Wednesday 15 July 2026

Written By Mighty Memo

*Good luck to England in the World Cup this evening! The match starts at 8.00pm UK time.*

 

The Mighty Headlines

 

Economics: Inflation doubles in Venezuela to nearly 14 per cent

 

Business and markets: IBM shares fall by 25 per cent yesterday

 

Foreign Affairs: Hungary’s Government reduces ex-PM Orban’s influence

 

Security and intelligence: US to withdraw from Iraq by the 30th September

 

UK affairs: UK Government appoints new envoy for Brits detained overseas

 

The Mighty Stats

 

FTSE = 10,529.39 (up 0.3%)

S&P 500 = 7,543.59 (up 0.38%)

Nasdaq = 26,107.01 (up 0.9%)

Stoxx 600 = 642.10 (up 0.17%)

 

£1 = $1.34 / €1.17

 

Lab / Con / Reform / Green = 19 / 19 / 24 / 15 per cent (YouGov, 12-13 July)

 

*If you enjoy reading the Mighty Memo, please pass it on to your friends and family! Anyone can sign-up for free at www.mightymemo.co.uk. *

 

The Mighty Detail

 

Economics: Inflation in Venezuela stood at 13.8 per cent last month. This is more than double the inflation figure of 6.3 per cent reached in May. This year prices have already risen by nearly 130 per cent.

  • It comes as the country deals with a reconstruction effort from two earthquakes on the 24th June.



Business and markets: Shares in IBM fell by 25 per cent yesterday – its worst result since 1968. It came after the technology company posted weaker-than-expected Q2 revenue of $17.2 billion instead of the $17.86 billion which had been forecast.

  • There are concerns that IBM’s software business is being impacted by the shift in business spending to AI hardware and computer chips.

 

Foreign Affairs: The Hungarian legislature passed a constitutional amendment on Monday to oust the country’s President. The President is a close ally of former Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

 

Security and intelligence: The US is to withdraw its troops from Iraq by the 30th September 2026. It follows a meeting between Iraq’s Prime Minister, Ali al-Zaidi, and President Trump at the White House yesterday. President Trump also added yesterday that the US would be “doing a lot of deals” with Iraq, creating “a lot of jobs” and “taking out a lot of oil” from the country.

 

UK affairs: Former Conservative Foreign Office Minister, Alistair Burt, has been appointed as the UK’s first envoy for Complex Consular Detentions. The UK Government says that Burt will provide additional support for British nationals detained overseas.

  • Burt was first elected as an MP in 1983 and served in various capacities under the Thatcher, Major, Cameron and May Governments. He stood down as an MP in 2019.

 

The Mighty Calendar

 

What’s happening today?

 

  • 20th anniversary of the launch of Twitter

  • UK-India Free Trade Agreement takes effect

  • Sir Keir Starmer’s final PMQs

  • Company results from: BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, BNY Mellon, Johnson & Johnson, ASML, Burberry, Barratt Redrow, United Airlines

 

Football World Cup (UK time):

  • England vs Argentina, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia, 8.00pm

 

Lookahead to tomorrow

 

  • CPAC UK conference begins with Nigel Farage and Liz Truss as speakers

  • The Open Championship (golf) begins

  • Company results from: Ocado, Netflix, Frasers Group, TSMC, SSE

 

The Mighty Finale

 

🌤️Weather today

 

Light cloud with sunny spells in the northeast and southwest of England. Sunny blue skies everywhere else. High of 28C and low of 15C in London. Sunny in Belfast and sunny spells in Edinburgh.

 

✏️Life coaching quote of the day

 

“Gratitude lifts our eyes off the things we lack so we might see the blessings we possess.” – Max Lucado, Christian minister and writer

 

Mighty takeaway: If you get stressed today, take a moment to think of all the things that you are fortunate to have in your life.

 

That’s it for this Wednesday morning. Thanks for reading!

 

Adios!

The Mighty Memo team

 

*To read the Mighty Memo manifesto and learn about why we do this visit: https://www.mightymemo.co.uk/why*

Mighty Memo
Next

Monday 13 July 2026