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BoE expected to push through smaller rate hike amid weakening inflation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

The Bank of England is likely to raise its key interest rate to its highest level in 15 years on Thursday, although the surprisingly sharp fall in inflation last month means it may not be as aggressive about it as originally expected.Most City analysts expect the BoE to raise the Bank Rate by a quarter point to 5.25 percent, having been forced into a half-point hike at its previous meeting in June due to persistent overshoots in consumer prices and by record-high wage growth.However, the decision is finely balanced: on the one hand, both headline inflation and various business surveys have suggested since the last meeting that price pressures are easing, not least because the Bank’s previous interest rate hikes are having an increasingly large impact on households and businesses. Wholesale gas prices have also fallen back to levels last seen well before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. That bolsters the chances of a broader decline in inflation over the second half of the y...

Chicago Cubs right-hander Marcus Stroman lands on the IL with right hip inflammation: ‘I’m not even slightly worried’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

Marcus Stroman’s start Monday was the tipping point in his quest to stay on the field.Stroman’s effort to pitch through lingering hip inflammation ultimately landed him on the injured list Wednesday with what the right-hander and the Chicago Cubs view as a key step to getting him healthy and back to his previous form. Stroman received a cortisone shot in his right hip and the hope is he will miss only one start while on the 15-day IL because of three upcoming off days.“I’ve been trying to change mechanics and do a lot of things, honestly, to try to get around it,” Stroman said before the Cubs played host to the Cincinnati Reds at Wrigley Field. “I felt like I had to do so much, essentially just throwing all upper body and arms. … Taking the break and getting into the weight room and doing what I need to do, I feel like it’s going to springboard me and put me where I was and where I need to be.”In Monday’s loss to the Reds, ...

New Orioles starter Jack Flaherty to make team debut Thursday: ‘Exciting to be on a good team’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

Jack Flaherty found himself in unfamiliar territory Wednesday. For the first time, the 27-year-old right-hander was a member of a team other than the St. Louis Cardinals. Traded to Baltimore minutes before Tuesday’s deadline, he’s in an Orioles clubhouse featuring only a couple of players he’s interacted with before.But he’s excited to get to know the rest.“These guys have been playing unbelievable,” Flaherty said. “For them to be in first place and to be playing the way they have all year, it’s special. Really lucky to come in here and join these guys.”The American League East-leading Orioles acquired Flaherty on Tuesday for three of their top 20 prospects, adding the pending free agent to their inexperienced rotation as many of its members approach career innings highs. He will make his team debut Thursday as their starter in the finale of their road series with the Toronto Blue Jays.Flaherty, 27, threw more than 190 innings in...

Yankees’ homers, Gerrit Cole fight off Rays sweep

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

The Yankees found themselves in an early hole on Wednesday, but they managed to avoid getting swept by the Rays with a 7-2 win at Yankee Stadium.Tampa Bay’s Wander Franco started the scoring with a two-run homer off Gerrit Cole in the first inning, but the Yankees’ own young shortstop, Anthony Volpe, replicated the feat in the bottom of the third. With Rays ace Shane McClanahan on the mound, Volpe sent one the other way to right field to tie the game with his 14th longball of the season.The Yankees weren’t done with McClanahan, though, as the southpaw allowed another third-inning homer. The second opposite field shot, a three-run blast, came off the bat of Giancarlo Stanton. The slugger now has 15 home runs this year.McClanahan, an All-Star this season, didn’t last long against a Yankees offense that has struggled against lesser arms. He only threw four innings on Wednesday while totaling five hits, five earned runs, zero walks and three strikeouts over 82 pi...

Kodai Senga struggles as Mets lose series to last-place Royals

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

KANSAS CITY — The dust is starting to settle after the trade deadline and the new Mets look a lot like the old ones.The Mets dropped the second game of a three-game series to the Kansas City Royals, 4-0, on Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium. Kodai Senga struggled through the rain early and newly-acquired reliever Phil Bickford gave up an insurance homer in his Mets debut. The lowly Royals took the series.Senga has been the Mets’ most reliable starter this season and is one of the last men standing after the club traded right-handers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander. But on a hot, sticky night in Missouri, the rookie right-hander put the first two batters he faced on base. Two outs later, the Royals were on the board.They scored three times against Senga in the first two innings. Senga settled in and lasted 5 2/3 innings to help the bullpen, but it was a struggle. He gave up 11 hits and walked two, but he did strike out six in the loss (7-6).Left-hander Cole Ragans has...

Chicago White Sox reliever Liam Hendriks undergoes successful Tommy John surgery

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

Liam Hendriks, who made an inspirational return to the mound this season after battling stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma, will miss the rest of 2023 after undergoing surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow Wednesday.The Chicago White Sox reliever appeared in five games before heading to the injured list with right elbow inflammation. Dr. Keith Meister at TMI Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Surgery in Arlington, Texas, performed the procedure.Hendriks’ recovery time is expected to take 12-14 months.The right-hander has touched the baseball world and beyond with his comeback.Hendriks disclosed in an Instagram post in January that he was beginning treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma, later detailing it was stage 4. He completed treatment on April 3 and announced he was cancer-free on April 20.Hendriks made his first appearance of the season on May 29 against the Los Angeles Angels at Guaranteed Rate Field. He received multiple standing ovations during the ...

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife separating after 18 years of marriage

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

By ROB GILLIES (Associated Press)TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie, are separating after 18 years of marriage.The two said in statements posted on Instagram that they made the decision after “many meaningful and difficult conversations.” A statement from the prime minister’s office said they both have signed a legal separation agreement. Trudeau, the 51-year-old scion of one of Canada’s most famous politicians, was sworn into office in 2015. Sophie Trudeau is a former model and TV host. The couple were married in 2005. Together, they brought star power to the prime minister’s office and appeared in the pages of Vogue magazine. They have three children, 15-year-old Xavier, 14-year-old Ella-Grace and 9-year-old Hadrien.“As always, we remain a close family with deep love and respect for each other and for everything we have built and will continue to build,” the two said on Instagram.An official fa...

Man arrested after string of attacks in North County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

VISTA, Calif. -- A man suspected of attacking his parents, the neighbor and their dog on Wednesday is in law enforcement custody, authorities said.The incident occurred just before 6 a.m. at a home in the 1300 block of Via Christina, Sgt. Marcello Orsini with the San Diego County Sheriff's Department (SDSO) said in a news release.Authorities received a call about a man who reportedly choked his mother multiple times and punched his father in the face."The suspect then got on top of his father and choked him while covering his mouth to prevent him from breathing," Orsini said. Man dies after stabbing near freeway on-ramp After the physical altercation with his father, the suspect left the home and broke into a neighbor's house, according to law enforcement. He then attacked a small dog and go into a fight with the neighbor, per SDSO. Deputies arrested 49-year-old Barry Knowlton, who faces charges of attempted murder, felony elder abuse, burglary and cruelty to animals, Orsini said....

NASA completes first manned crew recovery

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

SAN DIEGO - After completing a series of recovery tests for the crewed Artemis II Mission splashdown off of our San Diego Coast, FOX 5 got a firsthand look at the new test version of NASA's Orion Spacecraft at Naval Base San Diego. On Tuesday, crews completed their mission, marking the very first recovery test of an actual manned crew aboard a test version of the Orion Capsule. In this test, the team staged how they will extract the four astronauts, including the first woman and person of color to land on the moon after landing in the Pacific Ocean. “We have never done crew training...and have never been able to test it," shared Lili Villarreal, who is the director of NASA Landing and Recovery. That is, until now. Four sailors acted as "stand-ins" this week to help simulate just how to recover the crew following their nine-to-ten-day journey up, up, and away, all part of the first moon voyage in 52 years. A voyage coming to an end 30 nautical miles away from America's Finest City. ...

Hundreds voice concerns about accessibility over impending High Park changes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:35 GMT

Hundreds of people turned out Wednesday night to voice their concerns over what they’re calling accessibility issues due to impending changes at High Park. Work aimed at improving visitor access and roads at the popular west end park began this week as part of the ‘High Park Movement Strategy’ that was approved by city council back in May. Among the changes being made are moving the main vehicle entrance from Bloor Street West to Parkside Drive and High Park Boulevard; making West Road and parts of Colborne Lodge Drive car-free at all times; and reducing the park’s 560 parking spaces by 60 per cent while creating designated pick-up/drop-off spaces near main destinations.But some of the changes are not going over well with area residents and those who utilize the park.Eleanor was one of the hundreds who turned out to show her support to keep the park as it is. The 81-year-old uses a walker to get around and says coming to the park will be nearly impossible wit...