Labour says firms will be penalised for late payments to suppliers

Keir Starmer has warned businesses who persistently delay payments to their suppliers that it is “time to pay up” as the government prepares to impose fines and penalties on repeat offenders.In what Labour has billed as the toughest crackdown on late payments in a generation, the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, will say on Thursday that the changes will slash a cost to the economy that has escalated to £11bn a year.As many as 38 businesses shut down each day partly owing to late payments, the government said, hurting tradespeople, shopkeepers, startup founders and family-run firms.The planned changes will include handing the small business commissioner powers to impose fines, potentially worth millions of pounds. Established in 2016 to tackle late payments, the watchdog will also be able to carry out spot checks, verify claims and impose deadlines to clear a backlog of disputes

Divided Fed leaves interest rates unchanged despite Trump pressure

The US Federal Reserve left its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Wednesday, even amid intense pressure from Donald Trump to lower rates.Despite an onslaught of attacks from the White House against the Fed, officials at the central bank said that economic “uncertainty” remains too high to lower rates.But two of the Fed’s governors voted against the decision – the first time that multiple governors have voted against the majority since 1993. Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, both appointed by Trump, wanted rates to be lowered. Both have been floated as potential replacements for Fed chair Jerome Powell

Adani claims its export program helps contribute to sustainable energy – but experts say that’s ‘wilful disinformation’

An Adani claim that its Australian export program, whereby coal is sent through the Great Barrier Reef’s shipping channels, is advancing the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, has been denounced by leading scientists.Adani’s Queensland export site claims its operations “ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”, which is one of the UN’s 17 sustainable development goals.Australia, along with other UN members, adopted the goals in 2015, designed to address global challenges including poverty, justice, environmental degradation and climate change.The relevant UN goal is chiefly concerned with providing affordable and clean energy, which it says requires a substantial increase in renewable energy.Adani’s North Queensland Export Terminal (NQXT) near Bowen has the capacity to export 50m tonnes of coal a year

US economy grows faster than expected as Trump announces 25% tariffs on India – as it happened

It is a stronger-than-expected US GDP reading, but it does not quite paint the picture that the headline numbers might suggest – or indeed the picture that Donald Trump believes.US GDP grew at a 3% annualised rate, according to the US Bureau of Economic Analysis, but that reading was distorted the numbers.Trump’s tariffs caused a big surge in first-quarter imports (by definition depressing the GDP reading) and a big drop in imports in the second quarter (which artificially boosted it.Oliver Allen, senior US economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, a consultancy, said:Don’t be fooled. Underlying growth was weak in the second quarter and took a material step down in the first half of this year compared to 2024

Aston Martin’s 24-hour scramble to get lower US tariffs pays off

Aston Martin scrambled to deliver three months’ worth of cars to dealers in the US within 24 hours as it rushed to qualify for lower tariffs that came into effect on 30 June.By invoicing the whole quarter’s cars on that same day it avoided having to report a sales slump that might have alarmed investors.The operation may not have matched the drama of the James Bond films that have long featured the brand, but it “was quite exciting, to put it mildly”, said Adrian Hallmark, Aston Martin’s chief executive.Donald Trump has shaken the global economy with a trade war, causing a particular stir in the car industry with his imposition of a 25% tariff on 3 April on top of an existing 2.5% levy

Bank of England governor blocks Rachel Reeves’s Revolut meeting

The governor of the Bank of England blocked a meeting that Rachel Reeves tried to secure with watchdogs and Revolut, amid concerns the chancellor was meddling in an independent process over the fintech’s UK banking licence.Andrew Bailey intervened after learning of the plan to bring together representatives from Revolut, the Treasury and the Bank’s regulatory arm, the Prudential Regulation Authority, to discuss the fintech’s ambitions to become a fully authorised UK bank.The three-way meeting, first reported by the Financial Times, had been due to take place in the past few weeks but was cancelled over concerns that the central bank’s regulatory decisions should be independent from government interventions and influence.A Treasury spokesperson said: “The chancellor and the governor have a strong and productive relationship, and the government fully supports the operational independence of the Bank of England.”The Bank declined to comment