Trump announces new 50% tariff on Canadian cars, trucks and steel
Posted on Monday August 24, 2026

Move is latest deterioration in trade relations between neighbors with historically strong economic ties

Donald Trump announced a new 50% tariff on automobiles and crucial raw materials from Canada, the latest deterioration in trade relations between the two neighbors with historically strong economic ties.

The US president said that the increased tariffs would start on 1 January 2027 on all cars, trucks, automobile parts and steel. He also derided the nation’s tariffs on American farmers, writing on social media that Canada has been “ripping off” the US “for years”.

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US threatens severe sanctions against countries with economic ties to Iran
Posted on Monday August 24, 2026

Washington launches campaign to isolate Tehran but it is unclear whether it will apply measures to China

The US has threatened to impose severe sanctions against any country or entity maintaining economic ties with Iran, hoping to achieve with economic measures what military means have so far failed to do.

It is unclear, however, how far the Trump administration is prepared to go in confronting China, Iran’s biggest trading partner, which has signalled its resistance to US economic pressure to cut off links with an ally.

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Up to £464m ‘moved through more than 3,000 UK high street shell companies’
Posted on Monday August 24, 2026

Research shows firms are branded as beauty and convenience but apparently operate in money-laundering and terrorist financing sectors

Up to £464m has “moved through” more than 3,000 UK shell companies branded as beauty and convenience stores but apparently operating in the money-laundering and terrorist financing sectors, a new analysis sets out.

The companies – listed as hairdressers, barber shops and salons, on the one hand, or mini-marts and corner shops on the other – show “remarkably similar lifespans” of about six months despite their seemingly different purposes.

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Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon price rises in western Europe ‘highest in world’
Posted on Monday August 24, 2026

World’s largest streaming services have also increased subscription costs repeatedly in US, research finds

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Subscribers to Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video in western Europe have faced higher price increases than in any other market in recent years, according to research.

Over the past four years the world’s largest subscription video streaming services have dramatically changed their business models introducing lower-priced, basic advertising tiers to attract new subscribers, while also increasingly monetising users willing to pay more for a premium experience.

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‘We are hitting a different chapter’: OpenAI leader warns of threat of ‘persistent’ AI cyber-attacks
Posted on Sunday August 23, 2026

Chris Lehane tells Guardian of need to implement new safety standards as critics say AI firms acting ‘recklessly’

A senior leader at OpenAI has said people should prepare to defend against “ongoing, persistent” cyber-attacks from AIs, as cutting-edge artificial intelligence models gain advanced capabilities to plan and launch offensives.

The leading AI company this week announced a pause in development of its most advanced internal models amid rising safety fears, and Chris Lehane, its chief global affairs officer, said: “We are hitting a different chapter, a different moment within AI, in terms of what the capabilities of this technology can do.”

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Hook, hold, harvest and hide: Meta’s alleged strategy laid out in first week of landmark trial
Posted on Saturday August 22, 2026

In trial that opened on Tuesday, California and 28 other states accused the company of designing addictive sites and violating laws protecting children’s privacy

Meta’s business can be boiled down to four words that begin with the letter H: hook, hold, harvest, hide, according to a lawyer who is prosecuting the world’s largest social media company.

The owner of Facebook and Instagram “hooks” in users, “holds” them on its platforms for as long as possible, “harvests” their data and then “hides” the truth from the public, she argued.

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Chelsea’s front three dazzle as they edge out Fulham in derby thriller
Posted on Monday August 24, 2026

This was a crash course for Xabi Alonso in life at Chelsea. His new side thrilled in possession at Craven Cottage. The front three of João Pedro, Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers combined to devastating effect and there was even an assist for the new £52m centre-back, Maxence Lacroix.

At times the only issue was the two No 10s both laying claim to the ice cold celebration. Palmer had a point to prove after missing out on England’s World Cup squad and Rogers scored on his debut after his £117m move from Aston Villa. Yet victory in Alonso’s first competitive game as Chelsea’s manager was far from straightforward. He saw that he needs a better goalkeeper than Robert Sánchez and will worry about his side’s lack of smarts. Fulham, who will hope this bright start under Alvaro Arbeloa shows there is life after Marco Silva, were unfortunate not to rescue a point.

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Post-Pep Premier League era begins with blast of hyper-managed shock and awe | Barney Ronay
Posted on Monday August 24, 2026

Possession numbers, the intense physicality and the pure rhythm of games all felt noticeably new as the season began

There has been something oddly narcotic and moreish about the drip‑drip of fresh Pep Guardiola content either side of the start of the new Premier League season. Eras come and go. Everything dies, baby, that’s a fact. But four‑part Amazon Prime documentaries make angels of us all.

So we have continued to feast on the Pep-at-City visuals: dead jeopardy, reheated beefs, the uplifting team talks of a departed manager to the departed players of a departed team, and moments that often feel far more gripping than the daily churn of what we must, out of habit, call the real world.

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