The World Cup may well be taking a lot of your time and energy at the moment – and fair enough – but spare a thought for concerned pub and bar owners worried that the shortage of CO2 in Europe could mean a lack of beer and food during what is a very lucrative trading period. The horror. For other commercial news of interest, read on.

Staff at the magistrates’ court are set to begin a nine-day strike from the 10th to the 18th of September, adding to existing disruption in the UK’s criminal justice system. 

Baroness Hale, the president of the supreme court, has spoken about the lack of diversity in the judiciary, emphasising the importance of improved gender balance, and judges from different ethnicities and social backgrounds reflected in court, in an interview with the Guardian.

As the UK braces itself for the hottest day on record and new Prime Minister Boris Johnson sweats it out during his first days at 10 Downing Street, stay cool and read our collection of commercial news stories.

New statistics revealed in The Solicitors’ Charity Big Report highlighted that in 2022 the charity helped 50% more new clients.  

Philip Hammond delivered his first budget yesterday, and it was a mixed bag to say the least. While the UK’s growth forecast has been upgraded for 2017, it has been downgraded for subsequent years. Self-employed workers face a significant hike in their national insurance payments, but fuel duty has been frozen for another year. An additional £2 billion is to go to social care funding, but the NHS remains woefully underfunded. The BBC has provided a useful summary of these and other key points. For a selection of other big commercial stories that made headlines this week, take a look at these:

The Bar Standards Board has published its latest annual business plan, setting out what the regulator will be doing over the next year to meet its strategic aims.

What with the sadness of last night’s World Cup defeat, the arrival today of the Donald, and the chaos surrounding this week’s government resignations and non-existent Brexit strategy, you could be forgiven for thinking that there’s really no reason to carry on. Don’t give up! There remain many reasons to be cheerful, not least the prospect of a fulfilling legal career. To help you make that a reality by boosting your commercial acumen, read this week’s selection of business news stories.

Cuts to legal aid funding have ensured that employers can get away with discrimination toward their employees, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission has warned.

This week over 20,000 of the world’s most senior business and political leaders are gathering in the icy climes of Davos for the annual World Economic Forum. With this year’s theme “Creating a shared future in a fractured world”, items on the agenda include financial stability, tax avoidance, gender equality, terrorism and climate change. But that’s not all – there is also this carefully curated selection of business news to keep an eye on.

What’s to be done when you feel that your commercial awareness is lacking? Here’s an idea: try absorbing what our Feature has to say on maximising your chances at interview by honing your commercial awareness skills well in advance – and that means now. In addition, check out the following key business/economic stories from the past week.

A woman who alleges that she was raped and sexually assaulted by her ex-husband has been left alone in court without legal representation or support to face her alleged abuser, in another distressing example of the crisis in the justice system caused by cuts to legal aid funding.  

The Bar Council has extended its outreach programme, the Bar Placement Week, to Liverpool. It has been running in London for eight years, as well as in Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester and Leeds for shorter periods.

This round-up is big on banks; they seem to have featured heavily in the past week’s news cycle. For tales of their varying woes, plus much more, read on.

The now compulsory Black Friday frenzy provided lots of shoppers with (perceived) bargains this past week, but does it really make economic sense for retailers in the lucrative pre-Xmas shopping rush? Some resisted the urge to discount, claiming that the Black Friday phenomenon is “bonkers” and that it simply moves the traditional January sales period to November. For more on this, and other business stories, read on.

With vacation schemes in full swing, and the major training contract deadline of 31 July just over a month away, there has never been a better time to up your commercial awareness game. Taking an interest in what’s happening in the business world is the foundation for a successful career as a commercial legal adviser. No time like the present – read on.

In a sweep of BPTC related news, the Bar Standards Board has published statistics about students and providers of the BPTC, revealed changes to the centralised BPTC exams and deferred the Bar Course Aptitude Test until at least March 2016. 

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has warned that firms found to be inadequate at taking continuing professional development seriously can expect enforcement action “where necessary”. 

Two leading City firms have delayed partner promotions due to pandemic pressures.

Ashurst has delayed partner promotions until later this year due to “continuing market uncertainty”.