Latest news with #UK-produced
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Nigel Farage's pitch for Welsh elections: bring back coalmining
Nigel Farage has demanded the reopening of domestic coalmines to provide fuel for new blast furnaces, arguing that Welsh people would happily return to mining if the pay was sufficiently high. Speaking at an event in Port Talbot, the south Wales town traditionally associated with the steel industry, the Reform UK leader said it was in the 'national interest' to have a guaranteed supply of steel, as well as UK-produced fuel for the furnaces, a close echo of Donald Trump's repeated pledges to return heavy industry to the US. Pressed on whether this was a realistic plan, particularly given that even if Wales did elect a Reform-run Senedd next May it could be blocked by Westminster, Farage conceded that the idea was most likely only realistic if done in conjunction with the national government. 'Our belief is that for what uses coal still has, we should produce our own coal,' he told the event, intended to boost Reform's prominence in Wales in the run-up to next year's elections. 'I'm not saying, let's open up all the pits. What I am saying is there is coal, specific types of coal for certain uses, that we still need in this country, and we certainly will need for the blast furnaces here, that we should produce ourselves rather than importing. 'We are going to be using more steel over the next few years than we probably ever used, as we increase military spending and as we attempt a housebuilding programme … We are going to need a lot of steel. Our belief is we should be producing our own steel.' Asked during a media Q&A how long it would take to reopen defunct blast furnaces such as the Tata steel plant in Port Talbot which shut last year, and if this was even possible, Farage accepted it would be difficult, needing 'a change of mindset'. He said: 'Nothing's impossible, but it might be difficult. It might be easier to build a new one.' Quizzed on what evidence he had that young Welsh people would want to go down coalmines, Farage replied: 'If you offer people well-paying jobs, you'd be surprised. Many will take them, even though you have to accept that mining is dangerous.' Pressed then on whether even a Reform-run Welsh government could not achieve this alone, Farage accepted this was probably the case: 'It's difficult to know just how much leverage the Welsh government can have over these things. It probably needs to work in conjunction with a national government. It needs a complete change of philosophy. It needs a scrapping of net zero.' A YouGov poll last month of voting intentions in Wales found Plaid Cymru leading with 30%, but Reform on 25%, ahead of Labour and the Conservatives. In his speech, Farage said Reform 'hit a speed bump last week' with the sudden resignation of Zia Yusuf as the party's chair, although Yusuf did subsequently say he would return to carry on leading efforts to find costs to cut in Reform-run councils. Farage denied that he repeatedly falls out with colleagues, saying some people had worked with him for 25 years, and that he was still friends with former employees from his City of London metals trading job in the 1990s. But he added: 'I am someone that maintains long-term friendships, and I'll do that, but if ever anybody talks behind my back, or if anybody betrays that trust, then I'll never speak to them again. Quite simple, and they should expect the same level of trust back from me.'
Int'l Business Times
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- Int'l Business Times
What Is In The New US-UK Trade Deal?
The "breakthrough" US-UK trade deal announced Thursday by President Donald Trump is the first agreement to be unveiled since he slapped steep tariffs on allies and adversaries alike on April 2. Here is what we know about the new trade deal for goods: The 10 percent "baseline" tariff imposed on most US trading partners in early April remains in effect for most goods, with the largest reductions in trade barriers coming on items recently subjected to new sector-specific tariffs of 25 percent. The new deal includes "billions of dollars of increased market access for American exports," Trump said during the Oval Office announcement, which was attended by Peter Mandelson, the British ambassador to the United States. The agreement will bring in an additional $6 billion to the Treasury Department's coffers from new tariff revenue, the White House said in a statement. The deal is sure to be closely scrutinized ahead of the Trump administration's self-imposed July deadline for talks, with some nations facing a far higher rate of tariffs if no deal is struck. "This was the lowest hanging fruit available to the administration," Josh Lipsky, chair of international economics at the Atlantic Council, told AFP. "It sends the message that negotiations are going to be complicated going forward," he added. "Because the UK situation is unique in many ways and will be hard to replicate for other countries." The British automotive industry is a clear winner. The sector, which employs a quarter of a million people in the United Kingdom, was facing 27.5-percent tariffs before this announcement, according to a statement from Prime Minister Keir Starmer's office. Under the deal announced Thursday, car export tariffs will be slashed to 10 percent on the first 100,000 cars shipped from Britain to the United States. This is "almost the total" the UK exported to the United States last year, the British prime minister's office said. Any UK-produced cars imported to the United States above the 100,000 figure will face a 25 percent tariff instead, the White House said. Another key development in the deal is the agreement from the United States to eliminate its recently-imposed levies of 25 percent on UK-made steel and aluminum, according to the British government. The new agreement "furthers shared national security interests, creating a new union for steel and aluminum," the US Commerce Department said, without confirming the zero percent tariff rate. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the elimination of all steel and aluminum tariffs. Trump said the new agreement would create a new $5 billion "opportunity" for US farmers, ranchers and producers, including $700 million in ethanol exports, and $250 million in other agricultural exports, including beef. Agricultural exports from the United States have long been a key sticking point in trade negotiations, with British farmers -- and consumers -- voicing concerns about chlorine-washed chicken, and hormone treated beef from the United States. The two countries have agreed to "new reciprocal market access for beef -- with UK farmers given a tariff free quote for 13,000 metric tonnes," according to the British prime minister's office. The agreement will "exponentially increase our beef exports," US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told reporters. Despite the new and expanded US access to British markets, "there will be no weakening of UK food standards," Downing Street said. Trump's threats to impose pharmaceutical tariffs have not been covered by this arrangement, other than a commitment from the White House to create "a secure supply chain for pharmaceutical products." "I think that it tells people that in terms of negotiation, what's on the table is what is actually implemented, not what's being threatened," said Lipsky from the Atlantic Council. Another key area not covered by the agreement is digital services, with the White House keen to tackle a recent digital services tax imposed by Britain on US tech giants like Google and Meta. "Instead the two nations have agreed to work on a digital trade deal that will strip back paperwork for British firms trying to export to the US -- opening the UK up to a huge market that will put rocket boosters on the UK economy," Downing Street said.
France 24
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- France 24
What is in the new US-UK trade deal?
Here is what we know about the new trade deal for goods: 'Increased market access' The 10 percent "baseline" tariff imposed on most US trading partners in early April remains in effect for most goods, with the largest reductions in trade barriers coming on items recently subjected to new sector-specific tariffs of 25 percent. The new deal includes "billions of dollars of increased market access for American exports," Trump said during the Oval Office announcement, which was attended by Peter Mandelson, the British ambassador to the United States. The agreement will bring in an additional $6 billion to the Treasury Department's coffers from new tariff revenue, the White House said in a statement. The deal is sure to be closely scrutinized ahead of the Trump administration's self-imposed July deadline for talks, with some nations facing a far higher rate of tariffs if no deal is struck. "This was the lowest hanging fruit available to the administration," Josh Lipsky, chair of international economics at the Atlantic Council, told AFP. "It sends the message that negotiations are going to be complicated going forward," he added. "Because the UK situation is unique in many ways and will be hard to replicate for other countries." Boost for British auto sector The British automotive industry is a clear winner. The sector, which employs a quarter of a million people in the United Kingdom, was facing 27.5-percent tariffs before this announcement, according to a statement from Prime Minister Keir Starmer's office. Under the deal announced Thursday, car export tariffs will be slashed to 10 percent on the first 100,000 cars shipped from Britain to the United States. This is "almost the total" the UK exported to the United States last year, the British prime minister's office said. Any UK-produced cars imported to the United States above the 100,000 figure will face a 25 percent tariff instead, the White House said. Steel and aluminum Another key development in the deal is the agreement from the United States to eliminate its recently-imposed levies of 25 percent on UK-made steel and aluminum, according to the British government. The new agreement "furthers shared national security interests, creating a new union for steel and aluminum," the US Commerce Department said, without confirming the zero percent tariff rate. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the elimination of all steel and aluminum tariffs. Agriculture Trump said the new agreement would create a new $5 billion "opportunity" for US farmers, ranchers and producers, including $700 million in ethanol exports, and $250 million in other agricultural exports, including beef. Agricultural exports from the United States have long been a key sticking point in trade negotiations, with British farmers -- and consumers -- voicing concerns about chlorine-washed chicken, and hormone treated beef from the United States. The two countries have agreed to "new reciprocal market access for beef -- with UK farmers given a tariff free quote for 13,000 metric tonnes," according to the British prime minister's office. The agreement will "exponentially increase our beef exports," US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told reporters. Despite the new and expanded US access to British markets, "there will be no weakening of UK food standards," Downing Street said. What is excluded? Trump's threats to impose pharmaceutical tariffs have not been covered by this arrangement, other than a commitment from the White House to create "a secure supply chain for pharmaceutical products." "I think that it tells people that in terms of negotiation, what's on the table is what is actually implemented, not what's being threatened," said Lipsky from the Atlantic Council. Another key area not covered by the agreement is digital services, with the White House keen to tackle a recent digital services tax imposed by Britain on US tech giants like Google and Meta. "Instead the two nations have agreed to work on a digital trade deal that will strip back paperwork for British firms trying to export to the US -- opening the UK up to a huge market that will put rocket boosters on the UK economy," Downing Street said.
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
UK growth could be 'postponed' for two years, report warns
UK economic growth could be "postponed" for two years amid a toxic cocktail of headwinds for confidence, according to a respected forecast which says further interest rate cuts may help lift the mood. EY ITEM Club, which uses the Treasury's economic modelling, downgraded expectations for output in both 2025 and 2026 in its latest report. It warns of a direct hit from Donald Trump's trade war and from persistent high inflation in the UK economy. But the forecast says the biggest impact would come from weaker sentiment among both households and businesses, given the surge in uncertainty and hits to global growth caused by the imposition of tariffs. Money latest: A "baseline" 10% tariff on imports from most countries around the world is in place while UK-produced steel, aluminium and cars are subject to duties of 25%. Around 16% of all goods shipped abroad head for the United States typically but the study said that weaker demand for exports would likely hit that number. It forecast UK growth of 0.8% this year - down from the 1% it expected three months ago - and a figure of 0.9% for 2026. That last figure represented a downgrade of 0.6 percentage points. These are not the numbers the Treasury will want to see, coming in even lower than the International Monetary Fund's downgrades last week, as it leads work on the government's stated priority of securing economic growth. It has been accused of an own goal through the chancellor's tax increases on business, which came into effect at the beginning of this month. At the same time, households are grappling a surge in bills, including those for energy, water and council tax, which are threatening to depress spending power further. Data on Friday showed a renewed slump in consumer confidence and sharp increases in the number of firms in "critical" financial distress and going to the wall. EY said the weaker global economic backdrop and spiralling levels of uncertainty would weigh on both families and businesses. It warned the consumer mood remained "cautious" amid the continuing pressures on household budgets, further limiting demand for major purchases. Anna Anthony, regional managing partner for EY UK & Ireland, said: "There had been signs that the economy was exceeding expectations in the opening months of 2025, but a combination of global trade disruption, uncertainty, and persistent inflation look likely to postpone the UK's return to more moderate levels of growth. "Businesses thrive on certainty, so it's unsurprising that an unpredictable global market is translating into lower levels of business investment over the short term. "While conditions remain challenging, there are still some grounds for optimism. "The services-led UK economy is projected to see continued growth this year and gradual interest rate cuts should slowly bolster business and household spending. "Over time, the unpredictable global landscape may offer opportunities for the UK to position itself as a stable, attractive destination for investment."
Sky News
28-04-2025
- Business
- Sky News
UK growth could be 'postponed' for two years, report warns
UK economic growth could be "postponed" for two years amid a toxic cocktail of headwinds for confidence, according to a respected forecast which says further interest rate cuts may help lift the mood. EY ITEM Club, which uses the Treasury's economic modelling, downgraded expectations for output in both 2025 and 2026 in its latest report. It warns of a direct hit from Donald Trump 's trade war and from persistent high inflation in the UK economy. But the forecast says the biggest impact would come from weaker sentiment among both households and businesses, given the surge in uncertainty and hits to global growth caused by the imposition of tariffs. A "baseline" 10% tariff on imports from most countries around the world is in place while UK-produced steel, aluminium and cars are subject to duties of 25%. Around 16% of all goods shipped abroad head for the United States typically but the study said that weaker demand for exports would likely hit that number. It forecast UK growth of 0.8% this year - down from the 1% it expected three months ago - and a figure of 0.9% for 2026. That last figure represented a downgrade of 0.6 percentage points. These are not the numbers the Treasury will want to see, coming in even lower than the International Monetary Fund's downgrades last week, as it leads work on the government's stated priority of securing economic growth. 1:10 It has been accused of an own goal through the chancellor's tax increases on business, which came into effect at the beginning of this month. At the same time, households are grappling a surge in bills, including those for energy, water and council tax, which are threatening to depress spending power further. Data on Friday showed a renewed slump in consumer confidence and sharp increases in the number of firms in "critical" financial distress and going to the wall. 19:33 EY said the weaker global economic backdrop and spiralling levels of uncertainty would weigh on both families and businesses. It warned the consumer mood remained "cautious" amid the continuing pressures on household budgets, further limiting demand for major purchases. Anna Anthony, regional managing partner for EY UK & Ireland, said: "There had been signs that the economy was exceeding expectations in the opening months of 2025, but a combination of global trade disruption, uncertainty, and persistent inflation look likely to postpone the UK's return to more moderate levels of growth. "Businesses thrive on certainty, so it's unsurprising that an unpredictable global market is translating into lower levels of business investment over the short term. "While conditions remain challenging, there are still some grounds for optimism. "The services-led UK economy is projected to see continued growth this year and gradual interest rate cuts should slowly bolster business and household spending.
