United Kingdom

• Islamic State launches militant assault on Indonesia's capital (Reuters)
• Three winners emerge in $1.6 billion Powerball jackpot (Reuters)
• European Stocks Tumble, Credit Markets Weaken on Growth Concern (BBG)
• Stocks and commodity currencies floored by new oil plunge (Reuters)
• China Bear Market Looms as PBOC Fails to Stop Flight to Safety (BBG)
• Anxious phone calls, tense moments before Iran's Supreme Leader okayed U.S. sailors' release (Reuters)
• The Quiet Side of China’s Market Intervention (WSJ)

• China trade surprise brings relief (Reuters)
• Obama knocks Trump, voices optimism (Reuters)
• Republican Candidates Criticize Obama’s State of the Union Address (WSJ)
• Republicans and Democrats Agree: We Hate Wall Street (WSJ)
• Oil rises for first time in eight sessions on China, U.S. stocks draw (Reuters)
• U.S. Exports First Freely Traded Oil in 40 Years (WSJ)
• China Imports Record Crude as Price Crash Accelerates Buying (BBG)
• Can We Fix American Cities by Tearing Them Down? (BBG)

UK householders who were recently flooded could face an insurance double-whammy if they live within a five-mile radius of shale gas exploration sites. As the great flood clean-up continues, many householders are now battling with their insurance companies. Some are discovering that they now face an insurance “double whammy” especially if they live in one of the areas covered by the new fracking licences announced by before Christmas by the Government.

Donald Trump can’t be too happy with the UK at the moment….or maybe it’s the other way round A petition calling to ban him from the UK was approved for a parliamentary debate earlier in the week and now the billionaire tycoon faces fines from the British environment agency over carbon emissions from one of his private jets. RT reports: Trump is one of a number of businessmen and companies fined for failing to “surrender sufficient allowances to cover annual reportable emissions” by the Environment Agency.