Brussels raises inflation forecasts as Putin’s gas threat hangs over EU

Good morning. 

The crypto winter just got a little bit chillier as lender Celsius Network filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York.

The crypto lender said it took the step to stabilise its business and work out a restructuring. Last month it halted all withdrawals amid a run on deposits.

Celsius, which has more than 100,000 creditors, said it has assets and liabilities anywhere between $1bn and $10bn.

It’s the latest victim of a $2 trillion crypto crash that has wiped out some of the sector’s biggest names and exposed hundreds of thousands of investors to heavy losses.

5 things to start your day 

1) Billions invested in green energy technology favoured by Boris Johnson  $2.8bn has been invested in nuclear fusion in the past 12 months

2) Red Wall voters £340 worse off than those in south  Inflation in northern towns is up to a third quicker than price rises in London 

3) Netflix strikes deal with Microsoft to introduce advertising breaks  Streaming giant to launch cheaper subscription in attempt to offset loss in customers

4) Titanic shipyard awarded crucial defence contract after HMRC row  This marks the shipyard’s first defence contract in its 161-year history

5) Scramble for solar panels saves households £600m on their energy bills  Number of installations surges to seven-year high amid cost of living crisis

What happened overnight 

Hong Kong stocks rose slightly this morning, with the Hang Seng Index inching up 0.1pc.

The Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.2pc, while the Shenzhen Composite Index on China’s second exchange also dropped 0.2pc.

Tokyo stocks opened lower following moderate losses on Wall Street. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index dwindled 0.6pc in early trade, while the broader Topix index lost 0.7pc.

Coming up today

• Economics: Jobless claims (US), producer price index (US)
• Corporate: Ashmore Group, Barratt Developments, Dr Martens, Experian, Hays, Rio Tinto, Severn Trent (trading update)