Increased red tape, paperwork and border delays have significantly reduced trade with Europe, with businesses across the country struggling, and an estimated 4% hit to GDP after Brexit. Aligning with the Single Market isn't enough - we must fully rejoin the Customs Union and Single Market.

Easy to dismiss what's happening with gold as an oddity and speculative bubble. But the crazy rise started after Chair Powell's dovish speech at Jackson Hole on Aug. 22 and gained steam after the last Fed cut on Dec. 10. The gold rise is all about macro... robinjbrooks.substack.com/p/everything...

US dollar: ‘Wounded hegemon’ or secure as most powerful currency on earth? https://aje.news/ymtzng

China begins operating the world's largest compressed air energy storage plant. Something that can compete with lithium-ion batteries on price now! 🎁🔗 www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

idea for my future apartment 🤔

Did a book completely transform your life? A new BBC documentary is looking for stories about the life-changing power of books. If so, upload a video of you telling your story to the link below or email [email protected] explaining how the book impacted on you. we.tl/r-6yeldPIg2n

“Middle powers” are quickly becoming the new “must-have” partners for EU/UK trade deals. #economy

Catherine Abel - Cubist Poppies. oil on linen, 2014.

Cooperative mural, Gyula Bajó on the side of the former Co-operative House (now Primark), the first major retail premises to open in Stevenage Town Centre in June 1958. It depicts the ‘four cornerstones of a balanced economy – Industry, Commerce, Transport and Agriculture'.

EU and Indian leaders signed a landmark trade pact on Tuesday, with EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen describing it as “a tale of two giants", at a signing ceremony in New Delhi. 'We have sent a signal to the world that rules-based cooperation still delivers great outcomes,' she added.

Turn your book club into a force for good 📚✨ We're calling on book clubs across the UK to host a book swap, themed dinner, or other bookish bonanza to raise money to get more children reading! Interested? Sign up for your free pack with everything you need to get started 🩷 bit.ly/4bO33qs

Samurai Japan filled out its roster for the World Baseball Classic on Monday, adding an infusion of MLB talent to the team as it prepares to take aim at a second consecutive title this spring. 👉 ebx.sh/4vYz1Z

U.S Senators Elissa Slotkin and Gary Peters plan to vote against a DHS funding bill following a fatal shooting in Minneapolis by a federal agent.

Iyikopiwi-Pisim Aaron Paquette ~ Cree n.d.

Pharrell Williams became a Chevalier of the Légion d’honne

JPM DESK: Inflation “remains one of the most credible macro risks to the Equity bull case .. The longer-term risk is the pressure on small businesses .. The farm industry is one where bankruptcies are elevated and where tariffs are above the average, effective tariff rates.” 👀

The true reasons behind the downfall of China’s most senior military officer may never be known — but the move has raised questions about Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s aims and his designs on democratic Taiwan.

Veteran fund manager George Noble says Tesla is the 'biggest stock market bubble of all time' The former director of the Fidelity International fund and founder of two hedge funds doesn't believe the narrative among bullish investors that Tesla is more than a car company. /1

Wind chills as low as 15-20 degrees below zero are expected to persist throughout the rest of the week.

Commentary: China’s export-driven economic model is undermining job opportunities for Asia’s Gen-Z, hitting both low- and high-end industries and risking economic frustration and political unrest across the region.

Thanks to @sarahp.bsky.social for covering our growth this past week! A huge welcome to all of the new users on Skylight ☺️ So happy to have everyone on Open Social!! ✨ #skylightsocial #skylight #tiktok #tiktoksale

Many members of the international games industry are skipping the 2026 Game Developers Conference because of the growing ICE presence and other concerns.

🦋 Has anyone on #BlueSky ever ever heard of the word #ubuntu ? This African philosophy describes what the #CAMFEDsisterhood is all about! I plan to play an important part in turning the tide of poverty in my community and my country at large. 🇿🇲—Harriet, Zambia 💙 Like if you learned something!

Michigan's Great Lakes saw a jump in ice coverage since last week. The lakes are nearly half iced over with Lake Erie almost totally covered.

When the price of Gold & Silver doubles this quickly, it’s rarely a good sign. It almost always means people have lost faith in their leaders and money. This happened right before the Fall of Rome. During the French Revolution. When the Spanish Empire collapsed.

Something joyful for a moment - Love the ending: “I have other plans for life though”

Issue #982 Claudette Colvin, the lesser-known but significant young Civil Rights Pioneer In “We Are Speaking,” we publish a post about Black History 2X/week. Subscribe for free or at the paid level at no more than $5/month. Click to read the full post:  www.wearespeaking.net/p/today-in-b...

Lionel Richie and the Zac Brown Band book Little Caesars Arena shows

Jazz pianist and U-M professor Ellen Rowe released a new album, was given an award, and quietly revealed a big announcement. Find out more, check out Rowe's "Vinton's Cove" record, and watch select live performances.  pulp.aadl.org/node/665707 @umichsmtd.bsky.social

You can always rely on the blues. This is really well recorded. Sounds great

Interesting…

Selling out.. fast.

Happy birthday, Jackie! "Playing lifts you out of yourself into a delirious place." – British cellist Jacqueline du Pré (1945-1987). She would have been 81 today. Multiple sclerosis limited her life and career, but never her spirit.

Millions of Americans are starting to see their monthly health-insurance bills rise, a new pressure point for a nation still frustrated with the high cost of living.

We are opening an investigation into Grok because we believe that X may have breached the DSA. We have seen antisemitic content, non-consensual deepfakes of women, and child sexual abuse material. In Europe, no company will make money by violating our fundamental rights. link.europa.eu/Fh8h84

Our @durhamphysics.bsky.social astronomers have helped create the highest resolution map of the dark matter that threads through our Universe - showing the mysterious substance’s influence on the formation of stars, galaxies and planets. Discover more 👉 www.durham.ac.uk/news-events/...

More than 450 tech workers from companies like Google, Meta, OpenAI, Amazon, and Salesforce have signed a letter urging their CEOs to call the White House and demand ICE leave our cities. 

Singapore is often praised as a green, engineered city — but its sustainability depends on people, not just planning. Kirtida Mekani helped turn participation into practice, from founding the Singapore Environment Council to launching Plant-A-Tree, which mobilized 100k people to plant 76,000+ trees.

A lovely & extremely rare psalter printed in London by Richard Pynson 502 years ago, made all the more special by what someone thought to tuck inside it: a unique printed 'indulgence', offering to reduce a sinner's time in purgatory in return for funds towards Hereford Cathedral.

A new Rest of World analysis underscores that U.S. politicians and their families are dealing in large volumes of foreign companies’ stocks while simultaneously serving on committees with the power to oversee or influence policies affecting the same companies restofworld.org/2026/us-poli...

🚨 Nicolas Bloom, Stanford University: "The top down version is we compare Britain to 33 other countries. That gives minus 8% (hit to GDP from Brexit)." 📉 "So (the UK) was kind of tracking right in the middle to being the second worst country" ⚠️ Brexit was an act of economic self-harm.

Michigan is 189 years old today. Here's what to know about its history and more.

Western Motel - Edward Hopper, 1957 Source : Yale University Art gallery, New Haven (Connecticut) 🇺🇸

Winter view from Windsor Canada. Downtown, Detroit #photography #winter #januaryblues #coldoutside #citysnow #riverice

Happy 189th birthday, Michigan! Known as the Great Lakes State, every location in Michigan is within 6 miles of a body of water & no more than 85 miles from one of the Great Lakes. In comparison to Detroit, Mi. is still a youngster —the city is set to mark its impressive 325th anniversary this July.

"Ultimately, our buildings should make people – and the planet – healthier. All of this is within reach, and now is the time to do it. "

Saelia Aparicio's A Joyful Parasite invites you into a playful dimension, exploring how humans prioritise their own species while criticising other living beings - simply for existing as they were created. Aparicio examines our lack of empathy toward non-human life. 🐛🦋🪱 Open Wed-Sun | 10:00-18:00

Here’s my latest column. Thanks for reading, and KYA goodbye stormlake.com/stories/who-...