By David Milliken LONDON (Reuters) -British pay growth dropped to its lowest in nearly two years in the second quarter, likely reassuring the Bank of England that inflation pressures are easing, while the unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped, official figures showed on Tuesday. Average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, were 5.4% higher than a year earlier in the three months to the end of June, down from 5.8% in the three months to May and the lowest … Read more…

By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed NEW YORK (Reuters) – Panic appears to have faded following last week’s outbreak of volatility in U.S. stocks, but if history is any guide, markets might remain jittery for months. Wall Street’s most closely watched gauge of investor anxiety, the Cboe Volatility Index, has rapidly eased after closing at a four-year high last week and stocks came screaming back following the year’s worst tumble. The S&P 500 is up 3% from … Read more…

By Koh Gui Qing and Lawrence White NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) -Stocks jumped and bond yields fell on Tuesday after data showed U.S. producer prices increased less than expected in July, reinforcing market expectations that cooling inflation will allow the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates soon. The producer price index for final demand gained 0.1% last month after rising by an unrevised 0.2% in June, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Tuesday. … Read more…

By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Democratic National Committee will spend over $100,000 in a first-ever push to register the 9 million Americans living abroad, working to win votes for the party’s nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5 presidential election. The funding for Democrats Abroad, which represents Democrats living outside the United States, will be used to pay for voter registration drives and spread information about how to vote from overseas, … Read more…

By Aaditya GovindRao (Reuters) – Australian financial stocks are ruling the roost on the traditionally miners-led local main index, fueled by growing interest from equity funds that are wary of the commodity-backed sector due to poor Chinese demand. The financial sub-index, composed chiefly of the biggest lenders in the region, has risen more than 15% this year. In contrast, the local metals and mining index has declined more than 18% and conceded its top weighting … Read more…

By Nidal al-Mughrabi CAIRO (Reuters) – Israeli forces pressed on with their operations near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis on Monday amid an international push for a deal to halt the fighting in Gaza and block a slide into a wider regional conflict with Iran and its proxies. Palestinian medics said Israeli military strikes on several areas of Khan Younis on Monday killed at least 16 people and wounded several. Meanwhile more families … Read more…

By Nidal al-Mughrabi CAIRO (Reuters) -An Israeli airstrike on a Gaza City school compound housing displaced Palestinian families killed around 100 people, the Gaza Civil Emergency Service said on Saturday. Israel said around 20 militants had been operating at the compound. Video from the site showed body parts scattered around and more bodies being carried away and covered in blankets on the floor. Empty food tins lay in a puddle of blood, and burnt mattresses … Read more…

KAMPALA (Reuters) – A landslide at a landfill in Uganda’s capital Kampala has killed eight people, the city’s authorities said on Saturday. The incident happened late Friday after heavy rainfall when sections of the landfill collapsed, covering some nearby houses, Ugandan media reported. Kampala Capital City Authority said government and Red Cross personnel were searching the site and had rescued 14 people. “On a very sad note, eight people have so far been found dead, … Read more…