National Grid and Dutch operator TenneT signed a joint development agreement for the LionLink interconnector as BritNed marked its 15th anniversary. BritNed has delivered nearly 93 TWh of electricity since 2011 and
Barclays has repurchased about £525 million of its own shares since February, passing the halfway mark of its £1 billion buyback program. The bank bought 125.1 million shares at an average price of 419.37 pence each and will cancel them, reducing its share capital to 13.72 billion shares. Barclays will report first-quarter results on April 28.
Glencore faces uncertainty at its Mount Isa copper smelter as Jervois project backers consider bypassing it for refining, despite recent government support.
Sony’s PlayStation Store listed Graveyard Keeper free for PS4 users Thursday, with PS5 players also eligible via backward compatibility. The giveaway coincides with similar free offers on Steam and Xbox and follows the announcement of Graveyard Keeper 2. Only the base game is included; expansions remain paid. No expiration date was shown on the US PlayStation Store page.
National Grid and Dutch operator TenneT signed a joint development agreement for the LionLink interconnector as BritNed marked its 15th anniversary. BritNed has delivered nearly 93 TWh of electricity since 2011 and saved UK consumers £1.65 billion over three years. LionLink could reach 2 GW capacity in the early 2030s. Ofgem gave preliminary regulatory approval in 2024.
Old Android phones are being repurposed as PC performance dashboards using Pitikapp, letting users monitor CPU, GPU, memory, and fan stats on a dedicated display. The trend gains momentum as new U.S. state laws expand electronics recycling and right-to-repair programs in 2026. Lithium-ion battery fires in recycling centers reached a record 448 incidents in 2025, raising safety concerns.
Amazon will end support for Kindle and Kindle Fire devices released in 2012 or earlier on May 20. Affected users will lose access to the Kindle Store and the ability to buy, borrow, or download new books directly on these devices. Existing e-books will remain accessible. About 3% of active users are impacted, according to Amazon.
Aviva shares fell 0.4% to 622.6 pence in early London trading Wednesday after a 2.95% drop the previous day. European insurers slid as investors reacted to AI-powered comparison tools disrupting distribution. Aviva will report full-year results on March 5. Trading volume Tuesday reached 8.8 million shares, well above the 50-day average.
Anglo American shares jumped nearly 10% in London Wednesday after a US-Iran ceasefire triggered a sharp oil price drop. The stock traded around 3,601 pence. Anglo reported a $3.7 billion loss for 2025, driven by a $2.3 billion De Beers writedown, but maintained a $0.23 dividend. The company awaits final approval for its Teck Resources acquisition and plans to delist from the SIX Swiss Exchange on June 26.
WTI Midland oil for Europe surged to nearly $15 a barrel above dated Brent on Monday, squeezing jet fuel suppliers as Middle East shipments remain disrupted. IAG, owner of British Airways, faces higher fuel bills, with 62% of 2026 needs hedged and costs now at €7.4 billion. British Airways has suspended flights to several Middle Eastern cities through May. Air France-KLM will add €50 to long-haul fares to offset fuel costs.
Plug Power shares rose 0.5% to $1.87 in premarket trading after shareholders approved doubling authorized common stock to 3 billion. The change, effective since Feb. 12, could allow new capital-raising moves. Another proposal on voting requirements failed. Investors await the company’s earnings date, expected in early March.
Glencore’s South African ferroalloy plant faces a Tuesday deadline to finalize a discounted electricity deal with Eskom after delaying layoffs by one week. Key terms of the proposed 62-cent/kWh tariff remain unresolved and need regulatory approval. Only one of three smelters has restarted since January’s tariff cut. Merafe reports a 63% drop in joint venture output and rising costs amid Chinese competition.
Lloyds and IBM completed a nine-month quantum computing test that identified a deliberately hidden money mule network using anonymized transaction data on a 156-qubit IBM system. Lloyds called it the first known quantum experiment for this purpose. UK regulators continue to press banks for stronger anti-fraud measures. HSBC ran a separate quantum pilot last year with IBM.
Barclays has repurchased about £525 million of its own shares since February, passing the halfway mark of its £1 billion buyback program. The bank bought 125.1 million shares at an average price of 419.37 pence each and will cancel them, reducing its share capital to 13.72 billion shares. Barclays will report first-quarter results on April 28.
Leaked CAD files this week revealed Apple’s foldable iPhone design, showing a wide, book-like body with two rear cameras. Reports say Apple dropped its earlier clamshell project and now targets a launch in the second half of 2026, possibly delaying the iPhone 18. The device is expected to feature a 7.8-inch inner screen and a 5.5-inch cover display. Apple faces pressure as Samsung dominates the foldable market.
National Grid has proposed a gas distribution rate increase in Massachusetts that would raise average winter heating bills by $24–$25 per month for most customers. Regulators will hear public comments Monday in Lynn, with a decision expected by Nov. 30. The plan seeks $342 million in added revenue and would take effect Jan. 1, 2027, if approved. Low-income residential customers could see bill changes ranging from a 65% decrease to a 20% increase.
Glencore faces uncertainty at its Mount Isa copper smelter as Jervois project backers consider bypassing it for refining, despite recent government support. KGL Resources, which controls Jervois, secured a $300 million streaming deal with Wheaton Precious Metals and is in talks with global traders. Processing fees have hit record lows due to Chinese overcapacity and concentrate shortages.
Blackstone is preparing a bid for HSBC’s A$26 billion Australian loan portfolio, with offers due late April, The Australian reported. Citi is managing the sale, which may attract rival bids from Apollo, Cerberus, and Ares. HSBC narrowed the sale to loans after dropping plans to sell its entire Australian retail bank. The deal’s outcome remains uncertain due to regulatory and financing factors.
Aviva shares rose 0.2% to 622.4p in early London trading Thursday after two days of declines. Aviva Investors announced a partnership with Ripple to launch tokenized funds on the XRP Ledger. The company also highlighted a faster process for smaller pension funds to complete buy-outs. Broader insurance stocks remained volatile amid market concerns over AI and weak UK economic data.
Cadence unveiled its ChipStack AI Super Agent, designed to automate chip design and verification, claiming up to 10x faster performance on some tasks. Early users include Nvidia, Altera, and Tenstorrent. The tool supports both cloud and local AI models and integrates with Nvidia’s Nemotron and OpenAI GPT. Analysts note growing competition over AI-driven chip productivity tools amid U.S.-China tech rivalry.
BHP closed up 2.3% at 57.84 AUD in Sydney, marking a fifth straight gain as copper prices supported miners. Fortescue shares jumped over 3% after reporting a 23% first-half profit rise and lifting its interim dividend. BHP’s ex-dividend date is March 5, with a payout of 73 US cents per share due March 26. Iron ore price negotiations with China remain unresolved.
Sidephone SP-01, a modular 4G candybar phone with a swappable magnetic keypad, opened U.S. preorders today at $249. Devices are set to ship in January 2026. The phone runs a stripped-down Android and features a 2.8-inch touchscreen, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, and a 12MP camera. Price is expected to rise to $299 after launch.
M&G Plc shares fell 2.1% Monday, closing at 297 pence ahead of Thursday’s 2025 results release. Analysts expect adjusted pre-tax operating profit of £820 million, down from £837 million in 2024, and capital generation of £729 million, down from £933 million. Assets under management are forecast to rise to £372 billion. The dividend is seen edging up to 20.5 pence per share.
Android users are being misled by ads disguised as system messages, prompting them to install multiple low-quality PDF readers from Google Play, according to Android Authority. A recent case involved a fake update prompt in WPS Office, which led to repeated app installations until the original app was removed. Experts warn this tactic is also used by malware campaigns. Google’s enforcement of ad guidelines remains inconsistent.
Woodside Energy has restarted LNG and domestic gas production at the North West Shelf in Western Australia after a shutdown caused by Cyclone Narelle. Chevron’s Wheatstone LNG plant remains offline, with repairs expected to take weeks. The Australian government may trigger the ADGSM amid winter gas shortage fears. Brent crude closed at $109.03 a barrel Thursday, up 7.78%.
Shell is considering a 51% stake in the Shenandoah offshore oil field in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, sources said, as supply concerns drive buyers to North American crude. Beacon Offshore Energy and HEQ Deepwater have started the sale process, with initial bids expected in coming weeks. Shenandoah began production in July 2025, reaching 100,000 barrels per day within 75 days. Shell declined to comment.
Intel shares fell 1.2% to $45.93 in Friday premarket trading after DA Davidson began coverage with a neutral rating and $45 price target. Thursday’s drop followed a broader tech selloff, with the Nasdaq down over 2% ahead of January’s U.S. CPI report due at 8:30 a.m. ET. Trading volume in Intel lagged its 50-day average.
Northern Star Resources shares fell 9.5% to close at A$18.96 on Thursday, extending losses after last week’s production warning. About A$207.1 million in shares changed hands, making it one of the most traded stocks on the ASX. Shares are now down 29% from March 11. The company cut its FY26 gold output forecast to above 1.5 million ounces, below its previous range.