Ecowas breakup could push up food prices and worsen hunger in west Africa: The Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) lost three of its founding members on 29 January 2025. Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger comprised 16% of the bloc’s population of 424 million and 7% of its economy. Some commentators have labelled their …
Manchester United’s plan to raise ticket prices could be a breach of the ‘social contract’ between club and fans: When billionaire Jim Ratcliffe took a 27.7% stake in Manchester United back in February 2024, he had big plans. He would, he said, take the club “back to the top of English, European and world football, …
Oil prices will whipsaw as we move to net zero, which could be disastrous for low-income producer countries: One huge question for the future of the global economy is how oil will be affected by the transition to net zero. Any energy economist will tell you that predicting oil prices is something of a fool’s …
How Red Sea attacks on cargo ships could disrupt deliveries and push up prices – a logistics expert explains: The Suez Canal is a busy shipping lane but companies are diverting ships to other routes following attacks on vessels. Mariusz Bugno/Shutterstock Attacks on international cargo ships in the Red Sea from Houthi-controlled Yemen have seen …
Energy prices: shipping hold-ups made the 2022 spike worse – and could do so again: The Ukraine war has made the EU much more dependent on liquefied gas. Wojcieck Wrzesien Germany and some other EU countries are hastily setting up new floating gas terminals at their ports to help cope with the severe reduction in …
Cocoa prices are surging: west African countries should seize the moment to negotiate a better deal for farmers: The global price of cocoa is spiking, a direct response to dwindling cocoa output in west Africa. In September, cocoa futures reached a 44-year price peak due to mounting concerns over reduced supplies from the region. The …
Five parts of the economy that are hit when house prices fall: People putting their houses up for sale are starting to see signs of falling prices. William Barton/Shutterstock UK house price growth is slowing. While prices rose 1.2% compared to last year, this is down on May’s 1.9% growth, according to property website Zoopla. …
House prices are falling, but that doesn’t mean you should buy now – here’s what first-time buyers should consider: Andrii Iemelianenko/Shutterstock House prices in the UK fell by 3.4% in the last year, the biggest annual fall in nearly 14 years. The inflation-adjusted average house price is now what it was in 2014. While this …
Inflation: why prices look likely to stay high in the UK and Ireland, and what that means for mortgages: Counting the cost of rising prices. Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock The European Central Bank (ECB) has raised its three key interest rates by 0.25% to their highest levels in more than 20 years. The ECB’s “main refinancing rate” …
Energy generators’ soaring revenues highlight deep problems in the way Britain prices its electricity: All electricity generators in Britain saw their revenues increase last year. sp3n/Shutterstock Twenty-nine billion pounds is a lot of money. It’s how much we estimate the total annual revenue to British electricity generating stations increased as a result of last year’s …
Food prices are rising but farmers’ profits are still small – here’s why: Farmers need a fair deal. StockMediaSeller/Shutterstock More than 60 food industry representatives came together at a recent Downing Street summit to discuss the UK food crisis. It was billed as an opportunity to brainstorm solutions to rising food prices, falling production and …
Global economic uncertainty means oil prices — and your fuel bill — will continue to surprise this year: Oil price uncertainty. Holmes Su/Shutterstock Oil prices have confounded expectations in the first quarter of 2023. Brent – a major global benchmark – hit a low of US$ 72 (£58) a barrel on March 17, while the …
Gas prices are falling but your energy bills still won’t be affordable any time soon: Irina Gutyryak / shutterstock Wholesale gas prices – the price paid by the company that then sells it on to you – are at last starting to fall to levels below where they were before Russia invaded Ukraine in February …
Green hydrogen: why low-carbon fuels are not benefiting from high fossil fuel prices: Rangsarit Chaiyakun/Shutterstock The number and scale of projects using and making hydrogen, a gas that releases energy when burned without emitting carbon dioxide, is rapidly growing. If its construction goes to plan, a €2.5 billion (£2.18 billion) undersea pipeline will convey “green …
Global economy 2023: why there will still be plenty of pressure on food prices in the year ahead: Every little hurts. New Africa Welcome to this special report on the food industry, the fourth instalment in our series on where the global economy is heading in 2023. It follows recent articles on inflation, energy and …
Are prices real? How ghosts of calculus and physics influenced what we pay for things today: Marina Sun / Shutterstock With inflation in the UK and around the world threatening to spiral out of control, prices of everything from milk to oil, energy and Christmas presents are a concern for most of us. Most people …
High fossil fuel prices mean UK cannot delay transition to low emissions steel: Norenko Andrey/Shutterstock Steel is essential for making many of the technologies that will end fossil fuel combustion, including electric vehicles, wind turbines and solar panels. Unfortunately, to produce a lot of steel, manufacturers need to burn a lot of fossil fuel. Steel …
House prices: why a fall isn’t certain and wouldn’t help first-time buyers much anyway: Shutterstock/GrandeDuc The UK remains a nation of homeowners, with two-thirds of all dwellings belonging to the people who live in them. But as interest rates swiftly rise, there are fears that many of those households will soon find their mortgage payments …