The world in a glance.

‘This guy has no manners’: My Airbnb guest requested I buy bacon and beer. The $30 bill remains unpaid. Do I insist?

“I don’t want him to retaliate with a bad review.”

‘I’m completely gobsmacked’: My elderly brother has a reverse mortgage — yet he still ran out of money. Do I help?

“My husband and I are both retired and have saved for years — we simply can’t afford to take on his financial situation.”

UK and Singapore press ahead with digital deal as WTO remains deadlocked

Ministers are struggling to thrash out reforms at the global body that has been buffeted by Trump’s tariffs

ETFs have crushed Wall Street’s go-to stock-market indicator

The S&P 500’s 200-day moving average is a victim of its own success.

Social media is now a massive liability for Meta, Google and the rest of Big Tech

Landmark verdicts shatter the Section 230 shield, turning ‘addictive’ product design into a legal thicket for Meta, Alphabet and others.

Your stock portfolio soared on cheap market risk — but the easy money is over

Investors are waking up to the harsh realities and the financial penalties of a reordered, reactionary world.

Big Tech’s AI fantasy hits a nuclear wall: No fuel, no welders — and no Plan B

Big Tech is buying small reactors. Washington is buying time. Russia and China? They rule the nuclear-power world.

The $200,000 down-payment dilemma: Gift the cash now — or make your kids wait for the will

Giving your adult children their inheritance early might be the only way they ever own a home — but be careful not to be overgenerous at your own future expense.

These 3 growth sectors are helping people flourish — and long-term investors are buying in

Market leaders such as Amazon and Humana are betting on the high-margin business of unlocking people’s potential as the ultimate investment

This ‘single greatest’ stock-market predictor has never been more bearish

Retail investors have loaded up on stocks, which is typical before a bull market peaks.

Iranian strike injures US troops at Saudi air base

Yemen’s Houthi rebels carry out their first attack on Israel since the war began

Parents with student loans could fall into default if they don’t take steps soon

‘Time is running out’: For years, parents have struggled under the weight of the loans they took on to help their kids pay for college. It’s about to get worse, advocates warn.

My PayPal account received money from the Philippines with two phone numbers listed. I called them. Big mistake.

“I know my information is on the dark web, and I have taken steps to be cautious.”

‘He didn’t seem very alert’: Our CPA said we owe the IRS $443, but we’re actually due a refund of $637. Do we fire him?

“We’re both concerned about the accuracy of our returns.”

‘What felt like a great deal turned into a $150 night’: How am I supposed to have fun without going broke?

“How can I strike a balance between enjoying the present and saving for the future?”

My brother says lawyers can get him a Medicaid nursing home in Florida for a ‘hefty fee,’ despite his assets. Is this a scam?

“I do not believe there is a way to preserve assets and still qualify for Medicaid.”

Gas prices are nearing this ‘psychological wall.’ One group of drivers might smash right through.

“The economy feels a bit miserable right now,” one financial-wellness expert says. “I’m shifting from autopilot to a more intentional strategy.”

Pricy airfare, airport chaos test travelers' willingness to fly this year

Travelers are weighing whether they'll fly later this year, considering higher airfares and airport chaos

A trap door could open up under the S&P 500 when this influential options trade expires next week

A large institutional options fund may have contributed to some of the recent volatility in the S&P 500.

Fears of a prolonged oil shock grow as Iran war lurches toward its second month

President Trump’s latest diplomacy efforts aren’t improving the tone on Wall Street.

A Paramount-Warner Bros. movie slate will need more animated features to compete with Disney and Universal

In the last decade Paramount and Warner Bros. have each released eight animated features, meanwhile Disney has released 21 and Universal has launched 23.

How long can Iran keep firing missiles?

Five analysts assess Tehran’s capacity to sustain barrages against Israel and Gulf states

‘Several hurricanes have come close’: I’m 73 and live in a mobile home in Florida. Do I ditch my $2,400 home insurance?

“I live in a 2016 double-wide mobile home with no mortgage.”

Houthi missile attack signals ‘serious’ escalation in Iran war

Rebels’ participation puts vital maritime routes at greater risk

Iranian strike wounds US troops at air base in Saudi Arabia

Israel says missile fired from Yemen after Houthis warn other countries ‘fingers are on the trigger’

Iranian strike wounds US troops at Saudi air base

Yemen’s Houthi rebels carry out their first attack on Israel since the war began

How Pakistan put itself in the middle of US-Iran peace talks

Islamabad seeks to capitalise on warming ties with both Trump and Tehran but has much to lose if efforts fail

A ‘victim’ and a ‘dinosaur’: three days of Crispin Odey testimony

Financier’s cross-examination this week has been culmination of his legal challenge against regulatory ban and fine

No BS: using corporate jargon is really giving you away

A new study suggests that buying into the blather reveals a credulous worker

Social media is populist and polarising; AI may be the opposite

Large language models elevate expert consensus and moderate views, in sharp contrast to social platforms

The decapitation dilemma

Long regarded as dishonourable or counterproductive, the idea of targeting enemy leaders is becoming normalised. What do we lose along with the taboo?

‘I want safe returns’: I’m 73 with $300,000 saved. I’m not interested in the stock market. What should I do?

“I’m not concerned about leaving money to the next generation.”

Global markets recoil as Rubio warns war in Iran could stretch for weeks

Comments from US secretary of state come as oil jumps to $114 and Wall Street stocks slide

‘He didn’t seem very alert’: Our CPA said we owe the IRS $443, but we’re actually due a refund of $637. Do we fire him?

“We’re both concerned about the accuracy of our returns.”

KPMG to cut almost 600 UK jobs as slowdown persists

Big Four firm and rivals are struggling to regain footing even after reductions in headcount and costs

My PayPal account received money from the Philippines with two phone numbers listed. I called them. Big mistake.

“I know my information is on the dark web, and I have taken steps to be cautious.”

More than half of the S&P 500 industry sectors are in correction territory. How much longer until the index itself succumbs?

The S&P 500’s slide in March has the widely followed U.S. equities benchmark approaching correction territory, after more than half of the index’s industries already landed…

Gulf officials seek to calm investors as war rattles confidence

Delegates at a Miami conference urged to continue investing in the region

These 16 stocks are a short seller’s dream — likely losers no matter what the market does

Borrowing costs eat into trading profits. These stocks are less expensive to short.

Social media is now a massive liability for Meta, Google and the rest of Big Tech

Landmark verdicts shatter the Section 230 shield, turning ‘addictive’ product design into a legal thicket for Meta, Alphabet and others.

The $200,000 down-payment dilemma: Gift the cash now — or make your kids wait for the will

Giving your adult children their inheritance early might be the only way they ever own a home — but be careful not to be overgenerous at your own future expense.

Microsoft’s stock hasn’t been this oversold in a decade, with the tech giant ‘really losing the AI narrative’

Selling intensity has picked up as the company faces new questions about its AI approach.

My brother says lawyers can get him a Medicaid nursing home in Florida for a ‘hefty fee,’ despite his assets. Is this a scam?

“I do not believe there is a way to preserve assets and still qualify for Medicaid.”

Memory chip stocks shed $100bn as AI-driven shortage trade unwinds

New research suggests AI data centres will need much less memory than investors had bargained for

Trump promises TSA paychecks even as House rejects Senate bill, threatening to prolong government shutdown

A partial U.S. government shutdown that has caused chaos at airports was looking like it could persist on Friday, after the Republican-run House of Representatives voiced…

UK diesel stockpiles at risk, warn traders

Commercial inventories could be used up by mid-May if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed

U.S. endures weakest Treasury auctions in over 3 years as anxiety around Iran war grows

The Iran conflict has investors second-guessing one of the world’s crucial safe-haven assets.

Is Trump losing his grip on the stock market? Sustained declines suggest the president’s influence has waned.

President Trump’s willingness to de-escalate the Iran conflict has kept stocks from even larger losses in March — but is he losing his grip on markets?

These 3 growth sectors are helping people flourish — and long-term investors are buying in

Market leaders such as Amazon and Humana are betting on the high-margin business of unlocking people’s potential as the ultimate investment

U.S. oil prices turn higher for the week as Trump’s 10-day pause fails to calm Iran war concerns

Oil prices strengthened Friday, leading U.S. benchmark crude to turn higher for the week, as President Trump’s latest pause on striking Iran’s energy infrastructure did little to…