US consumer confidence plunged sharply in September to a level not seen since 2014, according to a key benchmark published on Tuesday, with US households battered by a high cost of living and economic uncertainty from the Iran war. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index fell by 6.7 points to 81.9 this month, its lowest level since April 2014. The high cost of living in the United States is a major issue as the country heads into key midterm elections in November, where Democrats are seeking to wrest control of Congress from US President Donald Trump's Republican Party. "Consumers' write-in responses regarding factors affecting the economy were mostly pessimistic in September," said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board. "References to prices, the high cost of goods and services, and oil and gas prices in particular, rose to new heights, reflecting September's surge in fuel costs." Global oil prices have sky-rocketed since Trump and US ally Israel launched the war against Iran in late February, with Tehran's retaliatory action targeting Washington's allies in the Gulf and virtually shutting a key energy trading route. In the United States, the average price of a gallon of regular petrol is up almost 50 percent since the start of...
Read full articleCustomers in Berkshire and Hampshire are leaving it late to refill their tanks, an oil firm says.
Young people struggling to make ends meet respond to the government's Your First Home scheme.
Tucked away in an alley in Kyoto’s Gion district, Niku no Takumi Miyoshi – popularly called Nikushi no Miyoshi – is easy to miss. This small, unassuming establishment, opened by Tsutomu Ito is widely celebrated as a premier Wagyu destination, earning Michelin acclaim and legendary status among international gourmands. After establishing Miyoshi as a premier culinary location in Japan, Ito also opened q+M, a members-only French space in Kyoto specialising in Wagyu, and Kanegura, a more casual...
Things may make you say "WTF!" in 2026, but 2026 has nothing on the past. View Entire Post ›
Hisential wants men to stop waiting until something goes wrong before paying attention to their health The post The New Rules of Men’s Health appeared first on Business Traveller.
The meeting at the White House came as some tech bosses and experts have called for tighter rules around AI.
Paris Fashion Week is under way in the French capital, where powerhouses ranging from Chanel to Louis Vuitton and Dior are showcasing their spring/summer 2027 collections. The blockbuster show of day one was undoubtedly Matières Fécales, the label that went viral earlier this year for designing one of Zendaya’s most talked-about red carpet looks. Held in the Place de la République and named The Ninety-Nine Percent (a follow-up to last season’s The One Percent), the label’s spring/summer 2027...
Julius Brian Siswojo is as well known for co-founding Hong Kong’s pioneering hip-hop group 24Herbs as he is for championing skateboarding in the city. Having been “on the deck” – skateboarding, for the uninitiated – since 1988, the 52-year-old is acutely aware of the negative stereotypes associated with the culture: rebellious youths causing trouble in the streets late at night. But Siswojo, who says he does not drink, smoke or touch drugs, stays focused on a healthy lifestyle – not just for...
Thanks for these recs, jet-setters. View Entire Post ›
Blesssss these cheap noise-canceling alternatives to AirPods for letting you watch yet another Avengers movie on a flight instead of listening to your seatmates argue about their trip. View Entire Post ›
[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] A lobster rises from a bank of ice, its long antennae reaching towards a golden deer. Cranes spread their wings behind it, while neat towers of shaved ice hold portions of seafood waiting for the pot. For a few minutes, at least, dinner looks almost too carefully arranged to disturb. This is postured hot pot, Chef Ye Hui’s speciality at Enchanté, MGM Macau’s Chinese private-dining restaurant. Ingredients that might...
China on Tuesday said a reported tool being pushed by some European Union member states is a typical example of protectionism and unilateralism that would disrupt China-EU trade as well as the stability of global industrial and supply chains.