Latest news with #UK-EU
South Wales Argus
2 days ago
- Business
- South Wales Argus
MPs to quiz farming bodies on Brexit impact and trade deals
On Wednesday, June 5, the Welsh Affairs Committee will hold its first evidence session for the inquiry, "Farming in Wales in 2025: Challenges and Opportunities." The session will take place at 2.30pm in Committee Room 6 at the Palace of Westminster. The committee, chaired by Ruth Jones, MP for Newport West and Islwyn, will hear from three of Wales's largest farming representative bodies: National Farmers' Union Cymru, Farmers' Union of Wales, and Wales Young Farmers Clubs. According to the committee's agenda, the MPs will delve into the performance of the Welsh agricultural export market since the UK's departure from the EU. The recently announced UK-EU deal, including the veterinary agreement and its implications for Welsh farmers, will also be on the agenda. Further scrutiny will be given to the trade agreements the UK has inked with Australia, New Zealand, and the United States, to assess their effects on Welsh exporters. The committee may discuss with witnesses the potential impact of the UK Government's proposed inheritance tax reforms on the sector, and what measures should be implemented to protect the future of Welsh farmers. Other points of discussion are expected to include the "Barnettisation" of agricultural funding in the chancellor's autumn budget, as well as concerns about Welsh farmers' access to skilled and seasonal labour. The session will be available to watch live on starting at 2.30pm, with Aled Jones, Gareth Parry, and Dominic Hampson-Smith providing evidence.
Leader Live
2 days ago
- Business
- Leader Live
Bank of England rate-setter Alan Taylor ‘pretty concerned' by economic outlook
Alan Taylor, who was appointed to the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee last year, indicated he will seek to cut interest rates again soon and dismissed recent stronger-than-expected inflation figures. Official figures showed that Consumer Prices Index inflation jumped to 3.5% in April, up from 2.6% in March. The rise in inflation to its highest level since January 2024 comes amid a backdrop of steady reductions in interest rates – which had been kept elevated in a bid to curb high inflation – over the past year. Earlier this month, the Bank of England cut interest rates to 4.25%, their lowest level for around two years, from 4.5%. Mr Taylor, who was among two dissenting rate-setters voting for a sharper cut to 4%, indicated he still hopes for further reductions in interest rates. 'I'm not going to pre-emptively announce my vote, but I think I indicated in my dissent that I thought we needed to be on a lower (monetary) policy path,' he told the Financial Times. 'I'm seeing more risk piling up on the downside scenario because of global developments,' he said, highlighting that President Trump's tariffs were set to drag on global economic growth. On Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said trade tensions linked to tariffs would reduce growth in the UK economy next year. Mr Taylor said he believes the recent uptick in inflation is largely caused by one-off factors, adding that he remained 'pretty concerned' about the growth outlook for the economy. He added that recent developments in UK trade, such as the UK-EU deal secured earlier this month, were welcome, they would not wholly offset disruption from US tariff plans. The rate-setter also indicated that positive growth earlier this year was likely to be linked to firms bringing forward activity ahead of the potential tariffs, with growth likely to slow in the coming months.
Glasgow Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Glasgow Times
Bank of England rate-setter Alan Taylor ‘pretty concerned' by economic outlook
Alan Taylor, who was appointed to the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee last year, indicated he will seek to cut interest rates again soon and dismissed recent stronger-than-expected inflation figures. Official figures showed that Consumer Prices Index inflation jumped to 3.5% in April, up from 2.6% in March. (PA Graphics) The rise in inflation to its highest level since January 2024 comes amid a backdrop of steady reductions in interest rates – which had been kept elevated in a bid to curb high inflation – over the past year. Earlier this month, the Bank of England cut interest rates to 4.25%, their lowest level for around two years, from 4.5%. Mr Taylor, who was among two dissenting rate-setters voting for a sharper cut to 4%, indicated he still hopes for further reductions in interest rates. 'I'm not going to pre-emptively announce my vote, but I think I indicated in my dissent that I thought we needed to be on a lower (monetary) policy path,' he told the Financial Times. 'I'm seeing more risk piling up on the downside scenario because of global developments,' he said, highlighting that President Trump's tariffs were set to drag on global economic growth. Alan Taylor, external member of the Monetary Policy Committee (House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA) On Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said trade tensions linked to tariffs would reduce growth in the UK economy next year. Mr Taylor said he believes the recent uptick in inflation is largely caused by one-off factors, adding that he remained 'pretty concerned' about the growth outlook for the economy. He added that recent developments in UK trade, such as the UK-EU deal secured earlier this month, were welcome, they would not wholly offset disruption from US tariff plans. The rate-setter also indicated that positive growth earlier this year was likely to be linked to firms bringing forward activity ahead of the potential tariffs, with growth likely to slow in the coming months.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Bank of England governor urges UK to rebuild EU trade ties as key summit looms
The governor of the Bank of England has said that the UK now needs to do everything it can to rebuild its long-term trade relationship with the EU, after a breakthrough agreement with the US to reduce some of Donald Trump's tariffs. Andrew Bailey said that, while he would not pass judgment on the UK's exit from the EU in early 2020, reversing the trade impact of Brexit would be 'beneficial'. The government is in talks with the EU – after moves by the prime minister, Keir Starmer, to 'reset' trade relations since Labour came to power last year – before a summit in London in 10 days' time where a new UK-EU partnership is expected to be unveiled. 'Having a more open economy to trade with the European Union … would be beneficial,' Bailey told the BBC, 'because there has been a fall-off in goods trade with the EU over recent years.' The EU remains the UK's largest trading partner, but in sectors such as food and drink exports have fallen by more than a third since Brexit. 'It is important we do everything we can to ensure that whatever decisions are taken on the Brexit front do not damage the long-term trade position,' said Bailey. 'So I hope that we can use this to start to rebuild that relationship.' Earlier this week, the UK agreed a long-desired trade deal with India. Starmer described the agreement, which took more than three years of negotiations under successive governments, as a 'landmark deal' that would cut tariffs and add £4.8bn a year to the UK economy by 2040. Bailey said the UK's deal-making was setting an important example to other countries. 'It demonstrates that trade deals are important,' he said. 'Trade deals can be done, and the trade is important … Honestly, it seems an unpromising landscape at times. But I hope that we can use these deals to rebuild the world trading system.' The UK-US deal would benefit trade, even though tariffs on most British exports to the US would remain higher than they were before last month, he said later at an economics conference in Reykjavík, Iceland. He aded: 'It's good news in a world where it will leave the effective tariff rate higher than it was before all of this started.' Speaking at a conference hosted by the Icelandic central bank, Bailey said Threadneedle Street needed to be 'nimble' in its response to developments in the global economy, especially as countries reacted to the increase in US import tariffs. He said the Bank had maintained a target for inflation of 2% in good times and bad and proved to the public that the aim could be achieved in all economic weathers. Bailey said: 'We need no reminder that the global economic environment is likely to continue to be challenging – and less predictable – than it was in the past. 'So we need to adapt and develop to ensure that our processes are nimble and robust, and that our monetary policy decisions are communicated effectively, while ensuring that we continue to act methodically in response to inflationary pressures.' On Thursday, the Bank cut interest rates by a quarter point to 4.25% to cushion the UK economy against the impact of rising global economic uncertainty. The narrative from the Bank's monetary policy committee, which accompanied the decision, indicated a reluctance to make further rate cuts without greater certainty that inflation would fall back to 2% within the next two years. Inflation stood at 2.6% in March and is predicted to rise later this year. Business groups and unions said they were dismayed that further rate cuts may not be imminent. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and the TUC said that the Bank's economists underplayed the downturn and the need for cheaper borrowing to boost growth. David Bharier, head of research at the BCC, said surveys showed small and medium-sized businesses' confidence had fallen in response to 'the twin developments of domestic tax rises and a global trade war'. He said: 'Many firms, desperate for financial respite, will be keen to see further rate cuts in the months ahead.' The TUC said households needed greater support from lower interest rates. Sign in to access your portfolio
North Wales Chronicle
3 days ago
- Business
- North Wales Chronicle
Bank of England rate-setter Alan Taylor ‘pretty concerned' by economic outlook
Alan Taylor, who was appointed to the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee last year, indicated he will seek to cut interest rates again soon and dismissed recent stronger-than-expected inflation figures. Official figures showed that Consumer Prices Index inflation jumped to 3.5% in April, up from 2.6% in March. The rise in inflation to its highest level since January 2024 comes amid a backdrop of steady reductions in interest rates – which had been kept elevated in a bid to curb high inflation – over the past year. Earlier this month, the Bank of England cut interest rates to 4.25%, their lowest level for around two years, from 4.5%. Mr Taylor, who was among two dissenting rate-setters voting for a sharper cut to 4%, indicated he still hopes for further reductions in interest rates. 'I'm not going to pre-emptively announce my vote, but I think I indicated in my dissent that I thought we needed to be on a lower (monetary) policy path,' he told the Financial Times. 'I'm seeing more risk piling up on the downside scenario because of global developments,' he said, highlighting that President Trump's tariffs were set to drag on global economic growth. On Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said trade tensions linked to tariffs would reduce growth in the UK economy next year. Mr Taylor said he believes the recent uptick in inflation is largely caused by one-off factors, adding that he remained 'pretty concerned' about the growth outlook for the economy. He added that recent developments in UK trade, such as the UK-EU deal secured earlier this month, were welcome, they would not wholly offset disruption from US tariff plans. The rate-setter also indicated that positive growth earlier this year was likely to be linked to firms bringing forward activity ahead of the potential tariffs, with growth likely to slow in the coming months.
