"Following four months of steady progress, U.K. footfall stalled in July as record temperatures and the rising cost-of-living deterred people from visiting local shops," BRC Chief Executive Helen Dickinson said.
GLOBAL NEWS
U.S. to Report on July Employment as Inflation and Fed Rate Hikes Hit Economy
The U.S. labor market likely cooled again in July, economists estimate, as the economy faltered under the weight of high inflation and Federal Reserve interest-rate increases to cool demand.
Employers are estimated to have created 258,000 jobs in July, with the unemployment rate staying steady at 3.6%, according to economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal. That would mark a significant slowing of payroll growth in the first half of the year that was faster than during any other post-World War II period when the economy began contracting.
Stocks' Summer Rally Fueled by Drop in Bond Yields
A sharp decline in longer-term bond yields has powered a rebound in stocks, as slowing growth gives investors greater confidence that the postpandemic economy won't be defined by significantly higher interest rates than the one that preceded it.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note, which sets a floor on mortgage rates and myriad other borrowing costs, settled June 14 at 3.482%, the highest level since 2011 and up from 1.496% at the end of last year, according to Tradeweb. July, though, marked its biggest one-month decline since March 2020 and it settled at 2.674% Thursday.
Why Crypto's Market Cap Never Booms, or Busts, as Much as You Think
Coverage of the manic booms and busts of cryptocurrency typically cite a popular statistic: market capitalization.
Familiar to stock investors, market capitalization is simply the supply of an asset multiplied by its price. But in the Wild West of crypto, neither the supply nor the price are always as they seem.
Global Food Prices Fell Sharply in July, Led by Vegetable Oil, Grains
Global prices for food fell sharply in July, as prices of vegetable oil and grains eased, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said Friday.
The FAO's food-price index, a closely watched barometer of global food prices, averaged 140.9 points in July, down 8.6% from June. The July decline was the steepest monthly fall in the value of the index since October 2008, although it still remained 13% higher than in July 2021.
India's Central Bank Raises Rate to Rein in Inflation
India's central bank raised its policy rate in a bid to tame elevated inflation.
Reserve Bank of India Gov. Shaktikanta Das said Friday that the monetary-policy committee decided to increase its policy repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.40%.
RBA Cuts GDP, Unemployment Forecasts and Ramps Up Inflation Expectations
SYDNEY-The Reserve Bank of Australia has lowered its 2022 unemployment forecast, highlighting the continued momentum of the resource-rich economy despite rapidly rising interest rates and a jump in costs for households and businesses.
With the unemployment rate already at a 48-year low of 3.5%, the RBA now expects the figure to fall to 3.25% by the end of this year. In May, the central bank had forecast that unemployment would only fall to 3.75% this year.
Russia Is Open to Talks on Brittney Griner Prisoner Swap, Kremlin Official Says
A senior Kremlin official said Moscow was ready to discuss a prisoner swap with Washington that people familiar with the matter say could see U.S. women's basketball star Brittney Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan traded for a Russian arms dealer imprisoned in the U.S.
The comments from Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in a news conference in Cambodia, came a day after a Russian court sentenced Ms. Griner to nine years in prison following her guilty plea and conviction on charges she brought a marijuana product into the country. The U.S. maintains Ms. Griner has been wrongfully detained.
China Boasts of Ability to Blockade Taiwan as Military Exercises Continue
China touted its military exercises around Taiwan as proof of its ability to blockade the self-ruled island in the event of a war, as the operations in response to a visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi entered a second day.
Chinese warplanes and warships carried out maneuvers off Taiwan's coast on Friday morning, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said. During the operation, China's military crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait, a notional boundary that Taipei says demarcates areas of de facto control, the ministry said.
Fugitive Chinese Businessman Convicted of Visa Fraud in U.S.
A Florida jury on Thursday convicted a fugitive Chinese businessman on two counts of fraud related to obtaining visas that he used to enter the U.S., marking the downfall of a tycoon linked to both Shanghai financial shenanigans and Hollywood moviemaking.
Shi Jianxiang had been charged last year in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Florida with "fraud and misuse of visas, permits, and other documents" related to entry to the U.S. Prosecutors say he used a passport in another name to enter the U.S. at a time he was considered a fugitive from China.
Pelosi Says U.S. Won't Allow China to Isolate Taiwan
TOKYO-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday that the U.S. would continue engaging with Taiwan despite criticism from China, as Beijing encircled the island with rocket and ballistic-missile fire following her visit there.
"We will not allow them to isolate Taiwan," Mrs. Pelosi said of Beijing.
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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
08-05-22 0714ET
