Fund’s report advises advanced economies against greater controls on migrationThe International Monetary Fund has said advanced economies such as Britain, the US and Japan risk being overwhelmed by their ageing populations, and calls on them to throw open their borders to more migrant workers in response.Within the next few decades, working-age adults will need to support double the number of elderly people than they do now, putting immense pressure on welfare systems and wiping out as much as 3% of potential economic output by 2050, the IMF said in its latest World Economic Outlook report.What is the IMF? Continue reading...

Rouble suffers biggest daily fall for over three years and shares in Oleg Deripaska’s firms slumpThe Trump administration’s new sanctions on Russian oligarchs and top government officials began to bite on Monday as the rouble suffered its biggest daily fall in more than three years, the main Russian stock index slumped and investors dumped shares in businesses controlled by Oleg Deripaska.Russia’s currency briefly dipped more than 4% before recovering slightly to trade at 60.42 to the dollar on Monday evening, down 3.8%, its biggest daily percentage fall since January 2015.Related: Trump administration hits 24 Russians with sanctions over 'malign activity' Continue reading...

Investors hope for talks to resolve trade dispute, while new figures on UK housing show better than expected performance in March3.06pm BSTStock markets are having a nervy day, as investors try and come to terms with the current state of the trade dispute between the US and China.A seemingly conciliatory tweet from President Trump over the weekend gave some grounds for optimism that the tit-for-tat tariffs may not turn into a full blown trade war. But today Trump was back on the attack again, calling the current trade practices “stupid.”3.05pm BSTThe International Monetary Fund has warned of a demographic timebomb for developed economies such as Britain, the USA and Japan that will require a radical rethink for immigration policies in response.Identifying a mounting threat to economic growth and the welfare systems of the world’s most advanced countries, the fund said increasing numbers of baby boomers reaching retirement could potentially “overwhelm” these countries.

Business outlook seen as promising despite concerns over rising interest rates and tougher tech regulationEuropean flotations have made a strong start to the year despite the current market uncertainty brought on by a possible trade war between the US and China, rising interest rates and the prospect of tougher regulation on tech firms.Across Europe, the first quarter of the year recorded 67 initial public offerings (IPOs) raising a total of €12.5bn (£10.8bn), up from 54 and €4.6bn in the same period in 2017, according to PWC’s latest survey of flotations. Continue reading...

After the EU transition deal UK firms now rank weak domestic demand as a more pressing problem, says DeloitteBrexit has fallen into second place as the most significant risk facing company bosses for the first time since the EU referendum, as weak domestic growth saps demand for their goods and services.According to a Deloitte survey of chief financial officers (CFOs) at some of the UK’s biggest businesses, companies are now less pessimistic about Brexit after ministers agreed the terms of a transition period with Brussels to smooth Britain’s exit from the EU.

The single market benefits manufacturers far more than providers of services. Guess which Britain excels inAt the time it was big, big news. Three days before the general election, official figures showed that Britain’s trade had taken a marked turn for the worse. Government claims that the economy was healthy took a knock.That was June 1970, a time when the size of Britain’s trade gap was front page stuff. Headlines screamed about the UK being back in the red. The TV news bulletins were full of it. Harold Wilson is supposed to have blamed it – along with England’s defeat by West Germany in the World Cup – for his unexpected defeat at the hands of Ted Heath the following Thursday. All this for a trade deficit of just £31m, distorted by the arrival in Britain of a couple of Boeing’s new jumbo jets.Productivity is an economic measure of the efficiency of a workforce. It typically measures the level of output per hour of work, or per worker. Continue reading...

A lesson for Brexit: the postwar Labour government was elected, re-elected and humiliated in the space of six years. Each time, the people ‘spoke’On 5 July 1945, the British people “spoke”. Churchill had been a great war leader, but memories of the unemployment and penury of the interwar years were strong. Labour was elected by a resounding majority. On 23 February 1950, the Attlee government went to the country, and, again, the people “spoke”. The government was re-elected.Although that immediate postwar Attlee government has been almost sanctified by modern historians, things were rough for it most of the time. The largely Conservative press attacked many of the social reforms that were subsequently accepted by the Tory party.How long will it be before the government – and the Labour party – realise that our EU partners mean what they say? Continue reading...

World leaders urged to act as anger over inequality reaches a ‘tipping point’The world’s richest 1% are on course to control as much as two-thirds of the world’s wealth by 2030, according to a shocking analysis that has lead to a cross-party call for action.World leaders are being warned that the continued accumulation of wealth at the top will fuel growing distrust and anger over the coming decade unless action is taken to restore the balance. Continue reading...

Dow closes down 572 points as Beijing says it will fight back against new Trump proposalsThe war of words between the Trump administration and China over trade has escalated after Beijing threatened to fight back “at any cost” against new US proposals for an additional $100bn (£71bn) in tariffs.Chinese officials said on Friday they would “definitely fight back firmly” should the US persist in using “protectionism”, in a warning issued hours after President Trump unexpectedly suggested imposing extra trade tariffs on goods shipped from China to the US – on top of the $50bn worth of tariffs announced last month.Related: US stock markets sink on China trade war fearsChina, which is a great economic power, is considered a Developing Nation within the World Trade Organization. They therefore get tremendous perks and advantages, especially over the U.S. Does anybody think this is fair. We were badly represented. The WTO is unfair to U.S. Continue reading...

The major indexes as well as tech stocks tumbled despite Trump officials downplaying any likelihood new tariffs would be enactedInvestors fled US stocks on Friday after Donald Trump threatened more tariffs against Chinese goods, China vowed to battle “to the end” and US employment data missed analysts’ expectations.Related: China threatens 'Trump country' with retaliatory tariffs ahead of midterms Continue reading...

Following a shocking rise in violence in London in which four of his constituents died, the Tottenham MP is calling for politicians to admit the ‘war on drugs’ has failed – and that black lives matterDavid Lammy is one of those politicians whose public profile has never correlated with his position in his party, or converted into frontbench power, and this sort of maverick celebrity operator tends to attract suspicion. Elected to represent Tottenham 18 years ago, the 46-year-old has at various key moments – the Grenfell fire, the London riots – distinguished himself in the public’s affection by seizing individual ownership of the agenda. To some, particularly in Westminster, this highly personalised brand of political identity is opportunistic self-promotion, artfully disguised as heroism.To me, his politics look sincere and principled, I’ve just never been entirely sure what they are. He used to joke: “I’m not Blair, I’m not Brown, I’m just black.” And he has successfully eluded all association with any ideological faction with such dexterity that he can sometimes look a bit slippery, as if his public persona is contingent on whatever strategy he has devised to please his audience.Related: Teenage girl shot dead in Tottenham, north LondonRelated: London teenager fatally stabbed named as Israel Ogunsola Continue reading...

As economists scramble to find answers, game theory rather than history may be the best guideThe trade confrontation between the United States and China is heating up. After firing an opening salvo of steep tariffs on steel and aluminium, the US administration has released a plan for a 25% tariff on 1,333 Chinese imports – worth about $50bn (£35bn) last year – to punish China for what it views as decades of intellectual property theft. China has fired back with a plan to slap 25% levies on a range of US goods, also worth about $50bn. In response to what he labels “unfair retaliation,” President Donald Trump is now said to be considering yet another set of tariffs, covering another $100bn worth of imports from China. Economists and market analysts are scrambling to figure out what will come next.One might be tempted to rely on historical experience. But, given today’s economic, political and social conditions, history is likely to be a poor guide. More useful insights come from game theory, which can help us to determine whether this exchange of tariffs will ultimately amount to strategic posturing that leads to a more “cooperative game” (freer and fairer trade), or develop into a wider “non-cooperative game” (an outright trade war). The answer will have significant consequences for the economic and policy outlook, and markets prospects. Continue reading...

The US president has raised the stakes again with fresh tariff threats. But trade with China is not the same thing as a buying real estateTrade wars do not start by accident. If the US and China contrive to launch a new era of tit-for-tat protectionism to match that last seen in the 1930s it will be because of political decisions taken in Washington and Beijing by those with a full understanding of the consequences of their action. Comparisons with the drift to war in the summer of 1914 are wide of the mark.Despite announcing plans for 25% tariffs on a small range of US imports this week, China has made clear that it wants to avoid a trade war. It will be happy to disarm if Donald Trump removes his threatened action against $50bn of Chinese goods. But Mr Trump is now threatening to escalate the battle with another $100bn of tariffs. The financial markets have been by turns spooked, then calmed, then alarmed again. Continue reading...

Data for final six months of 2017 show strongest economic growth, but worker efficiency languishedThe productivity of British workers in the second half of 2017 rose at the fastest rate since before the financial crisis, handing a rare boost to the government.Labour productivity, or economic output per hour of work, rose by 0.7% in the three months to December, marking the second consecutive quarter for positive growth, the Office for National Statistics said. Together, the two periods showed the strongest growth rate seen since the second half of 2005.

US president instructs trade agency to mull options as onlookers fear tit-for-tat will become full-blown trade war

Weather partly blamed for weakest month since the Brexit voteThe UK services sector has had its weakest month since the Brexit vote, after arctic weather brought businesses to a standstill.The latest snapshot of the economy from IHS Markit and the Chartered Institute for Purchasing and Supply found that services – which account for almost 80% of national output – registered virtually no growth in March. Continue reading...

Economic uncertainty and falling demand for diesel extend run of sliding sales to 12 monthsSales of new cars in the UK plunged in March as economic uncertainty weighed on demand and consumers turned their backs on diesel, extending the run of falling sales to 12 months.A total of 474,069 new cars were driven off the forecourts of car showrooms last month, down 15.7% compared with March 2017 and the sharpest monthly fall since April last year. Continue reading...

Trade barriers would not only damage both countries but would also disrupt global supply chains, raising prices for consumers worldwideThe tit-for-tat exchange of tariffs between the United States and China gives the impression the world’s two biggest economies are headed down the road towards a trade war, which would have hugely damaging economic consequences. But this could be averted if they continue quiet backroom discussions to open up their markets, particularly China’s.Related: Trump plays down US-China trade war concerns: ‘When you’re $500bn down you can’t lose’Related: Cold weather slows UK economy, as car sales slide again – business liveRelated: US and China playing a gigantic game of chicken | Larry Elliott Continue reading...

Rising tensions stoke fears of full-blown trade war but both sides leave room for manoeuvreAfter firing the opening shots of a trade war, China and the US have entered what is likely to be a protracted standoff as they jockey to win concessions from each other and avoid hurting their respective economies.Eleven hours after the White House announced a list of 1,333 Chinese imports to be subject to punitive tariffs of 25%, China responded in kind with a list of about 106 American products, including key US exports to China, such as soya beans, cars and aircraft. Both sides are targeting about $50bn (£36bn) in imports from each other.Related: Trump plays down US-China trade war concerns: ‘When you’re $500bn down you can’t lose’Related: Made in China policy at centre of tariff war with US Continue reading...

After decades of globalisation, our political system has become obsolete – and spasms of resurgent nationalism are a sign of its irreversible decline. By Rana DasguptaWhat is happening to national politics? Every day in the US, events further exceed the imaginations of absurdist novelists and comedians; politics in the UK still shows few signs of recovery after the “national nervous breakdown” of Brexit. France “narrowly escaped a heart attack” in last year’s elections, but the country’s leading daily feels this has done little to alter the “accelerated decomposition” of the political system. In neighbouring Spain, El País goes so far as to say that “the rule of law, the democratic system and even the market economy are in doubt”; in Italy, “the collapse of the establishment” in the March elections has even brought talk of a “barbarian arrival”, as if Rome were falling once again. In Germany, meanwhile, neo-fascists are preparing to take up their role as official opposition, introducing anxious volatility into the bastion of European stability.But the convulsions in national politics are not confined to the west. Exhaustion, hopelessness, the dwindling effectiveness of old ways: these are the themes of politics all across the world. This is why energetic authoritarian “solutions” are currently so popular: distraction by war (Russia, Turkey); ethno-religious “purification” (India, Hungary, Myanmar); the magnification of presidential powers and the corresponding abandonment of civil rights and the rule of law (China, Rwanda, Venezuela, Thailand, the Philippines and many more).Related: Globalisation: the rise and fall of an idea that swept the world Continue reading...

Trade minister rejects suggestion its only temporary as Australia braces for fallout from China’s tit-for-tat import taxes on USThe trade minister, Steve Ciobo, has claimed Australia has a permanent exemption from US steel tariffs because of its trade deficit.Ciobo has rejected claims that Australia’s exemption to the steel tariff is temporary, despite the fact that, in March, the White House said Australia was among a group of countries that would have an exemption until 1 May – after which the deal will be renegotiated or quotas will apply.Related: Trump plays down US-China trade war concerns: ‘When you’re $500bn down you can’t lose’ Continue reading...

After China proposed tit-for-tat import taxes and stock markets fell, there are fears Trump’s aggressive tariffs could cause a slowdown

Trade war intensifies as Beijing targets $12bn soybean imports produced in Trump heartlandChina has raised the stakes in the escalating trade showdown with the US, unveiling tariffs on a targeted list of American imports in response to levies on more than 1,300 Chinese goods put forward by Donald Trump.Sending a message to Washington that economic threats made by the Trump White House would be matched with equal force, Beijing said it would impose additional tariffs of 25% on 106 American products from 14 categories; including soybeans, cars and chemical products.Related: Vaccines and golf carts: the Chinese products targeted by TrumpRelated: Trump is on path to full-scale trade war: first China, then Europe Continue reading...

If Trump withdraws his threatened tariffs, the Chinese have said they will do the sameWhen Donald Trump tweeted that “trade wars are good and easy to win” most commentators thought the US president was merely sabre-rattling. The prospect of a return to full-scale 1930s protectionism was thought to be minimal. Cooler heads would prevail.A month on, the chances of a trade war between the US and China have significantly increased. Trump has said he will slap a 25% tariff on $50bn of Chinese goods and Beijing has now responded in kind. It has drawn up a list of US goods also worth $50bn which it will target if the White House goes ahead with its action.Related: China retaliates to Trump tariffs with new levies on US productsRelated: Golf carts to soybeans: products targeted in US-China trade war Continue reading...

Biggest slowdown since Brexit vote shows overall UK economic activity slumped in MarchHeavy snowfall from the “beast from the east” caused Britain’s construction industry to grind to a halt last month, according to an industry survey showing the biggest fall in activity since immediately after the Brexit vote.Confirming fears that freezing weather across the country last month would harm the economy by forcing diggers and cranes to fall idle, the closely watched Markit/Cips UK construction purchasing managers index showed the industry contracted in March.

Having to take several jobs and sending kids to work used to be a sign of living precariously – now it’s just a question of what your ‘side hustle’ is

All the day’s economic and financial news, as European markets fall following last night’s Wall Street rout

One in seven vulnerable employees in developed world least likely to be receiving helpThe west’s leading economic thinktank has warned its members that they are failing to prepare workers for an automation revolution that will leave 66 million people at risk of being replaced by machines in the coming years.A new report by the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development found that the most vulnerable – one in seven workers on average across the 32 countries studied – were less likely to be receiving help than those whose jobs were more secure.Related: The Guardian view on automation: put human needs first | EditorialRelated: We fear robots at work, but robotic jobs for humans are awful too | Gaby Hinsliff Continue reading...

Surprise monthly increase comes despite sector experiencing its weakest quarter in a yearBritain’s factories increased production unexpectedly last month despite the sector experiencing its weakest quarter in a year, with signs the growth spurt enjoyed towards the end of 2017 has fizzled out.Shaking off concerns that heavy snowfall from the “beast from the east” would trigger a slowdown, the UK manufacturing sector maintained a steady pace of growth in March.

Dow and S&P tumble amid fears of a full-blown trade war as Beijing targets food importsThe opening salvos of a tariff spat between the US and China that some observers fear could escalate into a full-blown trade war sent jitters through Wall Street on Monday.Stock markets fell after Beijing hit back against Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminium with a swath of retaliatory duties on 128 imported American products, including pork and apples.Beijing had announced fresh tariffs on imports of 128 US products, a market worth almost $3bn per year. Continue reading...

Responding to US president’s tariffs on steel and aluminium, China targets 120 US products including a 25% tariff on frozen porkChina has implemented retaliatory tariffs of up to 25% on $3bn in food imports from the US, raising uncertainty over the possibility of a trade war between the two countries.China’s ministry of commerce said it would be “suspending tariff concessions” on 120 US food products. Fresh and dried fruits, almonds, pistachios and wine would be subject to an additional 15% tariff. Eight other items, including frozen pork, would be subject to a 25% tariff. The tariffs would begin on Monday, the ministry said.Related: Markets rattled again by trade war fears after Chinese retaliationRelated: Trump's China tariffs risk 'tit-for-tat protectionism' that threatens world economy Continue reading...

The post-departure outlook is not good. But it will be hard to recognise or quantify any damage to the economy if growth is merely lower than it might have beenBrexit has brought the UK and EU closer in some regards. While the prime minister began the letter to the president of the European council that triggered article 50 with “Dear President Tusk”, her missive this March was headed “Dear Donald”. But that’s about it. On the substance of the future relationship, the two sides remain deadlocked. Mrs May has her red lines. Donald has his.What this all means is that, while we’re obviously not sure what the future might hold, if things continue down their current path Britain will leave both the single market and the customs union.Economies are complicated. Noticing change is hard, and attributing it harder still Continue reading...

What can we expect from a takeover led by a protege of Lord Hanson, the man who laid waste to industrial Britain?The past is never dead. When the wheeling, dealing, asset-stripping Hanson Trust finally collapsed in 2007, having played a major part in the deindustrialisation of Britain – but having greatly enriched its Thatcherite founder Lord Hanson – I thought a stake had finally being driven through the heart of a particular ghoul.Never again would our Westminster, Whitehall and City establishments indulge a glorified super-accountant who knew the price of everything but the value of nothing. And, in the name of “culture change” and rigorous “management”, had laid waste to industrial Britain. I was wrong.Related: MPs call for government to block Melrose's £8bn hostile takeover of GKN Continue reading...

GKN | National debt | Beatlemania | Hamlet relief | Returning the empties | OffenbachIf the government fails to intervene to prevent the acquisition of GKN by Melrose it will be further proof, if any is needed, that the UK is being run for the benefit of big business (Outcry as GKN falls to hostile takeover, 30 March). If the takeover is permitted, it is clear that shareholders will walk away with fat profits while employees will be flung on to the jobs market to scrabble for precarious work and zero-hours contracts.

Deal relates to sale of mortgage-backed securities in run-up to financial crisisBarclays has agreed a $2bn (£1.4bn) settlement with the US justice department over the sale of mortgage-backed securities in the lead-up to the 2008 financial crisis.The settlement follows a three-year investigation into allegations that the bank caused billions of dollars of losses to investors by “engaging in a fraudulent scheme” to sell Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities (RMBS) between 2005 and 2007.Related: Barclays to suspend online services while it splits bank Continue reading...

Official figures show UK household spending grew by 1.7% in 2017, the weakest rate since 2011 as falling real pay took its toll on family finances

Statistics office figures show UK had lowest growth among G7 economiesHousehold spending slowed to its lowest annual growth for six years in 2017 amid Brexit-fuelled inflation, with borrowing surging and family savings slumping to a record low.Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed economic growth slowed to 0.4% in the final three months of last year, down from 0.5% in the third quarter as weaker household spending took its toll.Related: UK businesses told to expect workforce crisis after Brexit Continue reading...

Operations cancelled, children scared, no beds left: the BBC documentary charts the long-term effects of short-term fixes

Employment consultant says growth in number of workers will nosedive and urges companies to invest in young people

Only a year is now left until the UK’s official moment of departure from the European Union on terms almost certainly decided by a rightwing clique of ToriesWhen a majority of MPs voted a year ago to authorise the activation of article 50, they did so because they felt it was their duty as mandated by the Brexit referendum. But this does not mean parliament has to agree to whatever Brexit Theresa May offers. Democracy demanded that the vote be honoured, but that doesn’t mean everything done under the banner of Brexit is in the interests of the country or an expression of an irreversible “will of the people”. In reality we are dealing with an ever-shifting battleground of political ideas. Democracy means listening to the majority, but it also means managing conflicting ambitions within that majority. Disentangling all the motives that compelled people to tick the leave box is not easy. Neither should the national mood be seen entirely in terms of the winning side, as though remain voters have disappeared and their ideas are not worth considering.Democracy also means protecting minorities, and 48% is a big minority. A Brexit that would bring the country together is the softest of soft Brexits. But Mrs May decided, without even consulting her cabinet, to go for an extreme model. She sought a mandate for this in a general election and didn’t get one. She pushed ahead regardless, stitching up a pact with the DUP, who don’t even represent the majority vote on Brexit in Northern Ireland, which backed remain. Ireland is a toxic issue. Northern Ireland was torn apart by strife for 30 years until a fragile, precious peace was secured. Any Brexit must uphold the peace process, the Good Friday agreement and therefore the soft border. Continue reading...

In episode 5 of The Alternatives, Aditya Chakrabortty talks to Ande Gregson of Green Lab about small-scale innovationSubscribe and review on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud and Acast, and join the discussion on Facebook and TwitterIn this episode Aditya Chakrabortty speaks to Ande Gregson of Green Lab – a makerspace in London – about how small-scale creators can keep an economy robust and innovative. Green Lab is a manufacturing site where innovators can come together, spreading the cost of rent, to develop projects that respond to the global food crisis. Continue reading...

Small-scale creators are vital to our economy, but the government gives them no help. Instead of giving up, they are going it alone. The latest article in our new economics series meets the people behind Green Lab in London

Readers respond to Damian Carrington’s interview with Paul Ehrlich whose book The Population Bomb was published 50 years agoI read Damian Carrington’s interview with Paul Ehrlich and found Paul’s analysis to ring frighteningly true (Scientist stands by warning that collapse of civilisation is coming, 23 March). His book The Population Bomb predicted starvation in the 1970s, something that was avoided by the “green revolution” in intensive agriculture. The green revolution was the point at which farmers turned away from natural techniques (eg mixed farms and crop rotation) and instead started using chemical fertilisers and pesticides along with hybrid plants whose seeds could often not be harvested for re-use. This led to higher yields at first, but then to exhausted and polluted soil and increasing debt to suppliers.The role of the green revolution was to “delay the calamity”. But at a great cost to nature. So what was humankind’s reaction to these developments? Instead of stopping to take stock, we became addicted to the consumerist traits of “cheap and abundant” with no thought for the real cost and inherent risk. Continue reading...

Two former members of Bank of England’s interest rate-setting committee discuss the economy as inflation eases slightly•The Brexit economy - light at the end of the tunnel?

The migration advisers’ report shows free movement has been good for the UK – and when it ends, there will be consequences

Hopes that US and China can reach agreement on trade lifts investor confidence2.48pm BSTSigns that the US and China could be talking behind the scenes about avoiding a trade war have given global markets a lift after last week’s slump.European markets, which had missed out on Monday’s gains, have moved sharply higher today, with the FTSE 100 currently up around 2%, Germany’s Dax 1.7% better and France’s Cac climbing 1.3%.2.33pm BSTThe rally on US markets on Monday which saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average add nearly 700 points has continued at the opening of trading.The easing of fears over a possible trade war between the US and China has lifted the Dow another 50 points or 0.2%, while the S&P 500 opened up 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.48%.2.19pm BSTSterling is falling back after its recent strong run after last week’s agreement between the UK and EU on a Brexit transition deal.A spate of profit taking has seen the pound fall 0.8% against the dollar to $1.4114 and 0.3% against the euro to €1.1399.2.04pm BSTThe UK economy is steadying after the initial fallout from the vote to leave the European Union, according to our monthly Brexit watch series. Richard Partington reports:As the one-year countdown to Brexit looms, the British economy is showing signs of steadying from the fallout triggered by the EU referendum, according to a Guardian analysis of economic news over the past month.After progress with Brussels towards a two-year transitional deal to smooth Britain’s formal exit from the EU on 29 March 2019, the pound has risen back towards the highest levels seen since the leave vote.Related: The Brexit economy: light at the end of the tunnel?Related: How has the Brexit vote affected the economy? March verdictRelated: 'There is progress but we could do better' - experts debate Brexit watch data1.52pm BSTFollowing the collapse of BHS, the insolvency service has said it will bring proceedings to disqualify Dominic Chappell, who bought the department store group from Sir Philip Green from running a company for up to 15 years. Its full verdict:We can confirm the Insolvency Service has written to Dominic Chappell and three other former directors of BHS and connected companies informing them that we intend to bring proceedings to have them disqualified from running or controlling companies for periods up to 15 years.We can also confirm that we have written to Sir Philip Green, also a former director of BHS, informing him that we do not currently intend bring disqualification proceedings against him.1.29pm BSTUS Opening Calls:#DOW 24333 +0.54%#SPX 2672 +0.48%#NASDAQ 6816 +0.91%#IGOpeningCall1.04pm BSTRelated: Business Today: sign up for a morning shot of financial news12.41pm BSTRoyal Bank of Scotland has made its first acquisition since its ill-fated purchase of ABN Amro which went sour during the financial crisis. PA has the details:RBS has snapped up accounting software firm FreeAgent, marking the lender’s first acquisition since its controversial crisis-era deal to buy ABN Amro.The taxpayer-owned bank said it had agreed to buy the company for around 120p per share, valuing it at 53 million.11.48am BSTGiven Donald Trump’s keenness on a strong stock market he may not want to really follow through on his trade war threats, suggest Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda

After progress in EU talks sterling has strengthened, inflation is falling and pay is rising. But sharp challenges remain•How has the Brexit vote affected the economy? March verdict

Each month we look at key indicators to see what effect the Brexit process has on growth, prosperity and trade in the UK

Experts predict lower growth in jobs and output if flows of people from EU are restrictedRestricting immigration from Europe after Brexit is very likely to lead to lower growth in total jobs and in the output of the UK economy, the government’s official migration advisers have said.The labour market experts even cite official projections that zero net EU migration post-Brexit could not merely halt population growth in parts of northern England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland but actually lead to falls in the next 20 years.Related: Report on UK's reliance on EU workers 'must be published urgently' Continue reading...