The daughters of Dominican immigrants achieved the American dream. They’re bringing sweet chocolate success back to the homeland

Janett and Erika Liriano grew up in Queens, the daughters of Dominican immigrants who pushed them to dream big. Their encouragement paid off: by the time they were in their late 20s, Janett had been named a Forbes 30 Under 30 Listmaker and was the chief of staff at a biopharmaceutical firm; younger sister Erika was making a name for herself in venture capital.But something was missing. “We were both comfortable but not happy with our jobs,” Janett said. “I felt unfulfilled and anxiously wanted to move forward

‘Mental breakdown’: oil tanker workers stuck in Gulf for six weeks are reaching their limit

‘You can try to minimise the impact that this situation has on your mental health but it’s becoming impossible.” After six weeks stranded in the Gulf, one of the 20,000 seafarers trapped by Iran’s chokehold on the strait of Hormuz is reaching their limit.Yet with the fragile Middle East ceasefire already fraying, the oil tanker worker – who first spoke to the Guardian a month ago – said any hope they may soon be free to leave had already evaporated, if it ever felt real at all.“We’re at anchor, near dozens of loaded tankers. No one has moved an inch,” said the crew member, one of hundreds anchored off the coast of the United Arab Emirates with a clear view of the loaded Kuwaiti oil tanker set ablaze by an Iranian missile less than a fortnight ago

UK to give £380m grant to Tata battery factory in Somerset

The Somerset battery factory due to supply Jaguar Land Rover is to receive £380m in UK government funding as it pushes ahead with construction despite delays.JLR, Britain’s largest automotive employer, is due to receive batteries from the site to make electric versions of its Range Rover and Jaguar models. The Indian conglomerate Tata owns JLR and the electric vehicle (EV) battery factory under its Agratas subsidiary.The business secretary, Peter Kyle, announced the grant on Thursday during a visit to the construction site in Bridgwater, Somerset. The government said the battery plant – also known as a gigafactory – would employ 4,200 people in the long term

Lidl to open 50 UK stores in year ahead – and its first pub

Lidl is to open 50 new UK stores in the year ahead – as well as its first pub – as it aims to overtake Morrisons as the country’s fifth largest supermarket chain.The German-owned retailer has begun building a pub in east Belfast in response to strict local licensing laws that cap the number of premises that can sell alcohol.In Northern Ireland, supermarkets that want to sell alcohol must buy a licence that has been “surrendered” by another business, such as a pub that is shutting. They then must show there is an inadequate number of existing licensed premises in an area to meet the public’s needs.Lidl was not able to pass the inadequacy test for a standard off-licence, but was able to for a pub as two nearby bars had closed in recent years

Chris Haskins was a champion of the left behind | Letter

The fight for social justice has lost a real champion with the death of Chris Haskins (Obituary, 3 April). As a junior public health academic, I experienced first-hand his openness and willingness to embrace and support insights into the conditions of the left behind in the north of England.In his response to my cold-calling letter drawing attention to the problem of food deserts in inner-city Liverpool, I was privileged to attend the famously relaxed and open Northern Foods directors’ meetings above the dairy in Hull and provided with generous funds for research into this hidden injustice.With Lord Haskins’ support, we were able to reveal how poverty-stricken communities had access only to overpriced processed and tinned food from corner shops whose owners left each night for their homes in the affluent suburbs.The battle for universal access to wholesome, affordable food continues, but Haskins will remain a beacon of ethical and sustainable capitalism

Oil rises and global stocks wobble amid worries over ‘fragile’ ceasefire deal in Middle East – as it happened

Time to wrap up…The boss of Abu Dhabi’s state-owned oil company has warned that the strait of Hormuz is “not open” despite the US-Iran ceasefire agreed earlier this week, as uncertainty over the truce pushed the price of US oil over $100 a barrel on Thursday.Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose by over 4% on Thursday to almost $99 a barrel, while New York light crude climbed by 5.8% to as high as $100.29 a barrel. On Wednesday, Brent had tumbled 13