
UK Business Confidence Hits 9-Month High in Boost for Starmer
A gauge of UK business confidence rose to a nine-month high, climbing back to a level not seen since soon after Prime Minister Keir Starmer first took power, as markets rebounded and trade tensions eased with the US.
The Lloyds Business Barometer sentiment gauge rose to 50 in May, the highest since August, according to a survey released Friday. The 11-point jump erased the drop seen in April, when US President Donald Trump's tariff hikes sowed turmoil in financial markets and darkened the economic outlook.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
China's factory activity contracts in May, but there are signs of improvement
BEIJING (AP) — China's factory activity contracted in May, according to an official survey released on Saturday, although the decline slowed from April as the country reached a deal with the U.S. to slash President Donald Trump's sky-high tariffs. China's purchasing managers index rose from 49.0 in April to 49.5 in May, the National Bureau of Statistics said. PMI is measured on a scale from 0 to 100, where 50 marks the cutoff between expansion and contraction. Meanwhile, the manufacturing index showed growth in the sector, although the index measuring new orders remained under 50 despite some improvement. National Bureau of Statistics senior statistician Zhao Qinghe said some companies with U.S. business reported accelerated resumption of foreign trade orders, and there was an improvement in import and export conditions. The U.S.-China deal, reached earlier this month, cuts Trump's tariffs from 145% to 30% for 90 days, creating time for negotiators from both sides to reach a more substantive agreement. China also reduced its taxes on U.S. goods from 125% to 10%. But the remaining tariffs are still higher than they were before Trump took office, and businesses and investors face uncertainty about whether the truce will last. Trump said Friday that he will no longer be 'Mr. NICE GUY' with China on trade, declaring in a social media post that the country had broken an unspecified agreement with the United States. He later said in the Oval Office that he will speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping and 'hopefully we'll work that out,' while still insisting China had violated the agreement. Over the past week, tensions between Beijing and Washington also intensified after the U.S. said it would start revoking visas for Chinese students studying in the country. China has lodged a protest with the U.S. over the matter, calling the decision unreasonable.


The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
China's factory activity contracts in May, but there are signs of improvement
BEIJING (AP) — China's factory activity contracted in May, according to an official survey released on Saturday, although the decline slowed from April as the country reached a deal with the U.S. to slash President Donald Trump's sky-high tariffs. China's purchasing managers index rose from 49.0 in April to 49.5 in May, the National Bureau of Statistics said. PMI is measured on a scale from 0 to 100, where 50 marks the cutoff between expansion and contraction. Meanwhile, the manufacturing index showed growth in the sector, although the index measuring new orders remained under 50 despite some improvement. National Bureau of Statistics senior statistician Zhao Qinghe said some companies with U.S. business reported accelerated resumption of foreign trade orders, and there was an improvement in import and export conditions. The U.S.-China deal, reached earlier this month, cuts Trump's tariffs from 145% to 30% for 90 days, creating time for negotiators from both sides to reach a more substantive agreement. China also reduced its taxes on U.S. goods from 125% to 10%. But the remaining tariffs are still higher than they were before Trump took office, and businesses and investors face uncertainty about whether the truce will last. Trump said Friday that he will no longer be 'Mr. NICE GUY' with China on trade, declaring in a social media post that the country had broken an unspecified agreement with the United States. He later said in the Oval Office that he will speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping and 'hopefully we'll work that out,' while still insisting China had violated the agreement. Over the past week, tensions between Beijing and Washington also intensified after the U.S. said it would start revoking visas for Chinese students studying in the country. China has lodged a protest with the U.S. over the matter, calling the decision unreasonable.


Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Trump and Putin hint at US-Russia trade revival, but business environment remains hostile
Hundreds of foreign companies left Russia after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine , including major U.S. firms like Coca-Cola, Nike, Starbucks, ExxonMobil and Ford Motor Co. But after more than three years of war, President Donald Trump has held out the prospect of restoring U.S.-Russia trade if there's ever a peace settlement. And Russian President Vladimir Putin has said foreign companies could come back under some circumstances.