Oil prices hit four-year high as markets await US sanctions on Iran October 1, 2018 Oil prices hit a four-year high this morning as the market reacted to ongoing uncertainty over US sanctions on Iran. Brent crude – considered the international benchmark – rose almost half a per cent to $83.09 (£63.70) per barrel in early trading, after rising as high as $83.32. Read more: Iranian foreign minister claims country [...]
US and Canada ease trade fears with last-minute deal to revamp Nafta October 1, 2018 Canada struck a dramatic eleventh-hour trade deal with the US and Mexico last night, putting an end to a year of tense economic negotiations in North America. In an effort to revamp the current North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta), the three countries reached a trilateral agreement only hours before a midnight deadline, quelling threats [...]
Character assassination: Business bosses are starting to realise that Twitter has a price September 30, 2018 It is not boardroom discord or tumbling profits that are causing mayhem for Elon Musk, the maverick and publicity-hungry Tesla chief who is set to lose his role as chairman. It’s his Twitter habit. His case exemplifies how Twitter, the social media platform that can send 280 poorly chosen characters right round the world in [...]
Iranian foreign minister claims country is close to European oil deal despite US sanctions threat September 30, 2018 The Iranian foreign minister claimed last night that Tehran was drawing close to an agreement which would allow the country to sell oil to European nations, in spite of threats by the United States that it would impose sanctions on countries that do business with Iran. Iran is planning to avoid US sanctions on its [...]
WTO urges US and China to show restraint as it cuts trade growth forecasts September 27, 2018 The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has cut its growth forecasts as it urged America and China to show restraint over their escalating trade war. Today the WTO cut its expectations for 2018 growth in merchandise trade volume to 3.9 per cent, from the 4.4 per cent estimated in April this year as it warned the [...]
Big brains, fake news and bad deals: Five things Trump said last night to spark worldwide outrage September 27, 2018 Bloomberg has called it “the end of presidential press conferences”. In a bizarre and colourful 83-minute news conference last night, Donald Trump, as is his wont, gave reporters much to chew on. Sexual assault allegations against his Supreme Court nomination and an escalating trade war with China were among the issues the President confronted. [...]
Woo the EU? Theresa May should take tips from the dating game September 26, 2018 Winning votes in an election is a lot like dating. I was explaining the principles of campaigning during a Westminster Foundation seminar in Ghana when one of the young candidates hit on this perfect analogy for electoral success. When you start dating someone, you are keen to establish common interests. “You like Love Island? [...]
Trump hits out at Iran’s ‘bloody agenda’ in return to US patriotism September 25, 2018 US President Donald Trump upped his criticism of Iran in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly this afternoon, in which he accused its leadership of running a "corrupt dictatorship" with a "bloody agenda". He told the body that the Iranian leadership is sowing "chaos, death and destruction", adding that "they do not respect [...]
Theresa May says she trusts President Donald Trump despite Iran sanctions September 24, 2018 Prime Minister Theresa May has stood by the UK's special relationship with the US despite Donald Trump's decision to take his country out of the Iran nuclear deal, insisting she continues to have trust in the President. "Of course I listen to what the American president tells me," May replied when asked if she trusts Trump [...]
DEBATE: Could Donald Trump’s trade war be a positive force in reining in Chinese dominance? September 24, 2018 Could Donald Trump’s trade war be a positive force in reining in Chinese dominance? Alastair Benn, news editor of Reaction, says YES. Two centuries ago, the world experienced something historians call “the Great Divergence”. Pre-nineteenth century, America, Europe, China, and India formed an equilibrium at the heart of the global economy, taking up roughly [...]