Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala had been expected to be confirmed as leader on MondayThe race to find a new leader of the World Trade Organization has been thrown into renewed uncertainty after the cancellation of a key appointment meeting following the US presidential election.The Geneva-based WTO, which acts as an international arbiter for trading disputes, said it had put off a meeting scheduled for Monday that had been called to appoint Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as its next director general. Continue reading...
The president-elect is unlikely to buy the argument that he should have been more radicalIn the end, for the Democrats it was a case of euphoria mingled with relief. Relief that they had not managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Relief that the president’s lies about electoral fraud failed to gain traction. Relief that Donald Trump’s days in the White House are now numbered.But really, it should not even have been close. There may have been worse presidents than the one Joe Biden has defeated but off hand it is hard to name one. A disastrous last year means Trump is on course to be the first occupant of the White House since the second world war to preside over a net loss of jobs. When Herbert Hoover did that during the Great Depression he won only six states in the 1932 election and secured less than 40% of the vote. Continue reading...
Thursday’s economic data will be lifted by ‘eat out to help out’ – but critics say it led to a Covid surge that will hit future growthRishi Sunak’s popular “eat out to help out” scheme will be remembered in this week’s publication of third-quarter GDP figures for the major boost it gave Britain’s pub and restaurant trade.In the August rush to grab a discount dinner it seemed like every table in every hospitality venue in the country was booked between Monday and Wednesday, and analysts believe that underpinned a rise in consumer confidence and with it GDP, the measure of national income, between July and September. Continue reading...
Trump may not have carried all before him, but in times of fear and inequality, his ideas still resonate – and not just in the USPlacards adorned with the slogans “America First” and “Make America Great Again” are destined for landfill now that the trap door of American politics has opened under Donald Trump’s feet. Some will put them aside for a possible return of “the Donald” in 2024 – should he avoid scrutiny over allegedly fraudulent tax returns, and should the Republican party back him again. Otherwise, millions of dollars of election paraphernalia are destined for the bin.Yet a widespread belief that a change of guard at the White House means the yearning behind the slogans will disappear is naive. Every developed country has its version of America First, not least the UK. After all, what is Brexit if not a demand to put Britain first?Rising prices and increasing automation make ordinary families panic about their ability to better themselves Continue reading...
Biden plans to push through aid stimulus amid the pandemic, undo Trump’s corporate tax cuts, and crack down on big techWhen Joe Biden enters the White House on 20 January, he will face arguably the biggest set of challenges a president has had to tackle since the end of the second world war. The coronavirus is raging through the US, millions of Americans are still losing their jobs each month, and the climate crisis – ignored by the Trump administration – is deepening.Biden has set out his economic and policy plans, but without control of the Senate he may struggle to realise them. Official GDP figures for the third quarter showed the size of the economy was still almost 4% below its previous peak, despite a 7.4% recovery from the spring lockdown.Ensuring the US achieves a 100% clean energy economy by 2035 and reaches net-zero emissions no later than 2050.Overhauling US infrastructure to ensure that buildings, water, transportation and energy infrastructure can withstand the impacts of climate change.Rejoining the Paris agreement on climate change and rallying world leaders to address the issue.Tackling polluters and others whose actions have disproportionately affected low-income communities and people of color.Raise the corporate tax rate to 28%, from 21%.Impose a minimum tax on all foreign earnings of US companies located overseas in an attempt to stop the use of foreign tax havens.Penalize corporations that ship jobs overseas.Raise the top individual income rate back to 39.6% and force those making more than $1m a year to pay the same rate on investment income that they do on their wages.Only increase taxes on those earning over $400,000 a year.Yeah, i don’t want to be 20cent. 62% is a very, very,bad idea. i don’t like it ! #abcforlife nov 18 #starzgettheapp pic.twitter.com/y9TsSs0o6Q Continue reading...
Spending watchdog claims ports and businesses are not ready for 1 January, with Northern Ireland a big concernBillions of pounds worth of trade with the European Union will face “significant disruption” on 1 January, regardless of whether a trade deal is agreed, Whitehall’s spending watchdog has concluded.The National Audit Office (NAO) said crucial IT systems have yet to be tested and transit areas for lorries are not ready as the government attempts to prepare new border controls for the end of the Brexit transition period. The planned controls, which had already been rated “high risk”, have been further hampered by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report released today.Related: Plant inspectors and rising prices: UK garden industry set for Brexit shock Continue reading...
The chancellor has announced that the government will extend the UK's furlough scheme until March as the second wave of Covid-19 infections and new lockdown threaten to push up unemployment. In a major climbdown, Rishi Sunak said the Treasury would continue to pay 80% of workers’ wages
by Richard Partington and Heather Stewart on (#59ZTC)
Latest U-turn follows growing pressure for more support to protect jobs and the economy as second wave hitsRishi Sunak has been forced into a U-turn over the government’s flagship job support scheme as he announced an extension of the furlough programme until March next year.In a major climbdown for the government, the chancellor said the Treasury would allow the scheme to run for a full year by continuing to pay 80% of temporarily laid-off workers’ wages until 31 March. Sunak also announced an expansion in funding for self-employed workers from November to January, in an announcement that indicated a difficult winter ahead as the government confirmed that economic support would run well into next year.Taken aback by ChX statement.
Investors think that the Democrat could be hamstrung by the Senate and unable to pass stimulus, meaning a better outlook for tech and health stocksShares in Asia Pacific have climbed to their highest point for nearly three years as Joe Biden edged closer to becoming the next president of the United States.As the Democrat challenger sought the remaining six electoral college votes he needs for victory, investors on the other side of the world were betting that he would make it to the magic figure of 270 and end uncertainty over the outcome of the election in the world’s biggest economy.Related: What we know so far about the 2020 US election Continue reading...
Latest figures heap pressure on Bank of England to inject more cash into the economyThe British economy is on course for a double-dip recession this winter, according to data showing growth slowing down in the UK’s dominant services sector last month.The latest IHS Markit/Cips monthly survey of the services sector, which accounts for three quarters of economic activity, showed that a recovery over the summer stalled in October, heaping further pressure on the Bank of England to boost its stimulus programme when officials meet this week. Continue reading...
Markets rally across Asia and Europe as analysts expect Democrats to triumphShare prices in the City registered their biggest daily gain in two months amid investor hopes that a Joe Biden victory in the US presidential election would result in a major new stimulus package.London’s leading stock market index, the FTSE 100, closed up by 131 points, or 2.33%, at 5786 as the gloomy mood of last week faded.Related: Markets plunge in uncertainty about a second term and a second wave Continue reading...
by Sky Neal, Lindsay Poulton and Jess Gormley on (#59V5W)
When the remote town of St Just, Cornwall, was locked down in March, the small community worried that its economy wouldn’t survive. But one town councillor, Daisy Gibbs, rallied an army of volunteers to form ‘the Daisy chain’, an informal support network to ensure every household in the district had support. Inspired by her imagination and resilience, filmmaker Sky Neal followed the Daisy Chain for seven months, as local businesses adapted and the community pulled together to realise a more sustainable future. However, as a second wave of restrictions threatens, the town has to dig deep to find the resilience they need to ensure their future. Can they re-invent their local economy to survive and thrive beyond Covid? Continue reading...
Filmmaker Sky Neal returns to her hometown in Cornwall to capture a community fighting to keep the local economy alive in the face of the Covid lockdownThe new Guardian documentary follows the innovative activities of a volunteer support network, the Daisy Chain. For seven months, filmmaker Sky Neal immersed herself in the community of St Just, the most westerly town in England. As food producers and business owners in the town struggle to survive the first lockdown, how will they find the resilience to pull together and face a second wave with winter approaching?What inspired you to make this film? Continue reading...
Exclusive: Liz Truss urged to sign off deals quickly to spare African states high tariffs once Brexit transition period endsThe Labour party has urged the UK trade secretary, Liz Truss, to end delays over rollover deals with Kenya and Ghana to prevent them being slapped with high tariffs when the UK leaves the EU on 1 January.Negotiations with Kenya and Ghana have yet to be signed off with only nine weeks to go before the UK’s transition deal with the EU comes to an end, when import charges would be imposed on goods worth £2.6bn from the African countries. Continue reading...
Fears about high government borrowing raising inflation and interest rates are overstatedBoth of the big jobs in UK economic management changed hands earlier this year. Within weeks of Rishi Sunak taking over from Sajid Javid at the Treasury, Andrew Bailey replaced Mark Carney at the Bank of England.Sunak has barely been out of the news in the months since, and he will remain centre stage after the decision to put England back into lockdown. In the past few weeks alone, the chancellor has announced and recalibrated the job support scheme. Now he has been forced to reinstate the furlough, with the Treasury back to paying 80% of the wages of those unable to work.Related: Increase public spending to tackle Covid second wave, IMF tells UK Continue reading...
The president has questioned American democracy for four years, creating challenges abroadThe last time a Republican won the popular vote for president, the winning candidate declared that the spread of democracy was central to American security.“It is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world,” said George W Bush in his second inaugural address in 2005.The challenges facing US democracy promotion have clearly grown through the Trump years Continue reading...
Polls and pundits alike are wavering at the irresponsibility of further burdening an economy struggling under CovidDenials predictably emerged from 10 Downing Street last week over the suggestion in the Observer that Boris Johnson was waiting for the result of the US election before possibly opting for a no-deal Brexit.However I, for one, place a lot more credence on the judgment and reliability of Sir Ivan Rogers, our former ambassador to the European Union, than I do on anything coming from a Downing Street where “Eyetest” Cummings continues to rule the roost.I am all in favour of an extension, preferably leading to an entire rethink of the wisdom of Brexit Continue reading...
Carolyn Fairbairn of CBI says her ‘really big disappointment’ was the lack of help for British services in the potential dealA business-led campaign to widen a “thin” Brexit deal struck between Britain and the European Union will begin immediately in the new year, it has emerged, amid concerns about the long-term effects on the UK’s economy.In an interview with the Observer, Carolyn Fairbairn, the outgoing director general of the CBI, said that securing a basic deal with the EU should be seen as a “starting point” for a deeper relationship. She warned of a serious effect on Britain’s large services sector, including financial and legal services, as well as engineering.Related: With the Brexit walkout and sulk over, is the UK on the home straight for a deal? Continue reading...
With a second wave of Covid-19 well under way, workers need the lifeline of the job retention scheme more than everThe daunting scale of the second coronavirus wave becomes clearer by the day. Figures published on Friday by the Office for National Statistics showed more than 50,000 new infections a day in the week to 23 October, up from 35,000 a day a week earlier. The numbers are surging in almost every part of the country and in every age group, with secondary school children showing a particularly steep growth curve. Figures for the week now ending seem certain to be higher still. As a result, tougher restrictions are being introduced across many areas of Britain, with more to come. Pressure for a fuller lockdown, like the ones announced in many of our neighbouring European countries this week, is growing.This is therefore a very strange time for the UK government’s job retention scheme, better known as the furlough programme, to be closing down. Yet Saturday is the final day of the scheme that the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, introduced at the start of the March lockdown. Continue reading...
Wall Street also tumbles as global markets fear economic fallout from new Covid-19 restrictionsStock markets in Europe have had their worst week since June after investors shrugged off record-breaking growth for the eurozone and focused on the likely impact of fresh lockdown restrictions.Amid growing fears that a second wave of Covid-19 would end the west’s recovery and even threaten a double-dip recession, news of a near 14% quarterly jump in the GDP of the single currency zone did nothing to lift the mood.Related: Investors should prepare for worst over US presidential electionRelated: Eurozone posts fastest growth on record; FTSE 100 suffers worst week since June – business live Continue reading...
US GDP figures mask several difficulties – and the outlook for the eurozone is bleakNever in its history has the United States seen anything like it. The world’s biggest economy grew at an annualised rate of just over 33% in the three months ending in September. The eurozone will break all records when it reports GDP figures tomorrow, as will the UK when the Office for National Statistics publishes its third-quarter data next month.In normal times, booming economies would mean soaring share prices, with the bullish mood tempered perhaps by a bit of concern that central banks might put an end to the party by raising interest rates. Continue reading...