Evening Briefing: Thursday 30 July 2026
- Mortgages: The Bank of England held interest rates at 3.75 per cent today and played down an imminent rise — gilt yields fell and markets trimmed bets on higher rates. But the Bank warned it could still act if the oil shock feeds inflation.
- Petrol: Oil eased back to the high $80s after the recent spike, though it stays elevated with the US now striking Iran directly. Petrol prices may steady, but the risk of further rises persists.
- Water: Drought still covers more than half of England and hosepipe bans affect 23 million people, even as the heat eases. Keep using water sparingly.
Iran Retaliates for US Strikes; Washington Denies Losses
Iran said it had struck back at American forces on Thursday in retaliation for the US strikes on its soil, claiming to have hit an air base in Jordan and destroyed three F-35 fighter jets. Central Command flatly denied any losses, saying n…
Russian Missile Hits Poland as NATO Scrambles Jets
A Russian missile crashed and exploded in a village in eastern Poland on Thursday, gouging a wide crater but causing no injuries, in an alarming spillover of the war in Ukraine onto NATO territory. The alliance scrambled fighter jets and s…
Russia's Overnight Barrage Kills Eight Across Ukraine
Russia fired more than seventy missiles and over two hundred and eighty drones at Ukraine overnight, killing at least eight people, including children, and wounding dozens. Six died in the Dnipropetrovsk region — among them a six-year-old…
Japan Earthquake Death Toll Climbs to 34
The death toll from this week’s powerful earthquake in south-western Japan has risen to at least thirty-four, local officials said, nearly doubling from the eighteen reported in the morning. Rescuers pressed on through the rubble of a coll…
Israeli Strikes Hit Gaza During Cairo Truce Talks
Israeli strikes killed at least four people, including children, across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, health officials said, even as Hamas met Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish mediators in Cairo to discuss a possible truce. Israel signalled it w…
Bank of England Holds Rates but Warns It Could Raise Them
The Bank of England held interest rates at 3.75 per cent on Thursday, the fifth meeting in a row without a change, but warned it stood ready to raise them if the oil-price shock from the Iran war fed through into wages and prices. The Gove…
FTSE Hits Record High as Markets Shrug Off Oil Fears
The FTSE 100 climbed to a record intraday high, close to 11,000, before slipping back to finish broadly flat, as investors took heart from the Bank of England’s steady message and a partial retreat in oil prices. Gilt yields fell back belo…
Burnham Signals a Pragmatic Turn on North Sea Oil
Andy Burnham signalled a softening of Britain’s energy stance on Thursday, saying the country “can’t ignore” its North Sea oil and gas and would take a “pragmatic” approach to the reserves. The Prime Minister made the remarks after discuss…
Greater Manchester Votes to Replace Burnham as Mayor
Polls were open across Greater Manchester on Thursday in the by-election to choose a successor to Andy Burnham as mayor, with more than two million people eligible to vote. The contest, triggered by his move to Downing Street, pits Labour…
Drought Grips England as the Heatwave Eases
Cooler and more unsettled weather began to spread across Britain on Thursday, bringing relief after the fourth heatwave of the summer peaked at 35C, but the drought gripping more than half of England showed no sign of lifting. With little…