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Pierce Brosnan has been stopped by airport security officials for trying to board a US flight carrying a knife.

The former 007 star was prevented by Transportation Security Administration agents at Burlington International Airport in Vermont with the 10in (25cm) hunting knife in his hand luggage. The local police department said Brosnan was allowed to continue his journey after the issue was resolved.

The Irish-American’s James Bond films include GoldenEye and Die Another Day. Brosnan, 62, was reportedly embarrassed and angry when the knife was taken away by agents. TSA rules state that sharp objects such as knives, box cutters and scissors longer than 4 inches must be stored in checked baggage.

Lieutenant Shawn Burke, from the Burlington Police Department, said airport authorities told him about Brosnan’s encounter with Transportation Security Administration officials. He said the Irish actor “was encountered by TSA at one of their checkpoints” and was allowed to continue his journey after the issue was resolved. The actor has not commented on the incident.

Global economic growth will slow this year to the lowest rate since the financial crisis, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR).

The think tank cut its 2015 forecast to 3.0% from the 3.2% it predicted in May. It has cut growth forecasts for the US and many emerging market economies, although its forecast for the eurozone has only been cut slightly. Its growth forecast for the UK economy was unchanged at 2.5%.

The full-year growth prediction for the UK remained unchanged despite the NIESR cutting its growth estimate for the three months to the end of September from 0.8% to 0.4%.

NIESR identifies the Greek economy as a key risk to global growth. Its forecast is based on the assumption that there will be “large-scale debt relief” for Greece, which is currently far from certain. It says that the latest Greek crisis has revived doubts about whether the eurozone currency union can succeed without greater integration.

The NIESR also says that the slowdown in China may threaten its forecast, with official figures predicting growth of 7%, while some analysis suggests growth of 3% is more likely.

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Greek bank shares have fallen sharply for a third day, continuing the trend seen since the stock exchange re-opened at the start of the week.

The banking sector share index fell 20%, after falling by about 30% on both Monday and Tuesday. Individual shares are not allowed to drop by more than 30% in one day on the Athens market.

Overall, the Athens stock market was down 2.3%. The market re-opened on Monday following a five-week closure. Trading was halted after 26 June, just before capital controls were imposed in an effort to stop money leaving the country during the height of the Greek debt crisis. Greeks are still limited to withdrawing €420 a week in cash. “The market is looking for the bottom, we are not far away from it,” Alexander Moraitakis, head of Athens-based Nuntius Securities, told Reuters. “But bank shares are still pounded by selling pressure due to dilution fears, given their need to recapitalise.”

Greek banks have been hit by a flight of deposits as customers send their money abroad or hoard it as cash. The banks account for about a fifth of the Athens index.
Rules agreed by the government and the European Central Bank say local investors are not allowed to buy shares with money from their bank accounts, only with cash kept in safe deposit boxes or at home.

The main share index is down more than 50% from last year’s peak.

Disney posted a 5% increase in revenue for the three months to 27 June – but missed expectations for the first time in eight quarters.
Analysts expected the entertainment group’s revenues to be $13.2bn (£8.5bn), but the total was $100m less.
Operating income fell at Disney’s theme parks and resorts outside North America because of higher operating costs at Disneyland in Paris and Hong Kong.

The Asian park also had fewer visitors in the period.

At the same time, chief financial officer Christine McCarthy said the weaker euro had cut revenue at Disneyland Paris by about $100m.
Operating profit at its theme parks rose 9% to $922m, with a 4% increase in revenue to $4.1bn.

Profits at the company’s largest unit, media networks, was up 4% to $2.38bn as cable channels brought in higher fees from TV distributors. The division includes sports channel ESPN, the Disney channels and the ABC broadcast network. Bob Iger, chairman and chief executive, said the company was very pleased with the third quarter results. Overall, net profit rose 11% to a record $2.48bn.

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India will restore free access to 857 pornographic websites, following widespread outrage over the move.
The department of telecom told internet service providers not to disable URLs that “do not have child pornographic content”, the PTI agency reported.

The government denied charges of moral policing, saying it wanted to prevent children from accessing the sites.
In July, the Supreme Court criticised the government’s inability to block sites featuring child pornography.
Communications and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad met senior officials on Tuesday to review the ban and decided that internet service providers (ISPs) would be immediately asked not to block those sites which did not contain any child pornography.

However, service providers have said the fresh directive is unreasonable.
“How can the government put the responsibility on us to see whether a website carries child pornography or not?,” the head of the India Internet Service Providers Association told the Times of India.

News of the ban caused a furore on Indian social media, with several senior politicians and members of civil society expressing their opposition to the move.
The Indian government said that it was merely complying with the Supreme Court order and was committed to the freedom of communication on the Internet.
“I reject with contempt the charge that it is a Talibani government, as being said by some of the critics. Our government supports free media, respects communication on social media and has respected freedom of communication always,” Mr Prasad told PTI.