Culture Minister Patrick O'Donovan called the chief of the oil depot as fuel protesters blocked access to the facility, impacting critical services.
The Government is considering the possibility of enhanced tax credits for multinational companies, which include major players like Apple, Eli Lilly, and Microsoft.
U.S. equity markets delivered a strong performance over the past week, supported by improving geopolitical sentiment and renewed investor confidence, with all major indices recording gains exceeding 3%.
U.S. financial markets experienced a volatile week, largely influenced by geopolitical developments in the Middle East and fluctuations in energy prices. Investor sentiment was driven primarily by external events rather than domestic fundamentals.
The war in Iran must now become a line in the sand, because how we emerge from this crisis will define all of us for a generation. Instead of hoping to return to the world of 2008, we will forge a new path for Britain that strengthens our energy, our defence and our economic security in a new age.
Gold's appeal has been enhanced by easing geopolitical tensions, which have driven Treasury yields lower, thereby alleviating immediate inflation concerns and improving market sentiment.
Major indices, including the Nasdaq Composite, S&P 500, and Dow Jones Industrial Average, all recorded gains, with the Nasdaq delivering its strongest weekly performance since November.
The conflict has driven up the price of oil and natural gas; damaged oil refineries, tanker terminals and other energy infrastructure; disrupted shipments of fertiliser that the world's farmers depend on; and damaged the confidence of businesses and consumers.
FirstRand has criticized the regulator's intervention into the car finance market as 'disproportionate and unfair', warning that it will now be forced to pay out as much as £750 million to motorists who were mis-sold finance deals.
Bitcoin has failed to break out above the $70,000 threshold despite multiple attempts since last week, remaining pinned near its lowest levels of 2024. A convergence of risk factors, ranging from AI-related anxieties to a persistent higher-for-longer interest rate environment and the specter of conflict in the Middle East, is preventing liquidity from returning to the crypto market through its usual channels.
We may be, in the course of 2026, coming to a point where the whole thing becomes unsustainable, because so much of the Russian economy has been distorted so much by the building up of the war economy at the expense of the civil economy. I think defying the laws of economic gravity can only go on for so long.
