Nearly two-thirds of UK manufacturers expect to raise their prices in the run-up to Christmas after being hit by mounting cost pressures, a leading employers’ group has said. The British Chambers of Commerce said inflation expectations had risen to their highest since its records began at the end of the 1980s, with 62% of industrial firms planning price hikes over the next three months. – Guardian
Petrol prices could reach all-time highs before Christmas, the RAC warned, signalling “misery” for motorists still reeling from the fuel shortage crisis. Amid signs that the number of petrol forecourts running dry was easing, the drivers’ organisation warned that anxiety about whether motorists could fill up their tanks was likely to be replaced by concern about how much it would cost. – Guardian
Vladimir Putin has blamed the shift to renewable energy for causing “hysteria and confusion” in European markets as gas prices surged to new record highs. The Russian president claimed that the power crisis gripping the West is being driven by an “unbalanced” and “drastic” move away from fossil fuels, amid efforts by the Kremlin to downplay suggestions that it has sent prices surging by restricting the supply of gas. – Telegraph
Amazon has opened a new bricks and mortar concept store selling electronics, books, toys and kitchenware in a fresh assault on physical rivals such as John Lewis and Curry’s. Called 4-star, the shop stocks about 2,000 of the company’s highest-rated and most popular products and is located in Bluewater, a shopping centre just outside of London. – Telegraph
Google’s London-based artificial intelligence lab has moved into the black for the first time after the Silicon Valley giant used more of its discoveries in its commercial products. DeepMind’s maiden annual profit draws a line under many years of heavy losses and suggests that its parent is starting to generate significant revenue from its intellectual property. – The Times
