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Europe
BBC Business

Ryanair investigated over charging parents to sit with children

Ryanair is being investigated by the UK's competition watchdog over charges it imposes on parents to sit next to their child on flights. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it was looking into whether the airline's policy, which the watchdog said typically led to a fee of £8 each way, was "unfair" under consumer law. It said Ryanair's terms and conditions state a parent must sit with their child if aged between two years and 11, and this is done through what the airline calls a "mandatory family seat" that the parent must pay a fee for. Ryanair called the investigation "bogus" and insisted its family seating policy "fully complies with all relevant laws". The CMA is looking at whether the airline's "approach to seat reservations may mean parents are being charged for the airline to meet its child safety and disability‑related obligations as set out under aviation rules – and will investigate to determine whether or not this practice is in line with consumer law". The watchdog said it understood that Ryanair was the only major airline flying from the UK to impose such a charge. It said other airlines offered to seat children next to a parent or guardian without a fee, or allocate seats together automatically during booking for free. The CMA added that its investigation had just started, and it had "reached no conclusions about whether Ryanair has broken the law". Ryanair said adults travelling with children pay one reserved seat fee, "but can select reserved seats beside them for up to four children on the same booking FREE OF CHARGE". "This means that parents travelling with children pay for only one (adult) reserved seat but pay nothing for the four other reserved seats for their children travelling with them," it added. "This bogus CMA investigation is a failed effort by the Starmer Govt to pretend it cares about consumers when it has failed to abolish APD [Air Passenger Duty] which would immediately deliver lower fares for all consumers and growth for the UK aviation, tourism and wider economy. "Ryanair looks forward to disproving these false CMA claims during this bogus investigation."

Ryanair investigated over charging parents to sit with children
North America
CNBC Economy

Consumer prices rose 4.2% annually in May, highest in three years

Inflation accelerated in May as rising energy costs contributed to pain for consumers, though underlying pressures were less intense. The consumer price index, a broad gauge of goods and services costs across the U.S. economy, rose at a seasonally adjusted 0.5% for the month, putting the annual inflation rate at 4.2%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. Both numbers were in line with the Dow Jones consensus though the monthly number was 0.1 percentage point below the April reading. Inflation climbed above 4% for the first time in three years, though the increase met expectations amid concerns over how much the surge in energy prices would impact the economy. The level was the highest since April 2023 and above the 3.8% reading from April. However, stripping out volatile food and energy prices, the so-called core CPI accelerated 0.2% for the month and 2.9% from a year ago. While the annual rate was in line with the forecast, the monthly gain was below the 0.3% estimate and less than the 0.4% April increase. "Americans are getting squeezed financially by inflation that's back at a 3-year high," said Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. "The frustration for many Americans is that so many of the basics are up in price right now -- gas, food, electricity, and medical care are all clear pain points that are above 3% inflation. Ending the war in Iran will help to moderate inflation, but the worst is likely still to come for rising food prices." The report arrives at a sensitive time for markets and policymakers as Federal Reserve officials contemplate their next move on interest rates. Markets largely expect the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee to remain on hold when the decision is released June 17, but investors will be looking for signs of how concerned officials are over the inflation surge. With the U.S. caught in ongoing hostilities with Iran, concerns are rising that the surge in oil prices could spread to other energy-sensitive parts of the economy. Markets were rattled again Wednesday when President Donald Trump warned that Iran will "pay the price" for not taking a peace deal. Stock market futures held in negative territory but were off their lows after the CPI release while Treasury yields were flat. The report indicated that much of the inflation surge came from a 3.9% jump in energy prices, putting the 12-month increase at 23.5%. Core commodities prices actually posted a 0.1% decline on the month, indicating muted tariff pressures. "Washington economic officials are going to redouble their efforts to tell Americans there isn't a cost-of-living crisis," said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds. "The sky isn't falling after all and the inflation risks for core consumer goods are in retreat for now." Food accelerated just 0.2% and shelter costs, a key input for Fed policy, rose 0.3%, half the gain of April. Shelter, which makes up more than one-third of the CPI weighting, rose 3.4% annually. Elsewhere, transportation services fell 0.6%, a potential indicator that high energy costs were not filtering into other areas. Similarly, services less energy services, also an indicator of whether higher oil costs were bleeding through, increased 0.3% after rising 0.5% in April.

Consumer prices rose 4.2% annually in May, highest in three years
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

El Nino has set in, Positive IOD likely by July, says Japanese weather body

Drought-bearing El Nino has set in, while a positive IOD will emerge by July (boreal summer), the Japanese weather agency JAMSTEC has said. “As predicted earlier, an El Nino occurred,” JAMSTEC said Thursday, thus becoming the first agency to declare the arrival of the climatic pattern. JAMSTEC’s predictive model, SINTEX-F, forecasts a further development of El Nino towards a strong El Nino in boreal summer, between June and August. A few members of the ensemble are forecasting a “super” El Nino late in 2026. SINTEX-F (Scale Interaction Experiment-Frontier) is a coupled ocean-atmosphere climate prediction system developed by JAMSTEC in collaboration with European partners. The tropical Indian Ocean is currently in a neutral state, SINTEX-F said. The model predicts a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) event in the boreal midsummer (July). ​A positive IOD can bring more moisture to India, often helping monsoon rains even in an El Nino year. IOD is a climate phenomenon caused by variations in sea temperatures in the Indian Ocean. Its positive, negative and neutral phases can influence the Indian monsoon. The development comes on the heels of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) lowering its forecast for the South-West Monsoon to receive 90 per cent of the long-period average rainfall. The monsoon has arrived 3 days late this year on the Kerala coast on June 4. The model predicts hotter-than-normal conditions for much of the globe during the July–September average. Relatively high signal-to-noise ratios are observed in the western United States, Mexico, Central America, most of South America (excluding Argentina and southern Chile), New Zealand, southern and western Australia, most of Africa, most of the Middle East, some parts of Europe, Turkey, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, many islands in the tropical Pacific, most of Southeast Asia, India, Mongolia, some of China, and Hawaii, the report added. Meteorologists use the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) to help them determine how much of the data they get from the atmosphere is signal (good information) and how much is noise (random background interference). If the SNR is high, it means the real weather trend is obvious The report said southwestern Polynesia will be cooler-than-normal. The model shows above-normal temperatures for much of the globe during the boreal autumn (October). Drier-than-normal conditions are forecast across Central America, the Caribbean, western Brazil, eastern Australia, parts of East Africa, parts of western equatorial Africa, Yemen, Nepal, North India, Malaysia, Indonesia and some islands in the southern tropical Pacific during July–September.

El Nino has set in, Positive IOD likely by July, says Japanese weather body
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Policy uniformity, public trust vital for India’s ethanol blending success

Higher ethanol blends in petrol aim to cut oil imports as India expands its biofuel roadmap. To ensure the Ethanol Blending Programme succeeds, the government must standardise state-level taxes and educate consumers to resolve lingering doubts about the fuel. To accelerate its Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP) by granting complete excise duty exemptions on higher ethanol-blended petrol variants -- specifically targeting E22, E25, E27, and E30 blends – the Centre is establishing a financial and technical framework designed to curb India’s reliance on expensive crude oil imports. However, this may not be enough. Bharati Balaji, Deputy Director General of the All India Distillers’ Association (AIDA), told businessline that excise exemptions provide a vital commercial route for surplus ethanol capacity, which currently exceeds E-20 programme requirements. AIDA is urging state governments to align tax structures to ensure benefits reach consumers, while actively collaborating with the Ministries of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Road Transport, and Food to address concerns regarding reduced fuel efficiency, she said. “Consumer awareness is a vital pillar for the long-term success of India’s ethanol blending program. Historically, introducing new products to the Indian market triggers immediate resistance, as seen when chemical manufacturers protested molasses procurement during the program’s initial rollout. These challenges are simply standard, temporary hurdles,” she said. Balaji emphasised that consumer awareness is vital, noting that while ethanol’s lower energy content might slightly reduce fuel mileage, the issue must be viewed through a broader lens. She urged a focus on overall vehicle technology, efficiency, carbon emissions, running costs, energy security, and environmental benefits. “The minor mileage drop we are talking about applies to vehicles built before 2023,” she said, adding that “It is important to note that modern vehicles are designed and calibrated for E20. In fact, they are engineered to optimize performance, emissions, and fuel efficiency under higher ethanol blends.” On feedstock, Balaji explained that AIDA members—comprising top grain, molasses, and integrated distilleries—control about 80 per cent of India’s ethanol production. She highlighted that fuel ethanol is a substantial, fast-growing part of the distillery ecosystem, driven by market demand and government policy. Explaining the capacity metrics, Balaji noted that India’s current installed ethanol capacity stands close to 2,000 crore litres. With the Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP) requiring 1,100 crore litres and alternative sectors—including potable alcohol, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals—consuming 334 crore litres, total demand reaches 1,434 crore litres. This leaves the industry sitting on a notable surplus capacity of approximately 566 crore litres. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Policy uniformity, public trust vital for India’s ethanol blending success
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

IT rout: Infosys, HCL Tech, TCS shares fall as Nifty IT declines on global tech selloff

The selloff in information technology stocks deepened on Thursday, with the Nifty IT index emerging as the worst-performing sectoral index as concerns over rising inflation, elevated interest rates and rich valuations in artificial intelligence-linked companies weighed on sentiment. The weakness in domestic technology stocks mirrored a sharp overnight decline in global technology shares. US markets ended lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite falling 1.9 per cent, 1.6 per cent and 2.0 per cent, respectively, amid continued selling in technology stocks, hotter-than-expected US inflation data for May 2026 and escalating US-Iran tensions. Wall Street’s recent weakness has been driven by a selloff in AI stocks amid concerns over stretched valuations. Nvidia, Broadcom and Super Micro Computer declined sharply, while Micron remained volatile. Investors are also reportedly reallocating funds ahead of upcoming high-profile US listings, including a potential SpaceX IPO. The Nifty IT index fell as much as 2.6 per cent to 27,519.15 in early trade before settling with 1.6 per cent loss at 27,821, from its previous close of 28,279.90. The index has fallen 11.5 per cent since June 2, 2026, (recording a closing value of 31116.55). Infosys, LTM, OFSS and HCLTech were among the biggest losers, declining 2-3 per cent at the time of writing. Heavyweights TCS and Wipro also traded lower. All counters, including Persistent Systems, Tech Mahindra and Coforge ended in red. During the session, TCS, Wipro, HCL Tech and LTM hit a fresh 52-week low. According to Sumit Pokharna, SVP - Fundamental Research at Kotak Securities, apart from the global risk-off sentiment, concerns around rapid advances in artificial intelligence are adding to pressure on the sector. “Nifty IT Index is down around 2 per cent today, and in the last six months it has fallen around 27 per cent,” Pokharna said. He noted that Anthropic’s recently launched Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models have intensified concerns around revenue deflation for Indian IT services companies, particularly those with significant exposure to application development and maintenance (ADM) services. According to Pokharna, the new AI models deliver significantly stronger software engineering capabilities, with AI-generated code quality approaching human levels and potentially surpassing it within the next year. “The key concern is that productivity improvements in software engineering are occurring much faster than in non-software domains. This increases the risk of lower effort requirements, reduced billing volumes, and pricing pressure for traditional application development and maintenance contracts,” he said.

IT rout: Infosys, HCL Tech, TCS shares fall as Nifty IT declines on global tech selloff
Europe
BBC Business

'A little goes a long way': New York's candy stores sweeten economic gloom

With US consumer confidence at historic lows, it's a tough time for retailers across the country. But in and around New York City one niche sector is expanding – candy stores. Mitchell Cohen, the third-generation owner of Economy Candy, on Manhattan's Lower East Side, has a theory – people will still buy candy (or sweets, as they are called in British English) – when economic times are difficult. "The dollar isn't going as far these days," he says. "Inflation, uncertainty, all that, but there's always candy." The business, the oldest sweet shop in New York, first opened its doors in 1937, towards the end of the Great Depression. Initially it was a hat and shoe repair store, with candies sold from a cart out front as an extra earning stream. But people couldn't afford to get things repaired, Cohen says. So his grandfather entirely pivoted to what was still selling – the affordable sweet treats. Eighty-nine years later, Economy Candy is still going strong. While the most recent official data shows that US retail sales are still growing, up 4.9% in April from the same month last year, US consumer sentiment hit a new all-time low in May, according to one closely-watched report. Echoing the thoughts of Mitchell Cohen, Kate Bolger says that as candy has a low price point "everyone can partake" despite people feeling the economic pinch. Next month she is due to open The Village Confectionery, a candy store in Sleepy Hollow, the Hudson Valley town 28 miles north of New York City that is best known as being the setting of the 19th Century horror short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Bolger, who previously worked as a movie producer, says that while consumers may be putting off making big, expensive purchases, they can still treat themselves to a piece of candy. It is an extension of the so-called "lipstick effect" economic theory that was popularised in the early 2000s, whereby people who couldn't afford to buy something really expensive would buy a little luxury item instead. Back in New York City, an upmarket candy store company called BonBon now has five shops across Manhattan and Brooklyn, and another in the Hamptons on Long Island that opened last summer.

'A little goes a long way': New York's candy stores sweeten economic gloom
Europe
BBC Business

I'd have vetoed foreign sale of UK tech giant, says Business Secretary

Business Secretary Peter Kyle says he would have intervened to block the sale of UK microchip company ARM Holdings had he been in government at the time. The firm, at one time considered the crown jewel of UK tech, was bought by Japanese company Softbank in 2016 before being listed in New York in 2023. Kyle told the BBC ARM Holdings could have been biggest firm on the London Stock Exchange if it had stayed, and that "it would be 40% of the way there to the trillion-dollar company I think our country needs". His comments come as the government sets out how it would back British technology companies, as US tech giants SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI prepare for blockbuster share sales in New York. Cambridge based Arm Holdings had been listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was bought by Softbank 10 years ago for £24 billion ($32 billion). It is now listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is worth £285 billion ($380 billion). Kyle also said he "regretted" that UK based pioneering AI company Deep Mind was acquired by Google in 2014, saying that although it continues to operate in the UK, "the wealth that it has created is going elsewhere". Kyle was speaking during London Tech Week as the government announced a number of initiatives designed to attract and keep fast growing technology companies in the UK. "Now, what I don't want to do is be interventionist in a way that I'm just using the powers I have to block: what I do want to do is create the circumstances where they do not want to leave in the first place," he added. The Business Secretary said the government was prepared to make bigger investments of taxpayer money in promising companies and create a cross-government concierge service to help companies get the skills, finance and support they need. "I've upped the risk threshold," Kyle said. "There are two risks. The first is that we get so slowed down by caution and anxiety about AI that we don't embrace and shape it. The other risk is that we embrace and shape it and get some things wrong – I choose to take the latter." The government has recently announced substantial investments of public money in energy software company Kraken, self-driving firm Wayve and a UK tech focused investment fund Playground Global. But while tech firms may be enjoying the government's help and generosity, Kyle admits that other sectors are struggling. Particularly in hospitality, which has seen sharp rises in the national living wage and employers' national insurance contributions.

I'd have vetoed foreign sale of UK tech giant, says Business Secretary
North America
Yahoo Finance

FTSE 100 Live: Stocks in Asia plunge as oil spikes on Iran and Israel's strike exchange

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FTSE 100 Live: Stocks in Asia plunge as oil spikes on Iran and Israel's strike exchange
North America
Yahoo Finance

Stocks tumble, oil jumps amid tech rout, Iran tensions

STORY: Asian stocks plunged on Monday morning as investors hit the brakes on the red-hot AI rally. South Korea’s tech-heavy KOSPI index took the heaviest beating. It was down around 6% by late-morning after volatile trade had earlier triggered a 20-minute halt. Chip giant Samsung matched the overall decline.  Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei index was down around 4% by the same time. That follows a similar drop for the Nasdaq on Wall Street at the end of last week. One analyst told Reuters that doubts have crept in over tech earnings, partly following weaker-than-expected numbers from US chipmaker Broadcom. Last week’s hotter-than-expected U.S. jobs data have also all but wiped out hopes for further rate cuts by the Federal Reserve this year. Then there’s Iran. Tensions in the Middle East have flared again, following Israel’s strikes on Lebanon, and Iran’s retaliatory strikes on Israel. International benchmark Brent Crude was up around 3% on Monday morning, once again heading towards the $100 per barrel mark. That’s despite weekend action by the OPEC+ oil exporters’ group to reassure markets with a further boost to output. Later this week, all eyes turn to the potentially record breaking SpaceX share listing. Elon Musk’s rocket firm is set to start trading on Friday, and is expected to debut with a valuation of around $1.75 trillion. With so much money going to that, and more possible mega-listings such as OpenAI, some brokers have expressed concern about the impact on other assets.

Stocks tumble, oil jumps amid tech rout, Iran tensions