Iranian foreign minister claims country is close to European oil deal despite US sanctions threat September 30, 2018 The Iranian foreign minister claimed last night that Tehran was drawing close to an agreement which would allow the country to sell oil to European nations, in spite of threats by the United States that it would impose sanctions on countries that do business with Iran. Iran is planning to avoid US sanctions on its [...]
WTO urges US and China to show restraint as it cuts trade growth forecasts September 27, 2018 The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has cut its growth forecasts as it urged America and China to show restraint over their escalating trade war. Today the WTO cut its expectations for 2018 growth in merchandise trade volume to 3.9 per cent, from the 4.4 per cent estimated in April this year as it warned the [...]
Big brains, fake news and bad deals: Five things Trump said last night to spark worldwide outrage September 27, 2018 Bloomberg has called it “the end of presidential press conferences”. In a bizarre and colourful 83-minute news conference last night, Donald Trump, as is his wont, gave reporters much to chew on. Sexual assault allegations against his Supreme Court nomination and an escalating trade war with China were among the issues the President confronted. [...]
Woo the EU? Theresa May should take tips from the dating game September 26, 2018 Winning votes in an election is a lot like dating. I was explaining the principles of campaigning during a Westminster Foundation seminar in Ghana when one of the young candidates hit on this perfect analogy for electoral success. When you start dating someone, you are keen to establish common interests. “You like Love Island? [...]
Trump hits out at Iran’s ‘bloody agenda’ in return to US patriotism September 25, 2018 US President Donald Trump upped his criticism of Iran in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly this afternoon, in which he accused its leadership of running a "corrupt dictatorship" with a "bloody agenda". He told the body that the Iranian leadership is sowing "chaos, death and destruction", adding that "they do not respect [...]
Theresa May says she trusts President Donald Trump despite Iran sanctions September 24, 2018 Prime Minister Theresa May has stood by the UK's special relationship with the US despite Donald Trump's decision to take his country out of the Iran nuclear deal, insisting she continues to have trust in the President. "Of course I listen to what the American president tells me," May replied when asked if she trusts Trump [...]
DEBATE: Could Donald Trump’s trade war be a positive force in reining in Chinese dominance? September 24, 2018 Could Donald Trump’s trade war be a positive force in reining in Chinese dominance? Alastair Benn, news editor of Reaction, says YES. Two centuries ago, the world experienced something historians call “the Great Divergence”. Pre-nineteenth century, America, Europe, China, and India formed an equilibrium at the heart of the global economy, taking up roughly [...]
Price wars versus trade wars: Markets work just fine when we leave them alone September 21, 2018 David Lewis is ramping up a food fight of epic proportions. The chief executive of Tesco has launched a spin-off chain of discount supermarkets called Jack’s (named after Tesco’s founder Jack Cohen). The aim is to become more competitive with German chains Aldi and Lidl, which have been saturating the market with cheaper products since [...]
Trump slams Opec, urging oil cartel to ‘get prices down now’ September 20, 2018 Donald Trump has slammed the Opec and urged the cartel to “get prices down”, citing the protection the US provides for countries in the Middle East. Trump has urged Saudi Arabia to increase oil production in recent months to combat higher oil prices brought about by his own sanctions on Iran. He has also previously [...]
US-China trade war: Alibaba founder Jack Ma breaks 1m US jobs pledge September 20, 2018 Alibaba boss Jack Ma no longer believes his retail giant can create 1m US jobs, blaming America’s ongoing trade war with China. "The promise was made on the premise of friendly US-China partnership and rational trade relations," Ma said. "That premise no longer exists today, so our promise cannot be fulfilled,” he told Chinese news [...]
