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Channel Tunnel Chaos Enters Day Two as Power Fault Drags On

The disruption, caused by a fault in the system's overhead power supply, on Tuesday upended plans for thousands of passengers in London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam. Rail passengers travelling between the UK and mainland Europe are enduring a second day of major disruption after a power failure shut down the Channel Tunnel, halting both Eurostar and LeShuttle services. The fault, linked to the overhead power supply, brought traffic to a standstill and left thousands of travellers stranded on both sides of the Channel. Although some services have begun to move again, operators warn that delays and cancellations will continue while engineers work to stabilise the system. Eurostar has urged passengers to avoid travelling unless essential, as many trains remain suspended or heavily delayed. LeShuttle customers are also facing long queues, with significant backlogs reported at both Folkestone and Calais. The timing has added to the frustration, hitting one of the busiest travel per...

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Market Retreat: European Turmoil and Tesla’s Pay Package in Focus


US stock futures pulled back on Friday, signaling a retreat from all-time highs as European turmoil rattled nerves and Elon Musk’s pay package win put Tesla (TSLA) center stage. Here are the key points:

  • Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) futures sank about 0.7%, leading the declines.
  • S&P 500 (ES=F) futures shed 0.5%.
  • Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) were roughly 0.2% lower.

Stocks have been losing steam after the benchmark S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite nailed record closes for the fourth day in a row, driven by strength in tech stocks. However, questions persist about the breadth of this year’s rally. Investors are closely watching the coming PCE inflation reading, which could impact the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decisions.

Meanwhile, Tesla shares were up around 1% in Friday’s premarket after shareholders re-approved CEO Elon Musk’s $56 billion pay package. Despite opposition from some large investors, 77% of votes were cast in favor, the EV maker said.

Not helping spirits was a slump in European stocks, which were headed for their worst week since October. Investors are concerned about the fallout for markets if the far right makes gains or even wins France’s snap election. Another dose of worry came from the Bank of Japan’s decision to hold off from giving details of its bond-buying cuts until July, a surprise move interpreted as delaying a rate hike.

In individual movers, Adobe (ADBE) shares jumped 15% after an upbeat AI sales projection from the Photoshop maker. Investors are also eyeing political turmoil in France as uncertainty about rate cuts dogs the market.


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