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Source: Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash Inflation: Sports bras in, doughnuts out of cost of living measure   High demand for workout gear and health-conscious vegetarian options are now being used to calculate the change in the cost of living in the UK.  Items such as tinned beans , boosted by a rise in plant-based diets, have also been added to the basket of goods used to measure prices.  The review by the Office for National Statistics also saw pet collars added.  But men's suits and doughnuts are out as homeworking shifted how we dress and snack during Covid lockdowns .  The ONS said it decided to add meat-free sausages to the basket of more than 700 goods, which is used to calculate how the cost of living is changing, to reflect a boost in demand for healthier food options.  It also said that the removal of a men's two-piece suit, and the addition of sports bras and crop tops , accounted for the fact that spending on formal clothes has bee...

Source: Andreeew Hoang on Unsplash McDonald's and Coca Cola halt business in Russia Consumer giants including McDonald's, Coca-Cola and Starbucks have joined the list of firms halting business in Russia due to the invasion in Ukraine.  McDonald's said it was temporarily closing its roughly 850 restaurants in Russia, while Starbucks also said its 100 coffee shops would shut .  McDonald's said the move was a response to the " needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine".  The company said it was "impossible to predict" when it would reopen.  "The conflict in Ukraine and the humanitarian crisis in Europe has caused unspeakable suffering to innocent people," chief executive Chris Kempczinski said in a memo to staff that was shared publicly.  "As a system, we join the world in condemning aggression and violence and praying for peace."  McDonald's said it would continue to pay its roughly 62,000 staff in Russia. The fi...