Economics

Hackers Tamper With French Blood Service Cold Stores Amid Wave of Fridge Attacks in Europe: November 4, 2026

Hackers raised the temperatures at three cold storage facilities run by France’s national blood service, the Établissement Français du Sang (EFS), overnight on Monday, in the latest in a wave of attacks on refrigeration systems across Europe.

Alarms alerted technicians, who were able to intervene, the Guardian reported. The EFS supplies more than 1,900 hospitals and over a million patients a year.

Supermarket refrigerators in about a dozen countries have been hacked in recent weeks, with temperatures reaching 50C in some cases. Up to 700 French supermarkets were hit last month.

“These are not isolated incidents,” European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said.

Sources: The Guardian

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Reserve Bank of Australia Raises Rates to 4.85%, an 18-Year High: November 3, 2026

The Reserve Bank of Australia raised its cash rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.85% on Tuesday, its fifth increase this year and the highest level since 2008.

The board split six to three, with three members favouring holding rates steady.

“Inflation is too high, and our forecast suggests it will stay higher for longer. Some pain now will prevent even worse pain down the track,” Governor Michele Bullock said, according to the Guardian.

The bank expects inflation to climb to about 4.5% by the end of 2026 and not return to its 2-3% target band until late 2027. It forecast economic growth of 1.6% this year and 1.3% in 2027.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said higher fuel prices due to the Middle East conflict were the “primary driver” of inflation. Opposition leader Angus Taylor blamed “Labor’s spending spree.” Comparison site Canstar estimated the rise adds A$107 a month to repayments on a A$700,000 home loan.

Sources: The Guardian, RNZ

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UK and EU Settle Deal to Scrap Brexit Checks on Food and Animal Products: November 3, 2026

The UK and the European Union have settled the text of a deal removing Brexit-era checks on trade in food, animal and plant products, ahead of a UK-EU summit on November 20.

The 200-page sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement has been circulated to EU governments, and sources said it had “been settled and there will no further negotiation,” the Guardian reported. It is not expected to take effect until the first quarter of 2028.

The deal would let exports of fresh sausages, burgers, shellfish and seed potatoes to the EU resume, and remove the need for costly export health certificates. In return, the UK would follow EU food and plant rules through what is called dynamic alignment. The government says it will eventually bring £5.1 billion a year in economic benefits.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said “public opinion has changed nationally” since the 2016 referendum but that he would “not run ahead of public opinion.” Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said dynamic alignment would be a red line, and Reform UK’s Richard Tice said it would “crush Britain’s competitiveness.”

The National Farmers’ Union said last month that British food exports to the EU had fallen by a third since Brexit.

Sources: The Guardian, BBC News

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Brazil Publishes First Global Roadmap for Moving Away From Fossil Fuels: November 3, 2026

Brazil, host of last year’s COP30 climate summit, on Tuesday published what it called the world’s first global roadmap for transitioning away from fossil fuels, saying countries can begin cutting their dependence on coal, oil and gas now.

The roadmap, along with a second one on halting and reversing deforestation, was the compromise reached in Belém after a bitter dispute over whether the summit’s final text should include fossil fuel pledges.

The documents are not binding and contain no deadlines. They leave each country to assess its own dependence on fossil fuels and choose steps such as cutting gas flaring and venting, reducing fossil fuel subsidies and building renewable power.

“They are documents of implementation,” COP30 President André Corrêa do Lago told the Guardian, saying finance, transport, energy and infrastructure ministries should take them up.

Joeri Rogelj of Imperial College London said the roadmaps “fall short of clearly indicating the pace of change needed by including no timeline or key benchmarks.”

The plans come ahead of COP31 in Antalya, Turkey, later this month.

Sources: The Guardian

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Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever Offers Resignation After Budget Talks Collapse: November 2, 2026

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever offered his government’s resignation to King Philippe on Monday after overnight talks among his five-party coalition failed to agree a budget.

The king has not yet accepted the resignation. He will consult party leaders from Tuesday and meet De Wever again on Friday, the Associated Press reported.

The so-called Arizona coalition of the N-VA, MR, Les Engagés, Vooruit and CD&V had been trying to close a gap of about €10 billion. Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot said there were “too many sticking points,” while MR’s David Clarinval complained of “far too many taxes on the table.”

Belgium’s deficit reached 5.2% of GDP in 2025, according to Politico Europe, and its public debt tops €735 billion, more than 110% of GDP, according to Euronews, putting it under pressure from EU fiscal rules.

A similar standoff last year ended with the king granting De Wever extra time rather than accepting his resignation.

Sources: Associated Press, Euronews, Politico Europe

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Australian House Prices Fall for Seventh Straight Month in Fastest Decline in 40 Years: November 1, 2026

Australian home values fell for a seventh consecutive month in October, with the pace of decline the fastest in at least 40 years, according to property research firm Cotality.

Cotality’s national Home Value Index fell 1.2 percent in October and is now 6.7 percent below its March peak, a drop of about A$63,400 for the median dwelling, which now stands at A$884,855. Capital city values are down 8.1 percent in seven months, close to the record 8.2 percent fall of 2017 to 2019, ABC News reported.

“This is really a demand-led downturn,” said Cotality head of research Gerard Burg, pointing to higher interest rates that have cut borrowing capacity and raised mortgage repayments, as well as weaker investor demand after federal budget changes to property tax breaks.

Sales over the past three months were 23 percent lower than a year earlier. Auction clearance rates in the combined capitals are running below 50 percent, the median time on market of 39 days is the longest since August 2020, and vendor discounting of 4.7 percent is the largest since May 2019.

Burg said buyers were likely to hold back until the Reserve Bank of Australia signals a change in direction on rates, which he does not expect until the latter half of 2027.

Sources: ABC News (Australia)

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Qatari LNG Carrier Hit by Unidentified Objects in the Gulf: November 1, 2026

A Qatari liquefied natural gas carrier was hit by “unidentified objects” while sailing in the Gulf, its owner said, the latest attack on commercial shipping since the US-Israel war on Iran began in February.

Qatar Gas Transport Company (Nakilat) said its LNG carrier Al Mayeda was struck on Friday evening. None of the crew was injured, there was no environmental impact, and the vessel is “in a safe condition, operational” while the damage is assessed, the company said in a statement.

More than 120 commercial ships have been hit since the war began, according to data from the International Maritime Organization and the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency cited by Al Jazeera. With at least 29 ships hit, October was the worst month of the war, ahead of 20 attacks in March.

Iran, which closed the Strait of Hormuz early in the war, has warned that vessels passing without its permission would face “destruction”. Attacks have increased since the United States reimposed a blockade on Iran’s southern ports in July. No one has claimed responsibility for the strike on Al Mayeda.

Sources: Al Jazeera, Nakilat

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Ghana Says Russia Will Help Develop 2,000-Megawatt Nuclear Power Plant: November 1, 2026

Russia has agreed to work with Ghana on developing a 2,000-megawatt nuclear power plant following talks at the Russia-Africa Summit, Ghanaian Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa said on Saturday, according to Reuters.

Ablakwa said the project is aimed at strengthening energy security and industrialisation. The announcement came a day after Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom said it was in talks with four African countries, including Ghana, on large nuclear power projects.

Speaking at the summit in Moscow earlier in the week, President John Dramani Mahama said Ghana had “initiated discussions with Rosatom on the establishment of Ghana’s first nuclear power station,” the Ghana News Agency reported. He recalled that the Soviet Union supplied Ghana with a small research reactor in 1964.

The two countries also agreed to deepen defence ties through a new pact covering assets for Ghana’s military. Ablakwa said Russian President Vladimir Putin had barred Ghanaians from taking part in Russia’s war in Ukraine, including through irregular recruitment or voluntary enlistment. No site, reactor design, cost or timetable for the plant has been announced.

Sources: Reuters via The Straits Times, Ghana News Agency

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Four Tankers Hit Mines in Strait of Hormuz as Iran’s Supreme Leader Orders ‘Unrestricted’ Response to Any Attack: October 31, 2026

TEHRAN — Four oil tankers, including a supertanker carrying more than two million barrels of crude, hit mines and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said, claiming the vessels had used unauthorised routes and ignored radio warnings.

Oman said it rescued 25 crew from a Panama-flagged tanker that caught fire off Musandam, though it was unclear whether that was one of the ships described by Iran. Britain’s maritime trade agency also reported a vessel struck by an “unknown projectile,” with its crew safe, ABC News reported.

On Saturday, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei ordered commanders to prepare “an immediate and effective response, without geographical restriction” if Iran is attacked again, amid reports the US and Israel are weighing new strikes.

Qatari diplomats held talks in Tehran on Friday, with more expected Saturday, after Iran reportedly received a letter from US Vice President JD Vance.

Sources: ABC News (Australia), Al Jazeera

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Canada Aims to Become EU’s First ‘Associate Member’ by June Under New Alliance: October 31, 2026

MONTREAL — Canada and the European Union launched an “Alliance for the Future” at the close of a two-day summit in Montreal, with Prime Minister Mark Carney saying he hopes to finalise a deal making Canada the bloc’s first “associate member” by June.

Canadian cabinet ministers and European commissioners will meet in March, ahead of concluding negotiations at European Council meetings in June. The leaders agreed initiatives on digital trade, critical minerals and artificial intelligence, and Canada agreed to contribute to a €90bn EU support loan for Ukraine.

“Our societies have been shaken by new storms,” Carney said, citing the “erosion of democratic norms” and “the weaponization of trade.” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “These headwinds won’t stop blowing. This change is permanent.”

US President Donald Trump’s trade war has accelerated efforts on both sides to reduce dependence on Washington, and Trump has threatened tariffs on Europe if he considers the arrangement unfriendly. Carney insisted the alliance was “about reinforcing sovereignty,” not retaliation, ABC News reported.

Sources: ABC News (Australia), The Guardian

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