18 h. ago 'Cruel' animal welfare practices 'could be imported to UK due to new trade deal'

As Britain and India sign a new trade deal, Animal Policy International revealed the immense suffering of hens confined to battery cages raising concerns about the potential increase in cruel imports

Economics

21 h. ago ‘Blood timber’: western firms fuel conflict and ‘slavery’ in Colombia

Trade in uncertified hardwood illegally logged in Chocó rainforest and imported by US and Europe is financing paramilitaries, says Environmental Investigation AgencyThe Atrato River winds through the dense rainforest of Colombia’s Chocó region for nearly 400 miles (600km) before spilling into the Caribbean Sea. Some of these tropical forests are among the wettest on Earth. Their flooded lowlands and swollen rivers are so impenetrable they have acted as an evolutionary barrier, making Chocó a haven for rare and remarkable species found nowhere else on the planet.“We have so many animals that you won’t even know the names of many of them,” says María Mosquera, a community leader in the region, whose name has been changed to protect her identity. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago Shein explores US restructuring as tariffs threaten to derail London IPO

Fast-fashion company searches for workarounds as Trump’s trade war endangers operations in its most important market

Economics

7 d. ago Cruel Scots carer struck off after leaving starving cats to eat animal's dead body

Hannah Band, of Glenrothes, Fife, was employed as a support worker caring for vulnerable people when left three cats locked in a kitchen for six weeks.

Events

7 d. ago US goods trade gap hits record high as Trump tariffs prompt import surge

Companies rushed to purchase foreign products ahead of imposition of wide-ranging levies

Politics

1 week ago Rachel Reeves says EU more important to Britain in 'gaffe' that could harm her chances of securing a US trade deal to avoid Trump's punishing tariffs

Rachel Reeves has been criticised for saying trade with the EU is more important than with the US just ahead of meeting American counterpart Scott Bessent in a bid to secure a trade deal.

Economics

1 week ago Reeves says Britain’s trade ties with EU ‘even more important’ than US

Chancellor’s comments comes as UK balances trade talks with both regions

Politics

1 week ago Rachel Reeves says EU trade 'reset' is MORE important than deal with US to dodge Trump's tariffs

Chancellor Rachel Reeves suggested the government could prioritise ties with Brussels ahead of sitting down with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

Economics

1 week ago China grants some tariff exemptions for US imports as trade war bites

Sign of relief for foreign businesses comes as Donald Trump insists talks are under way to reduce levies

Events

1 week ago Rachel Reeves suggests UK trade with EU more important than US ahead of crunch talks in Washington

Chancellor is set to meet with her US counterpart Scott Bessent on Friday

Politics

1 week ago Reeves signals UK could lower tariffs on US car imports in bid to secure Trump trade deal

The chancellor is in Washington DC as pressure mounts over dire IMF predictions about the UK economy if Trump goes ahead with his tariffs

Economics

1 week ago Rachel Reeves says US trip about more than 'damage limitation' as she signals UK could lower import levies on American cars in bid for trade deal with Donald Trump

The Chancellor is in Washington for IMF meetings and talks with other G20 finance ministers to discuss the impact of the US president on global commerce.

Politics

1 week ago Reeves opens door to cutting US car import tariffs in UK trade talks

Chancellor says a deal ‘can be done’ with Washington but insists Britain will not lower food or auto standards

Politics

2 w. ago UK economic growth forecast slashed as Trump’s tariffs hit Britain harder than Europe

The downgrade to Britain’s growth forecasts heightens the importance of Rachel Reeves securing a trade deal for the UK

Economics

3 w. ago The Guardian view on the tariff war pause: the Trump trade shambles is not over | Editorial

The US president blinked first, but this is just a time-out. The threat to the global economy remains real.It was Donald Trump who blinked first. Never forget that. China is unlikely to overlook its importance. A week after launching an all-out global trade war, the US president paused significant parts of it for 90 days. Having insisted that he would stick with the random tariffs he imposed on most trading nations, Mr Trump suddenly decreed that he would reduce most of them to 10%. It was a major humiliation.Yet 10% is still a significant tariff to bear for nations exporting to the US. This is also only a pause until July, not a withdrawal, so the uncertainty remains. And huge tariffs still remain on China (now hiked to 145%), Canada and Mexico (both 25%), as well as on all US imports of steel, aluminium and cars (also 25%). Mr Trump is now substituting a US-world conflict with a US-China one. The two largest economies in the world – which between them have generated around ha...

Politics

3 w. ago China confirms plans to curb Hollywood film imports amid Trump’s escalating trade war

China had recently considered a complete ban on all American movies in retaliation to Donald Trump’s raising tariffs on Chinese imports

Politics

3 w. ago China says Trump’s trade war ‘will end in failure’, as Beijing’s tariffs take effect

China’s 84% tariffs on US products come into force amid market relief after Trump pauses steep reciprocal tariffs elsewhereBusiness live – latest updatesChina says Donald Trump’s trade war with Beijing “will end in failure” for Washington, hours after the US president announced he would be increasing his tariffs on the country’s imports to 125%.China’s own 84% tariffs on US imports came into effect on Thursday amid an escalating trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago China says Trump’s trade war ‘will end in failure’ as Beijing tariffs take effect

China’s 84% tariffs on US products come into force amid market relief after Trump pauses steep tariffs elsewhereBusiness live – latest updatesChina says Donald Trump’s trade war with Beijing “will end in failure” for Washington, hours after the US president announced he would increase his tariffs on the country’s imports to 125%.China’s own 84% retaliatory tariffs on US imports came into effect on Thursday amid an escalating trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Trump is pushing the world into recession. By learning the lessons of 2008, we can still prevent it | Gordon Brown

As I discovered then, global problems need international responses. By working together, we can protect jobs and living standardsThis is the first in a two part series on the global response to Donald Trump’s tariffsNo more than a narrow window of opportunity remains if we are to prevent an unnecessary global recession. As China and the US decouple, disruptive trade wars are intensifying and threaten to descend into currency wars; import, export, investment and technology bans; and financial fire sales that will destroy millions of jobs worldwide. It seems barely credible that the world is being brought to its knees by one economy, outside of which live 96% of the population, who produce 84% of the world’s manufactured goods. But even though US officials have previously talked of a tariff policy of “escalate to de-escalate”, Donald Trump’s aim is to force manufacturing back to the US, and his 90-day relaxation of some tariffs does not mean he intends to defuse the crisis.On Monday, ...

Politics

3 w. ago Trump is pushing the world towards recession. By learning the lessons of 2008, we can still prevent it | Gordon Brown

As I discovered then, global problems need international responses. By working together, we can protect jobs and living standardsThis is the first in a two part series on the global response to Donald Trump’s tariffsNo more than a narrow window of opportunity remains if we are to prevent an unnecessary global recession. As China and the US decouple, disruptive trade wars are intensifying and threaten to descend into currency wars; import, export, investment and technology bans; and financial fire sales that will destroy millions of jobs worldwide. It seems barely credible that the world is being brought to its knees by one economy, outside of which live 96% of the population, who produce 84% of the world’s manufactured goods. But even though US officials have previously talked of a tariff policy of “escalate to de-escalate”, Donald Trump’s aim is to force manufacturing back to the US, and his 90-day relaxation of some tariffs does not mean he intends to defuse the crisis.On Monday, ...

Politics