US Postal Service to introduce 8% fuel surcharge on packages

The US Postal Service (USPS) plans to introduce its first-ever fuel surcharge on packages to offset rising energy costs, according to a statement.The surcharge, set at 8%, is expected to take effect on 26 April and remain in place until 17 January 2027, under the current plan.Packages under Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, USPS Ground Advantage and Parcel Select will be affected by the surcharge.“Transportation costs have been increasing, and our competitors have reacted with a number of surcharges,” reads the statement by the USPS. “We have steadfastly avoided surcharges and this charge is less than one-third of what our competitors charge for fuel alone, so even with this change, the Postal Service continues to offer great value in shipping with some of the lowest rates in the industrialized world

Rising profit margins turbocharged Australia’s latest inflation figures – but something worse is just around the corner | Greg Jericho

It is rare for economic data to be out of date the moment it is published – and yet that is the case with the February inflation figures out on Wednesday at 11.30am. By 11.31am they had been digested and ignored amid a flurry of “before the full impact of the Iran war” comments.In February, annual inflation was 3

No escape from the energy shock for UK business. A long-term strategy is still essential | Nils Pratley

The cost of energy for British business was a crisis even before the Iran war sent prices higher: the UK already had the highest electricity prices for industry among G7 countries. Now comes the next whack. How big will it be?Projections from the energy consultancy Cornwall Insight are steep for electricity and gas. For the former, it thinks increases of 10-30% are on the cards; for the latter 25-80%. The ranges are wide because, unlike with households, there are no price caps for businesses

Stocks rise and oil dips on hopes of 15-point Iran peace plan

The price of oil has dipped and stock markets around the world have moved higher on reports that the US has sent a 15-point framework for peace to Iran, amid hopes of a ceasefire in the Middle East.Positive sentiment may also have been bolstered by reports that Iran had announced it was permitting “non-hostile” ships to pass safely through the strait of Hormuz, a move that could help to reopen the vital shipping lane.Oil prices had fallen by 4% in the early hours of Wednesday, with the Brent crude benchmark sinking below $100 a barrel, as traders reacted to the prospect of an easing of the squeeze on supplies.Stock markets in Asia moved higher, with Japan’s Nikkei closing up 2.9% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng adding just over 1%

Crispin Odey tried to ‘manipulate’ sexual assault victim, FCA tells court

The financial watchdog has accused the former hedge fund manager Crispin Odey of attempting to “manipulate” a victim of sexual assault into silence.Odey texted his former employee, whose breasts he had groped, a warning in 2022 that the Financial Conduct Authority could question her about him.He said the regulator was “using” her to further its “vendetta” against him and his hedge fund, Odey Asset Management (OAM).The 67-year-old has previously accepted that he groped the woman without her consent in 2005, which he said happened while he was under the influence of sedatives after a root canal treatment.Odey, who faces a number of sexual harassment allegations, sent the woman a text in January 2022 saying the regulator would use her “to show that there were no controls and you were in fear of my position in the company which stopped you from speaking out”, according to evidence provided by the FCA at a court hearing on Wednesday

Iran war threatens to delay large offshore wind projects in EU and UK

A string of large offshore wind projects in Europe are facing potential delays as the Iran war threatens to disrupt shipping of crucial parts manufactured in the Gulf.Industry sources are concerned that components ordered from suppliers in the United Arab Emirates could become trapped if shipping remains effectively blocked through the strait of Hormuz.Iran’s chokehold on the crucial trade route has upended oil and gas deliveries from the Middle East. Sources fear contingency plans may have to be put into action to avoid delays to clean energy projects too.These include two giant offshore windfarms planned for UK waters, as well as a series of projects that will supply offshore wind power to Germany and the Netherlands

ECB could raise eurozone rates ‘as soon as next month’; oil price dips on peace talk hopes – as it happened

Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.Inflation in the UK was unchanged last month, as expected – before the Iran war drove up global energy costs, threatening a renewed price jump.Official figures showed the consumer prices index (CPI) stayed at an annual rate of 3% in February, the same as in January. Economists had expected it to stay at 3%.Clothing made the largest upward contribution to the monthly change while motor fuels made the largest, offsetting downward contribution, the Office for National Statistics said

Europe could face fuel shortage by April as Iran throttles supplies, says Shell boss

Europe could face a shortage of energy and fuel as soon as next month without a reopening of the strait of Hormuz, Shell’s chief executive has said.The boss of Europe’s biggest oil company said it was working with governments to help them address the oil and gas supply crisis, which has already led to energy rationing in Asian countries.Oil prices dipped back to about $100 a barrel on Wednesday from highs of about $114 at the start of the week, on the back of reports that the White House had sent a 15-point peace plan to Iran’s leaders.However, without a return of crude deliveries from the Gulf to global buyers via the crucial Hormuz channel, Europe could face shortages of fossil fuels within weeks, according to Wael Sawan.The Shell chief executive told an oil industry conference in Texas: “South Asia was first to get that brunt

Estate of Mike Lynch ordered to pay £920m to Hewlett Packard Enterprise

The estate of the late British tech tycoon Mike Lynch has been ordered to pay £920m to the technology company Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) two years after he died in a superyacht disaster.The ruling by London’s high court said the estate was liable to pay the sum as compensation, costs and interest for the acquisition of Lynch’s firm Autonomy by Hewlett-Packard (HP), after a UK legal ruling in 2022 that he duped the US company into paying £8.2bn for the software firm.HP split into two separate companies in 2015 – one still called HP, which focuses on printers and PCs, and the software and hardware company HPE.The deceased entrepreneur’s estate has been estimated to be worth about £500m, so the damages could leave it bankrupt

UK pet owners: we would like to hear about your experience of vet bills

The UK’s competition watchdog has ordered vets to cap prescription fees at £21 and proposed a cost-comparison website.The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said public satisfaction with the cost of services was “low” after a two-and-a-half-year investigation that found “there is not strong competition between veterinary businesses”.It said vets must now tell pet owners that medicines may be cheaper online, and let them know they can get a prescription and that this could save them money.We would like to hear from UK pet owners about their experience of vet bills. Did your vet bill come as a surprise, or was it as expected? How did you manage the cost? Tell us

UK inflation held at 3% before global energy price hit from Iran war

The UK inflation rate held steady at 3% in February, before Donald Trump’s Iran war drove up global energy costs, threatening a renewed price jump.Official figures showed the consumer prices index remained at the same level as the previous month, in line with economists’ expectations but still well above the government’s 2% target.The annual rate of food inflation fell slightly, driven by drops in olive oil, flour and pizza, but the Food and Drink Federation warned this was likely to be “the calm before the storm”.The outlook for inflation has shifted dramatically since the onset of the Middle East conflict, which has sent oil and gas prices soaring after the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz, an important shipping route.As recently as last month, the Bank of England was forecasting CPI inflation to fall to the 2% target in the second quarter of the year, opening the way to more interest rate cuts

Royal Mail owner pushes back against criticisms that service has declined

Daniel Křetínský, the Czech billionaire who bought Royal Mail’s parent company for £3.6bn last year, has insisted that service has not declined under his ownership, despite heavy criticism of late deliveries and price rises.In a defensive and sometimes impassioned performance in front of MPs on the business select committee, Křetínský said he was “deeply sorry” for any letters that arrive late.Since his takeover, Royal Mail has battled trade unions over working conditions, raised first-class stamp prices from £1.70 to £1

What’s the best material for a chopping board, and how to avoid mould?

I saw an influencer advocating for titanium chopping boards. Are they really the way to go? If not, which material is best? My wooden one has some black mould.Lenka, by email“From the off, no!” says Itamar Srulovich, whose latest cookbook, Honey & Co Daily, co-authored by Sarit Packer, is published later this spring. “The technology of chopping boards works, it’s bulletproof – this is criminal!” Sam Clark, co-founder of London’s Moro and Morito, couldn’t agree more: “The idea of chopping on a titanium board, with metal against metal, sends shivers down my spine,” he says.Of course, the surface on which you choose to chop will impact your knife, and for Milli Taylor, who is behind the When in Rome Substack, she “couldn’t imagine anything worse than titanium”

Spring’s bounty: what to sow, plant, prune, harvest and eat

ElderflowerPick on the sunniest May days, when their scent is heady and sweet, to infuse for cordial. For a truly special tipple, pour a litre of gin into a large, shallow dish, and stand as many elderflower heads, florets down, as fit for two hours. Drain, bottle, and enjoy with tonic and ice on a warm evening.RhubarbThe world’s finest rhubarb comes from a few square miles of Yorkshire thanks to a combination of climate, soil and culture. A delicious treat for the freshest stalks: dip raw in the syrup of a jar of stem ginger and nibble

‘I’d smoke Biscoff if I could’: how a little Belgian biscuit became a social media sensation

Biscoff-based recipes are breaking the internet – everything from cheesecakes and milkshakes to prawn dishes and salads. A few traditionalists are even enjoying the biscuits on their own. What’s behind this sweet success story?Around 15 years ago, Ashley Markle was admitted into a secret world, introduced to the treasures of an exclusive supply chain. She was staying at her aunt’s house and, one morning, when her aunt made her a coffee, she placed a little plastic-wrapped biscuit on the side. “I’d never seen them before,” says Markle

Move over, pistachio – it’s pecan time! The food trends hotlist

Intercultural cuisinesFrom Indo-Chinese and Taiwanese-Tex Mex, to Viet-Cajun and Cape-Malay, brace your tastebuds for culinary cultures colliding in the most delicious ways.PecanMove aside pistachio, this season is all about butter-pecan ice-cream, pecan pie, pecan dukkah, cinnamon Meshuga, and pecan frosted German chocolate cake.PostbioticsBioactive compounds such as lactic acid and butyrate, that are the end-product of good bacteria in our guts fermenting prebiotic fibre. Could they help maintain a healthy microbiome?Cambodian foodAmong the oldest Southeast Asian cuisines, Cambodian food combines freshness with aromatic complexity using ingredients such as kampot pepper, lime leaves, shrimp paste, holy basil and vinegar (check out Mamapen in Soho, London, by chef Kaneda Pen).Hi-fi Listening barsLow-lit establishments where vinyl records, exquisite small plates and discerning cocktails come together in harmony

Let them eat 1,600 cakes: inside Australia’s first Cake Picnic

Baker Alice Bennett, also known as Miss Trixie Drinks Tea, is the self-proclaimed queen of cakes in Melbourne. She assumes her cheeky email signature is why she was tapped as an assistant judge at Australia’s inaugural Cake Picnic. When the global phenomenon descended on Kings Domain in Melbourne last Saturday, 1,600 cakes were artfully presented and then summarily devoured as part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival (MFWF).Created in San Francisco in 2024 by amateur baking enthusiast Elisa Sunga, the first Cake Picnic was conceived as a way for the Californian to eat more cake than she could be bothered to bake. Her event has now toured nine cities, and will be visiting Sydney on Saturday 28 March

Joe Woodhouse’s recipes for orecchiette with chickpeas, and polenta chips with saucy chickpeas

I love pasta sauces that come together while the pasta is cooking. This one is lovely and wholesome, great for when the weather starts to warm up a little, and one of those that you can make pretty much year-round. The polenta chips, meanwhile, came about when I wanted to bulk up a plate of beans without the mess (and the pan of hot oil) that comes with making chips. The polenta can be made and set ahead, either during the day or the night before, or it will sit happily in the fridge for a couple of days.Sub in other green veg, such as shredded cavolo nero or even sliced courgettes

Fewer eggs, higher prices: Cadbury ‘doubled down’ on Easter chocolate shrinkflation, Choice finds

This year’s Easter baskets may be under-egged, as boxes of the festive chocolate treats become smaller and more expensive. An annual price comparison by Australia’s consumer watchdog has found that the cost of “pretty much all chocolate products” in the Easter egg category has gone up, said Choice journalist Liam Kennedy. But while most products have stayed the same size, some have been hit by shrinkflation as well.Cadbury are “definitely our main culprit”, Kennedy said. In 2025, Choice found that the brand’s largest pack of hollow Easter eggs reduced from 408g to 374g, while increasing in price from $12

Welcome to the United States of Mancunia

A new wave of hyper-regional hoagies, subs and pizzas are taking over Manchester’s food scene. But are they really as American as apple pie?It’s just after midday, on a chilly, wind-whipped Friday in central Manchester, and an ever-growing crowd of people in puffer jackets is spilling out from a Chinatown service alley. A few yards away, there’s another huddle of bundled-up figures, dipping into capacious paper bags to set up an improvised picnic on the junction boxes outside a corner pub. Fistfuls of crinkle-cut chips are snaffled, cans of pop are sipped, and, despite the pervading scent of bin juice and fried chicken, enormous, truncheon-sized sandwiches are unwrapped and messily dispatched.It looks a little like a staged re-enactment of Covid-era dining practices

How to make the perfect cheese khachapuri – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect …

The first time I encountered what Tiko Tuskadze describes as “perhaps the most iconic of all Georgian dishes” was in her London restaurant, Little Georgia, back in the days when it was a tiny space on Broadway Market. If “traditional cheesebread … baked to order” sounded good on the menu, the reality of khachapuri was even better: a golden round of fluffy, buttery bread spilling forth frills of hot, salty dairy on to the plate (this is the kind of thing that passes for fast food in Georgia, according to Silvena Rowe, which makes me feel as if we’ve been slightly short-changed.)Tuskadze goes on to explain in her book Supra that there are “as many variations … as there are families in Georgia” – the boat-shaped, open adjaruili that Polina Chesnakova notes has “taken the internet by storm”, the Ossetian mashed potato variety and the Gurian take with hard-boiled eggs and a “supremely fluffy, slightly oniony, soufflé-like cheese filling”, which inspires Caroline Eden to share with readers of her book Green Mountains the glorious Georgian word shemomechama, “which loosely translates as, ‘I accidentally ate the whole thing’”. Here, however, I’m going to concentrate on what Chesnakova says is “by far the one most commonly consumed in Georgia itself”, and also the one that reminds Tuskadze most of home, namely imeruli khachapuri, originally from the west-central region of Imereti, which is “essentially a flat bread stuffed with buttery imeruli cheese curds and cooked on the stovetop”. Need I say more?After noting that the shape and filling varies according to region, Darra Goldstein writes in her book The Georgian Feast that, similarly, “the dough can be yeasty with a thick crust, many-layered and flaky, or tender and cake-like”, but “at home, khachapuri is more often made without yeast, with baking soda (a European import) or yoghurt used to tenderise the dough”

Cooking with Angela Hartnett: ‘I love food, but I don’t need to talk about it 24/7’

Angela Hartnett’s home kitchen isn’t a place you could recreate, however much Le Creuset you bought. A basement in east London, it has the relaxed timelessness of a villa in a Sally Rooney novel, but the embedded knowledge of a Michelin-starred chef who’s been cooking since she worked in her family’s chippy 40 and a bit years ago (she’s now 57) – every utensil exactly where your hand would be looking for it, everything mysteriously the right size.Today she’s making a poached chicken with spring vegetables. It sounds simple, and it’s maybe the fundamental paradox of food that the simpler a dish – the fewer the ingredients, the less fussing about – the easier it is to screw up. Poached chicken can come out the colour of over-washed underpants, although, to be fair, still taste delicious

Slop it like it’s hot: the rise of build-your-own takeaway salad bowls

Few things have killed the leisurely lunch like capitalism, but to really see this in action, the food court of London’s financial shadowland, Canary Wharf, is a good place to start. Wandering the warren of Prets and Itsus are Deliveroo riders and suits-on-the-clock. And they’re usually carrying the same thing: a nice big bowl of slop.A slop bowl is the universal term for a mishmash of pick-your-own dishes assembled and sold in fast-casual spots that have become the de facto working lunch. The contents vary (they tend to feature Asian and eastern Mediterranean dishes) but as the name suggests, it is always served in a bowl, and by the time you’ve got to your desk, has usually become slop

Osteria Vibrato, London W1: “Worth singing loudly about” – restaurant review | Grace Dent on restaurants

Osteria Vibrato appeared last month on Greek Street, Soho, feeling to any passerby just like any other neutral-fronted Italian restaurant in this pasta-swamped part of the capital. Not much to see here. Pushing your face against the window wouldn’t achieve much, either, apart from an unsightly smear.Meanwhile, all the in-the-know people – that bunch of infuriating, generously paunched “foodies” who keep London restaurant gossip alive – understood that this particular osteria is the latest opening by Charlie Mellor, former proprietor of the Laughing Heart in Hackney, which opened in 2016 and very quickly became favoured by chefs and industry media types alike, because it took food very seriously, stayed open late and danced a dainty line between debauched and old-school cosseting. It sold pumpkin cappelletti with sage, and chicken liver paté with crisp chicken skin and jellied walnut liqueur