NEW YORK — When Lindsey Vonn retired from Alpine skiing in 2019, she walked away from the sport as one of the most successful skiers in history. Six years later she’s coming back, with her sights set on competing in a fifth Winter Olympics in February in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.
But regardless of how that comeback ends, Vonn isn’t worried about it detracting from what she’s already accomplished.
“This is different because I had nothing to prove,” said Vonn, 41, who climbed a World Cup podium for the first time since 2019 when she finished second at the super-G season finals in Sun Valley, Idaho, last March.
“I don’t think anyone remembers Michael Jordan’s comeback. I don’t think that’s part of his legacy at all,” she continued. “I’ve already succeeded. I’ve already won. I was on the podium. I have the record for the oldest medalist in World Cup by seven years [she set the previous record in 2019]. I feel like this journey has been incredible.”
American Lindsey Vonn poses in 2019 with medals she has won throughout her career in the finish area at the alpine ski world championships in Are, Sweden.
(Marco Trovati / Associated Press)
Vonn has three Olympic medals, but she won her only gold 15 years ago. She’s won eight World Championship medals, but just one since 2017; her last gold came in 2009. But the comeback isn’t so much about rekindling that past as it is about shoring up the present.
“I closed my career, and I definitely would like to close that chapter in maybe a better way than I did in 2019,” said Vonn, who was speaking Tuesday at the U.S. Olympic Committee’s Media Summit in Manhattan. “I feel like I am happy, free. I’m doing it because I love it. I’m not doing to prove anything to anyone.”
Vonn missed the 2014 Winter Games with a right knee injury, an injury that led to her retirement in 2019. But after partial knee-replacement surgery last year, she decided she wasn’t done with skiing yet.
“After the replacement, I knew things were really different,” she said. “My body felt so good, and I just kind of kept pushing myself further and further to see what I was capable of. Skiing and racing seemed like the logical next step.”
American Lindsey Vonn skis during a women’s super-G run at the World Cup finals on March 23 in Sun Valley, Idaho.
(Robert F. Bukaty / Associated Press)
She’s a different skiier than she was when first started competing internationally two decades ago, she said.
“I have a lot more perspective now, having been away from the sport for six years,” she said. “That just allows me to compete in a different way and I think that gives me an advantage actually.
“Downhill skiing has a lot to do with with accumulated knowledge. And I’ve obviously accumulated a lot of knowledge, because I’ve raced for a very long time.”
Vonn, whose comeback landed her on the cover of this week’s Time magazine, said she’s in the best shape of her career. But she still must earn enough points on this winter’s World Cup circuit to qualify for the Olympics.
She said she probably wouldn’t have considered racing at a top level again if next February’s Games weren’t schedule for Cortina, where’s won a record 12 career World Cup races. She also recorded her first of 138 World Cup podiums in Cortina in 2004.
“My goal has always been Cortina again. It’s such a special place for me,” she said.
American Lindsey Vonn speeds down the course during an alpine ski women’s World Cup downhill race in Kvitfjell, Norway, on Feb. 28.
(Gabriele Facciotti / Associated Press)
“I didn’t want to set that as a goal, because I didn’t know if I would even be able to compete, let alone qualify or finish the season. Once I trained more and I got in better shape, I said to myself that this is an attainable goal. I can do this.”
And if she can’t, that won’t detract from the fact that she tried. Or from what she’s already accomplished.
“I’m at peace with where I am in my life,” she said. “I don’t need to be ski racing, but I definitely love to ski race and have nothing to prove. So I don’t feel like I have a lot of pressure, even though my dad says it’s the most pressure I’ve ever had in my whole life.”
Global markets were buoyed on Monday morning by expectations of another Fed rate cut and growing optimism that the US and China are moving closer to a trade deal, following comments from President Donald Trump.
The optimism wiped out gains in safe-haven assets such as gold futures and boosted stock exchanges across the globe.
Yet, leading European benchmark indexes opened mostly flat, except for Milan’s FTSE MIB, which was up by 0.61%. Madrid IBEX 35 also gained 0.37% by around 11:00 CEST.
At the same time, European benchmark STOXX 600, as well as the FTSE 100 in London, remained nearly flat. The DAX in Frankfurt gained 0.15% while Paris’ CAC 40 lost less than 0.1%. This came after credit rating agency Moody’s changed France’s outlook from stable to negative on Friday.
Investors in Europe are closely watching for signs of economic health, with one of the strongest indicators — the first reading of the eurozone’s third-quarter GDP — due on Thursday.
On the same day, the European Central Bank (ECB) is scheduled to hold its monetary policy meeting. Given that inflation in the bloc has remained around the bank’s 2% target, the ECB is expected to hold interest rates steady this week for its third straight meeting. The key deposit rate has been at 2% since June.
US-China relations
Across the globe on Monday, US futures were mostly up in pre-market trading. This came as Asian shares rallied too, with Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 topping 50,000 for the first time.
Later this week, the US President has a scheduled meeting with the Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (known as APEC), to discuss the trade deal between the world’s two strongest economies.
US and Chinese officials confirmed on Sunday that they had reached an initial consensus for Trump and President Xi Jinping to finalise during a meeting later in the week.
“I have a lot of respect for President Xi,” Trump told reporters after visiting Malaysia for a summit of Southeast Asian nations, where he reached preliminary trade agreements with Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
“I think we’re going to come away with a deal,” Trump said.
And investors see it as a strong signal. According to Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management: “This isn’t just photo-op diplomacy. Behind the showmanship, Washington and Beijing’s top trade lieutenants have quietly mapped out a framework that might, just might, keep the world’s two largest economies from tearing up the field again.”
The enthusiasm brought about a shift in risk-taking among investors, demonstrated by a fall in gold futures. The safe-haven asset’s continuous contract fell by almost 2% on Monday morning, as an ounce was priced at $4,055.50.
The euro and Japanese yen remained flat against the US dollar. One euro was traded at $1.1638, while the greenback cost ¥152.8070. The British pound climbed 0.26% against the US dollar, and the rate was at $1.3345.
Crude oil prices fell after European markets opened, with both benchmarks trading nearly 1% lower. The US benchmark WTI crude’s price was $61.06 a barrel, and Brent was at $65.47.
In other dealings, leading cryptocurrencies were up. CoinDesk’s Bitcoin Price Index (XBX) gained 4.86% and climbed to $115,395.34. Ethereum cost $4,171.84, up by 4.82% on Monday morning in Europe.
Another Fed rate cut on the cards, coupled with Big Tech reports
Wall Street hit record highs on Friday, after lower-than-expected inflation numbers from the US fuelled further hope that the Federal Reserve is about to cut interest rates further this Wednesday.
The data on inflation was encouraging because it could mean less pain for lower- and middle-income households struggling with still-high increases in prices. Even more importantly for Wall Street, it could also clear the way for the Federal Reserve to keep cutting interest rates in hopes of giving a boost to the slowing job market.
The Fed just cut its main interest rate last month for the first time this year, but it’s been hesitant to promise more relief because lower rates can make inflation worse, beyond boosting the economy and prices for investments.
Meanwhile, a flood of big tech companies’ earnings is on its way this week, with Microsoft, Meta and Google-parent Alphabet reporting on Wednesday. Apple and Amazon’s numbers are due to be released on Thursday.
Better-than-expected profits could fuel hopes for steady growth in the US. Information is scarce about the current state of the world’s biggest economy due to the prolonged government shutdown.
Great Britain’s Josh Tarling produces a blistering display to win his first track world title in the men’s 40km points race at the UCI Track World Championships.
Two-time Paralympic champion Stephen Bate secured a golden finish to his 12-year career by winning the men’s tandem individual pursuit title at the Para-cycling Track World Championships in Rio de Janeiro.
Bate and pilot Christopher Latham achieved victory by catching Italian rivals Lorenzo Bernard and pilot Paolo Toto in an impressive display.
It ensured Bate ended his career as a five-time world champion across road and track events, and a five-time Paralympic medallist.
It was in Rio nine years ago where he and then-pilot Adam Duggleby achieved a golden Paralympic double in the individual pursuit and road time trial events.
Partnered by Latham on his return to the Brazilian capital, with whom he won individual pursuit silver at his final Paralympic Games in Paris last summer, Bate signed off in style on another hugely successful day for the British team.
That was one of three gold medals won by the British team on Saturday, as 21-year-old Archie Atkinson regained the men’s C4 10km scratch race title.
Elizabeth Jordan and pilot Dannielle Khan also triumphed, retaining their women’s B 1km time trial title.
Finlay Graham made it three medals in as many days as he clinched silver in the men’s C3 elimination race.
There was also silver for Kadeena Cox in the women’s C4 Sprint Race.
Those successes took GB’s tally to seven golds, five silver and five bronze medals overall.
Sophie Unwin and Jenny Holl triumphed in the women’s B individual pursuit to claim a third gold for Britain on day two of the Para-Cycling World Championships.
The duo, who set a new world record in qualifying, paced their effort superbly to overcome a two-second deficit and beat New Zealand’s Emma Foy and Jessie Hodges, rounding off a fine day for the British team in Rio de Janeiro.
Earlier in the evening Jody Cundy claimed his second gold in as many days by winning the inaugural men’s C4 sprint title, while James Ball and Steffan Lloyd claimed gold in the men’s B 1km time trial.
Cundy, 47, led from start to finish as he held off Belgium’s Jarno Thierens and Australia’s Michael Shipley to win his 23rd world track gold medal.
Ball and his pilot Lloyd were equally as impressive as they finished over a second clear of Australia’s Kane Perris and Luke Zaccaria, with Italy’s Stefano Meroni and Francesco Ceci in third.
Kadeena Cox collected a silver in the women’s C4 kilo behind Australia’s Tara Neyland after being unable to maintain her blistering start.
Fin Graham secured his second medal of the week with a bronze in the men’s C3 1km time trial and Lizzi Jordan and pilot Dannielle Khan caught Poland’s Karolina Karasiewicz and Dominika Putrya to earn a bronze in the women’s B individual pursuit.
However, there was disappointment for Blaine Hunt, who crashed out in the men’s C5 elimination race.
The British team now has four golds, three silver medals and five bronze medals overall.
The debate over whether Mookie Betts can play shortstop was settled long ago.
The debate now is whether Mookie Betts can play shortstop better than anyone in baseball. That discussion may soon be drawing to a close, too.
Because a day after being named a finalist for a Gold Glove, Betts put a huge exclamation point on Thursday’s 3-1 playoff win over the Milwaukee Brewers with a spectacular play to start the ninth inning.
The victory leaves the Dodgers a win away from advancing to their second straight World Series, a journey they could complete Friday in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series. And a big reason they’re there is the steady defense of Betts, a six-time Gold Glove winner in the outfield who has made the difficult move to the middle of the infield seem easy.
“I think the only person on this planet that believed that Mookie Betts would be in this conversation was Mookie Betts,” Dodger manager Dave Roberts said. “It’s just something that has never been done. I can’t even — it’s incredible. Obviously I’m at a loss for words.”
Betts tried the position last year but Roberts said the confidence wasn’t there, so he moved Betts back to the outfield. There was no chance that would happen this fall.
Few understand the difficulty of what Betts has done more than those who have played the position. Yet Miguel Rojas, the man Betts replaced at shortstop — and a Gold Glove finalist himself this season as a utility player — said he’s not surprised because he has seen how hard Betts works.
“He doesn’t take days off,” Rojas said of Betts, who is frequently among the first players on the field for pregame drills and among the last to leave. “Even when we have an off day, he’ll still go out there and is asking ways to get better. I think it’s a product of being a relentless worker every single day. He’s never satisfied. He’s always trying to get better.
“For me to be there every single day to watch him perform and watch his work ethic, it’s been impressive.”
Part of that work, Betts said, involves watching video of every fielding play he makes. That includes the brilliant ones, like the ninth-inning play Thursday in which he ranged in the hole to backhand Andrew Vaughn’s grounder, then rose up and delivered a strong one-hop jump throw across his body to first baseman Freddie Freeman to get Vaughn easily.
“I go back and watch all my plays, even the routine ones, just to learn what I can do better,” he said.
Asked if he’s ever surprised by what he sees, Betts, who has yet to make an error in the playoffs, shrugged.
Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts makes a leaping, cross-body throw to retire Andrew Vaughn at first base during the ninth inning of Game 3 of the NLCS on Thursday at Dodger Stadium.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
“I’m just doing my job. I’m just doing my job going out there and playing short, that’s all.
“Once I get to the ball, I believe and trust in my athletic ability to make a play.”
Rojas, who has played six positions in the majors, said shortstop is such a hard place to play because of the mental focus it demands. An outfielder might be able to think about his hitting for a few pitches, but the shortstop, who quarterbacks the infield, doesn’t have that luxury.
“In the middle of the year he was in a slump offensively. But he never let the defense down. And that’s really impressive,” Rojas said. “He always said it to me, ‘Even though I’m sucking right now at hitting, I’m never going to be bad at defense. And I’m going to catch every single ball.’
“That’s the mentality that you have to have to be a really good shortstop.”
In the postseason, he’s become a really good offensive shortstop as well. After slumping to a career-low .258 average in the regular season, Betts is slashing .297/.381/.459 and shares the team lead with 11 hits and five extra-base hits in the postseason.
However, the numbers and the awards mean little to him, he said; Betts cares far more about winning. And as for proving himself at shortstop? Others, including his manager, may be surprised, but he isn’t.
“I know I could do it. I believed in myself. I always have belief in myself,” he said. “It was a goal to be the best I could be. If it came with a Gold Glove, cool. If it didn’t come with a Gold Glove, cool.
“I can go to bed at night knowing that I did everything I could. That’s all I care about.”
Just a season ago there were mornings when he’d get out of that bed wishing he could go back to right field. That doesn’t happen anymore.
“I would say the best athletes are the guys in the dirt,” he said. “It was fun while it lasted. I enjoy being in the dirt now.”
European stocks rose on Wednesday morning after a string of strong corporate results a day earlier, while equities were also boosted by remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. In Philadelphia on Tuesday, Powell suggested that another interest rate cut could come later this month in the US.
In Europe, shares in Netherlands-headquartered ASML, which makes equipment used in the production of AI chips, jumped after the company posted promising results on Wednesday.
The shares rose more than 4%, after Europe’s largest company by market value reported third-quarter earnings fuelled by the AI boom. ASML’s stocks have rallied by almost 50% since August.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, French multinational luxury group LVMH said its organic growth re-entered positive territory in the third quarter. The luxury giant’s shares jumped by more than 14% by 13.00 CEST.
The mood in France also shifted on news that the government had significantly improved its chances of surviving a looming no-confidence vote on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu won the much-needed support of the Socialist Party in France’s National Assembly, in exchange for suspending a pension law that raises the retirement age. The CAC 40 in Paris jumped over 2% by 13.00 CEST.
The main European benchmark stock exchanges were also in the green, except for London’s FTSE 100, which lost 0.43%. Meanwhile, the DAX in Frankfurt gained less than 0.1%. Milan’s FTSE MIB was up by 0.36%, Madrid’s Ibex 35 gained 0.71% and the STOXX 600 saw a 0.6% gain.
Gold continued its rally, hitting a high of $4,217 per ounce. Gold has soared over 60% in 2025 as investors seek a safe haven during a period of uncertainty, notably driven by US tariffs and trade tensions.
Global markets are on the rise after the Fed Chair’s words
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signalled on Tuesday that the Fed is slightly more worried about the job market, raising expectations that the central bank will come through with another rate cut.
“Rising downside risks to employment have shifted our assessment of the balance of risks,” he said at a meeting of the National Association of Business Economics in Philadelphia.
Traders took his words to heart, particularly as the US government shutdown has prevented the release of fresh economic data.
“[Investors were] reading Powell like a haiku — every pause, every syllable weighed for hidden meaning,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.
“The message, once decoded, was clear enough: two rate cuts aren’t just a possibility, they’re the main course,” Innes said.
The central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point in September amid worries that unemployment could worsen.
“Markets have been lifted by the rekindling of rate cut expectations in the US after comments from Fed chair Jerome Powell, which highlighted sluggish hiring were taken as an indication that not one, but two further cuts were very much on the table for 2025,” said Danni Hewson, AJ Bell head of financial analysis.
“Buoyed by continued deal-making in the frothy AI sector, investors seem prepared to overlook the growing number of warnings about the potential for a market correction at the moment, but this earnings season will be crucial if that optimism is to continue.”
S&P 500 futures rose 0.64% during the early afternoon in Europe, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 0.41%. Nasdaq futures were up by 0.79%.
On Tuesday, US markets closed a mixed trading day, with the S&P 500 giving up 0.16% and the Dow climbing 0.44%. The Nasdaq composite dropped 0.76%.
Markets remain volatile as the US and China exchange threats of new trade sanctions and tariffs.
Technology stocks are hypersensitive to trade issues since big chipmakers and other companies rely on China for raw materials and manufacturing. China’s large consumer base is also important for its sales growth.
In other dealings early Wednesday, US benchmark crude oil was circling around $58.65 per barrel (€50.43) and Brent crude, the international standard, was traded around $62.24 (€53.52) per barrel.
The US dollar slipped 0.25% against the Japanese yen, while the euro rose 0.19% against the dollar. The British Pound gained 0.35% against the greenback.
Traders on Wall Street showed caution on Thursday morning although US stocks continue to hover near their record highs.
The S&P 500 rose 0.1% in the first few minutes of trading on Thursday, before slipping 0.35%. The index is coming off its eighth gain in the last nine days.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.41%, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.43%, following a tech rally that kept US markets in a good mood over recent weeks. On Wednesday, AI chip giant Nvidia and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index both hit new records.
However, the rally has been increasingly accompanied by a growing chorus of concerns that AI-related investments are overpriced. On Wednesday, the Bank of England and the IMF both issued warnings about growing risks of an AI-led market bubble bursting. The announcements add to the current uncertainty due to the shutdown in the US, among others.
“Concerns around excessive valuations, elevated levels of government borrowing, uncertain economic growth, and political turbulence are omnipresent,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
“There are a multitude of factors that could trigger a market pullback, but for now, it is another day where there are more bulls than bears.”
In other corporate news, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world’s largest contract chipmaker, on Thursday reported its third-quarter revenue climbed 30% year-on-year, beating market forecasts.
“There is no real sign of a slowdown in AI-driven demand in the latest numbers from TSMC,” Mould said. “The chip manufacturing giant may have seen a slight easing in demand month-on-month, but year-on-year the levels of growth are still impressive for a company of its size.”
Shutdown weighs on the market sentiment
Trading has been relatively muted recently following the US government’s latest shutdown. The closure is delaying the release of several major economic reports that usually move the market. Stocks have been drifting without them or other signals to change expectations for cuts to interest rates by the Federal Reserve, one of the major reasons the stock market has been on a tear since April.
Oil prices fell after Israel and Hamas agreed Wednesday to pause fighting in Gaza so that the remaining hostages there can be freed in the coming days in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
The acceptance of elements of a plan put forward by the Trump administration represents the biggest breakthrough in months in the devastating two-year war.
US benchmark crude dipped 21 cents to $62.34 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, edged down 18 cents to $66.07 per barrel.
Gold shed some of its stellar gains but was still at $4,054.50 per ounce as of Thursday morning in the US.
Corporate news fuelling the trade
PepsiCo shares inched up over 1% on Thursday after the snack and beverage giant reported better-than-expected revenue in the third quarter despite weaker demand for its snacks and drinks in North America.
PepsiCo’s net income fell 11% to $2.6 billion (€2.24bn), but adjusted for one-time items, the company earned $2.29 per share, beating analysts’ forecasts by 3 cents.
Delta Air Lines easily topped Wall Street expectations for third-quarter profit. Delta expects recent momentum to carry through the end of the year and forecasts full-year profit of $6 per share, in the upper half of its previous guidance range. Delta shares rose 5.8% in premarket, lifting other major airlines’ shares along with it. United rose 3.9% and American jumped 4.9%.
Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk, the maker of weight-loss drug Wegovy, announced that it was acquiring San Francisco’s Akero Therapeutics for $4.7bn (€4.05bn) in cash.
Meanwhile, Ferrari saw its shares lose more than 13.8% after the Italian luxury sports carmaker offered a cautious earnings forecast on Thursday.
European sentiment remains mixed
Elsewhere, European markets opened in a mixed mood as traders weighed the details of the Israel–Hamas peace deal and mounting concerns over an AI bubble, with corporate updates, the looming US shutdown, and France’s political turmoil humming in the background.
Germany’s DAX added 0.28% while France’s CAC 40 was mostly flat. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.29%.
The S&P 500(^GSPC 0.58%) rose 0.58% to 6,753.72, while the Nasdaq Composite(^IXIC 1.12%) jumped 1.12% to 23,043.38. The Dow Jones Industrial Average(^DJI -0.00%) was essentially flat, slipping 0.0026% to 46,601.78. Technology strength drove broader gains even as yields held relatively firm.
In commodities, gold surged past $4,000/oz for the first time, fueled by safe-haven buying amid the ongoing government shutdown and rising hopes for Fed rate cuts.
The government shutdown continues to cast a shadow on economic visibility, elevating the role of inflation data and central bank signaling in driving markets. Meanwhile, rate cut expectations remain alive, supported by dovish cues in Fed minutes and underlying macro softness.
Looking ahead, traders will be watching whether the shutdown delays key releases like CPI or PCE, which in turn could ripple into timing for future Fed moves and even impact things like the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) announcement.
Market data sourced from Google Finance on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025.
Daily Stock News has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. This article was generated with GPT-5, OpenAI’s large-scale language generation model and has been reviewed by The Motley Fool’s AI quality control systems. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Gold prices continue to climb as investors look for a safe place to park their capital during a moment of geopolitical uncertainty, with the US government shutdown entering its second week.
The precious metal has gained more than 55% this year, and market analysts say investors aren’t solely focused on its ability to protect against inflation.
“While stock markets have generally done well this year, gold has been a superstar,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
“Traditionally, investors would load up on the shiny stuff when markets look gloomy, not when they’re motoring ahead. It shows that investors are hedging their bets, particularly as there are growing concerns that euphoria around AI has gone too far and the bubble could burst at some point.”
Gold sales often rise sharply when investors seek secure investments for their money and can’t find viable options in the stock market.
Even before the government shutdown in the US, gold saw dramatic gains as President Donald Trump’s barrage of tariffs threw the global economy into limbo.
More recently, falling interest rates have further boosted gold’s attractiveness, as interest-bearing investments promise lower returns.
Other precious metals have also risen in value amid the uncertainty. Silver futures are up over 65% since January, trading above $48 per ounce on Wednesday morning in Europe.
Why are prices going up?
Much of the recent economic turmoil stems from Trump’s trade wars.
Since the start of 2025, steep new duties imposed on goods coming into the US from around the world have strained businesses and consumers alike — inflating costs and weakening the job market. Due to higher costs and an uncertain outlook, hiring has plunged, and an increasing number of consumers are expressing pessimism about the US’ economic outlook.
A government shutdown in Washington has added to those anxieties. Key economic data has been delayed, leaving investors in the dark about the true state of the US economy.
Giovanni Staunovo, commodity analyst at UBS Global Wealth Management, also explained gold’s rise by pointing to the continued weakness of the US dollar and renewed rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. Last month, the Fed cut its key interest rate by a quarter-point — and projected it would do so twice more this year.
Gold is priced in US dollars, meaning that when the currency drops in value, the metal becomes relatively cheaper for foreign buyers.
What about jewellery?
Many jewellery merchants and dealers have increasingly reported surges in customers looking to check the value of gold they own — sometimes opting to melt or sell family heirlooms to cash in on the precious metal’s rising price.
At the same time, those in the market for gold jewellery may be feeling “sticker shock” if they can’t afford certain products anymore.
Larger retailers like Pandora and Signet, whose brands include Zales and Kay Jewelers, have acknowledged these headwinds in recent earnings calls.
“If I’m a guessing man here, we will see a general price rise for the category,” Pandora CEO Alexander Lacik said in an August earnings call, pointing to rising costs of gold and silver, as well as tariffs.
Is gold worth the investment?
Advocates of investing in gold call it a “safe haven” — arguing the commodity can serve to diversify and balance your investment portfolio, as well as mitigate possible risks down the road as a hedge against rising inflation. Some also take comfort in buying something tangible that has the potential to increase in value over time.
With high investment demand, Goldman Sachs has raised its forecast for precious metals from €4,300 to €4,900 per ounce by the end of 2026.
“There is a growing trend away from the classic portfolio structure with 60% in stocks and 40% in bonds. In the current environment, it is recommended to invest about 20% in alternatives such as precious metals and cryptos,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, FxPro chief market analyst.
Still, experts caution against putting all your eggs in one basket. And not everyone agrees that gold is a good investment. Critics say gold isn’t always the inflation hedge many claim, and that there are more efficient ways to protect against potential loss of capital, such as derivative-based investments.
“Gold is perceived by many market participants as a safe-haven asset. But investors need to be aware it has a volatility of 10-15%,” Staunovo noted. He added that smaller amounts of physical gold, such as gold coins or 1-gram bars, have larger ranges between buying and selling prices.
The Commodity Futures Trade Commission has also previously warned people to be wary of investing in gold. Precious metals can be highly volatile, the commission said, and prices rise as demand goes up. This means “when economic anxiety or instability is high, the people who typically profit from precious metals are the sellers”.
The commission added that it’s also important to be cautious of potential scams and counterfeits on the market.
Unspecified gold artefacts from the museum’s valuable Bronze Age collection were stolen in a ‘targeted’ smash-and-grab
Thieves have stolen “significant” gold Bronze Age artefacts from a popular Welsh museum in a targeted “four-minute” heist, fleeing as a police helicopter swooped in overhead.
CCTV captured the pair smashing their way into St Fagans National Museum of History on the edge of Cardiff early on Monday, with police alerted at 00:30 BST.
“We believe they entirely knew what they were after, they were so focused,” said Jane Richardson, chief executive of National Museum Wales, describing footage of the break-in as “emotional to watch”.
“It feels like someone has stolen from the family of Wales,” said Ms Richardson. Neither the police or the museum can currently confirm details of the stolen items.
Police helicopter
South Wales Police said a helicopter was at the scene five minutes after they were called by onsite security staff.
“It looks like they’ve been scoping out in advance and that they had come for specific items.
The authorities have so far not specified which items were taken, or their value. The museum’s Bronze age collection includes gold ingots, bracelets, and a lunula necklace.
“These items they took are very special and they didn’t bother trying to take anything else,” said Ms Richardson.
“Unfortunately, they were so organised that they got away before the police were able to apprehend them.”
Det Insp Chambers urged members of the public to come forward with any information, stressing “no matter how small, [it] may be relevant to the investigation”.
Founded in 1948, St Fagans is one of Wales’ most popular heritage attractions – and is one of seven national museums under the curation of Amgueddfa Cymru.
“It’s been very upsetting for us all. We’re absolutely devastated,” said Ms Richardson.
“These items don’t belong to us at the museum, they belong to the people of Wales. The Amgueddfa is a family which everyone in Wales belongs to, and it feels like the family of Wales has been attacked.
“People love the items, they’ve cared for them – and it felt like a bereavement yesterday.”
National Museum Wales
Two thieves forced their way into the main building of St Fagans museum, which is located on the edge of Cardiff
Bronze Age treasures
Ms Richardson expressed relief that security guards at the museum were safe and unharmed.
“It could have been very, very dangerous.
“We always take security and safety very seriously – we have very strong protocols in place,” she said, adding the museum robbery was part of an unwelcome trend “around the world”.
“These are very significant items for the stories of Wales,” said Ms Richardson, of the stolen Bronze Age gold.
“Any value would be meaningless because you can’t recreate that level of history. You can’t put a price on it. They cannot be replaced they are so special.
“But ultimately – these items – we want people to share them, to see them, to learn from them, and to do that you have to put them on display.
“Even with the top-notch specially designed cases we have at St Fagans, nothing can ever be totally secure.”
The museum remains open the public and will be hosting a museums’ conference over the next two days, although the main building, the café and the indoor galleries are currently closed.
St Fagans National Museum of Wales is on the western edge of Cardiff
What is St Fagans museum?
St Fagans National Museum of History, located in a village in the leafy outskirts of Cardiff, is one the city’s most-visited attractions.
It has re-erected more than 40 buildings representing different eras of Welsh history.
The most recent addition is the Vulcan Hotel pub, which previously stood on Adam Street in Cardiff for 170 years before being moved, brick by brick, and reassembled at St Fagans.
The museum’s main building houses exhibits and artefacts from the past.
Speaking at the time, the chair of the judges, called the museum “a truly democratic museum” that “lives and breathes the culture, history and identity of Wales”.
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The museum grounds at St Fagans incorporate a recreation of a Celtic village
‘Draw attention’
Frank Olding, archaeologist and a former museum curator at Abergavenny Museum, called the burglary “puzzling” as he said there was “no way that the objects could be passed on or sold to anyone.”
“Any dealer or anyone with any interest in history or the Bronze Age would know immediately what these objects were, and that would of course draw attention to the thieves as well,” he told BBC Wales.
“It’s very difficult to see how they could be passed on, and how could they be of any value to the people who have stolen them.
“The worst thing that could happen is that they were melted down for the value of the gold. Then they are lost forever to us, and the information they give us about our past would be destroyed forever. That really would be a tragedy.”
What do local people and visitors think?
Adam Ackerman, 34, manages a pub in the village. He said it as an unusual event for the area.
“I could hear the police helicopter at night, it was very concerning.
“We are being more vigilant at the moment, just sticking to the basics.
“It’s unlikely that they’ll target a pub, but who knows,” he said.
“There are so many visitors from all over the world, and so many entrances and low walls.
“It’s easy to scout around.”
The museum remains open the public and will be hosting a museums conference over the next two days, although the main building, the café and the indoor galleries are currently closed.
One visitor Mourag Law, 75, from the Cyncoed area of the city, suggested the burglary was a sign of wider problems.
“This is a reflection of a broken country and it seems to have been stolen to order,” she said.
“St Fagans works hard to preserve the past, and this very much deserves to be protected.”
On Nov. 26, 1983, six men robbed a warehouse serving London’s Heathrow Airport. Hoping to find £1 million worth of foreign currency, they found instead 6,800 gold bars, worth £26 million in 1983 money — a record-setting robbery at the time — under the temporary supervision of Brink’s-Mat. (A union of the American security firm and a British transport outfit.) This event has been transmuted into “The Gold,” an involving British drama premiering here Sunday on PBS.
The robbery itself takes up little screen time; the question on the criminal side becomes how to turn three tons of gold into cash, and for the police, one of recovering the loot and bringing the villains to justice. The cops and the criminals overlap here and there, a point screenwriter Neil Forsyth does not want you to miss, and is a particular bee in the bonnet of upright Detective Chief Superintendent Brian Boyce (Hugh Bonneville), self-contained but always ready to speak his mind. (He is also “infuriated” by what people get wrong about jazz, which he likens to police work.)
Recruited by Boyce to a special task force are detectives Tony Brightwell (Emun Elliott), historical, and Nicki Jennings (a charismatic Charlotte Spencer), invented, who are good company for the viewer and generally for each other, though as people who spend long hours sitting together in cars waiting for something to happen, they have their moments of friction, played for humor. As a created character, Jennings — who, as a woman, has to outline the many steps and hard work it took to achieve her position — offers an opportunity for emotional elaboration, notably in scenes (affectionate, prickly) with her father, Billy (Danny Webb), “by a country mile the worst villain in England,” his criminal career sidelined by ill health.
Though one of the actual robbers, Micky McAvoy (Adam Nagaitis), gets a good deal of attention, the bulk of the series involves three criminals subsequently processing the gold and laundering the money. Kenneth Noye (Jack Lowden) is “a fence with protection,” owing to his friendship with police officers through membership in the Masons. (When Boyce brings Jennings and Brightwell onto his team, he sets the rules as “no overtime, no drinking at lunchtime, no freemasonry.”) John Palmer (Tom Cullen), a dyslexic dealer in gold and jewelry, has a handy portable smelter in his yard. And the invented Edwyn Cooper (Dominic Cooper), an up-from-the-streets solicitor with posh airs and a rich wife whose snooty parents treat him with barely disguised disdain, finds himself working for “a group of businessmen who have a lot of money that needs to be made respectable,” in the words of liaison Gordon Parry (Sean Harris, sinister).
Stretched over six episodes, it’s not a speedy telling, and, in fact, a second series covering a long tail of aftermath has already aired in the U.K. Apart from some surveillance, tailing suspects, one fatal encounter and an occasional chase, there’s little in the way of capital-A Action, mostly just a lot of talk — inquisitive, instructive, threatening, discursive, domestic or speechifying. Though the production is naturalistic — in a way that ties it to an earlier, golden era of British productions — the dialogue can sound highly composed. Characters are given little monologues, often to explain how they became the person they are, that play as the sort of thing that might occur late in the last act of a stage drama: Jennings found the sirens outside her window comforting, which led her to police work, “so that kids like me will be safe”; Boyce had a life-changing moment involving a pair of red leather shoes while fighting in the so-called Cypriot Emergency. Some dialogue might have been lifted whole from a 1930s gangster film. Critiques of British class structure and bad actors within the police department are raised high enough to be impossible to miss.
There are a lot of moving parts in “The Gold,” represented in sometimes brief alternating scenes, and it may take a while, among the crooks, at least, to get a handle on things, to sort out where you are, who’s who, who’s married to whom, and what part each plays in the caper. Though Noye is arrogant enough to root against, Forsyth wants to show, as much as each character allows, the just-folks elements of his bad guys, psychologically relatable sorts who have, from early experience, a lack of opportunity, or a certain kind of genius, decided that the path to freedom is best paved with other people’s money. (“If it wasn’t for people trying trying to break out of the lives they’ve been given,” observes Boyce of his country’s social stratification, the police would be out of a job.) This may be soft-pedaling matters somewhat — to read the historical accounts might give you a different picture — but as drama it pays dividends.
As a period piece, it doesn’t oversell the era. There are old cars, of course, and more mustaches than we are currently accustomed to. But apart from the pop songs that run over the end credits, nothing screams These Are the ’80s. (Compare, for example, the “Life on Mars” sequel, “Ashes to Ashes.”) It’s more a question of what isn’t there. The detectives have a computer, but only Brightwell has an idea of what it’s for or how to use it. No cellphones, but there are walkie-talkies. A tracking device, apparently the only one in all of British law enforcement, has to be imported from Belfast (and sneakily at that). There is a refreshing absence of guns — none of those Kevlar-clad teams going in with pistols raised. (Just truncheons.) And the remodeling of East London into a gentrified glass forest, a minor plot point, has only just begun.
It’s like a vacation from now, and who can’t use one of those?
Great Britain’s Joe Clarke wins his fourth consecutive kayak cross world title and GB’s first gold medal at the Canoe Slalom World Championships in Sydney.
He missed the early part of the season following the birth of his second child and says he struggled to “find his feet” in the subsequent World Cup events.
“It was a dream to come here to retain that title after getting silver in the Games last year,” said Clarke, who finished well clear of France’s Mathurin Madore in second place and Czech canoeist Matyas Novak in third.
“To compete on the biggest stage at the Olympics is massive but then I actually took some time off afterwards, so I’ve been working towards this.
“I have kind of been finding my feet the second half of the season, but it seems like I found them now.
“I came today with a point to prove and I think I’ve done that. To take a fourth world title, I’m stuck for words.”
It’s autumn and Madrid is breathing a collective sigh of relief. Everything is open again and the intense heat, which seems to ooze out of the walls and up from the pavements in summer, has mellowed to pleasantly warm. It’s the perfect temperature for languishing on a cafe terrace with the sun tickling your skin as afternoon slips into evening. Noise levels are back to normal, which means cacophonous.
It feels like the entire population is out on the streets, catching up with their friends and chatting about all the things they want to do, the films they want to see, the new bars they’ve heard about and the restaurants they fancy trying over the next few months. If you could do with a boost, spend a few days in the Spanish capital this autumn.
The dazzling light and clear blue skies lift your mood as soon as you arrive. Madrid being the highest major capital city in Europe may have something to do with that. It is a comparatively young capital too. Arabs from north Africa settled here in the ninth century, building a citadel where the royal palace and Almudena cathedral are now, but Madrid only really got going when Philip II moved his court here from Toledo in 1561, establishing the city as the new capital of Spain.
Plaza Mayor, Madrid’s main public square, at dusk. Photograph: Jorg Greuel/Getty Images
To get a sense of the city’s history, walk from the Puerta del Sol – the centre not just of Madrid but the whole of Spain – to the 17th-century Plaza Mayor, which is framed by redbrick buildings with slate roofs and spindly spires. Then stroll along Cava Baja, the curving street that follows the course of the 12th-century city wall. Vestiges survive in the basements of several bars and restaurants that originated as inns and taverns for the merchants and travellers who arrived by stagecoach.
In Madrid, you absorb the city’s heritage just by walking around. In the Barrio de las Letras, or literary quarter, the bar-lined streets are named after the great writers who lived there in the 16th and 17th centuries, such as Miguel de Cervantes, Francisco de Quevedo and Lope de Vega.
You could spend weeks in the city’s big three museums – Prado, Thyssen-Bornemisza and Reina Sofia – but try to fit in some others too. The Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando gets a fraction of the visitors, despite being just off the Puerta del Sol and having astounding collections that include Goya, El Greco, Picasso and Francisco de Zurbarán.
This autumn I’m looking forward to the Suma Flamenca festival (14 Oct-2 Nov), where leading flamenco dancers, singers and musicians will be performing new work such as Flamenco Gospel by Juan Carmona. The main festival venue is the Teatros del Canal, an arts complex designed by Juan Navarro Baldeweg, one of Spain’s most renowned architects, who is also an artist (an exhibition of his work is on at Centro Centro until 14 December). The Teatros del Canal is also a hub for the Festival de Otoño, (6-30 Nov), one of the cultural highlights of the year, with theatre, music and more by Spanish and international artists.
The Chamberí district, where the Teatros del Canal is found, is in a less touristy area, just north of downtown. The most traditional and characterful areas of the city, considered the homes of a “pure” and distinctive Madrileño spirit, are called barrios castizos – and Chamberí certainly fits that description. Base yourself here for a more authentic feel – try the palatial and stylish One Shot Fortuny hotel, which has doubles from around £160 room-only in October.
As you explore, take in the flowers spilling over the wrought-iron balconies and the gleaming fruit and vegetables outside little shops (particularly the mushrooms at this time of year) and peer into the tiny, tiled bars where locals are having a quick coffee or beer. Walk in, find yourself a place at the bar and you’ll wonder why you don’t live in Madrid.
The Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando. Photograph: Wiskerke/Alamy
Trafalgar, the part of Chamberí closest to the centre, is fast becoming one of the most fashionable parts of town, but still has a laid-back, family vibe. I’ve been meeting friends in the Plaza de Olavide for decades and seen it undergo umpteen makeovers.
Eight streets flow into the square, bringing a constant stream of people searching for friends and dragging chairs to form messy configurations of all ages that change constantly as the night wears on. It’s normal to arrange to meet one friend here, and end up with a table of 10.
New bars, restaurants, galleries and boutiques are opening in traditional premises here, but I love that the people behind them are keeping the original fixtures and fittings or hunting down zinc or steel counters and revamping old bar stools to recreate the castizo character, while also adding their own contemporary vibe. Pop into Bar Trafalgar for a cocktail – or maybe a vermouth and a smoked ham and cheese toasted sandwich – and you’ll get the idea. It’s the kind of place that works at any time of day or night. I love the Olavide Bar de Libros too, both a bookshop and a cafe – browsing books and sipping a glass of wine are two of my favourite things.
Also on my list this autumn is International Architecture Week (until 13 Oct, although some exhibitions run beyond that date). The programme includes an Álvaro Siza exhibition (until 9 Jan 2026) at the Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos de Madrid, a short stroll from the Plaza de Olavide. This is followed by Madrid Otra Mirada (16-19 Oct), when you can visit historic buildings and gardens that are not usually open to the public.
A bar in the Chamberí district, one of Madrid’s most traditional and characterful barrios. Photograph: Alessandro Giamello/Alamy
While there’s certainly a lot to see and do at this time of year, you don’t want to get too hung up on packing your days with plans. Madrid is all about going with the flow. Drift around Parque del Buen Retiro for a couple of hours, taking in the startlingly vivid magenta and ochre tones of the oak, chestnut and willow trees. Exit the park on the east side, where Calle de Ibiza and the surrounding streets have become a gastronomic hotspot. I love tapas at the bar at La Catapa or La Taberna de Rox, although both also have tables if you want to rest tired feet.
For more autumnal hues, it’s now a lot easier to visit the elegant Campo del Moro gardens, which slope down from the royal palace to the Manzanares River. There used to be only one entrance, down by the river – which always felt like too much of a hike after traipsing around the palace. A lot of people weren’t aware that the gardens were open to visitors. Now, thank goodness, you can get in from the top end, from the Cuesta de San Vicente or the Cuesta de la Vega, which is really handy if you are going to the Royal Collections Gallery as there is direct access.
If you haven’t been to Madrid for a few years, this museum, which opened in 2023, is a must, with paintings by Bosch, Titian, Velázquez and Goya as well as a vast array of treasures collected by Spanish monarchs over the centuries, housed in a spectacular building designed by Emilio Tuñón and Luis Moreno Mansilla.
Plaza de Olavide, Chamberi. Photograph: Alamy
Walk down through the gardens – maybe stopping for a drink on the cafe terrace at the bottom – and cross the river to reach the Casa de Campo, the largest green space in Madrid. I rarely get beyond the lake, where there is a string of restaurants with tons of outdoor tables. A plate of garlic prawns with fried eggs at Villa Verbena invariably seems like an excellent idea at this point. It’s worth going just for the view of the Madrid skyline.
Back in the centre, head for Lavapiés, which is one of the most castizo neighbourhoods in Madrid but also the most international, with a huge range of places to eat and drink. Not that you need any excuse for a night out here, but the Tapapiés tapas and music festival (16-26 October) is a particularly good time for a mooch around. More than 100 bars and restaurants are taking part and are offering a tapa and a beer for €3.50. There’s going to be live music, dancing, processions and kids’ activities too. If all that’s not a good enough reason to book a stay, I don’t know what is.
US futures sank, the dollar slipped, and world shares were mixed after a US government shutdown began on Wednesday.
The partial closure of the federal government is feared to have economic implications if it lasts, and Washington is bracing for what could be a prolonged deadlock. This comes after lawmakers missed the deadline to agree on funding for the government.
Equity markets in Europe were volatile in the morning on Wednesday, as investors reacted to the news from across the Atlantic. Major European stock indexes started trading mostly in negative territory, but the picture fundamentally changed by midday.
“The US government shutdown has left investors wondering what might happen next, with a minor pullback on European equity markets and weaker futures prices for Wall Street,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
At first, the FTSE 100 in London made an exception of the negative trend, rising 0.7% two hours after the opening, “thanks to a surge in pharmaceutical stocks”.
Soon enough, the German DAX turned its initial loss of 0.3% into a gain of more than 0.3%, just like the CAC 40 in Paris. The IBEX 35 in Madrid was down by nearly 0.2% at around midday.
US futures were mostly down at the same time, with the S&P 500 dropping 0.5%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipping 0.5%, and the Nasdaq down 0.6%.
Eurozone inflation ticked up in September
The trend in Europe’s equity markets was also influenced by freshly released eurozone inflation data, showing that prices have increased by 2.2% in September. This is slightly above the European Central Bank’s 2% target, where eurozone inflation had been sitting for the previous three months. Core inflation remained stable at 2.3%, despite services edging up modestly.
“The outlook has not changed and still clearly points to inflation descending thanks to cooling wage growth, low energy commodity prices, a stronger euro, and contained demand-side pressures,” said Riccardo Marcelli Fabiani, senior economist at Oxford Economics.
He added that the September rise in inflation will cement the ECB’s conviction that further easing would be overdue. “Only a strong surprise in inflation could spur a cut this year.”
The US shutdown’s impact on the equity markets
While trading activity was expected to slow in the case of a shutdown in the US, many investors didn’t sell off their holdings.
One explanation is that past US government shutdowns have had a limited impact on the economy and the stock market, and investors may be predicting something similar this time around. Many analysts agree that the market is tuning out the political noise and focusing on the economic fundamentals.
However, if the shutdown lasts, it is expected to prevent the Friday release of a monthly labour market report. This is key for investors and for the Federal Reserve to get a pulse check on the US economy and decide whether to cut interest rates again.
But the stubborn positivity among investors may last, continuing the relentless run the US stock markets have been on since hitting a low in April. The bullish market sentiment is fuelled by expectations that President Donald Trump’s tariffs won’t derail global trade and that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates several times to boost the slowing job market.
Meanwhile, Tuesday brought mixed reports on the US economy. A Conference Board survey showed consumers are feeling less confident than economists expected, with many respondents pointing to the job market and to stubborn inflation.
A second report suggested the job market may be remaining in its “low-hire, low-fire” state. US employers were advertising roughly the same number of job openings at the end of August as the month before. The hope on Wall Street had been for a moderate number, one balanced enough to keep the Fed cutting interest rates.
The central bank just delivered its first cut of the year, and officials have pencilled in more this year.
Bonds, gold and oil
The US shutdown had a limited impact on US Treasury yields, which rose slightly as European markets opened. This could be explained by the fact that the shutdown had been anticipated and it is not expected to last long.
In other news, gold has struck a new record, with the safe-haven asset hitting $3,918.80 before midday in Europe.
Oil prices reflected concerns, meanwhile, with US benchmark crude oil losing nearly 1% to $61.75 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost nearly 0.9% to $65.44 per barrel.
The US dollar fell to 147.13 Japanese yen from 147.94 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1745 from $1.1734. The British pound gained slightly, coming to $1.3470.
Shares in Japan slid, rising elsewhere in Asia
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index shed 0.9% after the Bank of Japan (BOJ) reported a slight improvement in business sentiment among major manufacturers.
The indications from the BOJ’s quarterly tankan survey raise the odds that the central bank will increase its key interest rate to counter inflation that has topped its target range of about 2% for some time.
Political uncertainty is also looming over Japan’s markets, with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party due to choose a new leader and prime minister later this week to replace embattled Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Markets and offices in mainland China are closed 1-8 October for the National Day holiday. Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.9%, while Taiwan’s Taiex added 0.6% on heavy buying of semiconductor-related shares. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped less than 0.1%. In India, the Sensex rose 0.6%.
The price of gold climbed to a new record on Monday, rising above $3,850 an ounce in the afternoon in Europe, up more than 1% on the day.
Precious metals across the board surged, fuelled by a weak dollar and high uncertainty around funding for the US federal government.
On Monday, US President Donald Trump and the Republican Party are meeting with Democrats to discuss a short-term spending bill to avoid a government shutdown on Tuesday. Republicans need at least seven votes from Democrats to pass the legislation.
Uncertainty is high, which historically sees investors flocking into so-called safe-haven assets such as gold. The precious metal is a more stable option in turbulent times when other asset classes are far more volatile.
So far this year, gold has shown itself to be an investor favourite amid increased geopolitical tensions and trade uncertainties. Since January, the precious metal has gained over 45%, rising from $2,669 an ounce.
Other factors are also supporting gold prices, including expectations of further rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. On 17 September, the Fed lowered its target range for its main lending rate to 4% – 4.25%, and officials indicated that there could be two more rate cuts this year.
Lower rates tend to weaken the US dollar, in which gold is denominated, increasing the metal’s appeal. This is particularly the case when other interest-bearing assets like bonds and savings accounts offer lower yields, following rate cuts.
“Gold prices continue to mark new records, with expectations for further rate cuts from the Fed supportive, given the precious metal does not offer income,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
“Now above $3,800, gold has also been boosted by central bank buying over several years, weaker demand for traditional safe havens like US government bonds driven by concerns over US deficits and trade policy, dollar weakness and geopolitical tensions, including conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine,” Mould added.
“The threat of a shutdown in Washington, as policymakers engage in tense negotiations ahead of a deadline at midnight on Tuesday, is yet another factor driving support for gold.”
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Paralympic champion Brock Whiston won gold in the women’s SM8 200m individual medley as Great Britain set a new world record at the World Para Swimming Championships in Singapore.
Whiston backed up her Paralympic title from 12 months ago with a season’s best time of two minutes 40.25 seconds, albeit five seconds slower than the world record she set in 2019.
The 28-year-old completed her medal set at this year’s meet after winning silver in the 400m freestyle and bronze in the 100m butterfly.
“I felt like coming into it I had a lot of pressure on myself,” Whiston said.
“No one else put the pressure on me but after winning gold at Paris I just wanted to come here and prove that it wasn’t just a one off and that I deserve to be on the podium. I can’t stop smiling, I’m super happy.”
Later in the session GB triumphed in the mixed S14 4x100m medley relay to claim a 13th gold medal of the championships.
Poppy Maskill, Harry Stewart, Will Ellard and Bethany Firth produced a world record time of four minutes 2.86 secs, almost five seconds faster than the previous record set by Australia at the 2023 championships.
Maskill and Stewart put in firm foundations for the team over the opening backstroke and breaststroke legs, before Ellard held off Brazil across the 100m butterfly and Firth surged to victory on the freestyle leg.
“I’m so happy! These guys are amazing, they’re so good to swim with and I think we’re just setting the standard for what is to come,” said Firth.
With the format to be introduced at the 2028 LA Paralympics, Ellard said: “Now that it’s a Paralympic event I’m sure we’ll try at different things to keep aiming to get better and better [in this format].”
Faye Rogers set a British record time of 1.00.46 to finish second in the women’s S10 100m freestyle and win her fourth medal of the week in Singapore.
Bruce Dee set another national record but missed out on a medal in the men’s SB6 100m breaststroke final by a tenth of a second, while 14-year-old Iona Winnifrith missed the podium by the same margin in the women’s S7 50m freestyle despite producing a lifetime best of 33.77 secs.
China top the medal table heading into the final day with 16 golds, with Italy second with 15 and Ukraine and the United States both on 14.
Yoweri Museveni likes to profile himself as Africa’s biggest proponent of value addition.
According to the Ugandan president, in power 39 years, Africa has for decades allowed itself to be “robbed” by exporting raw materials, particularly minerals and other commodities, to developed economies that then reap the higher margins further up the value chain.
Museveni banned export of unprocessed agricultural products in 2021, and in April he extended the prohibition to all unprocessed raw materials, including gold, lithium, and tin. Last month, the push for value added manifested in the inauguration of Uganda’s biggest gold project, Wagagai Gold Mining.
The fuel behind the venture is a $250 million investment by China’s Liaoning Hongda Enterprise, of which Wagagai Mining is the Ugandan subsidiary. With 30 million tonnes of proven reserves of gold ore, Wagagai can refine gold to 99.9% purity, the government says, enabling production of 1.2 metric tonnes annually.
When fully operational, the project is expected to create over 5,000 direct jobs, with gold exports generating over $100 million annually during its 20 years’ lifespan. Uganda raked in $3.4 billion from gold exports in 2024, but mostly from artisanal mining that Museveni wants to discourage.
“Under my leadership, we will not export unprocessed minerals, as this undermines our economy,” Museveni promised. The Wagagai project will end “wasteful” exports and usher Uganda into a new era of value addition.
Just as importantly, for many observers, Wagagai Mining represents a new phase in the deepening but unequal relationship between Uganda and China. Chinese investors have pumped close to $1 billion into sectors like mining, agriculture, manufacturing, oil and gas, and industrial parks in the East Africa nation.
The gold mining and refining project represents another step in China’s effort to control African minerals. For Beijing, keeping Wagagai in a tight grip is of strategic importance. Uganda has seen its public debt rise to unprecedented levels, hitting $31.5 billion in June, of which $2.5 billion represents expensive loans from Beijing. Parliamentary records indicate Uganda paid China $178.7 million as of December 2024 for debt servicing, the most to any of its lenders.
The cost of servicing the loans has prompted legislators to plead with China to cut interest rates; thus far, to no avail.
