the pumps. Analysts had expected the overall rate of inflation to fall slightly, and the ONS said there may be “some disappointment” about the unchanged figure. However, its chief…

China’s biggest private property developer Country Garden is believed to have become the latest property giant to default on its overseas debt. The firm has $11bn (£9bn) in debt and another $6bn in onshore loans, and a default would mark one of the country’s biggest corporate debt restructurings. Its possible default adds to concerns about China’s post-pandemic recovery. Problems in China’s property market are having a major impact as the sector accounts for a third of the economy. The latest figures show that the country’s economy grew 4.9% in the three months between July and September. That is slower than…

More than 20,000 people in the UK have now been approached covertly online by Chinese spies, the head of MI5 said. It comes amid a new warning to tens of thousands of British businesses of the risk of having their innovation stolen. Ken McCallum was speaking to the BBC at an unprecedented public appearance of the security chiefs of the Five Eyes alliance in California. The heads of US, UK, Australian, Canadian and New Zealand security agencies appeared together. They did so for the first time to warn of commercial secrets being obtained by China. Stanford University in California was…

Almost 25 years after its release, The Matrix has been reimagined as a live show directed by Danny Boyle to officially open the UK’s biggest new cultural venue for years – and parts of the blockbuster film seem more relevant than ever. When he watched The Matrix when it came out in 1999, Boyle admits some of its themes went over his head. “I loved it,” he says. “I was a bit baffled, to be honest, and it’s kind of swum into view – it’s got clearer and clearer in the 20-odd years since it came out. “You think, ‘Oh…

The BBC has seen new evidence of the brutal ethnic violence that has swept western Sudan since fighting broke out between two rival military factions in April. Analysis of satellite and social media data reveals at least 68 villages in Darfur have been set on fire by armed militias since the civil war began. The UK Minister for Africa, Andrew Mitchell, told the BBC this bore “all the hallmarks of ethnic cleansing”. It is the first time the British government has used the term to describe what is happening in Sudan. Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who leads one side in…

The Biden administration has announced new restrictions on exports of advanced chips to China, including two made-for-China chips from Nvidia. US chip stocks fell as the curbs also hit Advanced Micro Devices and Intel. The curbs are aimed at closing loopholes that became apparent after the US announced export curbs on chips last October. They are designed to prevent China’s military from importing advanced semiconductors or equipment. Nvidia has said in a filing that the new export restrictions will block sales of two high-end artificial intelligence chips it created for the Chinese market – A800 and H800. It said that one of its gaming chips…

Elon Musk’s X, formerly known as Twitter, has started charging new users in New Zealand and the Philippines $1 (£0.82) a year to access key features, as part of a new trial. They include the ability to tweet, retweet, like posts and reply to posts. Those who opt out of the subscription fee will only be able to read posts, watch videos and follow accounts. The social media platform said that the aim is to “reduce spam, manipulation of our platform and bot activity”. New accounts will also be required to verify their phone number, though Mr Musk has said that it will still…

Ukraine has used US-supplied long-range missiles for the first time, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said. His comments follow reports the weapons, known as ATACMS, destroyed nine helicopters at Russian bases in the east of the country. Ukraine has not confirmed the missiles were used. Ukraine said an air defence system and other equipment were among the targets hit in Berdyansk and Luhansk. Dozens of Russian troops were killed or injured in the operation, it added. “They have performed very accurately. ATACMS have proven themselves,” Mr Zelensky said in an evening address posted on social media, without giving details of when…

After a blast at a hospital in Gaza killed hundreds of people on Tuesday, the leaders of several Arab countries have harshly condemned the bombing and joined Palestinian officials in blaming Israel. The Israel Defense Forces has “categorically” denied any involvement, blaming instead a “failed rocket launch” by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, a rival Islamist militant group in Gaza. Here’s where these Arab countries stand: — CutC by cnn.com

Apple chief executive Tim Cook has made a surprise visit to China. Though in an upbeat mood as he met gamers in the city of Chengdu, the company faces flagging iPhone demand in the country, analysts suggest. It is his second trip to China this year – in March he said Apple had a “symbiotic” relationship with China, a key manufacturing base. But the firm’s operations in the country have been complicated by Covid and US-China tensions. Mr Cook’s visit included a trip to Apple’s Taikoo Li store to meet young players of Tencent’s Honour of Kings online battle game.…