Briefly

Israel

Netanyahu confirmed as winner with allies

The right-wing bloc of former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu won the general elections with a clear majority in the 120-seat parliament, election committee chief Orly Ades said. Prime Minister Yair Lapid congratulated Netanyahu and instructed his staff to prepare an organized transition of power, his office said. The official results will be submitted to President Isaac Herzog this coming week, and he is expected to task Netanyahu with forming the next government, said Ades, director of the Central Elections Committee which oversees elections.

United States

G7, Australia back fixed price for Russian oil

The Group of Seven rich nations and Australia have agreed to set a fixed price when they finalize a price cap on Russian oil later this month, rather than adopting a floating rate, sources said on Thursday. US officials and G7 countries have been in intense negotiations in recent weeks over the unprecedented plan to put a price cap on seaborne oil shipments, which is scheduled to take effect on Dec 5. "The coalition has agreed the price cap will be a fixed price that will be reviewed regularly rather than a discount to an index," said a source anonymously.

UNITED KINGDOM

Central bank's rate rise steepest in 3 decades

The Bank of England rolled out its biggest interest rate increase in three decades on Thursday, saying the move was needed to beat back stubbornly high inflation that is eroding living standards and is likely to trigger a "prolonged" recession. The central bank boosted its key rate by three-quarters of a percentage point, to 3 percent, with consumer price inflation at 40-year highs. The aggressive step was expected after a more cautious half-point increase six weeks ago.

Xinhua - Agencies