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Europe
The Guardian

European gas prices soar to four-year high over winter supply fears

Oil, gas and fuel storage units in Grays. The UK has some of the smallest gas stores across Europe. Photograph: Neil Hall/EPAView image in fullscreenOil, gas and fuel storage units in Grays. The UK has some of the smallest gas stores across Europe. Photograph: Neil Hall/EPAGasEuropean gas prices soar to four-year high over winter supply fearsJump fuelled by fears of further Middle East supply disruptions amid reports of US-Israeli plans to strike Iran European gas prices have jumped to levels not seen since 2022 as fears continue to grow around the continent’s supply this winter and the conflict in the Middle East. Wholesale gas prices hit €97 (£81) a megawatt-hour on Monday, as temperatures across Europe fell and traders priced in stronger demand for heating. The UK’s month ahead contract also rose by 4% to 240p a therm, its highest level since December 2022 when prices were rocketing after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The jump in gas prices comes as fears grow that there could be further supply disruptions in the Middle East, amid reports the US and Israel have drawn up plans for renewed strikes against Iran after the US midterm elections. Those reports helped send the oil price as high as $117 a barrel on Friday. The international Brent crude benchmark retreated about 2% on Monday but remains at nearly $115 a barrel. Europe is also facing a shortage of stored gas reserves as it heads into winter with stores at their lowest level in more than a decade owing to a slowdown in exports from Qatar and an increase in consumption in the summer to power refrigeration and cooling. European storage is now about 75% full, against a seasonal average closer to 80%. Britain’s energy regulators have said the country is expected to pay some of the highest energy costs in Europe this winter amid a reliance on imports to ensure a steady supply. The UK has some of the smallest gas stores in Europe after decades of relying on homegrown production from the North Sea. The UK paid a record £4bn on power imports over the year ending in August, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics, of which half was spent on electricity imported from France. It has also made near-record payments over the past year to fire up gas plants while wind and solar farms have been paid to turn off because of bottlenecks in the grid. Meanwhile, British households face growing energy bills, which are predicted to rise 16% in January to reach the equivalent of about £2,000 for the typical annual dual fuel bill. European stock markets rose slightly on Monday on the weaker oil price, with the Stoxx Europe 600 – which tracks the biggest companies on the continent – up by 0.3% in early trading on Monday. The UK’s blue chip FTSE 100 rose by 0.4%.

European gas prices soar to four-year high over winter supply fears
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

France gets budget warning as Fitch turns negative on rating

The Fitch ratings agency on Oct 30 maintained France's credit rating at A+ but downgraded its outlook from "stable" to "negative". PARIS – France’s credit score was put on a negative outlook by Fitch Ratings, an unscheduled move that highlights how quickly the country’s public finances are souring. The change “reflects a deterioration since our August 2026 review comprising weaker growth, higher borrowing costs and a wider deficit”, the company said in a statement late on Oct 30. “These worsen debt dynamics from an already weak starting point,” Fitch added. “Persistent political fragmentation and a challenging social backdrop increase the difficulty of delivering sustained fiscal consolidation.” France remains at A+ on the company’s assessment, on a par with Portugal and Belgium, and six notches above junk. The announcement arrives on the eve of another weekend of protests in cities including Paris. The authorities are trying to contain violence after large-scale riots earlier in October. “The emerging policy debate ahead of the presidential election has not materially strengthened Fitch’s confidence in the prospects for durable deficit reduction,” it said in the statement. “Large protests over public services and living costs further complicate the social context for fiscal consolidation.” The verdict is the latest indictment of France’s inability to find a way to contain its swelling debt burden, which put the nation at the forefront of bond market anxiety over the past weeks. French yields have risen more than any other in the developed world in October, hitting the highest level in 24 years. Fitch has taken a noticeably activist stance on France and its public finances, having led downgrades before major rivals.

France gets budget warning as Fitch turns negative on rating
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

Apple overtakes Nvidia to become world’s most valuable company

Customers holding Apple iPhone Duo smartphones at Apple's Fifth Avenue store during the first day of in-store sales in New York, on Oct 23. Apple reclaimed the title of world’s most valuable company on Oct 30, taking the mantle from Nvidia as investors seek the perceived safety of the iPhone maker amid concerns about artificial intelligence spending. Shares of Apple fell 1.2% on Oct 30, resulting in a market capitalisation of US$5.03 trillion (S$6.4 trillion), while Nvidia sank 4.2% to close with a valuation of US$4.93 trillion. This is the first time Apple has overtaken Nvidia since briefly doing so in late July. The Oct 30 sell-off came as a number of major technology companies disappointed with their results, including Intel and Amazon, which followed similarly disappointing reports from Alphabet and Meta Platforms, among others. The reports renewed concerns about the outlook for AI spending, something Apple has largely foregone. Fears that heavy spending on AI computing infrastructure will not pay off have helped make Apple, which has kept a lid on capital expenditures, by far the best performing of the Magnificent Seven tech giants in 2026. Its shares are up 27% in 2026, more than twice the gain of second-place Nvidia, which is a key beneficiary of AI spending. The outlays have become so large that companies like Alphabet and Amazon have seen their free cash flow turn negative, forcing them to increasingly turn to debt markets for funding. Apple, by contrast, is projected to see its free cash flow climb 38% to US$142 billion in fiscal 2026, which ended on Sept 30. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index fell 6.7% in October, its worst month since March 2025. CoreWeave and Nebius Group, data centre owners that offer AI computing services, have dropped more than 30% in October.With the Oct 30 collapse, Intel lost more than 45% in October, its biggest ever one-month drop in data compiled by Bloomberg going back more than 40 years. BLOOMBERG

Apple overtakes Nvidia to become world’s most valuable company
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

What protections exist for Binance’s customers?

There does not appear to be any US governmental or regulatory entity that could force Binance or other troubled crypto companies to help customers. SAN FRANCISCO - The staggering digital hack at Binance, where criminals made off with US$6.3 billion (S$8 billion) in digital coins in a breach that the company revealed on Oct 29, is a reminder that putting money into cryptocurrency still involves a fair bit of risk. It has no real choice but to make people whole, lest its customers’ confidence sink even further than it has in the wake of such a large attack. But there does not appear to be any US governmental or regulatory entity that could force Binance or other troubled crypto companies to help customers. And minimal regulation is exactly what early crypto enthusiasts wanted, even as the Biden administration tried to rein in the industry before the Trump administration undid much of its work. The hack affected the original Binance (Binance.com), which the company blocks US customers from using, though some probably do so anyway via virtual private networks. There is also a small Binance.Us platform for US users in certain states, which was not part of the hack. In an announcement on its website, the company said it would “cover all losses” using its own funds and its “secure asset fund for users” (SAFU). The SAFU is an emergency fund that Binance set up on its own. “It is designed to reduce the potential impact on users if an extreme event does happen,” according to the company. The price of bitcoin has fallen about 30% in 2026, though the company says it replenishes the fund if it falls below US$800 million in value. “User funds are safe,” it added in its announcement. The company has suspended withdrawals for now. Not many, though plenty of customers believe otherwise, since there has been automatic deposit insurance at banks for decades.

What protections exist for Binance’s customers?
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

British telecoms firm Virgin Media O2 to cut thousands of jobs, Sky News reports

British telecommunications operator Virgin Media O2, which is jointly owned by Liberty Global and Spain’s Telefonica, will cut thousands of jobs in a sweeping shake-up, Sky News reported on Oct 31, citing people close to the company. Up to 4,000 of Virgin Media O2’s 16,000 employees could be affected, although the precise number of job cuts has yet to be finalised, the report said. Most of the job cuts are expected to affect non-customer-facing roles, while a number of senior leadership changes are already under way, the report said. The company is also expected to review its usage of contractors and suppliers in an effort to reduce costs, the report said. The Financial Times reported in July that the company’s owners were weighing options to reduce the company’s £22 billion (S$37.7 billion) debt pile. In September, the Financial Times reported Virgin Media O2’s shareholders were seeking to reduce costs by about £600 million. REUTERS

British telecoms firm Virgin Media O2 to cut thousands of jobs, Sky News reports
Europe
BBC Business

'An annoying buzz': The search for stealthier drones

Nature lover Ashley Schmidt no longer spends much time in her garden, in the Dallas suburb of North Garland. She's also given up on cycling to the local parks where she previously enjoyed taking close-up photos of the bugs, lizards and toads. It's all because she can't stand the sound of the delivery drones that fly overhead, depositing her neighbours' online orders. "They emit this very annoying buzz. It triggers my fight or flight response," says the 44-year-old administrative assistant. "You can hear the drones on approach and you can hear them inside your home when they pass directly overhead and then you hear them as they leave," she says. Schmidt is one of a growing number of people living with the noise of drones dispatched by companies including Amazon and Walmart as they seek to speed up home deliveries. Delivery drone services, not long ago a novelty, are becoming part of everyday life for many people in the US. Among them, Amazon Prime Air is in the process of expanding deliveries to nearly 500 cities and towns, delivering items that fit into a space the size of a shoe box. It has also launched to customers in and around Darlington in the north of England. Smaller drone delivery services are popping up too: in some US cities, customers can order flying treats from their local pizza joint or ice cream parlour. Even in cities where noise is already a steady part of life, the sound of drones seems to irk in a particular way. While the steady passing of traffic might blend into the background, the sudden whine of a drone's rotors can pierce the everyday hum. The sound tends to be "particularly noticeable, even when overall sound levels are relatively low," says Antonio Torija Martinez, professor in acoustic engineering and psychoacoustics at the University of Salford.

'An annoying buzz': The search for stealthier drones
Europe
BBC Business

China's families are now supporting more old people than kids

Image source, VCG via Getty ImagesByOsmond ChiaBusiness reporterPublished4 hours agoFamilies in China are for the first time supporting more elderly people than children, the country's government has said. Official data released in the last week, external show the ratio of China's dependent elderly people compared to the working age population rose to 23% last year, overtaking the figure for children, which stood at 22%. The numbers are closely watched for signs of how China's shrinking workforce will impact both the world's second largest economy and global growth as a whole. The latest figures mark a significant milestone as China grapples with an ageing population that could have implications for families, pensions and healthcare spending, analysts say. China has been preparing for a growing proportion of elderly people in recent years, while urging younger generations to get married and for couples to have more children. The latest data from China's National Bureau of Statistics show there are now more than 223 million people in China aged 65 and above, accounting for nearly 16% of the country's total population. No official commentary was published with the statistics. But Chinese state-controlled news outlet Global Times wrote that the nation's "entry into a moderately ageing society" is the result of a mix of factors, including the "size of past birth cohorts" and longer life expectancy. The shift could place added strain on pension, healthcare and long-term care systems, while also creating opportunities in the so-called silver economy that caters to older consumers, the newspaper said. "It reflects a historical trend in demographic development rather than a short-term phenomenon," Global Times quoted one researcher as saying. The demographic shift is "symbolic" and could suggest more public spending will move from families and schools to pensions and healthcare, said Professor Stuart Gietel-Basten from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. It may also pose a challenge to the country's ambitions, as it could limit its economic growth as well as people's spending power, said National University of Singapore sociology lecturer Mu Zheng. China's ageing population has been driven by a mix of factors, including rapid urbanisation and the effects of the controversial one-child policy, which was in place from 1980 to the end of 2015.

China's families are now supporting more old people than kids
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

OpenAI’s Altman meets Samsung executives as chip crunch deepens

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is the latest American tech leader to visit South Korea, the leader in advanced memory chips. OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman met with Samsung Group’s top executives in South Korea on Oct 31 to deepen cooperation on memory chips and AI infrastructure as global shortages intensify. Samsung hosted Altman for talks with about 50 executives from its electronics, financial and biotechnology affiliates in Yongin, south of Seoul, the South Korean company said in a statement. The discussions focused on how artificial intelligence can reshape industries, corporate decision-making and business opportunities over the next decade. The meeting comes as shortages in a broad array of memory products strain the global electronics industry and send chip prices soaring. Demand from data centre operators is intensifying competition for supplies, with the five biggest players in the AI infrastructure race planning to spend more than US$3 trillion (S$3.8 trillion) in the coming years. Altman is the latest American tech leader to visit South Korea, the leader in advanced memory chips and a country where AI adoption is accelerating among businesses and consumers. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Advanced Micro Devices’ Lisa Su have both visited twice since 2025 to strengthen supply chain ties. Technology executives have warned that chip production is struggling to keep pace with demand. The Oct 31 meeting builds on a partnership announced earlier to supply memory chips for OpenAI’s Stargate infrastructure project and cooperate on AI data centres, including floating offshore facilities. Samsung is also accelerating AI adoption across its businesses, from research and manufacturing to marketing and corporate operations. BLOOMBERG

OpenAI’s Altman meets Samsung executives as chip crunch deepens
Europe
The Guardian

San Francisco estate sells for record $10m above listing price as AI boom drives up costs

The Cherry Street mansion that sold for $28.5m in San Francisco. Photograph: Google MapsView image in fullscreenThe Cherry Street mansion that sold for $28.5m in San Francisco. Photograph: Google MapsSan FranciscoSan Francisco estate sells for record $10m above listing price as AI boom drives up costsEight-bedroom mansion listed at $18.5m sold for $28.5m and has a private garden and three-car garage A San Francisco estate sold for $10m above its listing price this month in a new record for the city as the artificial intelligence boom continues to drive up real estate prices. Located in the city’s tony Presidio Heights neighborhood, the eight-bedroom mansion was listed at $18.5m on 2 October and ultimately sold for $28.5m on 22 October, according to the property’s listing. It was built on Cherry Street in 1966 with a design from the prominent city firm Whisler-Patri, which SF Gate described as previously one of San Francisco’s “most active architectural offices”. The property has an unusually large footprint for the city, according to the listing, including a private garden and three-car garage. The sale comes as the AI industry with its high-paid employees has caused housing costs to soar. Prices have risen so steeply that it can be challenging for even those with six-figure incomes to find housing, the Guardian reported earlier this month. The higher end of the market is also seeing intense competition, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. In the first six months of the year, more than 140 homes in the city sold for $1m over asking or more, the outlet reported, citing data from Compass. A year earlier that figure was eight. Almost 92% of single-family homes sold above asking in September, according to the Chronicle. The Cherry Street home had been in one family for more than 40 years, and was sold by the Janice R Lurie Trust and Robert A Lurie Trust, the San Francisco Business Times reported. Robert Lurie previously owned the San Francisco Giants.

San Francisco estate sells for record $10m above listing price as AI boom drives up costs