Trump privately indicates he may soon fire Fed chair Jerome Powell

Donald Trump has privately indicated he is on the verge of firing the Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, rattling Wall Street and renewing questions over the US central bank’s independence.The US president insisted on Wednesday that it was “highly unlikely” he would dismiss the Fed chair, after reports he had suggested he would and shown a draft letter dismissing Powell to political allies.“I don’t rule out anything, but I think it’s highly unlikely. Unless he has to leave for fraud,” said Trump. The president has recently criticized Powell for a $2

Rachel Reeves warned by City grandees not to weaken banking safeguards

Rachel Reeves has been warned by City grandees that her plan to slash financial red tape could have little benefit for British households while increasing risks in the banking industry.The chancellor used a speech to City bosses attending the annual Mansion House dinner on Tuesday to argue that in too many areas regulation was acting as a “boot on the neck of business”, as she pledged sweeping changes to help revive the economy.However, leading figures involved in Britain’s post-2008 drive to prevent a repeat of the financial crisis warned Labour against unpicking bank ringfencing – a key measure introduced after the collapse.Sir John Vickers, the architect of the UK’s ringfencing rules, deployed after the financial crisis to separate high street banking from riskier investment banking, said a wholesale retreat from the reform would be a “very bad idea”.Lord Turner, who took over as chair of the Financial Services Authority during the 2008 crash and played a leading role in the post-crisis redesign of the banking system, also warned the chancellor to proceed with caution

Internet-safe iPhone for children goes on sale for £99 a month

A neutered iPhone, stripped of web browsers and social media apps, is going on sale to parents worried about their children’s phone use, but the “peace and freedom” its creators promise will come at a steep price.The pared-back version of the top-selling handset, which will not allow internet searches, gaming or downloads of Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and other social media, is being offered in the UK for £99 a month by a US company that wants children to “reconnect with real life, not just reduce screen time”.At more than double the price of a typical two-year iPhone contract, Sage Mobile, an iPhone 16 handset loaded with custom software, will be a pricey way to avoid online harms. But it reflects growing parental dilemmas over the best way to start their children’s digital lives.Research has shown children with problematic smartphone use are twice as likely to experience anxiety and almost three times as likely to experience depression compared with those whose use did not resemble addiction

WeTransfer says user content will not be used to train AI after backlash

The popular filesharing service WeTransfer has said user content will not be used to train artificial intelligence after a change in its service terms had triggered a public backlash.The company, which is regularly used by creative professionals to transfer their work online, had suggested in new terms that uploaded files could be used to “improve machine learning models”.The clause had previously said the service had a right to “reproduce, modify, distribute and publicly display” content, and the updated version caused confusion among users.A WeTransfer spokesperson said user content had never been used, even internally, to test or develop AI models and that “no specific kind of AI” was being considered for use by the Dutch company.The firm said: “There’s no change in how WeTransfer handles your content in practice

Tour de France 2025: Abrahamsen wins fast and furious stage 11 as Pogacar falls in Toulouse – as it happened

Stage 11 race report: What a day!Such a dramatic end to a speedy and tense stage. It had breakaways, attacks, big names and chaotic scenes. Of stage 11, Ben Healy said: “I think I’ve lost a few years of my life on that stage.” That probably sums up how the peloton found today’s unrelenting stage.For today’s winner though, it was a dream come true, with Jonas Abrahamsen having broken his collarbone only four weeks ago and not even knowing whether he would make the Tour or not

Rory McIlroy must scale emotional mountain in search of home Open glory

The Northern Irishman has nothing left to prove, but still has to carry a vast weight of expectation at Royal PortrushThere was a lick of breeze riffling the long grass at Royal Portrush on Wednesday morning, and a lot of swirling talk besides. “Have you seen him?” “I heard he’s over by the putting green.” “He’s on the range.” “I heard he’s on the 1st now.” Round here everyone’s either looking for Rory McIlroy, looking at Rory McIlroy, or looking back on Rory McIlroy