Oil at three-week high as US-Iran peace talks stall; China blocks Meta’s takeover of AI agent Manus – business live
Posted on Monday April 27, 2026

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news

Shares in athletic apparel and footwear company Adidas have jumped by almost 1.75% in early trading after three of its athletes shone at the London Marathon yesterday.

Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha both smashed the two-hour barrier in the men’s marathon race, and Tigist Assefa set a women-only world record in the women’s race.

The adidas family is incredibly proud of Sabastian and Tigist’s historic achievements, marking the fastest times humans have ever run in a marathon.

This is a testament to the years of hard work and dedication they have made, alongside our innovation team, who have built a supershoe which breaks new ground in the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3.”

The Iran war has triggered one of the largest disruptions to physical oil supply in modern history. While de‑escalation could ease some geopolitical risk premiums, the damage to production, exports and logistics means markets are unlikely to quickly return to pre‑war conditions.

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G7 central banks poised to hold borrowing costs amid concerns over prolonged Iran war
Posted on Monday April 27, 2026

Critical week for global economy as banks expected to issue warnings over conflict driving up prices

• Business live – latest updates

The world’s most powerful central banks are poised to hold borrowing costs unchanged this week amid growing concerns over the unfolding inflation shock from the Iran war.

In a critical week for the global economy, each of the central banks in the G7 are expected to issue warnings over the risks from the Middle East war driving up prices for households and businesses.

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Elon Musk and Sam Altman face off in court over OpenAI’s founding mission
Posted on Monday April 27, 2026

Musk’s lawsuit accuses Altman of fraud, while OpenAI says that Musk is ‘motivated by jealousy’

A lawsuit between two of Silicon Valley’s biggest tycoons goes to trial Monday in California, the culmination of a years-long bitter feud. Elon Musk has accused Sam Altman of betraying the founding agreement of the non-profit they started together, OpenAI, by changing it to a for-profit enterprise.

Musk accuses Altman, OpenAI, its president Greg Brockman, and its major partner Microsoft of breach of contract and unjust enrichment in the lawsuit. Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday morning at a federal courthouse in Oakland, with opening arguments from both sides expected later this week. The trial is slated to last two to three weeks. Along with internal communications from Musk and key executives at OpenAI, the trial promises a who’s who of Silicon Valley on the witness stand, including Musk, Altman and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

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Children’s shoe retailers say closure of specialist shops is harming foot health
Posted on Sunday April 26, 2026

Experts report more young people with conditions such as bunions after wearing shoes that are too small or narrow

Parents should care for their children’s feet in the same way as their eyes and teeth, according to footwear specialists who say they are seeing more young people with painful conditions such as bunions.

Bunions are bony lumps on the side of the foot. People can be genetically pre-disposed but ill-fitting shoes are seen as an aggravating factor.

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Elon Musk and Sam Altman face off in court over OpenAI’s founding mission
Posted on Monday April 27, 2026

Musk’s lawsuit accuses Altman of fraud, while OpenAI says that Musk is ‘motivated by jealousy’

A lawsuit between two of Silicon Valley’s biggest tycoons goes to trial Monday in California, the culmination of a years-long bitter feud. Elon Musk has accused Sam Altman of betraying the founding agreement of the non-profit they started together, OpenAI, by changing it to a for-profit enterprise.

Musk accuses Altman, OpenAI, its president Greg Brockman, and its major partner Microsoft of breach of contract and unjust enrichment in the lawsuit. Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday morning at a federal courthouse in Oakland, with opening arguments from both sides expected later this week. The trial is slated to last two to three weeks. Along with internal communications from Musk and key executives at OpenAI, the trial promises a who’s who of Silicon Valley on the witness stand, including Musk, Altman and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

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Inside China’s robotics revolution – podcast
Posted on Monday April 27, 2026

How close are we to the sci-fi vision of autonomous humanoid robots? I visited 11 companies in five Chinese cities to find out

By Chang Che. Read by Vincent Lai

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Premier League and FA Cup semi-finals: 10 talking points from the weekend’s action
Posted on Monday April 27, 2026

Sánchez plays long game for McFarlane, Southampton can take heart, Arteta tries to gain edge and Isak will come good

One moment from their FA Cup semi-final to Chelsea will haunt Leeds. When Tosin Adarabioyo stretched for a through ball and couldn’t quite get there, quarter of an hour in, everything seemed to slow down. There was Brenden Aaronson with just Robert Sánchez to beat, with the chance to put Leeds ahead against a side that hadn’t scored in five Premier League games and had seemingly lost all confidence. Even at the time it felt a huge moment. The US international didn’t do much wrong, but Sánchez made a fine save with his foot. That, it turned out, was the game. There were other opportunities – most notably Anton Stach’s drive that Sánchez saved spectacularly and the Dominic Calvert-Lewin header just after that, aimed straight at the keeper. They came after Chelsea had taken the lead and the emotional tone was set, though. Sometimes one chance can define a game. Jonathan Wilson

FA Cup semi-final report: Chelsea 1-0 Leeds

Jonathan Wilson: Chelsea chaos theory delivers another trophy chance

FA Cup semi-final report: Manchester City 2-1 Southampton

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Bread and honey for breakfast and 150 miles a week training: secrets of Sawe’s world record
Posted on Sunday April 26, 2026

• Kenyan first man to run sub-two-hour marathon

• ‘I have shown that nothing is not possible’

Sabastian Sawe’s astonishing world marathon record of one hour 59 minutes and 30 seconds at Sunday’s ­London Marathon was fuelled by running 150 miles a week, wearing the ­lightest super shoes in history and a pre-race breakfast of bread and honey, the Kenyan and his team have revealed.

With an estimated 800,000 watching in the capital, the 31-year-old became the first man to run a sub-two-hour marathon in an official race as he powered home in the second half of the race to shatter the world record.

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