16 m. ago Trump tariffs cause fastest slump in British factory export orders in five years – business live

Live, rolling coverage of business, economics and financial markets as UK manufacturers report falling export orders and China signals openness to US trade talks Fhaheen Khan, senior economist at Make UK, a lobby group for British manufacturing, said:UK manufacturers are caught in the eye of a perfect storm, with rising costs and international trade uncertainty undermining growth prospects. While actual changes in trade have been limited, the unpredictability, particularly around US tariff policy, is doing significant damage and paralysing decision makers. Many firms are delaying major investment decisions until greater clarity emerges, while being forced in the meantime to cut costs through redundancies while pushing through price increases.This has left manufacturing experiencing its most severe slowdown in years, with the UK at a competitive disadvantage compared to our European peers who are weathering current challenges relatively better. As a result, it is now vital that gover...

Politics

88 m. ago China hints at openness to trade talks with US; Tesla denies board search for Musk successor – business live

Live, rolling coverage of business, economics and financial markets as Chinese state-controlled social media says US has approached China for trade talksLloyds Banking Group has reported a 7% drop in pre-tax profit to £1.5bn in its first quarter, and is bracing for the ripple effect from Trump’s tariffs on its balance sheet.The high street bank said that it has set aside £309m to account for possible bad debts, compared with previous guidance of £274m, as it added a £35m net charge to prepare for the possible impact on the economic outlook from President Trump’s tariffs.The US has proactively reached out to China through multiple channels, hoping to hold discussions on the tariff issue.Yuyuan Tantian is not among China’s most authoritative state media outlets. The Global Times, which is owned by the newspaper of the governing Communist Party, People’s Daily, has often been first to report China’s next steps in trade disagreements over the past few years.Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson fo...

Politics

2 h. ago Tesla denies board search for Elon Musk’s successor; Trump tariffs to slash growth, says Bank of Japan – business live

Live, rolling coverage of business, economics and financial markets as US electric carmaker says report board is looking for next Tesla boss is ‘absolutely false’National Grid, the FTSE 100 company that owns the UK’s electricity network, has appointed Shell oil executive Zoë Yujnovich as chief executive after the retirement of John Pettigrew.Yujnovich was until recently working at FTSE 100 oil company Shell, where she was director of integrated gas and upstream (oil production) and a member of the executive committee. She previously led the Iron Ore company of Canada, part of Rio Tinto.I firmly believe in the vital function energy companies play in driving change and creating value. On both sides of the Atlantic National Grid has an essential role to play in making energy secure, affordable and reliable for our customers and communities. I’m excited about leading National Grid as it delivers on the growth opportunities ahead. Continue reading...

Economics

15 h. ago Fury as award winning fish and chip shop hikes price of haddock to £8.20 in Manchester 'due to spiralling cost from suppliers'

Chips @ No 8 in Prestwich has regularly been hailed as one of the best fish and chip shops in Greater Manchester and has made it into national lists too, often drawing in big crowds during the day.

Economics

16 h. ago Tariff turmoil prompts cloudy forecasts from companies for the year ahead

Uncertainty continues to hang over the latest round of financial results and forecasts for companies both big and small as they try to navigate a global trade system severely shaken by a stark shift in U.S. policy

Politics

17 h. ago Wall Street falls while FTSE 100 regains losses after US economy shrinks

The American economy contracted by 0.3% in the first three months of the year amid Donald Trump’s threats of sweeping trade tariffs.

Economics

18 h. ago How your cup of coffee might become more expensive thanks to Donald Trump

President Donald Trump's current 10 per cent tariffs cover most coffee-producing countries and are expected to drive up costs

Politics

21 h. ago US GDP report to show if economy expanded in last quarter, after eurozone growth accelerates – business live

First estimate of US GDP for Q1 2025 will show whether tariffs hurt growthUK house prices fall but market ‘likely to pick up’ during summerChina manufacturing activity plummets amid Trump tariff warFrance’s economy is likely to “flirt with stagnation” throughout the year, despite the small rebound in GDP in the last quarter, predicts Dutch bank ING.Charlotte de Montpellier, ING’s senior economist for France and Switzerland, explains:The additional customs duties in the US and their direct and indirect impact will delay the French economy’s rebound. We estimate that the direct effect of a permanent 10% import duty in the US on French GDP (via a reduction in exports) will be around -0.1%.Adding to this are the effects of uncertainty, the global economic slowdown and more restrictive fiscal policy, all of which will weigh on French economic activity throughout the year. The cooling in the labour market is likely to limit the recovery in household consumption, and the savings rate is se...

Economics

24 h. ago Aberdeen Group sticks to guns despite tariff turmoil as Interactive Investor blossoms: shares rise

“Our strategy is to become the UK’s leading wealth business and to reposition our investments business to areas of strength and market growth” – Jason Windsor, CEO

Economics

24 h. ago France and Germany avoid recession as eurozone growth accelerates; Taiwan’s GDP boosted by pre

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, including growth figures from across EuropeUK house prices fall but market ‘likely to pick up’ during summerChina manufacturing activity plummets amid Trump tariff warFrance’s economy is likely to “flirt with stagnation” throughout the year, despite the small rebound in GDP in the last quarter, predicts Dutch bank ING.Charlotte de Montpellier, ING’s senior economist for France and Switzerland, explains:The additional customs duties in the US and their direct and indirect impact will delay the French economy’s rebound. We estimate that the direct effect of a permanent 10% import duty in the US on French GDP (via a reduction in exports) will be around -0.1%.Adding to this are the effects of uncertainty, the global economic slowdown and more restrictive fiscal policy, all of which will weigh on French economic activity throughout the year. The cooling in the labour market is likely to limit the recovery in household consumptio...

Politics

25 h. ago France and Germany avoid recession as economies return to growth; UK house prices drop – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, including growth figures from across EuropeUK house prices fall but market ‘likely to pick up’ during summerChina manufacturing activity plummets amid Trump tariff warFrance’s economy is likely to “flirt with stagnation” throughout the year, despite the small rebound in GDP in the last quarter, predicts Dutch bank ING.Charlotte de Montpellier, ING’s senior economist for France and Switzerland, explains:The additional customs duties in the US and their direct and indirect impact will delay the French economy’s rebound. We estimate that the direct effect of a permanent 10% import duty in the US on French GDP (via a reduction in exports) will be around -0.1%.Adding to this are the effects of uncertainty, the global economic slowdown and more restrictive fiscal policy, all of which will weigh on French economic activity throughout the year. The cooling in the labour market is likely to limit the recovery in household consumptio...

Economics

25 h. ago Drugs giant GSK ‘well positioned’ to absorb potential US tariffs

It came as the FTSE 100 giant revealed a rise in sales as weakness in its vaccine division was offset by growth in speciality medicines.

Events

41 h. ago UK stocks buoyed as ‘optimism’ enters markets amid raft of company earnings

The FTSE 100 rose 46.12 points, or 0.55%, to close at 8,463.46.

Politics

51 h. ago BP profits halve as oil major struggles to turn around business

FTSE 100 group plans to sell at least $3bn-$4bn of assets this year as it seeks to reduce debts

Economics

56 h. ago School bans pupils from wearing JUMPERS until November and sends scathing letter telling parents to stop encouraging their children to break the rules

Winston Churchill School in Woking, Surrey, told pupils they would no longer be allowed to wear the woolly covering when they returned from the Easter holiday.

Society

65 h. ago FTSE 100 matches longest run of consecutive gains in eight years

The blue-chip index nudged up on Monday to mark its 11th straight day in the green.

Politics

66 h. ago M&S cyber crisis wipes almost £700mn off retailer’s valuation

FTSE 100 company tells hundreds of workers to stay at home and admits it has no idea when operations will recover

Economics

2 d. ago ‘Standing up for Christian values’: US evangelicals keep the faith with Trump

Evangelicals say president is in step on core issues such as abortion and Israel – and they’re backing him all the wayWhen asked about Donald Trump’s Easter morning post wishing a happy holiday to “the Radical Left Lunatics fighting and scheming so hard to bring Murderers, Drug Lords, Dangerous Prisoners” to the United States, Jackson Lahmeyer, an Oklahoma evangelical Christian pastor, said: “Isn’t it terrible that they are wanting to do that?”Lahmeyer, the founder of the Pastors for Trump organization, was not bothered by Trump’s extreme and divisive message on the Christian religious holiday, because, he said: “You cannot unify with evil.” Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Trade war fears trigger biggest slide in US consumer expectations since 1990 recession – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsXi announces plan for Chinese economy to counter impact of US trade warEuropean stock markets are rising this morning, amid hopes that China is relaxing some of its tariffs.In London, the FTSE 100 index is up 12 points or 0.13%, at 8417 points. Engineering companies are among the top risers, with aerospare manufacturers Melrose up 3.6%, and Rolls-Royce up 2%, after Safran reported that tariffs on aircraft parts have been lifted.“We learned last night that China has taken the decision not to tax engines or landing gear or nacelles - in other words a certain number of aerospace equipment parts.”“It demonstrates that the situation is very fluid.” Continue reading...

Economics

5 d. ago Marks & Spencer suspends online shopping after cyber attack that crippled contactless payments

The high street giant admitted on Tuesday that it was responding to an 'incident' after customers began reporting problems over the busy Easter bank holiday weekend.

Economics