Texas Obamacare ruling was predictable, Ex-HHS Sec. price says

The US Federal Reserve has opened the door to an interest rate hike and tapering of its emergency monetary stimulus. The central bank has warned, though, that the rising number of Covid-19 cases could impact economic growth. Christian Lawrence, Senior Markets Strategist at Rabobank New York, explains the impact on American households. Also on the show: Netflix seeks the golden ticket as it acquires the rights to late British author Roald Dahl's creations.

A district judge ordered Texas to suspend its law that imposes a near-total ban on abortions. The ruling comes after a challenge brought by President Joe Biden's administration.

The Federal Reserve is paving the way for possible interest rate hikes next year, in an effort to contain stubbornly high inflation. At the conclusion of a two-day policy meeting Wednesday, the central bank announced plans to phase out its large-scale bond-buying program faster than initially planned. The Fed started purchasing bonds during the pandemic as a way to keep borrowing costs across the economy low and to prevent any market disruptions.

Inflation in the United States has jumped to 7%, the highest increase in nearly four decades. The Federal Reserve has already begun removing pandemic-related stimulus.

The US Federal Reserve is setting the stage to raise interest rates in March, to combat elevated inflation. It's also taking further steps to phase out its emergency support of the US economy. Nancy Vanden Houten, Lead US Economist at Oxford Economics, says America's central bank has limited tools to fight the surge in prices. Also in the show - workers at France's EDF go on strike, over government efforts to limit electricity bills.

The Fed raises interest rates by the most in over 20 years The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by half a percentage point Wednesday, in an effort to cool off demand and lower inflation. Consumer prices have been rising at the fastest pace in 40 years.

Australia is counting down to its next federal election on May 21. The environmental crisis is high on voters' minds and smaller parties and independents are gaining momentum by riding a wave of disillusionment over the conservative coalition's lack of climate action. With a hung parliament looking likely, these minor players could force the traditional parties to do more to tackle global warming. Climate change is an increasingly hot-button issue since the country's devastating bushfires of 2019-20. Our correspondents Richelle Harrison Plesse and Gregory Plesse report.

Federal Reserve raises key interest rate 0.75% as it tries to calm inflation. The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday that it is raising its benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point, the sharpest hike since 1994, as it seeks to combat the fiercest surge in U.S. inflation in four decades.

Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Thursday.

Bannon has been convicted on two counts of contempt of Congress after ignoring a subpoena. He had refused to show up for a hearing on his role in the January 6 riot at the Capitol.

The federal government says it is considering a nationwide ban on commercial motorcycles, popularly known as okada. Abubakar Malami, attorney-general of the federation said motorcycles provide the means of transportation for terrorists and several approaches for containing insecurity were being considered.⁣ ⁣

The Fed added 0.75% to its benchmark interest rate for a second straight time. The increase of the interest rate to its highest level in four years comes as inflation continues to reach new heights.