United Kingdom

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news While many exporters around the world cheered when the supreme court ruled against Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs last week, the unintended consequence could be that the trade war escalates further, says Neil Wilson at the broker Saxo Markets. Trump warned countries not to ‘play games’ and threatened ‘a much higher tariff’ than they had agreed to...the unintended consequence of the Supreme Court ruling could be an escalatory trade war that markets hadn’t anticipated. Or as Trump put it the Supreme Court had ‘unwittingly’ handed him ‘far more powers and strength’ to levy fresh tariffs than before the ruling. … The White House insists it’s working on a 15% levy at a later date, which gives the president a degree of optionality, but this is evolving into a far messier situation than we had a week ago. We can all agree that the US is not facing a ⁠balance of payments crisis, which is when countries experience an exorbitant increase i

Unite Group cuts rents at some universities and raises cash by selling London site to joint venture for £186m Business live – latest updates A drop in the number of international students coming to the UK has hit the student housing provider Unite Group, which lowered its profit outlook for the third time in four months as weaker demand prompted it to cut rents in some cities. Shares in the FTSE 250-listed company – which says it is the UK’s biggest student housing provider – fell almost 10% to the lowest level since early 2015. It said it would build far less student housing, after the completion of Hawthorne House in Stratford with 719 beds, expected in June. Continue reading...

Chris Bryant says former prince ‘could not distinguish between public and private interest’ Keir Starmer is taking part in a coalition of the willing video call to discuss Ukraine. There is a live feed of his public contribution here. Kemi Badenoch is holding a press conference now. She is appearing with the relatives of children who she says have died as a result of social media – either because they took their own lives, or because it led to them being attacked. She says she wants to give them a platform to tell their stories. Continue reading...

Thirteen books make this year’s longlist for translated fiction, which awards a first prize of £50,000 Olga Ravn, Daniel Kehlmann, Ia Genberg, Mathias Énard and Gabriela Cabezón Cámara are among those longlisted for the 10th International Booker prize, which recognises the best translated fiction published in the past year. A “Booker dozen” of 13 books were longlisted for this year’s prize. One author-translator pair will win £50,000, to be split equally. Continue reading...

Meloni government had claimed case showed why officers using weapons in self-defence needed more protection The arrest of an Italian police officer on suspicion of murder over the fatal shooting of a Moroccan man has prompted a row after the opposition accused Giorgia Meloni’s far-right government of exploiting the case for political ends. Abderrahim Mansouri, 28, was shot in the head by Carmelo Cinturrino, assistant chief of Mecenate police station, during a police drugs patrol in the Rogoredo area of Milan in late January. Cinturrino originally said he had acted in self-defence after Mansouri pulled a gun on him. Continue reading...

Increase of 6.4% comes as drugmaker reports strong profit growth, despite cancelling UK investment projects Business live – latest updates Pascal Soriot, the chief executive of Britain’s largest pharmaceutical company, received a 6.4% pay rise last year, taking his total remuneration to £17.7m. The AstraZeneca boss is in line for a further increase this year, potentially making him the UK’s highest-paid chief executive once again. Continue reading...

Exclusive: State parliament’s inquiry will propose a crackdown amid concerns over injuries and deaths Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Children should be banned from riding ebikes and e-scooters until they turn 16 and then require a driver’s licence to use one, a Queensland parliamentary inquiry will recommend. The state parliament’s inquiry into e-mobility safety and use is expected to finish its report this week, more than a month early. Continue reading...

Ashley Fairbanks launched Stand with Minnesota as ICE raids rocked her home town – now donations are pouring in, and families’ rent is being paid From thousands of miles away in San Antonio, Ashley Fairbanks watched the news pour out of her home town of Minneapolis– federal immigration authorities flooding the streets and regular people stepping up to defend and care for their communities. She knew she had to do something. So the 39-year-old writer, artist and digital strategist started a Google Doc. Soon, the list of resources for residents grew so long it became unwieldy, and Fairbanks, who builds websites for a living, launched Stand With Minnesota. Continue reading...

Streaming giants will be subject to same Ofcom scrutiny as traditional broadcasters such as the BBC Netflix, Amazon’s Prime Video and Disney+ are to come under “enhanced regulation” by the UK media regulator, Ofcom, making the streaming giants subject to the same scrutiny as traditional broadcasters such as the BBC and ITV. Under the new regulatory regime, which will also apply to public service broadcaster (PSB) video-on-demand services such as ITVX and Channel 4, the platforms will have to adhere to regulations relating to accurate and impartial news and protecting audiences from harmful and offensive material. Continue reading...

Facebook owner’s investment described by semiconductor company as ‘big bet’ on artificial intelligence Business live – latest updates The owner of Facebook has agreed to buy $60bn (£44.5bn) of artificial intelligence chips from the US semiconductor company Advanced Micro Devices despite fears over the vast sums being spent on the AI industry. Meta, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, has clinched the five-year deal in which it will also buy 10% of the chip company. Continue reading...