Rachel Reeves must break her fiscal rules. Better now than later | Phillip Inman

Critics of Rachel Reeves are enjoying another “told you so” moment. It was never realistic, they say, to formulate a budget plan with virtually no leeway to accommodate for unforeseen events.Less than £10bn of headroom on a budget of £1.2tn was asking for trouble. It is clear there are just too many events that could be put on a list of “known unknowns” for a UK chancellor to almost wilfully wish away their potential impact on the economy and the public finances

What are anti-dumping laws and why does Australia need them?

Trump’s sweeping new tariffs have left global markets in turmoil and Norfolk Islanders scratching their heads. Politicians, economists, and everyday people around the world have been scrambling to understand what it all means and what happens next.While officials in Canada, Europe and China talk tough, the response in Australia has been more muted.That tells us two things.First, that we don’t export a huge amount to the US, and there is a rare consensus that trying to retaliate would only hurt us more

Is the Silvertown tunnel a bridge to the future or a step backwards?

From high above the Thames, the distinctive portals of the new Silvertown tunnel are clearly visible: a black arch on the North Greenwich peninsula, a green conical building a mile across the water in Newham.On Monday, tens of thousands of cars and lorries will start passing between them, almost directly below the cable car built by Boris Johnson, as if on a mysterious ley line that induces London mayors to embark on unloved transport projects.The Silvertown tunnel, a 0.9-mile, £2.2bn project in what is already one of the most polluted parts of the capital, does not appear an obvious choice to be championed by the occupant of City Hall, Sadiq Khan – better known for expanding the ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) to improve air quality

Sobering stuff: UK alcohol industry reels from impact of Trump tariffs

To some extent, the US owes its very existence to the Welsh.Up to 18 of the 56 signatories of the 1776 Declaration of Independence claimed Welsh heritage, depending on which source you believe, including one delegate who was born in Llandaff.That is why Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day”, when he imposed “reciprocal” tariffs on nearly every country in the world, was such a sobering moment for the Welsh whisky maker Penderyn Distillery.In 2014, during a Nato summit in the UK, the distillery presented Barack Obama with a bottle of Penderyn Independence, celebrating America’s escape from colonial rule.Now that particular special relationship is hanging by a thread

‘In economic terms, Trump’s tariffs make no sense at all’

From world leaders, to the tiniest manufacturers thousands of miles from Washington, decision-makers across the global economy are racked with uncertainty as they scramble to come to terms with Donald Trump’s historic tariffs.Experts are all but unanimous that the impact on global growth of Wednesday’s extraordinary Rose Garden press conference will be negative – but just how bad remains highly uncertain.“In economic terms, it makes no sense at all,” said Jordi Gual, the former chair of CaixaBank, Spain’s largest domestic lender, who is now an economics professor at IESE business school in Barcelona. “It is hugely problematic, because we go back to a level we hadn’t seen since the 1930s.”Trump’s announcement that he would impose tariffs of 10% to almost 50% on the US’s largest trading partners – including a 34% additional border tax on Chinese imports and a 10% levy on the UK – was designed to encourage multinational companies to relocate their factories, jobs and supply chains to the US

China retaliates against Trump in trade war with 34% tariffs on US imports

Stock markets around the world plunged for a second day on Friday as China announced retaliatory tariffs of 34% on US imports, signalling a major escalation of a trade war ignited by Donald Trump and feeding fears of a global recession.“For all imported goods originating from the US, an additional tariff of 34% on top of the current applicable tariff rate will be imposed,” Beijing’s finance ministry said.China’s commerce ministry said that it would also impose more restrictions on the export of rare earths, which are used in hi-tech manufacturing such as batteries and electric vehicles. It added a further 16 US companies and organisations to its export control list, meaning that Chinese companies are restricted from doing business with them.China had previously promised “resolute countermeasures” against Trump’s tariffs, which slapped a 10% rate on all imports coming to the US, with extra levies for certain countries, including China