Author: OMN AI

West Ham are willing to sell Lucas Paquetá this month only if Flamengo loan him back until season’s end.Flamengo’s €35m bid was rejected and could rise to around €40m.However, the Brazilian club are reluctant to agree to a loan-back arrangement.They believe waiting until summer could allow a cheaper deal.Paquetá has told West Ham he wants to return to Brazil.West Ham fear losing him now would seriously damage their Premier League survival hopes.The club sit seven points below Nottingham Forest in 17th place.Paquetá has struggled since facing spot-fixing allegations, despite being cleared last year.The episode cost him a move to Manchester…

A volatile political backdrop shapes the yearThe year 2026 opened under heavy political strain. President Donald Trump threatened forceful action against Iran. The warning came after US authorities captured Venezuela’s leader. His administration launched a criminal probe into the Federal Reserve chair. Officials also moved aggressively against profits at banks and major investors. These decisions injected uncertainty into global markets. Stocks remain calm despite rising tensionMany investors expected equities to slide sharply. That selloff never arrived. Traders largely absorbed the political turmoil. US stock markets touched record highs early in the week. Prices then eased only slightly. Equity investors showed…

BP has said it expects to write down up to $5bn from its struggling green and low-carbon energy businesses as it refocuses on fossil fuels under new chair Albert Manifold. The writedowns will mainly affect BP’s gas and transition divisions but are not expected to impact underlying profits when full-year results are published in February. The move reflects a retreat from earlier green ambitions, including attempts to sell a stake in its solar arm Lightsource and the cancellation of hydrogen projects in several countries. BP shares dipped after the announcement, alongside weaker oil trading and falling crude prices, with Brent…

The US government has approved Nvidia’s sale of advanced artificial intelligence chips to China. The Department of Commerce announced the decision on Tuesday. Officials said the move follows a review of US chip supply. The approval eases earlier export limits on sensitive technology. Washington had restricted the sales over security concerns. Officials warned the chips could strengthen China’s technology sector and military. The new decision relaxes those limits under strict conditions. Authorities described the shift as carefully controlled. H200 processors cleared under strict rules The approval applies to Nvidia’s H200 processors. The chip ranks as Nvidia’s second-most-advanced AI product. Regulators…

Economic Clash Tops the List of Global ThreatsRising tensions between major powers, expressed through tariffs, sanctions, and other economic tools, have been named the biggest threat to global stability for 2026, according to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) latest Global Risks Report. The report, compiled from the insights of over 1,300 leaders in business, government, academia, and civil society, ranks geoeconomic confrontation above misinformation, societal polarisation, extreme weather, and armed conflict. Half of the respondents expect a turbulent or stormy world over the next two years, up from 36% last year. Only 9% foresee stability, and just 1% predict calm.…

AI Driving the Valuation SurgeAlphabet, Google’s parent company, has become the fourth firm to reach a $4 trillion market value, joining the ranks of Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple. Investor excitement over artificial intelligence has fueled the rise, with Alphabet’s stock climbing roughly 75% over the past year and nearly 7% since January. Apple’s recent announcement that it will integrate Google’s Gemini AI into Siri further bolstered confidence in Alphabet’s AI leadership. Innovation Keeps Google Ahead of Start-UpsFollowing the rise of ChatGPT, Google intensified its AI development, releasing the Gemini 3 model, praised for its accuracy, improved coding abilities, and ability…

Diageo is reportedly considering selling its Chinese assets as part of a broader overhaul under its new chief executive, Dave Lewis. The owner of Guinness and Johnnie Walker has begun reviewing its operations in China, where sales have been weakening, and is said to be working with Goldman Sachs and UBS to assess options. Diageo’s holdings include a majority stake in Shanghai-listed Sichuan Swellfun, a producer and distributor of baijiu, whose shares have fallen sharply over the past year. Lewis, who took over on 1 January after leading turnarounds at Unilever and Tesco, is known for aggressive cost-cutting and portfolio…

The world waits for a response President Trump faces a critical decision on Iran. Ten days ago, he said the United States would step in to protect Iranian protesters if authorities used violence. He said American forces were locked, loaded, and ready. Those remarks came before the crackdown escalated. The scale of repression now shocks observers. The world watches closely for Trump’s next move. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said only the president knows his plans. She added that the world can continue guessing. That uncertainty now dominates Washington. Observers question how long patience can last. Military options and…

Same-sex sexual behaviour among non-human primates may help reinforce social bonds and maintain group cohesion during times of environmental or social stress, according to new research. Writing in Nature Ecology & Evolution, scientists analysed documented cases across 59 primate species, including chimpanzees, Barbary macaques and mountain gorillas. The study, led by researchers including Prof Vincent Savolainen of Imperial College London, found the behaviour to be widespread, suggesting either deep evolutionary roots or repeated independent evolution. The analysis showed same-sex sexual behaviour was more common in species living in harsher, drier environments with scarce resources and higher predation risk. It was…

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is doubling down on Europe’s free trade ambitions, signaling that an EU-India trade agreement could be signed by the end of January, even as the bloc faces internal divisions over other deals like Mercosur. Merz Urges Timely EU-India Agreement Speaking during a trip to India on Monday, Merz expressed optimism that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa could finalize a free trade pact with New Delhi soon. He highlighted the deal as part of Europe’s strategy to reduce reliance on the US and China, both of which have embraced…