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Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the UK interest rates myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. The Bank of England has halved its 2025 growth estimate and cut interest rates by a quarter-point to 4.5 per cent, as it contends with a stagnant UK economy and an increasingly uncertain international

UK construction activity unexpectedly declined in January for the first time since February 2024 while cost inflation accelerated, according to a closely watched survey published ahead of the interest rate decision. The S&P Global UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ index, which tracks changes in total industry activity, fell to 48.1 in January, down sharply from 53.3

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Since 2016, British voters have been telling their political leaders that things have to change. From Brexit, through Boris Johnson and finally a landslide win for Sir Keir Starmer’s one-word promise of “change”, an electorate

Financial markets have been roiled by US President Donald Trump’s announcement of tariffs on key trading partners, and investors are bracing for further volatility ahead. Here’s how they are trading Trump’s on-again, off-again trade war. Equities: ‘impossible to avoid risk’ Wall Street has been working since before November’s presidential election on how it should position

A few days ago, a European-Israeli real estate developer had a surprise call from an old friend, now at the White House. The friend wanted to ask him some informal but detailed questions: about banking regulations involving investments in the Palestinian territories, access to the energy grid and possible tie-ups with major Gulf construction giants.

Donald Trump’s plans for the US to assume control of Gaza have been met with anger across the Arab world, and raised fears of reigniting conflict in the region. Saudi Arabia, considered Trump’s closest ally in the oil-rich Gulf region, was quick to denounce the US president’s remarks on Tuesday evening that Washington should “take

Donald Trump has said that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons but should reach a “verified nuclear peace agreement”, which the US should begin working on immediately. In a post on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday, Trump said reports that the US and Israel were preparing to “blow Iran into smithereens” were “greatly exaggerated”. “I

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to resume Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, in his most explicit pledge yet to reject a lasting ceasefire as Donald Trump said that Palestinians could be resettled away from the

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world The markets were fools on Saturday, and shrewd judges of character on Monday. When Donald Trump announced tariffs against America’s neighbours last weekend, investors who had talked since November of a misunderstood, deceptively

Show video info President Donald Trump has said the US will “take over” the Gaza Strip and that Palestinians should permanently leave the enclave in the strongest indication yet that he wants the 2.2mn population resettled in countries such as Egypt and Jordan. Speaking as he held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Alphabet’s revenues undershot estimates in the fourth quarter as the search giant’s cloud business grew slower than expected, while it continued to accelerate its spending on data centres in response to demand from artificial intelligence.

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Donald Trump’s crackdown on tariff-free access for small goods could threaten the business models of Chinese ecommerce groups Shein and Temu by raising their costs while benefiting Amazon, analysts said. The US president imposed an

Beijing has retaliated against Donald Trump’s tariffs on Chinese imports with duties of its own but limited their scope in a possible bid to avoid a full-blown trade war. The measures against US products ranging from liquefied natural gas to cars will take effect on February 10 and were announced on Tuesday, hours after Trump’s

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Standard Digital was €540 now €319 per year Save now on essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device. What’s included Global news & analysis Expert opinion FT App on Android & iOS FT Edit app FirstFT: the day’s biggest stories 20+ curated newsletters Follow topics & set alerts with myFT FT Videos

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world US consumers face the possibility of higher prices for popular goods such as tomatoes, avocados and tequila following Donald Trump’s decision to slap tariffs on imports from China, Mexico and Canada.  The potential

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world The EU has said it regrets US President Donald Trump’s decision to hit Canada, Mexico and China with sweeping tariffs, and said it would respond firmly if a threat to expand the trade

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world Beijing has hit out at new 10 per cent tariffs imposed by the US on Chinese exports, saying it will “take necessary countermeasures to defend its rights and interests” as trade tensions between

President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada and Mexico sparked panic and condemnation from the US’s top trading partners, who said the levies would devastate North America’s economy and overturn decades of integration. Politicians, business leaders and trade associations in all three countries reacted with disbelief, warning the tariffs would bring inflation, supply chain disruption and

Donald Trump has long declared himself a “tariff man” willing to impose sweeping levies on imports from countries that have hurt America. But on Saturday, the 78-year old US president took the first dramatic step of his second term towards putting that vision into practice — placing trade wars and economic nationalism at the top