UK trade policy: time to stop the secret deals and get systematic

Trade can be a dirty business. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was tolerated as a “special representative for trade and investment” in the noughties despite allegations that he kept convicted gun smugglers for friends, while Peter Mandelson’s ability to schmooze the rich and famous repeatedly overruled concerns about his probity.To close a deal, there are always compromises to be made, and sometimes the terms are unsavoury.Britain is at the forefront of international deal making. It has been a trading nation for as long as it has existed

Dow Jones hits 50,000 milestone amid tech gains and hopes of lower interest rates

The Dow Jones industrial average crossed 50,000 for the first time, as ballooning tech valuations, robust corporate earnings and hopes of lower interest rates drive it to new highs.Leading stock markets on Wall Street came under pressure earlier this week as technology stocks fell amid scrutiny of extraordinary levels of investment into artificial intelligence.Cryptocurrencies including bitcoin have also suffered sharp falls in recent days, although they recovered some lost ground on Friday.But US equities have been rallying for months as investors largely shrugged off geopolitical tensions and grew increasingly optimistic about the economy.The Dow closed at 50,015

Amazon shares tumble as $200bn AI rollout plan worries markets – as it happened

Amazon’s shares are tumbling in early trading, though, as investors balk at its plans for an artificial intelligence spending blitz.Amazon’s shares have dropped by over 9%, a day after it announced plans to spend $200bn on artificial intelligence and robotics this year.Amazon’s CEO Andy Jassy sounded bullish last night, declaring:“With such strong demand for our existing offerings and seminal opportunities like AI, chips, robotics, and low earth orbit satellites, we expect to invest about $200 billion in capital expenditures across Amazon in 2026, and anticipate strong long-term return on invested capital.”But as flagged earlier (9.59am), investors fear companies are wasting their money, given the hundreds of billions of dollars being committed to AI rollout this year

Stellantis takes €22bn hit after ‘overestimating’ pace of shift to EVs

The carmaker Stellantis has said it will take a €22bn (£19.1bn) charge and sell a stake in its battery joint venture after admitting that it “overestimated” the pace of the shift to electric vehicles.Shares in the European-based carmaker, which owns marques including Peugeot, Fiat, Jeep and Citroën, plunged after it said that the move was part of a reset of its business as it also admitted “poor operational execution”.Antonio Filosa, the chief executive of Stellantis, said: “The charges announced today largely reflect the cost of overestimating the pace of the energy transition that distanced us from many car buyers’ real-world needs, means and desires.“They also reflect the impact of previous poor operational execution, the effects of which are being progressively addressed by our new team

Price of average UK home passes £300,000 for first time, Halifax says

The average cost of a UK home passed £300,000 for the first time in January, as house prices increased at the fastest rate since November 2024.Data released by Halifax showed that house prices rose 0.7% month on month last month, the fastest rate since a 1.1% increase was recorded in November 2024. On an annual measure, prices grew 1%

Almost a quarter of soup on sale in UK supermarkets has too much salt, study finds

Nearly a quarter of all soup bought in supermarkets contains too much salt, with one brand containing more salt than two McDonald’s cheeseburgers, according to research.Soup has long had a reputation for being a healthy choice for lunch. The analysis of nearly 500 varieties of tinned and chilled soups sold in supermarkets found that 23% contained too much salt.Of the 481 soups Action on Salt and Sugar (AoSS) tested, nearly half (48%) of branded soups and 6% of supermarket own-brand soups still exceeded the government’s voluntary salt target of 0.59g per 100g serving