CHICAGO (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate fell slightly for the first time in six weeks on Thursday, marking a glimpse of relief for prospective homebuyers — although borrowing costs remain steeper than they were a year ago.

The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate tumbled to 6.67%, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday, down from 6.69% reported last week. Still, by comparison, the average rate was 6.58% at this time in 2025.

Higher mortgage rates can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers, limiting homebuyers’ purchasing power. And that can led prospective home shoppers to delay buying, as seen while rates rose over prior weeks. U.S. sales of previously-occupied homes again slowed in July.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages — which are often sought by borrowers looking to refinance a home loan — also fell slightly this week. That rate averaged at 5.96%, down from 6.01% last week. But that’s still higher than a year ago, when Freddie Mac said 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged at 5.71%.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, including inflation, broader policy rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and expectations from bond market investors for the economy. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans.

Similar to the latest mortgage rates, the 10-year Treasury has also eased a bit recently. The 10-year Treasury fell to 4.61% as of midday trading Thursday — down from 4.72% at the start of the week.

Both mortgage rates and the bond market have been mostly rising this year due to the U.S. war with Iran, which has fueled expectations for hotter inflation as crude oil prices soared. Despite easing oil prices recently, long-term bond yields remain steeper than they were before the conflict began in late February, pushing mortgage rates to tread higher.

Before the war, the 10-year Treasury was just 3.97%. And 30-year and 15-year mortgage rates sat around 5.98% and 5.44%, respectively, in late February per Freddie Mac.

Meanwhile, consumer and wholesale inflation also cooled some in the U.S. last month. Prices to continue to climb, just at a slower pace. If that trend continues, the Federal Reserve could decide to hold off on hikes to interest rates.

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Ombudsman and Constitution River are among 10 horses confirmed for the Juddmonte International Stakes at York next week, with the top-class duo set for a mouth-watering Group 1 clash

Ombudsman and Constitution River remain on track for a blockbuster showdown at York next week, with the elite pair amongst 10 confirmations for Wednesday’s Juddmonte International.

John and Thady Gosden’s Ombudsman delivered a stunning victory on the Knavesmire 12 months ago and is favourite to repeat the feat following a triumphant retention of his Prince of Wales’s Stakes title at Royal Ascot.

In Constitution River, though, he encounters a three-year-old of exceptional quality, with Aidan O’Brien’s colt having travelled to France to secure Classic success in the Prix du Jockey Club before defeating older rivals for the first time in the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown.

Ombudsman will be accompanied by stablemate and regular pacemaker Devil’s Advocate, while Constitution River is one of four entries from Ballydoyle alongside Action, Causeway and Hawk Mountain.

Andrew Balding fields Item, who boasts a perfect record at York this year having claimed the Dante and the York Stakes either side of underperforming in the Derby on soft ground, while French aspirations are expected to rest with the in-form Zaydann.

The latter has won his last five starts for Francis-Henri Graffard, who sent out Calandagan to finish runner-up to City Of Troy in the 2024 Juddmonte International but witnessed his subsequent Arc hero Daryz falter last season.

Like that duo, Zaydann sports the Aga Khan Studs colours for what will be a and while the son of a considerable leap in class, but one worth taking.

The operation’s French racing manager and director Nemone Routh said: “We were looking at all our various options and he was either going to have to wait until Arc weekend, which we weren’t very keen on because he is a good ground horse, or we were going to have put him on a plane and go to somewhere like America.

“We just felt why not give him a slightly easier trip, albeit for a much harder race! He’s a four-year-old now and we kind of need to know his level by the end of this year, purely in terms of making decisions with him.

“He’s a very well-bred horse – he’s a close relative of Zarak as he’s by Dubawi and his granddam is Zarkava – and he’s good-looking and has ability, it’s just nothing he has shown so far suggests he can be up there with the top two, but then he always does what we ask him.

“We’re definitely putting it to him this time, but we’d be very happy if he’s able to run into third place and maybe he’ll surprise us, you never know.”

Ed Walker has retained his stable star Almaqam in the field, but once more the Lambourn trainer is hoping for wet weather.

“We’ve talked about the weather and Almaqam so much. He’s undoubtedly better with just a little bit of ease in the ground,” said the Lambourn handler. “To be competitive or winning a race like that, I think he is going to have to have everything in his favour and I just can’t see the weather playing ball, but we’ll see.”

Pride Of Arras (Ralph Beckett) remains the sole other contender still under consideration at the six-day declaration stage.

By SOPHIA STANFORD, NEWS REPORTER

Published: 17:11 BST, 13 August 2026 | Updated: 17:30 BST, 13 August 2026

A fire ripped through at least six gardens with a woman taken to hospital for burns as temperatures hit 36C today. 

Footage captured the blaze destroying sheds and hedges as it tore across back gardens in Tamworth, Staffordshire this morning. 

The cause of the fire is not yet known and a probe is now underway, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service confirmed.

The blaze comes hours a suspected wildfire swept through a Welsh village, destroying six homes. 

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Around 20 people were evacuated after the huge blaze broke out and quickly spread yesterday afternoon. Residents of six bungalows in Newbridge, South Wales, were forced to flee and spent the night in a leisure centre.

It comes as Britain faces one of its hottest days on record – with temperatures expected to hit 38C (100F). The Met Office has extended the area of its rare 15-hour amber ‘extreme heat’ warning, which came into force at 9am this morning.

Neighbours living in the former mining village had gathered to watch Wednesday’s eclipse when the blaze broke out.

Locals believe the fire started on a field behind houses in Pantside, Newbridge, and spread quickly to nearby homes.

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Neighbours rushed to douse the flames with garden hoses and buckets of water before the fire service arrived but at least five homes were completely destroyed.

A fire has ripped through a residential area in Tamworth on Thursday morning, with one woman taken to hospital for burns 

The Staffordshire town saw six gardens including sheds and hedges blazing and required firefighters to extinguish the raging fire 

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Several homes were evacuated after being gutted by the blaze and more than 20 people were forced to seek refuge in a nearby leisure centre or put up in a hotel.

The cause of the fire is still being investigated by officials.

Caerphilly councillor Gary Johnson said: ‘Everyone was getting ready yesterday to witness the eclipse, and for this to happen last night was a total shock.

‘It is just dreadful, and heartbreaking for all the families involved.

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‘The whole community is strong, and we will rally around them like we always do.’

Julie Nicholls, 74, was evacuated from her home by officials and had to wait anxiously to see if the fire would reach it.

She said: ‘We could hear all the banging and the flames going up,’ she said.

‘The next thing I know the police were knocking on my door and we had to go.

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Sheds were set alight in the blaze 

One woman was taken to hospital for burns following the blaze in Tamworth 

‘We were sat in the leisure centre and there were a few people that had actually lost their homes.

‘They were being so brave, I mean to lose everything.

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‘I felt absolute fear, you know, you don’t expect to open your door and see a fire next to you.’

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service said it received a call–out on Wednesday at around 4pm and deployed a number of resources to the scene of the fire, including 12 fire appliances, two water bowsers, and an aerial ladder platform.

They urged residents in the area to keep windows and doors closed due to smoke from the fire and added that further updates will be provided when more information becomes available. 

Newbridge RFC said they were ‘absolutely heartbroken’ to have seen the horrendous fire on Wednesday evening, adding that they hearts go out to everyone affected by ‘such a frightening and horrendous event’.

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The club said their clubhouse would be open in the morning to offer hot and cold drinks along with changing and shower facilities for people affected.

A gofundme has been launched with has so far raised more than £2,000 to help the families. 

The fire came hours before Britain faced one of its hottest days on record – with temperatures expected to hit 38C (100F).

The Met Office has extended the area of its rare 15–hour amber ‘extreme heat’ warning, which came into force at 9am this morning.

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Megaman (UK) Ltd, founded in September 2000, is a “leading global brand” that specialises in energy-efficient lighting solutions.

The company supplies products for use in retail, hospitality, residential and commercial spaces, which are distributed across the UK through major electrical wholesalers and independent stockists.

Megaman enters administration after 26 years

Now, after 26 years in business, Megaman has fallen into administration.

Simon Farr and Anthony Collier from FRP Advisory Trading Limited were appointed joint administrators on August 5, according to The Gazette.

Having entered administration, the Megaman website has been shut down and is no longer accessible.

What happens when a company goes into administration?

When a company enters administration, it means that it is unable to pay expenses, debts, or other liabilities, according to SquareUp.com.

Companies House adds: “When a company goes into administration, they have entered a legal process (under the Insolvency Act 1986) with the aim of achieving one of the statutory objectives of an administration. This may be to rescue a viable business that is insolvent due to cashflow problems.

“An appointment of an administrator (a licensed insolvency practitioner) will be made by directors, a creditor or the court to fulfil the administration process.”

A statutory moratorium is put in place once a company enters administration, giving it “breathing space” to allow for financial restructuring plans to be drawn up free from creditor enforcement actions.

A company can continue to trade while in administration, but daily management and control are handed over to the administrators.

Companies House continues: “Within 8 weeks it is the administrators’ role to formulate administration proposals.

“Creditors are then asked to vote by a decision procedure to approve the administrators’ proposals.

“If the administration involves a sale of all or part of the company’s business, the proceeds (after the costs of the procedure) will be distributed to creditors in a statutory order of priority.”

Administration will end automatically after 12 months unless the administrator asks the court or creditors for an extension.

Through administration, a company can be:

• Rescued and passed back to the directors
• Enter liquidation
• Be dissolved

Other UK companies that have closed or entered administration/liquidation in 2026

It has been a tough year for the UK high street, with several other retailers entering administration or liquidation and others announcing widespread store closures.

Major high street brands LK Bennett, Claire’s, and Quiz have been forced to close all their remaining stores after falling into administration.

UK fashion retailer Leading Labels is also set to close its remaining 15 stores after falling into liquidation.

Whitbread recently confirmed it will be closing all its UK restaurants in September:

TG Jones and the British Heart Foundation will also both be closing around 150 stores across the UK.

Other retailers have been forced to close stores this year, including:

The company responsible for iconic British bikemaker Raleigh, Accell Group, has also collapsed into administration, putting the 139-year-old British bikemaker at risk of closing.

Several UK travel companies have ceased trading or entered administration in 2026:

Meanwhile, four UK airlines have fallen into administration or liquidation:

UK delivery company Yodel is set to be phased out after being acquired by InPost.

It’s also been reported that Morrisons is looking to sell some of its in-store pharmacies as it continues to cut costs.

It hasn’t all been bad news for the UK high street, with several major brands announcing new store openings for 2026, including Aldi, M&S, and Superdrug.

Meanwhile, brands including Evans and Bodycare have returned to the UK high street this year after previously closing all their stores.

Which business/store closure in 2026 has impacted you the most? Let us know in the comments below.

TOKYO (AP) — Record-breaking heavy rain pounded eastern Japan Thursday, flooding roads and homes, paralyzing traffic and causing power outages to tens of thousands of homes near Tokyo, officials said. At least one person was found dead.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued its most severe warning for heavy rain in 14 municipalities in the Chiba prefecture, warning residents of floods and landslides.

The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said one person was found dead in Ichikawa city, while two people who were trapped inside a flooded car were rescued in the nearby Kashiwa city. Their conditions were not known.

Footage on NHK news showed pedestrians outside the Ichikawa train station wading through floodwater up to their knees, and vehicles stuck on flooded roads elsewhere. Some trains in the area were suspended.

Record-breaking rainfall exceeding 100 millimeters (4 inches) was forecast in just one hour in Chiba City and a number of other nearby cities Thursday night, NHK said. Nearly 220,000 residents in the area were advised to take shelter at safer grounds, the agency said.

JMA forecast official Takuya Hosomi told a televised emergency news conference that unprecedented levels of rainfalls were recorded.

The heavy rain comes a day after a tropical storm battered northeastern Japan, injuring at least seven, toppling trees and causing widespread blackouts.

The torrential rain and flooding also caused power outages to 68,000 homes, according to the TEPCO Power Grid.

A 34-year-old woman wept in the dock of Belfast Crown Court today (Thursday), where she admitted causing the death of her baby son and attempting to murder her daughter.

The woman, who can’t be named due to a reporting restriction, will be sentenced for the two offences later this month.

She stood trial in 2023 on charges of murdering her eight-week-old son and attempting to murder his two-year-old sister.

Both children sustained stab wounds inflicted by their mother in their home on July 27, 2021.

They were rushed to the Accident and Emergency department at the Royal Victoria Hospital for Sick Children.

Whilst the young girl was successfully treated for a stab wound to her chest, her baby brother was pronounced dead at 9pm.

At the conclusion of the trial in March 2023, the woman was convicted by a jury on both charges, and the following month, she was handed a minimum 20-year sentence.

In December 2025, the two convictions were quashed by the Court of Appeal, with the Judges concluding that the guilty verdicts over the double stabbing were unsafe.

The woman’s lawyers mounted a legal bid to overturn the verdicts based on issues around the trial process.

Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan backed those grounds of challenge and said she “cannot be satisfied that the convictions are safe.”

The defendant was back in court today where her barrister Charles MacCreanor KC told Mr Justice Fowler that the Crown had an application to amend the bill of indictment.

This was confirmed by Crown barrister Sam Magee KC, who said the bill had been amended to include a third count.

Following this, the woman was re-arraigned on a charge of attempting to murder her daughter.

As she wept in the dock, she was asked by a court clerk how now she pleaded to the charge and she replied “guilty.”

The offence of infanticide was then put to the woman.

She was charged that on July 27, 2021 she caused the death of her child aged under 12 months by a wilful act, namely stabbing and wounding him with a knife, but at a time when the balance of her mind was disturbed by reason of the fact that she had not fully recovered from the effect of giving birth to the child.

Asked to enter a plea to this charge, she replied “guilty.”

Mr Justice Fowler was then addressed by Mr Magee who said that “in the circumstances” the Crown’s application was to leave the charge of murdering the baby “on the books” and it would not be proceeded with.

Saying the case had a “complex history”, Mr Magee said that in light of the guilty pleas the next step was the sentencing of the woman.

The prosecuting barrister added that the Crown would be seeking an update on the surviving child.

Mr Justice Fowler then enquired about the compilation of a pre-sentence report on the woman and was told by her barrister that one was being sought.

Expressing a desire that this is compiled as quickly as possible, Mr Justice Fowler set the date for sentencing the woman as Friday August 28.

As the conclusion of today’s hearing, the woman was led from the dock and back into custody by two prison officers.

WARSAW (AP) — Poland’s prime minister said Thursday authorities arrested a Russian citizen who was allegedly recruited by Russia’s secret services, thwarting his plan to kill a Ukrainian American citizen in Warsaw.

It was the first time that “someone on the order of Russia” sought to attack an American citizen on the territory of another NATO country, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.

The American-Ukrainian citizen “was uncomfortable for the Putin regime,” Tusk said in a press conference.

The Russian citizen was taken into custody by Polish authorities on Aug. 7, Polish officials said.

The operation was carried out in cooperation with U.S. services, said Tomasz Siemoniak, Poland’s minister coordinating secret services. He said the targeted victim was a U.S. citizen “of Ukrainian origin”. Officials did not immediately provide more details about the case.

Students and staff at Cheadle Hulme High School are celebrating after scoring the institutions highest A Level results for the ninth year in a row.

According to the school, 84% of grades awarded at A-B, 59% of grades awarded at A/A*, four students will be studying at the prestigious Oxford and Cambridge universities while , more than three-quarters of its students have secured places at Russell Group universities and other leading institutions.

Dave Brown, head of Cheadle Hulme High School, said:“We are absolutely delighted with these results.