Why has inflation risen and what does it mean for me?

The Independent - Oct 21, 2026

September’s inflation rate of 3.5% means if an item cost £100 a year ago, it would now cost £103.50.

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Oct 22, 2026

Govts, companies take websites offline over PHP vulnerabilities

Several government, school and hospital websites across Europe and beyond were taken offline on Wednesday as organizations rushed to protect themselves from two critical security flaws in PHP, a programming language that powers a large share of the internet. Cybersecurity agencies across the world warned that organizations unable to apply fixes in time should consider taking affected sites offline. PHP's developers said a set of new updates fixing two previously identified critical vulnerabilities was available. Here are some major websites and services taken offline or otherwise affected: Germany A spokesperson for the German digital ministry said on Wednesday the federal IT service provider ITZBund had taken several websites offline due to the discovery of PHP vulnerabilities. The temporary deactivation was purely preventive and no security incidents were known to have occurred, the spokesperson said. France The Interior Ministry said it had temporarily taken offline the websites of prefectures, which are local government administrative offices, while awaiting a security fix for the PHP

Oct 22, 2026

Worldwide drops for AI stocks send Wall Street toward its worst day since July

NEW YORK — Drops for stocks in the artificial-intelligence industry are dragging markets down worldwide on Thursday, while oil prices hit their highest levels since May on worries about the war with Iran. The S&P 500 fell 1.4 percent toward its worst day since July, while the Nasdaq composite tumbled 2.8 percent. The weakness for tech stocks was so overwhelming that it masked strength for the rest of the market, where the majority of U.S. stocks actually rose. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down only a modest 0.2 percent, or 113 points, as of 2:30 p.m. Eastern time. AI-related stocks have become shaky on worries that their boom may be under threat because of how expensive it’s become to borrow money to build data centers and buy more AI chips. Concerns also remain that their prices shot too high following a yearslong frenzy, even though companies in the industry continue to report growth. Lam Research, whose equipment and services help make semiconductors, reported gains in profit and revenue for the summer that were slightly stronger than analysts expected, for example. Usual

Oct 22, 2026

Iran says 7 oil tankers attacked in Strait of Hormuz amid fears of return to war

TEL AVIV, Israel — Seven oil tankers caught fire or were damaged in the Strait of Hormuz overnight after being hit by Iran or striking naval mines, Tehran said Thursday, a markedly high number as tensions rise over concerns about a return to all-out war. With days before a close election in Israel in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could lose power, and before next month’s U.S. midterm election in which war-linked high prices have sparked voter anger, there are concerns that U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran could resume. “Netanyahu wants to attack Iran, that’s not even a question,” Danny Citrinowicz, a researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies and a former Iran specialist in Israel’s military and intelligence services, told The Associated Press. He accused Israel of rushing into another round with Iran without revamping its strategy. A clear Netanyahu victory in the Oct. 27 election means an attack is almost guaranteed, he said. Main opposition candidates are likely to focus on domestic issues first, but Citrinowicz said he believed the region is on

Oct 22, 2026

Almost all coral reef ecosystems face risk of collapse in 50 years, study warns

The world’s coral reef ecosystems almost all face a high risk of collapse in the next 50 years, mostly due to warming oceans and heat waves, according to a global assessment released Thursday. It's the latest dose of bad news for coral reefs, which are critical sources for seafood and tourism and often serve as buffers from coastal erosion and storms. Sometimes dubbed “rainforests of the sea,” they have some of the world’s richest biodiversity. They support a quarter of marine species as well as coastal communities and businesses. Some 96 percent of shallow-water reef systems are already critically endangered and could disappear by 2075, the International Union for Conservation of Nature announced on the sidelines of a U.N. biodiversity conference in Albania. Most of the world’s famous reef systems — including the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Coral Triangle in the Western Pacific Ocean and Southeast Asia, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System and the Red Sea coral reefs — are all critically endangered, the highest level of threat. “The risk of coral reef collapse i