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Shoppers walk past shops on Regent Street on the final weekday before Christmas in London on December 22, 2023.Henry Nicholls | Afp | Getty ImagesThe U.K.’s inflation rate cooled sharply to 3.2% in November, boosting the chances of the Bank of England cutting interest rates at its final meeting of the year on Thursday.Economists polled by Reuters had expected inflation to stand at 3.5% in the twelve months to November — the lowest annual rate since March — and down from 3.6% in October. Core inflation, excluding energy, food, alcohol, and tobacco, also rose by 3.2% in the year to…

Regent street at Christmas time, LondonGetty ImagesLONDON — European stocks were broadly higher on Wednesday as investors gear up for central bank decisions.The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.3% higher by 1:10 p.m. in London (8:10 a.m. ET), with sectors mixed and most major bourses in positive territory. London’s FTSE 100 led regional gains with a jump of 1.6% — putting it on course for its biggest daily gain in eight months. It came after inflation data published Wednesday showed that the U.K. inflation rate cooled to 3.2% in November, down from 3.6% a month earlier.The index was lifted higher by…

This report is from this week’s CNBC’s UK Exchange newsletter. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.The dispatchIt is tempting, in assessing what 2025 brought for the U.K. economy and for Britain’s corporates and financial markets, to focus more on what didn’t happen than on what did.Most obviously, widely expected interest rate cuts from the Bank of England did not materialize to the extent that had been expected, while inflation failed to decline as the Bank —  and others —  had expected it to.A general view looking past Tower Bridge toward Residential and commercial skyscrapers in Canary Wharf on June…

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith is set for a closed-door interview with House Republicans on Wednesday after lawmakers rebuffed his offer to testify publicly about his investigations into President Donald Trump.The private deposition is part of an ongoing investigation by the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee into the Justice Department’s criminal inquiries of Trump during the Biden administration. Smith was subpoenaed earlier this month to provide both testimony and documents, and his lawyers indicated that he would cooperate with the congressional demand despite having volunteered more than a month earlier to answer questions publicly before the…

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Police in northeastern Spain carried out eviction orders Wednesday to clear an abandoned school building where hundreds of mostly undocumented migrants were living in a squat north of Barcelona.Knowing that the eviction in the middle of winter was coming, most of the occupants had left to try to find other shelter before police in riot gear from Catalonia’s regional police entered the school’s premises early in the morning under court orders. While the eviction was completed without violence, there were moments of tension when people who were losing their homes had to walk past armored officers.The…

Sam Altman, chief executive officer of OpenAI Inc., during a media tour of the Stargate AI data center in Abilene, Texas, US, on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. Kyle Grillot | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesOpenAI is in discussions with Amazon about a potential investment and an agreement to use its artificial intelligence chips, CNBC confirmed on Tuesday. The details are fluid and still subject to change but the investment could exceed $10 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the talks are confidential. The Information first reported on the potential deal.The discussions…

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A United States refugee processing center in Johannesburg was raided by immigration authorities, South Africa’s Home Affairs Ministry said Wednesday while denying any U.S. officials were arrested or applicants harassed.Seven Kenyan nationals were arrested during the operation on Tuesday while working illegally at the center which processes applications by white South Africans who have been given priority for refugee status in the U.S. by the Trump administration after claims they are being persecuted by the Black-led government.That claim over the treatment of members of South Africa’s Afrikaner white minority group has been widely rejected but has been…

PARIS (AP) — Employees at the Louvre Museum voted to extend a strike that has disrupted operations at the world’s most visited museum, though the attraction partially opened Wednesday to allow visitors to enjoy the “Mona Lisa” and other highlights.The museum said that visitors have started entering the building, where they had access to a limited “masterpiece route” which includes Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” and the famous Venus de Milo.“Due to a strike, some rooms in the Louvre Museum are … closed,” it said on social media. “We apologize for any inconvenience.”Union workers are protesting chronic understaffing, building deterioration…

The idea of offering unilateral US security guarantees to Ukraine is an appalling idea that risks war with Russia. It means the US is willing to go to war to defend Ukraine, and gives the Ukrainians a license to stir up trouble, instigate provocations and drag America into a confrontation with Russia. Such a guarantee imperils Europe. If the US sends troops to Ukraine, the Russians will counterattack and their forces won’t simply focus on Ukraine. Russia will attack the entire NATO edifice. A new world war will start, and the consequences in lives and property will make Ukraine look…

Robinhood is stepping up the capabilities of its fastest growing product — prediction markets — by giving users the ability to place what are essential parlay bets on multiple NFL games, putting it into direct competition with traditional sports books.Starting Tuesday, users are able to trade preset combinations of the outcome, totals and spreads of individual NFL games, and starting in early 2026, users will have the ability to create custom combos of up to 10 outcomes across NFL games. Those will have “a structural look or feel as a parlay,” JB Mackenzie, vice president and general manager of futures…