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The fates of two ostensibly similar online games released this year, Marathon and Highguard, prove that success is becoming close to unattainableWhat does success look like for developers of online video games? In 2026, the answer could not be clearer: no one has a clue.Consider Highguard, 2026's first big flop. Signs were promising on its launch on 26 January, with a peak of 100,000 concurrent players on Steam – plus those enjoying the game on PlayStation and Xbox, which do not make player counts public. As a free-to-play game, the barrier to entry for Highguard was low. And thanks to a prime advertising placement at the end of December's The Game Awards – a buzzy spot usually reserved for known hitmakers, not free-to-play upstarts – curiosity was high. Continue reading......

Taking money from just about anyone is just the latest example of Reform's leader following the Trump school of self-enrichmentNigel Farage will say pretty much anything for money. Write him a script, stuff a coin in the slot and off he goes: the man who would be prime minister could be your personal mouthpiece for less than £100.Or at least, that's the obvious explanation for why – until he was exposed by the Guardian – the Reform UK leader has been churning out written-to-order video messages on request for (among others) Canadian white supremacists, a man jailed for throwing a bottle during the 2024 summer riots, and someone apparently keen to hear him talk about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's “big naturals”, pornified slang describing the breasts of a woman who could be running for US president before long.Gaby Hinsliff is a Guardian columnistGuardian Newsroom: Can Labour come back from the brink?On Thursday 30 April, join Gaby Hinsliff, Zoe Williams, Polly Toynbee and Rafael Behr as they disc...

The chancellor makes a compelling case for alignment with the EU, but her strategic analysis isn't matched with political urgency in Downing StreetIn an age of attention-grabbing algorithms and amplified outrage on social media, politicians have few incentives to make arguments at any length. That makes Rachel Reeves's Mais lecture earlier this week refreshing as a detailed exposition of the chancellor's thinking.Ms Reeves returned to an argument she first made in opposition, about the growing need for government intervention to mitigate public anxiety and destabilising volatility in a dangerous world. She calls this “securonomics” and it is intended as a rebuttal to the laissez-faire, small-state theories that, as applied by Conservative governments, starved Britain of investment, amplified regional inequalities and created the fallacious case for Brexit.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be consid...

Cryptocurrency's biggest Pac spent more than $10m for their candidates, only to be defeated by those who are anti-cryptoSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxThe cryptocurrency industry spent big and lost often in this week's Illinois primaries.As the industry prepares to make massive donations in the 2026 midterm elections to replicate its success in 2024, the Illinois losses mark an early setback for firms that are trying to establish themselves as power players in American politics. Continue reading......

FTSE 100's modest retreat suggests investors underestimating inflationary impact if energy prices remain elevatedWas it only at the new year that the fanfare was heard for the FTSE 100 index breaking through 10,000 for the first time? It was – on 2 January – and the index then added another 900 points by the end of February. On Thursday, the Footsie briefly fell below that round number as Iran struck Qatar's enormous Ras Laffan complex, which normally supplies a fifth of the world's liquefied natural gas, before closing at 10,063, down 2.3% on the day.There are two ways to view that price action. One is to say the sharp reversal from the peak represents a necessarily severe reaction to the war on Iran. Another is to conclude that a flat year-to-date return, after a bountiful 20% gain in 2025, suggests stock markets have barely begun to take seriously the inflationary impact if the war lasts many more weeks, or even months, and keeps oil above $100 a barrel. Continue reading......

Fed officials expected to lower capital requirements for banks such as Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase by 4.8%Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxUS federal regulators are trying to soften bank requirements, loosening the amount of capital US banks must have in what would be some of the biggest changes to bank restrictions since the 2008 financial crisis and a huge win for financial institutions.On Thursday, US Federal Reserve officials are expected to vote to lower capital requirements – the funds they need to cover risky assets – for the biggest banks by 4.8%, which could free up capital for banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. Continue reading......

Decision comes as concerns mount over economic fallout from Iran war bringing inflation shockAnalysis: BoE delivers message Britons don't want to hearBusiness live – latest updatesThe Bank of England has kept interest rates on hold and signalled it could be forced to increase borrowing costs in the coming months as the US-Israel war on Iran threatens to drive inflation in the UK above 3%.The Bank's rate-setting monetary policy committee (MPC) voted unanimously to keep its base rate at 3.75% amid growing concern over the surge in energy prices triggered by the conflict. Continue reading......

Attacks on facilities by both sides in the conflict this week threaten grave consequences for the global economyMiddle East crisis – live updatesThe escalating attacks on key oil and gas projects in the Middle East are expected to fuel a new phase of the ongoing conflict, with profound consequences for the world's energy supplies and the global economy.The Iran regime has vowed to target a string of key energy infrastructure across the region after warning that an Israeli strike on a production facility for its largest gasfield at South Pars on Wednesday had ignited a “full-scale economic war”. Continue reading......

Iran war and its impact on energy and fertiliser costs is the main risk to the global economy, report saysBusiness live – latest updatesAn extended period of high oil prices as a result of war in the Middle East could “crimp” the AI boom, the World Trade Organization's chief economist has warned.The war and its impact on energy and fertiliser costs is the main risk to the global economy identified in the WTO's latest Global Trade Outlook. Continue reading......

US leaders anticipated a walkover. Now they're embroiled in a conflict that could hasten the end of US economic dominance Nobody gave the Boers a prayer when the war in South Africa began in 1899. It was farmers ranged against the might of the British empire, and the expectation was that resistance would quickly crumble.Eventually, might did prevail. Britain won the Boer war, but it was a hollow victory that took the best part of three years to achieve and came at a high cost. The blow to British prestige – coming at a time when its global hegemony was under threat from fast-growing countries such as the US – was severe. Far from highlighting the extent of Britain's power, it exposed its limitations. Continue reading......

Carriers warn they cannot hold off passing on costs for long, while some airlines plan to increase flights via AsiaBusiness live – latest updatesEurope's biggest airlines have said the spike in fuel prices caused by the war in the Middle East will drive up fares and are advising passengers to book early.While carriers have partly hedged the price of jet fuel, bosses said they could not keep avoiding passing on additional costs to passengers for long. Continue reading......

Move comes as president attempts to mitigate rising price of oil while carrying out war on IranSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxDonald Trump is trying to make it easier for foreign tankers to move around the US, temporarily allowing foreign-flagged ships carrying oil and gas to travel between US ports, the White House announced Wednesday.The move comes as the president tries to manage a delicate balancing act, attempting to mitigate the increasing price of oil while also carrying out the US-Israel war on Iran. Continue reading......

Close relatives of affected post office operators will be able to make claim over harm scandal caused families Family members of post office operators affected by the Horizon IT scandal will be able to claim compensation under a new government scheme.Campaigners have lobbied for compensation in relation to the harm the scandal has caused to the mental health and wellbeing of close relatives who have not been eligible under the redress schemes being run by the Post Office and the government. Continue reading......

Now, the total is likely to have exceeded $18bn and counting. Where are America's war dollars going, in a war that was never declared in the first place? Continue reading......

Decision to hold interest rates is backed by gloomy assessment of economy as Iran war pushes up oil pricesBank of England holds interest rates at 3.75%Business live – latest updatesThe US-Israel attack on Iran has already driven prices higher and not just at the petrol pumps, the Bank of England said on Thursday in a gloomy assessment of the UK's economic outlook.An inflation rate that was on track to fall from 3% to the Bank of England's 2% target in the coming months is now expected to rise to 3.5%. That is the likely impact of the US and Israel's war on Iran. Continue reading......

Paul Griggs says senior staff at consulting firm who are not 'paranoid about being AI-first' are likely to be replacedBusiness live – latest updatesThe US boss of PricewaterhouseCoopers has warned that partners who do not get to grips with AI have no future at the consulting firm.Paul Griggs said senior staff who were not “paranoid about being AI-first” would probably be replaced by others who were ready to embrace the technology. Continue reading......

Soaring oil costs signal the great transfer of wealth away from households, but also a new opportunity to redistribute itThe strait of Hormuz is now at the centre of the world. While the US-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic leads to death, destruction and pollution across the Middle East, the whole of the global economy is bracing for the fallout from the conflict. Shipping through the narrow passage has come to a near halt. Already, crude oil prices have shot to above $100 per barrel, up from $60 a barrel at the beginning of the year, while gasoline prices are jumping and airlines are announcing price hikes. Governments of oil-importing countries are scrambling to contain the fallout, announcing measures ranging from shorter work weeks to conserve fuel to price regulations. What they are not yet discussing – and what they should – is who, exactly, is about to get very rich from this.The 2022 oil and gas crisis offers a template. It was the last time we saw a price explosion of this magnitude, ...

Energy company plans full return to London by moving global HQ to new development on South BankBusiness live – latest updatesBP has agreed to sell its giant German oil refinery site in Gelsenkirchen to investment firm Klesch Group as part of the British oil company's plan to sell off $20bn (£15bn) worth of assets and cut its costs.The value of the sale was not disclosed but BP said it would save the oil company about $1bn of underlying operating expenditure at the complex, which processes about 12m tonnes of crude oil every year, mainly as fuel for cars and aircraft. Continue reading......

Watchdog says banks will be able to respond to changing consumer demands, inflation and new technology The limit on contactless spending with a credit or debit card has been scrapped, and banks will be allowed to set their own restrictions.The City watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), said the move would allow banks to respond to changing consumer demands, inflation and new technology. Continue reading......

Oil has empowered capitalism, and some of the world's most exploitative regimes. Move away from it and we can solve some of the key issues we faceI realise this is a serious breach of etiquette. But could we perhaps abandon good manners and contextualise Donald Trump's attack on Iran? The intense western interest in the Middle East and west and central Asia, sustained for more than a century, and the endless attempts by foreign governments to shape and control these regions, are not random political tics. They are somewhat connected to certain fuel sources situated beneath the ground.Trump's war aims are typically incoherent: apparently incomprehensible even to himself. But Iran would not be treated as an “enemy of the west” were it not for what happened in 1953, when Winston Churchill's government persuaded the CIA to launch a coup against the popular democratic government of Mohammad Mossadegh. The UK did so because Mossadegh sought to nationalise the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company: to stop a foreign...