Oil price jumps to $118 a barrel after Trump comments; cost of filling up family car with diesel passes £100 – as it happened

Time to wrap up…Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, rose by as much as 5% to $118.43 a barrel after Donald Trump told allies to buy US jet fuel or “take it” from the strait of Hormuz.The US president wrote on his social media platform Truth Social:I have a suggestion for you: Number 1, buy from the U.S., we have plenty, and Number 2, build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT

US average fuel price passes $4 a gallon for first time in four years amid Iran war

Average US fuel prices have exceeded $4 a gallon for the first time in four years, piling pressure on drivers as Donald Trump’s war on Iran continues to boost oil markets.The nationwide average climbed to almost $4.02 on Tuesday, according to AAA data, capping an extraordinary rise from $2.98 just a month ago. The fuel price last reached this high in August 2022

Steel bosses warn ‘back door’ loophole in UK trade rules could lead to job cuts and closures

Steel bosses have warned ministers that a “back door” in new trade rules could hit British manufacturers and lead to job cuts and factory closures by allowing a vast array of foreign products to still enter the UK tax-free.The loophole means pre-made steel parts ranging from bridge sections, columns and door frames, all the way to smaller rods and tubes used in buildings, will escape recently announced import tariffs, the Guardian understands.Earlier in March, ministers said they would double tariffs on imported steel and cut the amount that can be bought from abroad in an attempt to protect Britain’s struggling steelmakers from a flood of cheap imports from China.But industry bosses say the measures overwhelmingly target imports of the metal straight from the furnace – protecting the likes of Tata and British Steel – but leave products that have already been drilled and cut into shape untouched.The rules allow foreign pre-made steel in via a “back door”, said Simon Boyd, the managing director of Reidsteel, a maker of structural building parts that employs about 130 people

Food price rises unlikely before summer, says boss of Sainsbury’s

Shoppers will not see food prices rise until at least the summer and Easter will be unaffected by conflict in the Middle East, the boss of Sainsbury’s has said, despite fears of an inflation spike.Simon Roberts said it was “too early” to say whether and when food price inflation related to higher commodity costs would hit supermarket shelves and that the UK’s second-largest supermarket had long-term agreements with suppliers to help protect shoppers.“We have a lot of the tools to make sure we’ll do everything possible to contain the impact on inflation,” he said. “Obviously we are watching and monitoring events closely.“We’re not looking at immediate consequences or near-term consequences that we don’t think we’ve got a plan to navigate

UK house prices rose sharply in March but Iran war expected to cause slowdown

UK house prices increased at the fastest rate in almost 18 months in March, although surging mortgage rates amid the Iran war are likely to lead to a market slowdown, according to Nationwide.The UK’s biggest building society said the price of a typical UK home increased by 0.9% month on month in March, the largest increase since December 2024.The increase, which compares with a 0.3% rise recorded in February and is ahead of economists’ expectations of 0

Car finance victims to get an average £830 payout but fewer loans eligible

Victims of the car finance scandal will be in line for payouts worth £830 on average, as the City regulator tightened the rules of its compensation scheme to cover fewer contracts.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) released the final details of its planned redress programme, saying it had narrowed the number of loan agreements eligible for payouts from 14m to 12.1m contracts.That tweak, which covers loans agreed between 2007 and 2024, is expected to result in a higher payout for each contract, up from £700 to £830, including interest.The scheme is intended to draw a line under the car finance scandal, in which drivers were overcharged for loans as a result of commission payments between lenders and car dealers