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Michel Barnier with UK Brexit secretary Dominic Raab after their latest talks in Brussels on Thursday.Photo credit: European Commission 

Barnier dismisses key customs proposal

EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier on Thursday ruled out a key element of Theresa May’s Facilitated Customs Arrangement proposal for post-Brexit trade.  In a statement made after his latest meeting with Brexit secretary Dominic Raab on Thursday, Barnier said that, like the UK, “the EU also wants to keep control of its money, law, and borders.” Barnier also warned of issues over the Ireland backstop, but there were also positives about security and financial services in his statement.

Amazon profits double forecast

Online retail giant Amazon has posted a record second quarter profit of $2.5bn, up 1,286% from the second quarter of 2017. Shares in the company rose by 3% instantly following the news, and have risen by 50% since the start of 2018. The Guardian says that Amazon “is squarely in the race with Apple and Alphabet [owner of Google] to be the world’s first trillion-dollar company.”

Polish protests over supreme court law

Crowds outside the presidential palace in Warsaw chanted “shame” after Andrzej Duda signed into law a measure designed to make it easier to name the new supreme court head. Other protests took place across Poland, Reuters reports.

UK allows medicinal cannabis

The British government has announced a relaxation of laws governing access to cannabis-derived medicine. A review of the law concluded “there was evidence of therapeutic benefit for some conditions” The Guardian reports. Clinicians should be able to start prescribing the medicines by the autumn.

Spotify numbers rise

Music streaming service Spotify saw a rise of 8 million Premium subscribers to 83 million in the second quarter of 2018. Revenue rose 26% to €1.27 billion as the company reported it “did see some GDPR disruption across our European markets”, says Reuters.

Founder sues Papa John’s

The BBC reports that John Schnatter, the founder of the Papa John’s pizza chain, is suing the company to gain access to documents pertaining to the "unexplained and heavy-handed way" it treated him. Schnatter resigned from the company on 11 July after using a racial slur in a media training session in May.

Starbucks slows

The world’s biggest coffee retailer has forecast slower growth for the fiscal year, citing “cannibalization of its own stores and hiccups in its China delivery programme” according to Reuters.

Mercury Prize nominees announced

The Guardian has a full list of nominees for this year’s prestigious Mercury Prize. They include some big names, but also some first-time nominees and two debut albums.  

Tour enters crucial stage

The final mountain stage in this year’s Tour de France is likely to be where yellow jersey leader Geraint Thomas wins or loses the Tour, according to The Guardian. The 200.5km stage from Lourdes to Laruns starts at 12.05 p.m.

Today’s breakfast briefing was compiled by Duncan Roberts