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China services growth hits seven-month high but authorities struggle to prop up the yuan, which has fallen to a 16-month low

Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.

Confidence among British businesses has plummeted to the lowest levels since ex-prime minister Liz Truss’s mini-budget in September 2022 following the autumn budget’s large tax increases.

The worrying reverberations of the budget are clear to see in our survey data. Businesses confidence has slumped in a pressure cooker of rising costs and taxes.

9am GMT: Eurozone HCOB PMI composite and services final for December

1pm GMT: Germany inflation for December

2.45pm GMT: US S&P Global composite and services PMIs final for December

3pm GMT: US Factory Orders for November

Sentiment

0.7

Bearish/Bullish

100

07.01.25 07:47

by theguardian.com

Why did Mark Zuckerberg end Facebook and Instagram’s factchecking program?

The social media giant enters a more partisan political era as its CEO pursues Donald Trump’s approval

Meta is shifting to the right, following the prevailing political winds blowing through the United States. A more partisan era now looms for the social media giant and its corporate leaders, though Mark Zuckerberg himself has few personal politics other than ambition.

On Tuesday morning, Meta disbanded Facebook and Instagram’s third-party factchecking program. The company will also recommend more political content across its social networks.

United States of America