The Bank of England opted to maintain its benchmark interest rate at three point seventy-five percent following severe regional energy shocks and skyrocketing crude oil costs. British expats lingering around the Todos Santos palapas nodded gravely before returning to the far more pressing crisis of finding authentic marmalade. As Middle East tensions push Brent crude past the century mark, local retirees assured everyone that rising fuel surcharges won't affect their retirement budgeting as long as Tecate stays cheap. After all, geopolitical collapse is much easier to digest when you're watching the sunset over the Pacific from a hammock.