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Carmakers signal end of shortages after two years of runaway pricesGlobal chip shortage supply has seen car prices rise and wait times increaseThe world’s biggest car maker is ramping up production after three years of disruption, adding to hopes of cheaper cars and shorter waiting times for drivers.Toyota, the world's top car producer, plans to surpass pre-pandemic production levels this year, it said on Monday.Meanwhile, its closest rival Volkswagen said it expects to return to growth in China, the world’s largest car market and a big source of critical parts.
Warning of unprecedented heatwaves as El Niño set to return in 2023The return of the El Niño climate phenomenon later this year will cause global temperatures to rise “off the chart” and deliver unprecedented heatwaves, scientists have warned.Early forecasts suggest El Niño will return later in 2023, exacerbating extreme weather around the globe and making it “very likely” the world will exceed 1.5C of warming. The hottest year in recorded history, 2016, was driven by a major El Niño.It is part of a natural oscillation driven by ocean temperatures and winds in the Pacific, which switches between El Niño, its cooler counterpart La Niña, and neutral conditions. The last three years have seen an unusual run of consecutive La Niña events.This year is already forecast to be hotter than 2022.
Rally held in Athens in support of misogynist influencerAround a hundred young men gathered in central Athens on Sunday night to express their support for a controversial social media personality who has been arrested in Romania on charges of human trafficking and rape.The protesters gathered at Syntagma Square in front of Parliament and marched down central Ermou Street chanting “Free TopG,” one of the handles used by influencer Andrew Tate.Tate, 36, is a British-US citizen with 4.5 million followers on Twitter, who has previously been banned from various prominent social media platforms for expressing misogynistic views – including that rape victims should “bear responsibility” for being attacked – and hate speech, according to the Associated Press. The former kickboxer and reality TV contestant was arrested on December 29 in Bucharest along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women on charges of being part of an organized crime group, human trafficking and rape.Reuters reported Romanian authorities as saying that they have seized goods and money worth 18 million lei ($3.95 million) as a part of the criminal inquiry into Tate’s activities.Sunday’s march has caused a backlash on Greek social media, with calls on parents and educators to address what may be a rising trend among the country’s youth.
A39 Somerset: Double-decker bus carrying 70 people overturnsA double-decker bus carrying 70 Hinkley Point C workers overturned in icy road conditions in Somerset.There were 70 people on the bus and 54 patients were treated at the scene, but there were no fatalities, a spokeswoman for Avon and Somerset Police said.Bridgwater MP Ian Liddell-Grainger said three had significant injuries.
Warning after Amazon customer sent dog food instead of iPhoneConsumers are being warned to film themselves opening Amazon deliveries after a Salisbury man's £1,300 iPhone was switched for a packet of dog food.
Toddler plays with loaded gun on live TV in shocking footageA man in Indiana was arrested after a child, reported to be his son, was filmed waving the weapon aroundIn the US as a whole, it is estimated 4.6 million children live in home with at least one unlocked firearm. In many cases the children know where the guns are kept.According to recent studies between 70 and 90 per cent of guns used in school shootings, suicides and accidental shootings were obtained from the homes of relatives or friends.
Apple unveils host of Macs including new MacBook Pro with faster M2 chipsApple has unveiled a host of new Macs, with what it says are dramatically faster new chips.All of the new computers are powered by the new M2 Pro and M2 Max, high-end versions of the M2 chip that were first revealed in laptops last summer.The new chips come in a variety of new computers: a 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, and new Mac Mini. All of those computers keep the same external design as before, but Apple promises they are much faster on the inside.The new 14-inch MacBook Pro starts at £2,149, and the larger 16-inch model starts at $2,699. The Mac Mini with the normal M2 starts at £649, and the one with the M2 Pro costs £1,399.
Boris Johnson invited to speak to ‘plotters conference’ after May election resultsBoris Johnson has been asked to speak at a ‘plotters conference’ of supporters hoping to restore him as Conservative leader.The event will be held in May the wake of what are predicted to be disastrous local election results for Rishi Sunak.Up to 1,000 Tory party members could gather in Bournemouth to hear Mr Johnson speak, the organisers the new Conservative Democratic Organisation (CDO) hope.Led by Tory donor Lord Cruddas the CDO wants to take power from Tory MPs, who have ousted three prime ministers in the last five years, and give it to party members, among whom Mr Johnson remains incredibly popular.
Brexit has created shortage of 330,000 workers in UK, say economistsSystem working ‘broadly as Leave advocates promised’, say think tanks’ report ost-Brexit immigration rules have led to a shortfall of around 330,000 workers in the UK and had helped fuel inflation, according to top economists.The ending of free movement is “contributing significantly” to current labour shortages, a joint repot by the UK in a Changing Europe and the Centre for European Reform think tanks has found.The study found the low-skilled sectors – including hospitality, retail, construction and transportation – had been badly hit by the loss of EU workers after Brexit.By September 2022 there was a significant shortfall of around 460,000 EU-origin workers, not wholly compensated for by a rise in about 130,000 non-EU workers, the report said.
Wholesale electricity price falls sharplyWholesale electricity prices in Greece have fallen below 100 euros per MWh in Greece for the first time in 18 months.Electricity prices for Wednesday were set at 86.77 euros/MWh at the Hellenic Energy Exchange, falling below the 100-euro barrier for the first time since August 2021.Electricity prices fell by 35% for the second day in a row (from 204.4 euros on Monday, to 132.48 on Tuesday and 86.77 euros on Wednesday).This price is one of the lowest in Europe.
Prince Harry's Spare becomes UK's fastest-selling non-fiction bookPrince Harry's memoir Spare has become the fastest-selling non-fiction book in the UK since records began in 1998.
Italian held in EU-Qatargate bribery probe agrees to tell allAn alleged leader of a criminal network involved in an EU corruption scandal has agreed to reveal which countries were involved and how it operated.Prosecutors said Pier Antonio Panzeri agreed the plea deal under an informant law used only once before in Belgium.The former member of the European Parliament is one of four suspects being held in Belgium.They are suspected of accepting bribes from Qatar and Morocco in return for influencing the Parliament in Brussels.Qatar has strenuously denied that it tried to gain influence through gifts and money while Morocco has also strongly rejected allegations that it sought influence on issues such as fishing rights and the disputed status of Western Sahara.The four suspects were charged last month after police seized around €1.5m (£1.3m) in cash during a series of raids on a flat, a house and a hotel. Pictures of stashes of €200, €50, €20 and €10-denomination notes were released by police, including a suitcase found in the hotel which was stuffed with cash.The other suspects include a serving Greek MEP, Eva Kaili, who has been stripped of her role as a vice-president of the Parliament, her partner Francesco Giorgi, and lobbyist Niccolò Figà-Talamanca.