“There is now an even greater need for comprehensive safeguards to protect our domestic steel from cheap overseas steel imports.”
Other countries have vowed to hit back. Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau pledged that “Canadians will stand up strongly and firmly if we need to”.
The EU vowed to respond firmly, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying:
I deeply regret the US decision to impose tariffs on European steel and aluminum exports.
Tariffs are taxes – bad for business, worse for consumers.
Unjustified tariffs on the EU will not go unanswered—they will trigger firm and proportionate countermeasures.
The EU will act to safeguard its economic interests. We will protect our workers, businesses and consumers.
The Bank of England has also been making news.
Governor Andrew Bailey hit out at efforts to remove regulation, saying:
There is a reaction taking place against regulation, and the responses to the GFC [Great Financial Crisis]. We must not forget the lasting damage done by the GFC. There is no trade off between economic growth and financial stability.
And policymaker Catherine Mann warned that the UK jobs market is weakening, as she explained that her vote for a half-point cut to interest rates was meant to ‘cut through the noise’.
In Washington DC, Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell has told senators that the US economy remains strong, and that there is no rush to cut interest rates.
Powell also conceded that it’s time to take a look at the rise of ‘debanking’ in the US….
Trump administration, as it imposes new tariffs, and pushes for lower immigration.
He adds:
“Policy is well positioned to deal with the risks and. uncertainties that we face.”
said:
“The United States has changed it to the Gulf of America, and so have we, along with all the competition.”
BP has special reason to confine the Gulf of Mexico to history, having been responsible for its worst environmental disaster to date, when the Deepwater Horizon exploded, killing 10 workers.
Pret is ditching plans to double the cost of its subscription service to £10 in March amid tough conditions on the high street.
The company began offering subscribers five half-price coffees a day for a £5 a month fee last summer, saying it would increase in price next month. The current system replaced a £30 a month deal which offered five free hot or iced barista-made drinks and a 20% discount on food.
The future of Thames Water has taken another twist, after energy supplier Octopus struck a deal to provide technology to a consortium planning a takeover of the troubled water utility.
Sky News are reporting that Octopus’s technology arm, Kraken, has struck a deal to partner with Covalis Capital and Suez in a consortium that would inject about £1bn of equity into the debt-laden water company.
Back in December, Thames received a bid from Covalis Capital that would result in France’s Suez Group being brought in to manage a restructure of the UK’s largest water company.
Today, Sky says:
The deal with Kraken would provide Covalis Capital, the infrastructure investor spearheading the consortium, with critical technology expertise as it seeks to manage one of the UK’s most complex utilities – and one with a long-standing reputation for poor customer service.
Earlier reports said that Covalis would inject about £1bn into Thames Water, with £4bn more raised from asset sales, refinancing and a stock market listing.
More here:
Last week, London’s high court heard that Thames Water may need as much as £10bn in debt and equity investment to repair its finances, according to a representative of creditors hoping to lend the struggling utility another £3bn.
And while Kraken’s tech might improve the service for Thames customers, it wouldn’t be able to fix the poor state of its infrastructure.
Source: theguardian.com
