Inflation unexpectedly rose in the U.K., likely keeping policymakers at the Bank of England cautious despite a limping economy, the Wall Street Journal reported. The rate of annual inflation was 3.6% in June, up from 3.4% in May, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed Wednesday. The uptick echoes the situation in the U.S., where inflation picked up pace to 2.7% last month from 2.4% in May as prices rose among items sensitive to President Trump’s trade tariffs, such as toys and clothes.

Thousands of UK companies have been removed from the Companies House register over the last year, following a crackdown coordinated by the National Economic Crime Centre, according to a press release. These companies were not compliant with Registered Office requirements under the Companies Act 2006. The project was designed to identify and enable enforcement action against high-risk company incorporation locations and corporate entities believed to be enabling criminality in the UK and overseas.

Austrian prosecutors said on Tuesday they were bringing an insolvency-related fraud case against the former billionaire founder of the collapsed Signa property group, Rene Benko, Reuters reported. Benko has been in custody for more than five months as the Central Prosecutors' Office for Economic Crimes and Corruption (WKStA) carries out a wide-ranging investigation into a range of offences including several counts of fraud he and other unnamed people are suspected of.

Thames Water has been accused of “holding a gun to the taxpayer’s head” by warning it may have to be nationalised if it is not handed a reprieve on historical fines, The Telegraph reported. MPs said Thames was asking to be “let off the hook” as it warned there was a “material uncertainty” over whether a £17bn rescue deal led by creditors would succeed.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said on Tuesday the International Monetary Fund had a key role to play in tackling the buildup of risky imbalances in the world economy, many of them coming from the United States and China, Reuters reported. In a speech he was due to give to Britain's finance elite, Bailey acknowledged the concerns of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration about the danger of IMF overreach. But the BoE boss said attempts to fix the problems in the world economy - chief among them the big U.S.

Factory output in the eurozone partly rebounded from a tariff-induced slump in May, but trade is likely to remain a headwind even as manufacturers harbor hopes of better times on government pledges to increase defense and infrastructure spending, the Wall Street Journal reported. Industrial production increased 1.7% from April across the 20 nations that make up the eurozone, according to figures released by the European Union’s statistics agency on Tuesday. The increase reverses a sharp drop a month earlier, when the imposition of tariffs led to a fall in demand for European goods.

Ziglu, a UK-based cryptocurrency firm, has disclosed a substantial financial shortfall of $2.7 million, sparking worries among its investors, Coin World reported. This revelation emerged as the company grapples with insolvency, leaving many investors uncertain about the future of their investments. The shortfall was made public during the firm's insolvency proceedings, which were initiated after it became evident that Ziglu was unable to fulfill its financial commitments.

The European Union on Monday accused the U.S. of resisting efforts to strike a trade deal and warned of countermeasures if no agreement is reached to avoid the punishing tariffs President Donald Trump has threatened to impose starting on August 1, Reuters reported. Trump, meanwhile, said that he was open to further discussions with the EU and other trading partners before new 30% tariffs kick in next month and that EU officials would be coming to the United States for negotiations.

Much higher U.S. tariffs on imports from the European Union would further weaken already anemic growth in the eurozone, and likely prompt the European Central Bank to lower borrowing costs, the Wall Street Journal reported. President Trump on Saturday threatened to raise the duty charged on imports of a wide range of goods to 30% from 10% if the European Union doesn’t drop all of its tariffs on U.S. goods. The U.S. already charges higher tariffs for imports of automobiles and metals, and is considering additional duties on pharmaceuticals and other goods.

President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to impose “secondary tariffs” on Russia’s trade partners “at about 100%” if President Vladimir Putin does not agree to a deal to end his invasion of Ukraine in 50 days, CNBC.com reported. “We’re very, very unhappy with them, and we’re going to be doing very severe tariffs, if you don’t have a deal in 50 days, tariffs at about 100%, they call them secondary tariffs,” Trump said from the White House while meeting with NATO’s secretary general, Mark Rutte.