Author: Andrew Rogers

BP faces growing pressure from shareholders as it prepares to publish its full-year results this week. Analysts expect weaker profits after oil prices fell for a third straight year in 2025. City forecasts suggest profits of about $7.5bn, down from nearly $9bn in 2024, after a sharp drop in fourth-quarter earnings. Incoming chief executive Meg O’Neill is expected to outline a clearer strategy from April. Investors want assurance that BP can navigate long-term declines in fossil fuel demand. Shareholder groups including Follow This and the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility have filed resolutions calling for tighter controls on oil and…

Researchers say a menstrual blood test could offer a simple alternative to cervical screening.A sanitary pad fitted with a blood strip can detect HPV, the virus causing most cervical cancers. Women could use the test at home, avoiding invasive clinical procedures.Researchers studied more than 3,000 women in Hubei, China. They compared pad-collected menstrual blood with clinician-taken cervical samples.The menstrual test detected serious cervical abnormalities with 94.7% sensitivity. Clinician-collected samples showed a similar sensitivity of 92.1%.Both methods performed equally well at ruling out disease after negative results. The study appeared in BMJ.Authors said the method could become a non-invasive screening alternative.…

A major review published in The Lancet finds most statin side-effects are not caused by the drugs.Researchers analysed 19 trials involving 124,000 people followed for more than four years.Evidence supported only muscle pain, diabetes risk, and four minor side-effects.These included small liver test changes, urine changes, and tissue swelling.The study found no link between statins and memory loss, depression, or sleep problems.Lead author Christina Reith said benefits clearly outweigh risks for most patients.Experts called for updated drug labels to reflect the evidence and counter misinformation.

Online sellers promote unlicensed weight-loss drugs through WhatsApp and Telegram competitions.They offer injectable medicines like retatrutide as prizes. The Guardian found posts urging users to enter within 24 hours.Experts warn these promotions pose serious health risks. Retatrutide remains experimental and lacks approval anywhere in the world.Other prizes include unapproved peptides and tanning drugs. UK law restricts weight-loss injections to prescription-only supply.Unlicensed sellers bypass safety checks and medical oversight. Researchers say these giveaways normalise dangerous drug use.

Ultra-processed foods should be regulated more like cigarettes than everyday food, researchers argued in a new study.Scientists said UPFs are engineered to drive addiction and overconsumption, mirroring tobacco industry tactics.The report came from researchers at Harvard University, University of Michigan and Duke University.They found similarities in product design, marketing, and health harms.The study appeared in Milbank Quarterly.Authors called for marketing limits, stronger regulation, and industry accountability.Some experts warned against direct comparisons, urging focus on improving diet quality.

Toto Wolff dismissed rival claims over engine legality and urged teams to focus on themselves.Mercedes and Red Bull Racing face scrutiny over engine compression ratios.Rivals allege thermal expansion boosts performance beyond intent.Wolff said the engines meet written regulations and testing procedures.FIA reviewed complaints from Audi, Ferrari, and Honda without resolving the dispute.Wolff accused rivals of missing opportunities and seeking excuses.He said Mercedes communicated transparently with the FIA throughout development.Wolff did not rule out protests after the Australian Grand Prix.

Scientists believe cosmic dust helped deliver life’s building blocks to Earth.Thousands of tonnes reach the planet yearly, though most burn up in the atmosphere.At the University of Sydney, researchers now recreate cosmic dust in the laboratory.PhD candidate Linda Losurdo produces dust by energising gases inside a vacuum tube.The process mimics conditions around dying stars that eject carbon-rich material.Cosmic dust contains CHON molecules, key ingredients for life.Recreating it may explain how meteorites gained organic matter.Experts say the work could inform future experiments on early life formation.The study appeared in the Astrophysical Journal.

The Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply warned soaring shipping costs could drive up consumer prices in 2026.CIPS said rising transport, energy, and raw material costs were creating cracks in global supply chains.Computers, electrical machinery, and transport equipment face the biggest price pressures.More than 20% of procurement leaders reported logistics cost rises above 10% by late 2025.Shipping rates between Asia and the US jumped sharply in recent weeks, adding inflation risks.CIPS blamed geopolitical tensions, tariffs, and trade uncertainty for sustained price volatility.

West Ham United banned season-ticket holder Joshua Wood for five matches after he helped display an anti-board banner.The club cited stadium rules on oversized, non-approved banners, not the protest message.The banner criticised owners David Sullivan and Karren Brady.Wood denied bringing the banner into the ground and plans to appeal the ban.

A major Swedish study found that using AI in breast cancer screening reduced later cancer diagnoses by 12%.Researchers analysed 100,000 women in Sweden who underwent routine mammography.Participants received either AI-supported screening or standard double readings by radiologists.The AI system flagged high-risk scans and streamlined low-risk cases.Results, published in The Lancet, showed higher early detection with AI support.Early-stage cancers accounted for 81% of cases in the AI group, compared with 74% without AI.Aggressive cancer subtypes were also 27% lower in the AI group.Scientists say AI could ease radiologist workloads but must not replace human experts.