Cyprus’ construction sector maintained strong growth momentum in the first half of 2026, supported by a robust pipeline of new projects, rising property demand and continued investment activity, according to a report by Eurobank Research. The report cautioned that the latest building permit figures covered the period from January to March 2026, before the recent escalation of tensions in the Middle East. Google parent Alphabet has overhauled the leadership of its artificial intelligence operations, moving Nobel laureate Demis Hassabis from the day-to-day running of Google DeepMind into a newly created group-wide science role, while four senior figures behind Gemini leave to launch their own company. The changes come at a sensitive time for Google, with the most powerful version of its latest Gemini model still unreleased despite an initial June launch date. Alphabet shares fell 4 per cent following Wednesday’s announcement. Hassabis, who has Greek Cypriot roots through his father, whose family comes from Famagusta, will become chief scientist of Alphabet and chair of Google DeepMind. Cyprus’ inflation rate eased to 2.9 per cent in July 2026, down from 3.1 per cent in June, as lower fuel prices and a sharp fall in clothing and footwear brought the consumer price index down on a monthly basis, figures released on Thursday by the statistical service (Cystat) showed. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) decreased by 0.68 points, reaching 102.32 units in July compared with