From the AI bubble to Fed fears: the global economic outlook for 2026

Investors expect global stock markets to keep rising in 2026, despite fears that the AI bubble could burst, and anxiety about chaos engulfing the US central bank.Wall Street strategists broadly expect the S&P 500 share index of US-listed companies to continue to rise over the next 12 months, but said it could be a volatile year if geopolitical tensions increase and inflation fails to fall.A poll of 440 investors, economists and analysts by Deutsche Bank found that 57% believe a plunge in technology valuations, or waning enthusiasm in AI, is a top risk to market stability in 2026.Investors have never before been in such agreement about the biggest market risk for a year ahead than they are now: Deutsche Bank survey. "AI/tech bubble risk towers over everything else

What role could the US play in Venezuela’s ‘bust’ oil industry?

The Venezuelan oil industry has been “a total bust” for a long time, according to Donald Trump. After attacking Caracas and taking the country’s leader captive, Trump promised to take control of Venezuela’s oil industry with the help of America’s biggest oil companies.Venezuela’s beleaguered oil industry could “make a lot of money” with the might of the US behind it, Trump told the press, claiming that the new regime would invest billions to revive its fortunes.Venezuela is believed to have the largest oil reserves of any country in the world. The exact reserves remain uncertain but the state claims they could be as large as 300bn barrels, easily surpassing those of Saudi Arabia

End of the line for diesel fumes at London St Pancras as new trains arrive

Rail and fossil fuels once helped to turn King’s Cross and St Pancras into a seamy, smoke-choked area of London. Now, in the two grandly redeveloped stations with their swanky plazas, even a dropped paper ticket would look out of place.One last corner of St Pancras station is polluted by the fug of diesel trains – but not for much longer. East Midlands Railway, which runs services to cities including Derby and Sheffield, will fire up its diesel units in London for the final time by the end of 2026.It is a milestone moment for St Pancras – albeit one that has arrived later and with more difficulty than many had hoped

Feeling the bite: is Greggs on a roll or is its expansion overbaked?

An enormous carpet of pastry snakes its way around the factory. Four huge metal urns of meat filling are waiting to be added. Workers in hairnets and overalls buzz about, checking a production line that holds 4.5 tonnes of pastry at any one time.This is food production on an industrial scale, designed to satisfy the UK’s seemingly insatiable appetite for sausage rolls, vegan bites and other baked treats

‘Sunshine Saturday’: UK firms expect 5% January rise in holiday bookings

UK travel companies are bracing for one of their busiest periods for bookings as winter-wearied consumers plan sunny breaks, with package holiday bookings forecast to be up 5% this January.The Civil Aviation Authority, the regulator that administers the Atol travel financial protection scheme, has forecast that 200,000 more holidaymakers will book trips this month compared with the 4.3 million who did so in the same period last year.January is well known as a boom time for holiday planning as households crave something to look forward to after Christmas, with demand peaking at the weekends, particularly the first one – known in the industry as Sunshine Saturday for its bumper number of bookings.However, booking patterns are forecast to shift this year towards quieter destinations, such as Malta’s sister island, Gozo, and long-haul locations, according to TravelSupermarket

China’s BYD overtakes Tesla as world’s biggest electric car seller

China’s BYD overtook Tesla as the world’s largest electric carmaker in 2025, after the US company run by Elon Musk reported a slump in deliveries at the end of the year.BYD sold 2.26m battery electric cars during the year, easily outstripping the 1.63m deliveries reported on Friday by Tesla for the same period.The switch is a symbolic moment in the rise of China’s car companies, which have used the transition to electric cars to try to dominate the global automotive industry