United Kingdom

MP's in Parliament have voted 498 to 114 to authorize Prime Minster Theresa May to Trigger Article 50 and begin the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union. The vote officiates the result of the June 23rd, 2016 "Brexit" Referendum where a majority of UK citizens indicated a desire to leave the EU. An amendment introduced by the Scottish National Party (SNP) which called on the Government to consult the devolved powers on Brexit and calls on her to set out her objectives for the negotiation was rejected.

European stocks rise the first day in four, with Asian stocks, S&P futures and the Dollar all gaining following strong Apple earnings ahead of today's Fed decision and the U.K. parliament's first vote on the Article 50 bill.

European bonds fell and stocks rose led by banks and retailers as surging inflation data prompted investors to switch into reflationary assets even as speculation about ECB tapering has returned. Asian stocks and US equity futures declined. The Yen and gold advanced after Trump’s firing of the U.S. acting attorney general added to concern over the unpredictability of decisions in the new administration.

The universe is almost certainly a giant complex hologram, according to a startling new report by scientists in the U.K, Canada and Italy. According to scientists at the University of Southampton, everything we see, touch, hear and smell is merely a “vast and complex hologram”. “Imagine that everything you see, feel and hear in three dimensions (and your perception of time) in fact emanates from a flat two-dimensional field,” said study co-author Kostas Skenderis.

Update: During a joint press conference with Irish leader Kenny, UK PM Theresa May confirms Trump's invite still stands...

• *MAY: STATE VISIT INVITATION TO TRUMP STANDS

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A petition to ban President Donald Trump from visiting The UK has now received over one million signatures and the UK parliament has just agreed to immediately hold a three-hour debate on the decision.

Since we posted yesterday the signature count has risen from 400,000 to 1.4 million...