3 h. ago Richard Branson pleads for Donald Trump to realise ‘mistake’ of his tariff chaos

‘Courage and self-awareness are cornerstones of true leadership – that includes acknowledging errors and making corrections,’ Virgin boss tells US president

Politics

3 h. ago Fed chair warns of high inflation and slower growth as Trump tells him to cut interest rates – live

Federal Reserve chair says ‘we face a highly uncertain outlook’ as president tells him to cut interest ratesPeople in the US: how have your shopping habits changed due to Trump’s tariffs?Trump insists he won’t back down from global trade war as markets slumpThe Trump administration is taking aim at Brown University with threats to freeze $510m in grants, widening its promise to withhold federal funding from schools it accuses of allowing antisemitism on campus, according to multiple media outlets including Reuters and the New York Times.University officials said they had not yet been formally notified, but the school was among dozens warned last month that enforcement actions could be coming as the administration seeks to crack down on academic institutions . Continue reading...

Events

4 h. ago China hits back hard at ‘bullying’ Trump tariffs as global recession fears grow

Beijing imposes punitive 34% extra tariffs on all goods imported from US, exacerbating stock market sell-offBusiness live – latest updatesUS politics live – latest updatesChina has hit back hard against Donald Trump’s “bullying” tariffs, raising fears that the escalating trade war could trigger a global recession and prompting fresh turmoil in financial markets.Beijing retaliated on Friday with punitive 34% additional tariffs on all goods imported from the US – mirroring the US decision and exacerbating a sell-off on global stock markets. Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Keir Starmer to mount diplomatic blitz as Donald Trump's tariff war triggers meltdown

The global economy has been rocked by Donald Trump slapping tariffs on countries around the world - with the UK FTSE 100 suffering its worst day of trading since Covid

Politics

4 h. ago Keir Starmer to mount diplomatic blitz as Donald Trump's tariff war triggers mayhem

The global economy has been rocked by Donald Trump slapping tariffs on countries around the world - with the UK FTSE 100 suffering its worst day of trading since Covid

Politics

4 h. ago FTSE latest: UK stock markets plunge in biggest daily fall since Covid after Trump tariffs

The stock markets in the UK, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and Australia were all falling for a second day

Politics

5 h. ago The Guardian view on Donald Trump’s tariff ultimatum: tribute for access to America’s empire | Editorial

As the White House retools US imperialism with import duties, others must resist dependency – deepening regional ties and reducing exposure to chokepointsWhen Donald Trump stood before union auto workers in the Rose Garden he declared “Liberation Day”, promising to stand up for Main Street. Whether that pledge will be fulfilled is moot. He will declare victory either way. What the US president offered was not just an economic programme, but an imperial one.Mr Trump’s logic, if it exists, lies in the 397-page report on “foreign trade barriers” he brandished on Wednesday. Its message is brutally simple: you may sell your goods to Walmart shoppers, but only if you let US cloud services hoover up your data, US media flood your screens and US tech monopolies operate on their terms – not yours. TikTok is the test case for Trump’s platform nationalism: only US firms may mine data, reap profits and rule the digital empire. Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago FTSE suffers biggest daily drop since early in the pandemic as Wall Street slides again – business live

Global trade war escalates as Beijing hits back against Donald Trump with new tariffs on US goodsChina retaliates to Trump’s ‘bullying practice’ with 34% tariffs on US importsIMF warns of ‘significant risk’ to global economy from Trump tariffs as markets slideAnalysis: Trump’s ‘idiotic’ and flawed tariff calculations stun economistsNew Civil Liberties Alliance, a conservative legal group, has filed what it says is the first lawsuit seeking to block Donald Trump’s tariffs on Chinese imports, saying the US president overstepped his authority. Reuters reports:The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Florida, alleges that Trump lacked the legal authority to impose the sweeping tariffs unveiled on Wednesday as well as duties authorized on February 1 under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.“By invoking emergency power to impose an across-the-board tariff on imports from China that the statute does not authorize, President Trump has misused that power, usurped Congress’s right ...

Economics

5 h. ago How tiny Lesotho ended up with the highest US tariffs in the world

U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs have struck among others the small southern African kingdom of Lesotho, one of the world's poorest nations

Politics

6 h. ago This is the barren, uninhabited island Trump has imposed 10% tariffs on

This is the barren, uninhabited island near Antarctica on which Donald Trump slapped a 10% import tariff when he announced his wide-reaching levies on Wednesday, 2 April.

Politics

7 h. ago ‘Oligarchy’: Trump exempts big oil donors from tariffs package

Trump’s new 10% universal tariffs will not apply to many fossil fuel products in sign of his fealty, advocates sayUS politics live – latest updatesThe sweeping package of tariffs unveiled by Donald Trump on Wednesday includes an exemption for the energy sector, which is a clear sign of the president’s fealty to his big oil donors over the American people, advocates say.Trump’s new 10% universal tariffs – which are higher for many major economies – are wreaking havoc on the global economy and are expected to increase consumer prices in the US. But the levies will not apply to many fossil fuel products, including liquefied natural gas imports, crude oil from Canada, and materials needed for making petrochemicals. Continue reading...

Politics

7 h. ago Trump tears into China for retaliating against him and vows that tariffs 'will never change' despite markets tanking

President Donald Trump remained bullish about the effects of his his newly enacted tariffs on Friday, despite retaliatory actions announced by China.

Economics

7 h. ago ‘My policies will never change’: Trump doubles down on trade war after China announces retaliatory tariffs – live

US president says on Truth Social that ‘this is a great time to get rich’ despite China issuing a 34% tariff on all US goods The Trump administration is taking aim at Brown University with threats to freeze $510m in grants, widening its promise to withhold federal funding from schools it accuses of allowing antisemitism on campus, according to multiple media outlets including Reuters and the New York Times.University officials said they had not yet been formally notified, but the school was among dozens warned last month that enforcement actions could be coming as the administration seeks to crack down on academic institutions . Continue reading...

Events

7 h. ago ‘Scary times’: New York shopkeepers plan ‘astronomical’ price hikes under Trump tariffs

Small businesses that import goods brace for steep price increases that they have to pass on to their customersIt’s just two days since Donald Trump launched his extraordinary tariff assault on the world in a bid to rebuild the US economy and roll back an era of globalization. But already shopkeepers are bracing for recession, and their customers spending less, as they prepare to increase prices.“We’re going to have to put our prices up and people aren’t going to like it,” said Ian Anderson, store manager at Tea and Sympathy, a UK grocery store, restaurant and fish-and-chip shop stalwart in Manhattan’s West Village. Continue reading...

Economics

8 h. ago Scots businesses 'braced' for impact of Donald Trump tariffs with firms taking 'urgent' measures

The US market is worth about £971million to the Scotch whisky industry, while salmon is worth £225million in exports.

Economics

8 h. ago Donald Trump says tariffs going 'better than expected' as trillions wiped off global economy

The US President's latest claims follow an earlier post on Truth Social in which he said the "operation is over" and, referring to the US economy as a "patient", said it would come back more "resilient"

Politics

8 h. ago ‘Another nail in the coffin’: Germany’s car industry faces up to Trump’s tariffs

There are major concerns about the potentially ‘catastrophic’ impact US policy will have on vehicle makers Emerging into the springtime sun from gate 17 at Volkswagen’s main factory in Wolfsburg at the end of his shift on Thursday afternoon, Carsten, 63, pulled heavily on a cigarette and shook his head when asked about Donald Trump’s US tariff policies.“It’s just another nail in the coffin for the German car industry,” the assembly line worker said. He cited managers’ plans to slash jobs and close factories earlier this year, and a decade before that the ‘dieselgate’ scandal, costly both financially and reputationally, after Germany’s largest carmaker was found to have falsified CO2 emissions tests. Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago ‘Only job I know’: tiny Lesotho’s garment workers reel from Trump’s tariffs

Impoverished African country is hit with highest tariff rate at 50%, overturning decades of global trade policyThe day after Donald Trump announced sweeping global tariffs, Lesotho’s garment workers feared for their jobs.Last year, Lesotho sent about 20% of its $1.1bn (£845m) of exports to the US, most of it clothing, as well as diamonds, under a continent-wide trade agreement meant to help African countries’ development via tariff-free exports. Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago ‘Only job I know’: tiny Lesotho’s garment workers reel from Trump’s 50% tariffs

Impoverished African country is hit with highest tariff rate, overturning decades of global trade policyThe day after Donald Trump announced sweeping global tariffs, Lesotho’s garment workers feared for their jobs.Last year, Lesotho sent about 20% of its $1.1bn (£845m) of exports to the US, most of it clothing under a continent-wide trade agreement meant to help African countries’ development via tariff-free exports, as well as diamonds. Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago Are Trump’s tariffs for real or an AI hallucination? I’m afraid the answer is both | Marina Hyde

Amid claims that a chatbot helped shape the key calculations, the president is now off playing golf. He’ll find the world economy in a bunkerThere’s a scene in the very first episode of Yellowstone where the casino-owning Native American chief explains the basic financial logic of all casinos to an uncomfortable politician: “The gamblers’ money is like a river – flowing one way. Our way.” Oh no, hang on, wait Not all casinos. In fact, it could be that when all is said and done, the historians looking for that one key fact to illustrate the eventual legacy of Donald Trump will not go with his two stunning presidential election wins. Instead, they’ll point out that in the 90s, he literally managed to bankrupt casinos. To repeat: this is a man who somehow contrived to bankrupt multiple casinos. Is he the guy to reshape the entire global economic order of the past century? Let’s find out! Either way, only 45 months of his presidency left to go.Anyway: tariffs. Rather than using actual t...

Politics