The Confederation of British Industry has called for the UK government to take “practical steps” to ease travel, cut red tape and take joint action on energy, climate and defence in its relationship with the European Union.   The CBI says the current setup is “no longer fit for purpose” in a world of rising […]

European polymer prices continued to fall over the week to 16th May. There were reductions of between 10 and 50 EUR per tonne reported in the prices of HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, Polypropylene, ABS and Polystyrene. In the UK, prices fell across most grades as the Pound gained value against the Euro.   Asian polymers were […]

Japanese carmaker Nissan has said it will cut another 11,000 jobs globally and shut seven factories as it shakes up the business in the face of weak sales.   Falling sales in China and heavy discounting in the US, its two biggest markets, have taken a heavy toll on earnings, while a proposed merger with […]

Share markets jumped on Monday after President Trump said weekend talks had resulted in a “total reset” in trade terms between the US and China, a move which goes some way to defuse the high stakes stand-off between the two countries.   The talks in Switzerland resulted in significant cuts to the tit-for-tat tariffs that […]

The US and China have agreed a deal that will significantly cut the import tariffs, or taxes, both sides have imposed on one another for a 90-day period.   US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said both countries would lower their reciprocal tariffs by 115% for 90 days.   The announcement came after the two countries […]

European polymer prices continued to fall over the week to 9th May. There were reductions of between 10 and 25 EUR per tonne reported in the prices of HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, PVC and Polystyrene   Asian polymers also fell with reductions of 5 and 10 USD per tonne reported in the prices of Polypropylene and […]

The governor of the Bank of England has said the UK now needs to “rebuild” its trade relationship with the European Union and do “everything we can” to improve long-term trade, after Thursday’s US deal.   Andrew Bailey said that as a public official he did not take a view on Brexit, but that reversing […]

US and Chinese officials are set to start talks this week to try to deescalate a trade war between the world’s two biggest economies.   Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng will attend the talks in Switzerland from 9th to 12th May, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says.   US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US […]

The US central bank has warned that President Donald Trump’s tariffs have created “so much uncertainty” that it is unsure what to do about interest rates.   The Federal Reserve announced on Wednesday it would keep interest rates unchanged, despite pressure from Trump to lower borrowing costs.   But Fed chairman Jerome Powell said the […]

European polymer prices continued to fall over the week to 2nd May. There were reductions of 11 and 45 EUR per tonne reported in the prices of PET and Polypropylene. In the UK, prices fell against most grades as the Pound gained value against the Euro.   Asian polymers were mixed with reductions of between […]