Exclusive: Douglas Alexander, on trade delegation to India, talks up economic benefits of joint trading arrangements with EuropeBritain will benefit from much closer trading relations with the EU even if that means giving up its ability to negotiate free trade agreements, the Scotland secretary has said.Douglas Alexander helped negotiate deals with India and the US when he was a trade minister under Keir Starmer. Continue reading...

14 Oct 2026 13:58 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Ola Källenius says it will ‘weaken the industry on both sides’ ahead of act intended to counter non-EU competition Locking the UK out of the EU’s flagship industrial “Made in Europe” legislation would amount to a “deliberate choice” by EU leaders to “hurt” the car industry across the bloc, the head of Mercedes-Benz has said.Speaking in his capacity as president of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), Ola Källenius said such a move would “weaken the industry on both sides”. Continue reading...

14 Oct 2026 13:57 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Firms turning crude oil into the ‘workhorse’ fuel stand to gain most despite economic fallout from record pricesDays after Donald Trump announced a deal to import Russian diesel into the US in an effort to lower soaring pump prices, the world’s energy watchdog has warned that the global fuel shortage will drag into 2027.Trump’s temporary sanctions reprieve was criticised for offering “too little, too late” to temper the sky high pump prices triggered by the shutdown of war-damaged refineries in the Middle East and Russia – once the world’s second-largest diesel exporter behind the US. Continue reading...

14 Oct 2026 12:26 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

Kristalina Georgieva says online fraud could lead people to opt out of system and turn to ‘shoeboxes under their bed’The heads of the Bank of England and the International Monetary Fund have issued a stark warning that rising cyber-attacks risk undermining trust in the financial system.Speaking on a panel about online fraud at the IMF and World Bank meetings in Bangkok, the governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, pointed to alarming headlines about self-replicating AI agents hijacking personal devices, and the French supermarket hack that heated fridges up to 50C. Continue reading...

14 Oct 2026 09:07 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

UK foreign secretary will call for World Bank and others to help governments trapped by hefty borrowing costsThe foreign secretary, Ed Miliband, will claim the global financial system is failing developing countries, as he calls for a “new deal” for governments struggling under the burden of debt.Promising to throw the UK’s diplomatic weight behind urgent reform, he will evoke the example of the Gleneagles summit under the last Labour government in 2005 – the culmination of the Make Poverty History campaign. Continue reading...

14 Oct 2026 05:00 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN

With the cash rate at a 15-year high, consumer confidence has tanked – while household spending is still growingFollow our Australian politics live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastInterest rates have risen to 15-year highs and are pushing up mortgage default risks – but household spending is still growing.Economists say the surprising result shows this year’s four rate hikes have not yet fully hit the economy and may be less effective at fighting inflation than they used to be. If true, that could mean more interest rate rises are on the way. Continue reading...

13 Oct 2026 14:00 ✍️ RSS THE GUARDIAN