IEA poaches Legatum’s top Brexit adviser Shanker Singham and team March 9, 2018 Free market think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) has poached Shanker Singham and three of his team from rival firm Legatum. Singham, who is widely seen as one of the top Brexit policy advisers and has played a key role in guiding the government’s thinking on the issue, will head up the IEA’s [...]
EU seeking more clarity over Trump’s tariffs move March 9, 2018 The EU commissioner for trade has said she is still not “crystal clear” where the bloc stands after Donald Trump’s latest statement on tough new steel and aluminium tariffs. The US President last night signed an executive order pushing ahead with the 25 per cent levy on steel imports and 10 per cent on aluminium [...]
Cost of Brexit, austerity update but no fireworks: Here’s what to expect from Philip Hammond’s Spring Statement on 13 March March 9, 2018 The chancellor will next week deliver his new, understated Spring Statement – and although it is not expected to have the same weight as previous Budgets, he is still expected to make waves. As previously announced, Philip Hammond will use the statement to respond to the latest OBR forecasts and set out some long-term thinking, [...]
Donald Trump to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un March 9, 2018 US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un are to meet in person this year. The leaders, who have routinely exchanged insults and threats to wipe out each other’s countries, will meet after a South Korean delegation extended the invitation to Trump. Trump will be the first sitting American President to meet [...]
Debate: Should the government prioritise domestic growth over the Brexit negotiations? March 9, 2018 Should the government prioritise domestic growth over the Brexit negotiations? Yes – Mike Cherry is national chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses. Brexit will no doubt continue to grab headlines as the negotiations progress. But the power to make real change for the UK’s 5.7m small businesses and self-employed, to boost prosperity and productivity, [...]
Republicans have themselves to blame for Donald Trump’s trade war March 9, 2018 In the week since Donald Trump rocked the global order by announcing tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, the world – and his White House – have been scrambling to react. The EU has suggested sinking down to America’s level by retaliating with its own tariffs on US cars, clothes, and whisky, while China is [...]
No end in sight for high street’s woes as stalwarts like John Lewis struggle March 9, 2018 The UK high street was dealt another blow yesterday as one of the country’s biggest household names posted a sharp drop in profits. Profits at the John Lewis Partnership – which comprises John Lewis and Waitrose – fell 77 per cent to £103.9m in 2017, forcing the retailer to cut its staff bonus to its [...]
US President Donald Trump slaps tariffs on steel and aluminium but leaves get-out clause March 8, 2018 Donald Trump tonight finally unveiled the steel and aluminium tariffs which have riven his Republican party and dismayed the US’s biggest trading partners, although left a get-out clause for countries to see them removed. The US President said he will charge a 25 per cent tariff on foreign steel and a 10 per cent tariff [...]
Interserve share price rockets almost 50 per cent | City A.M. March 8, 2018 Shares in troubled outsourcer Interserve today rocketed by almost 50 per cent. JP Morgan settled a string of equity swaps totalling almost six per cent of Interserve’s market value, according to a regulatory filing at lunchtime. The sharp rise in Interserve’s stock will raise hopes it is close to agreeing a rescue package with lenders. [...]
Premier Oil’s shares bump higher as production reaches a record level March 8, 2018 Shares in Premier Oil lifted today as the firm produced a record amount of crude and pledged to cut debt in the year ahead. The figures Premier reported a loss before tax of $366.3m (£265.1m) in the year to December 2017, down from a $413.9m loss the previous year, while it produced a record 75,000 [...]