There’s more great news from the Trump administration for UK business as The Telegraph reports that Britain is at risk of a £24bn Trump tariff raid.
The US president has said he will announce his planned reciprocal tariffs later today, with the charges - which will match the tariff rates levied by each nation - taking effect almost immediately.
The threat to Britian’s economy comes from concerns over VAT charges, as US officials say UK taxes are being used to gain an ‘unfair trade advantage’. Analysts have warned the US president is considering addressing this as he forges forward with his international trade police overhaul.
Sky News summed the move up neatly with a short quote from Trump: “Very simply, it’s, if they charge us, we charge them.”
Also across the papers yesterday was the news that 2025 has got off to a good start for UK retailers, depite wider concerns about employment costs and inflationary pressures. The Grocer reported on the BRC’s January figures here, focusing on the fact that - although shoppers are trading down to own label to save money - food sales still increased by 2.8% year on year.
Elsewhere, the focus was on the ‘solid start’ to the year, as Reuters put it, after British retailers reported a reasonable start to 2025 after a disappointing 2024, as The British Retail Consortium revealed January retail spending was 2.6% higher than last year.
A campaign group representing Tesco, Sainsbury’s, M&S, Morrisons and Asda has warned that “at least” 300,000 jobs will be lost from physical stores on Britain’s high streets over the next three years, according to The Telegraph.
The blow to the sector comes as cost pressures continue to mount for retailers, following the Chancellor’s business rates shake-up.
The Retail Jobs Alliance (RJA) predicts that one in 10 shop floor workers will no longer be working in the sector by 2028, as retailers cut back to counteract the £7bn of extra costs they are expected to incur following increased National Insurance bills, changes to business rates and red tape associated with the upcoming EPR.
A dramatic u-turn from Pret A Manger is making caffeine fans happy, as the food-to-go chain doubles back on its previous decision to increase the price of its Club Pret subscription service, from £5 to £10 per month.
Subscribers to the popular service - which allows customers to get five Barista-made drinks for 50% less each day - have been told that the fee will now remain at £5, as Pret asserts that it remains committed to offering high-quality coffee at “fantastic value”.
Global seafood company Mowi is offering a reward for the return of its escaped salmon after an 27,000 fish went missing from the world’s largest farmed salmon producer, reports The Guardian.
Mowi is offering a £36 reward for each salmon caught and safely returned, after the fish escaped from its farm in Troms, north-west Norway, following damage to the pen during a storm.
The escaped salmon could lead to significant environmental problems, with campaigners describing the incident as a “disaster for wild salmon”.
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