We’re finally cheaper than Waitrose, says M&S boss – live updates

Good morning.

While the rest of the world grapples with a deepening food crisis, Russia has been quietly cashing in.

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has driven global wheat prices up 50pc this year to near-record highs, sparking fears of widespread famine and hunger.

But the Kremlin has continued to ship its wheat and has collected $1.9bn (£1.5bn) in revenues from wheat export taxes so far this season, according to data from SovEcon.

Russia has blockaded Ukrainian ports, trapping around 22m tonnes of grain, while it’s also been plundering the country’s reserves. Hot weather and droughts have affected crops elsewhere, exacerbating the crisis.

5 things to start your day

1) George Soros warns Ukraine conflict risks sparking Third World War: George Soros has warned that the conflict in Ukraine could spiral into a Third World War that ends western civilisation.

2) Russia on brink of first default since Bolshevik revolution: Russia is on the cusp of its first ­foreign debt default in a century after the US cut the Kremlin off from paying its bondholders.

3) Power to cost more in South under local price plan: Households face paying higher prices for electricity in London compared to Scotland at certain times of day under wide-ranging reforms to make the UK’s energy market more green.

4) Bank of England told to ditch green obsession as prices surge: The Bank of England has been urged to “focus on the basics of monetary ­economics” instead of climate change after warning that the City is at risk of more than £340bn of losses from global warming.

5) TikTok hustlers tempt with get-rich-quick scams as economic storm hits: Growing user numbers means more TikTok scammers are sure to seize the huge audience just as the cost-of-living crisis bites.

What happened overnight 

Asian stock markets gained overnight after Wall Street sank on weak US housing sales and a profit warning by social media firm Snap.

The Shanghai Composite Index advanced 0.8pc while the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo shed less than 0.1pc. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 0.5pc.

Coming up today

Corporate: HICL Infrastructure, Marks & Spencer, Mediclinic International, Pets at Home, Severn Trent, SSE (full-year results); Intertek (trading statement)

Economics: World Economic Forum, financial stability review (EU); Fed minutes, durable goods (US)