Cut Bank

Ocean overwash has destroyed a section of Highway 12, the main route along North Carolina's Outer Banks, leaving part of the barrier islands cut off by road. Officials have launched an emergency ferry service to reconnect residents and visitors while crews assess repairs and storm impacts continue along the coast.

The DC Green Bank continued financing solar projects in Washington, DC after the federal Solar For All program was cut. The bank kept building community solar installations and clean energy lending without the revoked federal support. The development highlights how local green banks are trying to sustain solar access for low-income residents despite the loss of national program money.

Major central banks are moving in different directions on interest rates as rising energy prices raise the threat of renewed inflation. The Wall Street Journal reports that policymakers face a split outlook: some may hold or cut rates to support slowing economies, while others could keep borrowing costs high if energy-driven price pressures build. The divergence adds uncertainty for markets, currency traders and businesses planning around future rate moves.

The United States is tightening its embargo on Cuba, imposing new limits on travel and cutting banking access for entrepreneurs on the island. The measures, reported by the Miami Herald, mark a harder line in U.S. policy toward Havana and are expected to complicate business and family travel between the two countries.