Donald Trump continued to defend his trade war with China on Tuesday, claiming “great patriot farmers” in the US would benefit from tariff increases that triggered sell-offs in stock markets across the world.
Related: Barr working with CIA to review Trump-Russia investigation, reports say – live
Continue reading...Australian expert worries Queensland coal may help fund armed forces accused of genocide
The Adani Group has signed a US$290m commercial deal with a holding company controlled by the Myanmar armed forces, who have been accused by UN investigators of committing genocide and crimes against humanity.
The Indian conglomerate behind the controversial Carmichael coal project in north Queensland was granted permission in April to develop a container port in Yangon, on land owned by the Myanmar Economic Corporation. The MEC generates significant revenue for the Myanmar military, known as the Tatmadaw.
Continue reading...California jury holds makers of Roundup weedkiller responsible for couple contracting non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
A California jury has ordered Monsanto to pay more than $2bn to a couple that got cancer after using its weedkiller, marking the third and largest verdict against the company over Roundup.
A jury in Oakland ruled Monday that Monsanto, now owned by the German pharmaceutical corporation Bayer, was liable for the non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) cancer of Alva and Alberta Pilliod. The jury ordered the company to pay $1bn in damages to each of them, and more than $55m total in compensatory damages.
Continue reading...Following his instincts, the president has slapped tariffs on $200bn of Chinese imports but the consequences are unpredictable
Donald Trump’s obsession with tariffs may be based on one of his few core beliefs. Or it may be part of a grand strategy to win votes. Either way, triggering a trade war between the world’s two biggest economies represents a huge gamble ahead of next year’s US presidential election.
The US has raised tariffs on $200bn in imports from China to 25% from 10%, with another round in the offing. Beijing vowed to retaliate but Trump, ever the salesman, claimed on Twitter that the new tariffs will bring “FAR MORE wealth” to America.
Continue reading...During Donald Trump’s campaign to be president, he regularly cited China’s export subsidies as “evil”, and in his manifesto he pledged to “cut a better deal with China that helps American businesses and workers compete”.
The president turned decades of musings into a policy mission after his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, handed him a book by the academics Peter Navarro and Greg Autry – Death by China – which set out to explain how China manipulated the global trade system for its own ends.
Continue reading...Britain’s net zero by 2050 goal may have impact on whether existing policies are reassessed
Britain’s move to “net zero” carbon and the declaration of a climate emergency in parliament will be “given careful consideration” in deciding whether to grant a review of Heathrow airport’s expansion, the government has said.
The new approach falls well short of any commitment to review Heathrow’s expansion, but means the decision on whether to grant campaigners’ request for a review will include the net zero target and the climate emergency among its criteria.
Continue reading...Stock traded considerably lower than $100bn the ride-hailing app had hoped to achieve
Uber’s hopes of a surge in the price of its shares have fallen flat, as investors gave the taxi-hailing app’s eagerly anticipated stock market float a frosty reception by sending the shares below their launch price.
Uber put a price of $45 on its shares valuing the company at $80bn (£61.4bn) – well below the $100bn it had once hoped to achieve – amid jitters among investors at the lacklustre performance of shares in rival Lyft since its recent float.
Continue reading...US has hiked the tariffs on $200bn of Chinese goods to 25% overnight, from 10%, escalating the battle between the two economic powers
Britain’s construction sector grew by 1% in the last quarter, as building firms got busier.
But Clive Docwra, managing director of construction consulting and design agency McBains, says Brexit is still hurting the sector.
“Today’s figures mark another increase in output, coming after last month’s statistics showed unexpected moderate growth during February.
“However, this was driven by repair and maintenance - there was no growth in new work across the first quarter of the year, including a decrease in private commercial and housing work.
Britain’s politicians are predictably split on whether the UK is romping along healthily, or simply scrambling to protect itself from Brexit.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, takes an upbeat view on today’s growth figures, pointing out that we’ve now enjoyed nine years of growth.
“Today’s figures show the economy remains robust, with growth of 0.5% in Q1 benefitting every major sector.
“The economy has grown for nine consecutive years, debt is falling, employment is at a record high and wages are rising at their fastest pace in over a decade.
“It’s not surprising to see households and businesses protecting themselves against a potentially disastrous Tory No Deal Brexit.
“With this government increasingly resembling a business entering administration it’s time they admitted the failure of their approach and stood aside for a General Election.
Continue reading...Overcharging for life-saving medicines costs lives, yet the UK seems reluctant to support efforts to encourage fairer pricing
In a year when the British government should be working to secure progress towards universal health coverage, they are failing to champion access to life-saving medicines globally.
The Italian government has put forward a draft resolution to improve the transparency of markets for drugs, vaccines and other health-related technologies, to be discussed at the World Health Assembly in 10 days’ time.
Continue reading...Damaging trade war could destabilise the already slowing global economy
Donald Trump has insisted that there is “no rush” to secure a deal with China despite growing business and Wall Street fears that the ratcheting up of US tariffs risks a full-blown trade war between the world’s two economic superpowers.
US shares, which were falling for much of the day, staged a late rally on Friday night after Trump tweeted that trade talks “will continue” after the hiking of tariffs on $200bn of Chinese goods.
Continue reading...My friend Audrey Simpson, who has died aged 83, was a powerful voice in Brighton and Hove, which she had made her adopted city after leaving London in 1978.
Without any previous experience, she bought a small, run-down, 12-room guest house, the Granville, overlooking the West Pier on the seafront, and transformed it into one of Brighton’s first boutique hotels. Later, in an adjacent space, she created a restaurant, Trogs, which met with equal success and became a gourmet mecca.
Continue reading...US president tells rally China ‘broke the deal’ and publishes list of imported products that will face higher tariffs from Friday
Donald Trump has warned that China has “broke the deal … so they’ll be paying” as the US and China moved to within 36 hours of a full-scale trade war and the US trade representative’s office filed the formal paperwork needed to increase duties on $200bn (£153bn) of Chinese goods.
Speaking at a rally in Panama City, Florida, on Wednesday night, the US president accused China of going back on their deal. “By the way, you see the tariffs we’re doing?” he asked supporters. “Because they broke the deal. They broke the deal. So they’re flying in, the vice premier tomorrow’s flying in – good man – but they broke the deal. They can’t do that, so they’ll be paying.”
The president added: “If we don’t make the deal, nothing wrong with taking it over $100bn a year – $100bn, we never did that before.”
Police called after flight delayed following refusal of woman to watch safety video and read card in exit row seat
A woman who refused to watch the regulation air safety video or read the safety instructions card handed to her by flight attendants has reportedly been removed from an Air New Zealand flight in Wellington.
The woman, described by other passengers as “wealthy-looking”, was sitting in the exit row but ignored attendants’ attempts to get her to listen to the safety instructions for flight NZ424 to Auckland on Tuesday.
Continue reading...European commission warns of ‘major shock’ and slashes growth forecast the union
The threat of a full-blown trade war between the US and China and Brexit uncertainty are posing mounting risks to the EU economy, the European commission has warned, after downgrading its growth outlook for 2019.
Brussels’ executive arm said a recent slowdown in global trade volumes had taken its toll across the continent, as it cut its GDP growth forecast for the 28-nation bloc for 2019 to 1.4%, down from a forecast of 1.9% in the autumn.
Continue reading...Report calls for change of priorities and culture to avert catastrophic biodiversity loss
Governments need to ramp up investment in nature restoration and raise the tax burden on companies that degrade wildlife, according to recommendations made to the G7 group of rich nations.
The proposals are part of a growing debate on how to radically change humanity’s relationship with nature in the wake of a new UN mega-report that showed an alarming decline in the Earth’s life-support systems.
Continue reading...Four thousand skilled jobs at risk in Northern Ireland as Canadian firm unveils sell-off
The Canadian aerospace firm Bombardier is to sell its wing-making operation, which employs 4,000 people in Northern Ireland, sparking concern among trade unions and MPs about the impact on highly skilled jobs.
A spokesman for the prime minister said the government did not expect jobs to be affected but the trade union Unite said it was seeking stronger assurances from the government and the company.
Continue reading...Actor says she would work with Allen again ‘in a second’ and that Polanski had ‘paid his price’ for his behaviour
Actor Anjelica Huston has come out in defence of under-fire film-maker Woody Allen, and expressed sympathy for other controversial entertainment industry figures including Roman Polanski and Jeffrey Tambor.
In an outspoken and wide-ranging interview published in New York magazine, Huston was asked for her thoughts on Allen, with whom she worked on his acclaimed 1989 film Crimes and Misdemeanors. Huston said she would work with him in again “in a second”, noting that “two states investigated him, and neither of them prosecuted him”. Allen is currently in a legal dispute with Amazon, which cancelled its four-film agreement with him in the wake of his daughter Dylan’s allegations of sexual abuse and his response to the #MeToo campaign.
Continue reading...The US Federal Reserve snubbed Donald Trump’s call for a cut in interest rates on Wednesday as the central bank noted economic activity was still rising at “a solid rate”.
After a two-day meeting the Fed board unanimously decided to hold rates steady at a range between 2.25% and 2.5%.
Continue reading...Biggest fall since October 2012 follows worse-than-expected quarterly results
Google’s share price has had its biggest fall in nearly seven years, wiping $70bn (£54bn) off its market value, after disappointing sales figures sparked investor fears that advertisers have been shifting their business to digital rivals such as Facebook and Amazon.
Shares in Alphabet, the parent company of Google and YouTube, fell at one point by more than 8% on Tuesday, the biggest fall since October 2012, after the company produced first quarter results on Monday that were worse than expected.
Continue reading...Eurozone economy grew by 0.4% in the last quarter, faster than expected, as Italy escaped its third recession in a decade
Earlier:
Italy’s farms, factories and service sector companies all made a positive contribution to growth in the last quarter, Istat says.
Net exports also boosted growth, which is an encouraging signal.
In another boost to the eurozone, Italy has returned to growth after its third recession in a decades.
Italy Q1 preliminary GDP +0.2% vs +0.1% q/q expected https://t.co/bZacGKzKXT pic.twitter.com/6Nl0Eqd7KZ
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