FTSE 100 reaches new peak amid EU-US trade deal prospects
On another positive day for savers with money in shares through pensions, ISAs and other investments, the index rose 0.4 per cent, or 37.68 points, to 9061.49.
Washington and Tokyo signed a deal for Japan to invest £400billion in the US while its goods will face tariffs of 15 per cent – below the 25 per cent Donald Trump had threatened. The US president called it 'the largest trade deal in history'.
It fuelled hopes that Europe may secure better terms with the US after Trump threatened levies of 30 per cent. Britain's deal means most exports face a tariff of 10 per cent.
'Global markets are in buoyant mood as the US and Japan secured a trade deal,' said Neil Wilson, UK investor strategist at Saxo Bank.
The Footsie has now risen nearly 11 per cent this year. 'News of a trade agreement between the US and Japan is fostering optimism among investors that further deals might be reached before punishing tariffs come into force,' said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould. 'The news helped drive the FTSE 100 to a new record high and saw gains in other markets across mainland Europe, with focus likely to now turn to the prospects of an agreement being forged between the Trump administration and EU.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
5 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Retirees pull billions from pension pots to escape Reeves's tax raid
Middle-class Britons risk a retirement 'disaster' after a record £5bn was pulled from pension pots in the wake of Rachel Reeves's inheritance tax raid. Official figures showed 672,000 retirees, representing roughly 5pc of all pensioners, pulled £5bn from their pots in the first three months of this year. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said the amount taken from retirement funds was 25pc higher than the same quarter a year ago, with 13pc more people withdrawing money. It means withdrawals during the period were the highest since George Osborne introduced pension freedoms a decade ago. It comes after the Chancellor announced in her maiden Budget last October that pension pots would no longer be exempt from inheritance tax from April 2027, making them subject to a levy of up to 40pc. Baroness Altmann, a former Tory pensions minister, urged the Chancellor to reverse the policy, warning that many more people would choose to withdraw money from their retirement pot as soon as possible, creating a 'pensioner poverty time bomb'. Sweeping changes mean retirees can now withdraw unlimited amounts from their pot as soon as they hit 55. The figures also revealed a 50pc increase in the number of octogenarians taking money out of their pensions over the course of last year with the amount withdrawn by those aged 81 and over up by 80pc to £360m. 'It's a disaster' The Chancellor hopes to raise £1.5bn from her decision to bring pensions within the scope of inheritance tax. Pension withdrawals from defined contribution pots above the 25pc tax-free lump sum incur an income tax charge of 20pc for basic rate taxpayers and a 40pc levy at the higher rate. The changes mean heirs will be subject to both inheritance and income tax at the marginal rate from 2027. 'It's a disaster,' Lady Altmann said, adding that she expected withdrawals to accelerate as more people became aware of the looming inheritance tax charge. She added that the 'draconian' way the policy was introduced was storing up a crisis for the future, and said she was pushing for changes in the Lords that would see beneficiaries charged a maximum 20pc 'pension recovery tax' instead on inherited pots. Lady Altmann said: 'This policy could end up being as damaging to workplace pensions as Gordon Brown's tax rate was for DB [defined benefit] pensions. 'I honestly think this is an existential threat to the long-term survival of our DC [defined contribution] pensions, because there's a clear incentive to take the money out as soon as you possibly can.' She added that this would leave many middle-class families in danger of not leaving themselves enough to fund their retirement. Lady Altmann said: 'This IHT [inheritance tax] imposition will ensure that more and more people – especially those who don't have massive amounts of money – will just say, 'Why on earth would I want to lose two thirds of my pension to the taxman? I'll just take it out as soon as I can.' 'Those who build up, say, between £200,000 and £300,000 over their working life are now in danger of having a real financial incentive not to keep money in their pensions for their later life and then end up in poverty.' 'Taking a big hit' Guy Opperman, another former pensions minister, said: 'Pensions are taking a big hit from the Government's actions. 'The consequences of this policy are clear: people will save less for their pension and will withdraw more. This will also affect the ability to pass money on. There is time for the Government to think again and they should. It is very short-term.' Jamie Jenkins, director of policy at pensions giant Royal London, which manages more than £170bn of client cash, said there was already clear evidence that people were changing their retirement planning ahead of the changes. He said: 'There is increased interest from advisers and their clients in how they can mitigate the potential inheritance tax bill.' Claire Trott, at wealth managers St James's Place, added: 'Every individual's circumstances are different, but IHT changes to pensions have certainly triggered more conversations about gifting strategies and whether it makes sense to start drawing from pensions earlier.' An HM Treasury spokesman said: 'We continue to incentivise pensions savings for their intended purpose – of funding retirement instead of them being openly used as a vehicle to transfer wealth – and more than 90pc of estates each year will continue to pay no inheritance tax after these and other changes.'
Telegraph
35 minutes ago
- Telegraph
The British public deserves to know what Miliband discussed with Beijing
When the Government signed a deal on net-zero co-operation with Canada, the text of the memorandum was published. So too were the texts of deals with Ireland, Norway, South Korea and Chile. Five months after the Energy Secretary Ed Miliband signed a similar memorandum with the Chinese government, however, we are still in the dark as to precisely what was agreed. Chinese media have asserted that the Energy Secretary agreed to co-operation on power grids, battery storage, offshore wind power and carbon capture, among other areas; it is understood that Chinese investment in the UK was not discussed by Mr Miliband. The role of the Chinese state in Britain's net-zero ambitions may well be an uncomfortable issue for the Labour Government to discuss. While the Defence Secretary is insisting that Britain is 'ready to fight' over the future of Taiwan and the Foreign Secretary is explicitly referring to China as a 'sophisticated and persistent threat' that requires hundreds of millions of pounds in additional funding for the intelligence services, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been courting Chinese investment, and Mr Miliband's drive to meet his net-zero targets is heavily dependent on Chinese industry. Both the switch to electric vehicles and the decarbonisation of the energy grid will make heavy use of Chinese products. One study commissioned by the German defence ministry recently warned that this position at the heart of Western energy systems could result in Beijing enjoying the power to trigger remote shut-downs as 'an instrument of economic warfare'. Such concerns are less hypothetical than we might wish. Earlier this year, undocumented communication devices were located in Chinese-made power inverters exported to the United States, triggering fears that Beijing could use compromised equipment to 'physically destroy the grid'. This would be fully in line with the current approach of the People's Liberation Army to warfare as a clash between systems, and the extensive Volt Typhoon operation carried out by Chinese state-sponsored actors. Even given the understandable desire to avoid a sudden break with China, the delicacy of the balance between trade and reliance is such that the British public deserves to know what Mr Miliband has discussed with Beijing.
The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
Pardons, positions and power: Trump's donor list raises questions about pay-for-access in his administration
A new financial disclosure from a super PAC supporting President Donald Trump contains the name of the deep-pocket donors who have gained access to the White House. MAGA Inc.'s donor list includes Trump appointees, a mom who managed to get Trump to pardon her son, and cryptocurrency traders, according to a new report by the New York Times. The super PAC managed to pull some major donations for the president; according to the disclosure, MAGA Inc. raised more than $177 million for Trump since January. Some names on the list wound up working for Trump in his administration. Anjani Sinha, a friend of Trump's, was nominated to be the ambassador to Singapore. He donated $1 million to MAGA Inc. He hasn't been approved for the position yet, possibly because he struggled to answer questions about Singapore during his confirmation hearing. Cody Campbell, who is now on Trump's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition, donated half a million dollars to the super PAC. Josh Lobel, now sitting on Trump's Intelligence Advisory Board, donated $250,000. Several major donors are tied to the crypto industry, which has by and large found a friendly ally in Trump. According to the Times, Trump's inaugural committee raised an enormous $239 million, with approximately $18 million of that coming from crypto-related donors. According to the filing, donors working in cryptocurrencies accounted for $45 million of the donations reported through MAGA Inc. One donor alone — crypto entrepreneur Eric Schiermeyer — donated $1 million, and was given the chance to have dinner with Trump in Mar-a-Lago in March. The pair didn't just eat and chat — during the dinner, Schiermeyer apparently pitched Trump on an idea for a cryptocurrency called the "USA Token" that would be doled out to Americans for use in transactions. He reportedly wanted a government contract for his company to handle the task, according to the Times ' reporting. He told the paper that he managed to get his idea in front of Trump face-to-face, so he considers it a win. 'I was able to say my piece, and the idea is clearly making the rounds, so mission accomplished from my view.' he told the Times. And then there's Elizabeth Fago, who handed over $1 million to MAGA Inc. and got herself a dinner with Trump. Three weeks later, her son, Paul Walczak, who pleaded guilty to tax fraud, was pardoned. A White House spokesperson who talked to the Times anonymously said that Fago's words, rather than her cash, convinced the president to give her son a break. 'He spoke directly to a mother who pleaded for her son, and when you're talking to a mother pleading for her son, that's a pretty powerful thing,' the source reportedly said. The Independent has requested comment from The White House. According to MAGA Inc., all of the apparent benefits that come along with shoveling money at Trump are just a coincidence. It told the Times that Trump doesn't treat donors any different from normal Americans. 'President Trump values his supporters and donors, but unlike politicians before him, he cannot be bought and works toward the best interest of the country,' it told the paper.
