Sir Keir Starmer has warned the world as we knew it has gone after US president Donald Trump slapped sweeping tariffs on dozens of trading partners including the UK.
The prime minister warned that “old assumptions can no longer be taken for granted” and said a world led by Mr Trump was governed more by deals and alliances than established rules.
It comes after the US president put a 10 per cent tariff on all UK goods exports to America, including a 25 per cent tariff on all British carmakers including Jaguar Land Rover.
“Old assumptions can no longer be taken for granted. The world as we knew it has gone. We must rise to meet the moment,” Sir Keir wrote in the Daily Telegraph.
“We are ready for what comes next. The new world is less governed by established rules and more by deals and alliances.”
Jaguar Land Rover said it was suspending shipments to the US while it considers how to mitigate the cost of Mr Trump’s tariffs.
Key points
- The world as Britain knew it has gone, Starmer warns
- Jaguar Land Rover pauses shipments to the US
- Donald Trump: 'This is an economic revolution...hang tough'
- China says 'market has spoken' after US tariffs spark selloff
Musk lashes out at architect of Trump’s tariffs in first public comments about shock policy
07:25
,
Arpan Rai
Tesla CEO and head of the Department of Government Efficiency, Elon Musk, has taken public swipes at Donald Trump’s adviser on trade and manufacturing, Peter Navarro, who helped shape the president's reciprocal tariff policy that tanked markets across the world.
Mr Musk is typically vocal in his support and defense of the president, but has been quiet since Mr Trump's "Liberation Day" tariff announcement that killed $2.5 trillion from the US stock market — a loss of value that cost the Tesla CEO more than $30bn, according to CNBC.
A user on X posted a video from CNN in which Mr Navarro defends the tariffs, noting positively that he went to Harvard. Mr Musk took issue with that, calling it a "bad thing."
Netanyahu leaves for Washington to talk tariffs with Trump
06:39
,
Arpan Rai
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit Washington and discuss US tariffs imposed by Donald Trump among other issues, the Israeli leader's office said on Saturday.
Netanyahu's office said in a statement the prime minister, who is visiting Hungary, would depart for Washington on Sunday.
Four Israeli officials and a White House official said previously that Netanyahu was due to meet with Mr Trump tomorrow.
The impromptu in-person visit could be the first effort by a foreign leader to negotiate a deal with Mr Trump to remove tariffs.
The truth about Trump’s tariffs and the ‘Brexit dividend’
06:35
,
Arpan Rai
Within minutes of Donald Trump’s announcement on so-called “reciprocal tariffs” around the world, Brexiteers were claiming victory because the UK escaped with half the rate imposed on the EU.
But if the UK’s 10 per cent import tariffs to the American market compared to the EU’s 20 per cent, is the best economic justification for Brexit that can be made, then supporters of leaving the EU are clutching at straws.
The first and most obvious point is that Brexit has not spared the UK from having tariffs imposed on it by the one world leader who was the biggest cheerleader outside Britain for the UK leaving the EU.
Starmer ready to 'shelter' businesses from tariff storm
06:24
,
Arpan Rai
Prime minister Keir Starmer said he was ready to step in to help "shelter" the country's businesses from the fallout from Donald Trump's new tariff policies, mooting state intervention for the worst-affected industries.
"We stand ready to use industrial policy to help shelter British business from the storm," Sir Keir wrote in the Telegraph newspaper.
"Some people may feel uncomfortable about this – the idea the state should intervene directly to shape the market has often been derided.
"But we simply cannot cling on to old sentiments when the world is turning this fast.
While Sir Keir said the government's priority remains to try and secure a trade deal with the US which could include tariff exemptions, he said he will do "everything necessary" to protect the national interest.
Britain was spared the most punitive treatment in Mr Trump's tariff announcement on Wednesday when it was hit with the lowest import duty rate of 10 per cent , but a global trade war will hurt its open economy.
Why did Russia escape Trump’s tariffs?
06:14
,
Arpan Rai
Almost no countries were spared from president Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs; even small, uninhabited islands in the Indian Ocean were included in the exhaustive list. But one country was notably missing: Russia.
One of the United States’ largest adversaries was omitted from the list of countries slapped with even the 10 percent baseline tariff – a move that raised some eyebrows given Trump’s previously friendly relationship with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Trump tariffs: What will immediate impact on UK be?
05:00
,
Alexander Butler
Trump tariffs list in full: Every country hit and the surprising exemptions
04:00
,
Alexander Butler
Donald Trump has imposed the steepest American tariffs on imports in over a century, levying rates as high as 50 per cent on some countries in a move described by the EU as a “major blow” to the world economy.
The US president shocked global market on Wednesday as he announced minimum tariffs of at least 10 per cent on almost all exporters to the US, with much higher duties for countries that enjoy the largest trade surpluses.
Southeast Asian nations and some of the world’s weakest economies were hardest hit, compounding the effects of the Trump administration’s cuts to the USAID programme in many of those countries.
Read the full story here:
What Ancient Rome can tell us about the fate of Trump’s tariffs
03:00
,
Alexander Butler
Tariffs are back in the headlines this week, with United States President Donald Trump introducing sweeping new tariffs of at least 10 per cent on a vast range of goods imported to the US. For some countries and goods, the tariffs will be much higher.
Analysts have expressed shock and worry, warning the move could lead to inflation and possibly even recession for the US.
As someone who’s spent years researching the economy of Ancient Rome, it all feels a shade familiar.
Cheese, wine and whiskey: How your shopping basket could be affected by Trump’s tariffs
02:00
,
Alexander Butler
Tariffs that will make exporting goods to America more costly could hit shopping baskets in the UK as producers around the globe look to recoup the extra costs.
Donald Trump‘s levies mean industries worldwide are scrambling to assess what the impact on them will be and there is no doubt that consumers in the US will see prices there rise as manufacturers pass on those costs to the buyer.
But that in turn means that many might opt out of paying higher prices, while businesses in America might cancel orders coming in from overseas to avoid paying those extra costs. That might mean raising prices elsewhere to reduce their losses.
Read the full story here:
‘The US is the biggest loser’: What Independent readers are saying about Trump’s tariffs
01:00
Trump’s tariffs in numbers: The biggest losers amid escalating US trade war
Sunday 6 April 2025 00:01
,
Alexander Butler
World leaders were hit with an escalation in the US trade war as Donald Trump unveiled a swathe of tariffs on imported goods affecting nearly every country.
On so-called “Liberation Day”, the United States president announced that almost all imported goods would be hit with blanket tariffs, in an effort to increase homegrown production and reduce trade imbalances.
Most countries that trade with the US will be subject to a minimum 10 per cent tariff from April 5, including the United Kingdom, with dozens of nations facing levies as high as 50 per cent.
The reciprocal tariffs, which put Chinese goods imports at 54 per cent, will come into effect from 9 April.
Read the full story by The Independent’s data correspondent Alicja Hagopian here:
Starmer and Macron keep ‘all options on the table’ after Trump tariffs
Saturday 5 April 2025 23:00
,
Alexander Butler
Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron spoke on Saturday and agreed to keep all options on the table as they plot a response to Donald Trump’s universal tariffs.
The prime minister and French president said a trade war would be “in nobody’s interests” but said “nothing should be off the table” in combating the US president’s damaging measures.
The pair also said they had concerns about the global economic and security impact of Mr Trump’s levies, “particularly in South East Asia”.
It comes as Sir Keir remains holed up speaking to world leaders this weekend, seeking to build closer ties with non-US allies as the trade war escalates.
The world as Britain knew it has gone, Starmer warns
Saturday 5 April 2025 21:59
,
Alexander Butler
Sir Keir Starmer has warned the world as we knew it has gone after US president Donald Trump slapped sweeping tariffs on dozens of trading partners including the UK.
The prime minister warned that “old assumptions can no longer be taken for granted” and said a world led by Mr Trump was governed more by deals and alliances than established rules.
It comes after the US president put a 10 per cent tariff on all UK exports to America, including a 25 per cent tariff on all British carmakers including Jaguar Land Rover.
“Old assumptions can no longer be taken for granted. The world as we knew it has gone. We must rise to meet the moment,” Sir Keir wrote in the Daily Telegraph.
Trump tariffs could cut GDP growth by 0.5%, French PM says
Saturday 5 April 2025 21:19
,
Alexander Butler
France could see a 0.5 per cent plunge in GDP following US president Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, French prime minister Francois Bayrou said.
"The imposition of these outrageous tariffs will lead to a global crisis. The risk of job losses is significant, as is that of an economic slowdown,” he told Le Parisien newspaper.
Mr Trump slapped a 20 per cent tariff on all EU exports to the US earlier this week.
COMMENT: Donald Trump is the Liz Truss of US economic policy
Saturday 5 April 2025 20:30
,
Alexander Butler
Musk says he hopes for 'zero tariffs' between US and Europe
Saturday 5 April 2025 19:31
,
Alexander Butler
US tech-billionaire Elon Musk said on Saturday he hoped in future to see complete freedom of trade between the United States and Europe, speaking days after US President Donald Trump announced tariffs on trading partners.
Musk, a Trump adviser who has been working to eliminate wasteful US public spending, spoke via video-link at a congress in Florence of Italy's right-wing, co-ruling League Party.
"At the end of the day, I hope it's agreed that both Europe and the United States should move ideally, in my view, to a zero tariff situation, effectively creating a free trade zone between Europe and North America," Musk said.
Under Trump's plans announced on Wednesday, Italy, which has a large trade surplus with the United States, will be subject to a general tariff of 20 per cent along with other European Union countries.
Trump tariffs: Who will be hardest hit by China-US trade war?
Saturday 5 April 2025 18:24
,
Alexander Butler
China has retaliated with 34 per cent tariffs on imported US goods, in the wake of President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” trade war.
On April 2, Mr Trump announced an extra 34 per cent tariff on all Chinese goods imported to the US, on top of an existing 20 per cent levy.
Now, China will impose 34 per cent reciprocal tariffs from April 10, with the China State Council Tariff Commission saying it was hitting back against “bullying”.
So who will be hit hardest between the US-China trade war? The Independent’s Alicja Hagopian and Millie Cooke take a closer look here:
Thousands gather for anti-Trump protests across all 50 US states
Saturday 5 April 2025 17:30
,
Alexander Butler
At least 1,200 demonstrations are set to take place across the US on Saturday against Donald Trump and Elon Musk.
Thousands were streaming into Washington DC as the protests got underway under gloomy skies and light rain.
More than 20,000 people were expected to attend the rally at the National Mall, organisers said.
Some 150 activist groups have signed up to participate, according to the event's website. Protests are planned in all 50 states plus Canada and Mexico.
Trump’s tariffs in numbers: The biggest losers amid escalating US trade war
Saturday 5 April 2025 17:02
,
Alexander Butler
World leaders were hit with an escalation in the US trade war as Donald Trump unveiled a swathe of tariffs on imported goods affecting nearly every country.
On so-called “Liberation Day”, the United States president announced that almost all imported goods would be hit with blanket tariffs, in an effort to increase homegrown production and reduce trade imbalances.
Most countries that trade with the US will be subject to a minimum 10 per cent tariff from April 5, including the United Kingdom, with dozens of nations facing levies as high as 50 per cent.
The reciprocal tariffs, which put Chinese goods imports at 54 per cent, will come into effect from 9 April.
Read the full story by The Independent’s data correspondent Alicja Hagopian here:
Hundreds gather in London for protest against Trump
Saturday 5 April 2025 16:46
,
Alexander Butler
Hundreds of protesters have gathered in central London as part of global demonstrations against Donald Trump.
Crowds gathered in Trafalgar Square on Saturday afternoon with banners which read “No to Maga hate” and “Dump Trump”.
The rally is one of hundreds of so-called “hands off” demonstrations around the world – including in cities across the US, Paris and Berlin.
The movement has been organised by more than 150 groups, including civil rights groups and trade unions.
In London, demonstrators voiced their concerns with chants of “Hands off Ukraine” and “Hands off the UK”.
Starmer and Macron keep ‘all options on the table’ after Trump tariffs
Saturday 5 April 2025 16:18
,
Archie Mitchell
Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron spoke on Saturday and agreed to keep all options on the table as they plot a response to Donald Trump’s universal tariffs.
The prime minister and French president said a trade war would be “in nobody’s interests” but said “nothing should be off the table” in combating the US president’s damaging measures.
The pair also said they had concerns about the global economic and security impact of Mr Trump’s levies, “particularly in South East Asia”.
It comes as Sir Keir remains holed up speaking to world leaders this weekend, seeking to build closer ties with non-US allies as the trade war escalates.
Pictured: Trump goes golfing as world reels from tariffs
Saturday 5 April 2025 15:52
,
Alexander Butler
US president Donald Trump has gone golfing for the third day in a row as the world reels from his tariffs on global imports.
Mr Trump was seen reading a tabloid article with the headline "World War Fee," and "China: Yeah?" as he arrived at Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida.
Around the same time, Mr Trump posted to his Truth Social platform claiming China would come off worse in the trade war.
“China has been hit much harder than the USA, not even close,” he said. “They, and many other nations, have treated us unsustainably badly.
“This is an economic revolution, and we will win. Hang tough.”
Mr Trump slapped a combined tariff of 54 per cent on Chinese goods earlier this week.
Beijing responded by imposing a 34 per cent tariff on US exports to China.
White House confirms that Benjamin Netanyahu due to visit on Monday
Saturday 5 April 2025 15:27
,
Holly Bancroft
A White House official has confirmed that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to visit on Monday.
Mr Netanyahu will discuss recently announced tariffs with president Donald Trump and the visit will likely also include discussions on Iran and Israel’s war against Hamas.
Aircraft supplier could halt orders over Trump tariffs - Reuters
Saturday 5 April 2025 15:03
,
Holly Bancroft
Howmet Aerospace, which supplies parts for planes built by Airbus and Boeing , may halt some shipments if they are impacted by tariffs announced by US president Donald Trump, according to a letter seen by news agency Reuters.
Pittsburgh-based Howmet said in the letter to customers that it has declared a force majeure event, a legal practice that allows parties to a contract to avoid their obligations if hit by unavoidable and unpredictable external circumstances, Reuters reported.
"Howmet will be excused from supplying any products or services that are impacted by this declared national emergency and/or the tariff executive order," Howmet reportedly wrote in the letter.
Howmet declined to comment. Howmet is a supplier of critical metal components used across the $150 billion jetliner industry.
In full: Jaguar Land Rover confirms pause on US shipments
Saturday 5 April 2025 14:29
,
Holly Bancroft
Jaguar Land Rover will pause shipments of its Britain-made cars to the United States for a month, it said on Saturday, as it considers how to mitigate the cost of president Donald Trump's 25 per cent tariff.
Jaguar Land Rover, which is owned by India's Tata Motors , confirmed the temporary export suspension after The Times newspaper reported the plan.
"As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are taking some short-term actions, including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid- to longer-term plans," JLR said in a statement.
Britain's car industry, which employs 200,000 people directly, is highly exposed to the new tariffs. The United States is the second-biggest importer of British-made cars after the European Union, with nearly a 20 per cent share, data from industry body SMMT shows.
Jaguar Land Rover, one of Britain's biggest producers by volume, said in its statement that the US was an important market for its luxury brands. It sells 400,000 Range Rover Sports, Defenders and other models annually and exports to the US account for almost a quarter of sales.
While most UK goods are subject to a 10 per cent tariff, UK cars and car parts are subject to 25 per cent.
The Times reported that Jaguar Land Rover is thought to have a couple of months' supply of cars already in the US, which will not be subject to the new tariffs.
Donald Trump: 'This is an economic revolution...hang tough'
Saturday 5 April 2025 13:58
,
Holly Bancroft
President Donald Trump has said that the US needs to “hang tough” in light of his announcement to impose large tariffs on imports into America.
Posting on Truth Social on Saturday, Mr Trump admitted “it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic”.
The full post said: “China has been hit much harder than the USA, not even close. They, and many other nations, have treated us unsustainably badly. We have been the dumb and helpless ‘whipping post’, but not any longer.
“We are bringing back jobs and businesses like never before. Already, more than five trillion dollars of investment, and rising fast. This is an economic revolution, and we will win. Hang tough, it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic.
“We will make America great again.”
Breaking: Jaguar Land Rover confirms pause on US shipments
Saturday 5 April 2025 13:53
,
Holly Bancroft
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has said it will "pause" shipments to the US as it works to "address the new trading terms" of president Donald Trump's tariffs.
In a statement on Saturday, a JLR spokesperson said: "The USA is an important market for JLR's luxury brands.
"As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are taking some short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid to longer-term plans."
Watch: Fox News puts new spin on markets slumping amid Trump tariffs
Saturday 5 April 2025 13:45
,
Rebecca Whittaker
Why Bibles could soon get more expensive thanks to Trump’s policy
Saturday 5 April 2025 13:30
,
Rebecca Whittaker
Donald Trump’s sweeping international tariffs may raise the price of Bibles - including the president’s branded version of the holy text.
The CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, which describes itself as the U.S.’s largest commercial Bible and Christian book publisher, told The Wall Street Journal that it had been “all hands on deck,” after the president announced the tariffs on Wednesday.
Bibles are typically printed on thin paper stock and with presses that are largely located outside the U.S., according to The Journal.
This includes China, where Trump’s official “God Bless the USA” Bibles are printed.
Cheese, wine and whiskey: How your shopping basket could be affected by Trump’s tariffs
Saturday 5 April 2025 13:15
,
Becky Whittaker
Tariffs that will make exporting goods to America more costly could hit shopping baskets in the UK as producers around the globe look to recoup the extra costs.
Donald Trump‘s levies mean industries worldwide are scrambling to assess what the impact on them will be and there is no doubt that consumers in the US will see prices there rise as manufacturers pass on those costs to the buyer.
But that in turn means that many might opt out of paying higher prices, while businesses in America might cancel orders coming in from overseas to avoid paying those extra costs. That might mean raising prices elsewhere to reduce their losses.
Cheese, wine, whiskey, beer and fish could soar in price as a result.
China AI videos mock tariffs
Saturday 5 April 2025 13:19
,
Rebecca Whittaker
China's state-run media has taken to the internet with AI-generated videos, featuring dancing robots and fraught consumers, to scold US President Donald Trump and tariffs they say threaten high inflation and economic distress for Americans.
"'Liberation Day', you promised us the stars. But tariffs killed our cheap Chinese cars," an automated female voice sings in a video on the website of China's CGTN, a state-run English-language broadcaster, over a shot of a woman at a kitchen table staring at an empty fork.
The short clip, referring to Trump's use of "Liberation Day" for the day of his tariff announcement, was captioned with a warning: "Track is AI-generated. The debt crisis? 100 percent human-made."
Another video posted on X by the state-run news agency Xinhua, also generated by artificial intelligence, shows a robot named TARIFF that chooses to self-destruct rather than follow its creator's orders for high tariffs that bring "trade wars and unrest".
China has sharply criticised the U.S. tariffs, which have triggered the biggest stock market rout since the pandemic, and retaliated on Friday with import duties and export curbs of its own.
Economists say consumers are likely to see higher prices due to the trade war and that the US economy could enter a downturn.
However, the CGTN video, which displays lyrics in English and Chinese over images of car factories and humanoid robots dancing in burned-out streets, makes a more dire assessment.
"You taxed each truck, you taxed each tire. Midwest burnin' in your dumpster fire," the automated voice sings.
How could Donald Trump’s tariffs affect UK households?
Saturday 5 April 2025 13:00
,
Rebecca Whittaker
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said people across the country are “very concerned” about how the move by the United States to place 10 per cent import taxes on goods would hit their own finances.
Here is a look at how households may find their finances could be affected:
Why did Russia escape Trump’s tariffs?
Saturday 5 April 2025 12:52
,
Holly Bancroft
Almost no countries were spared from President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs; even small, uninhabited islands in the Indian Ocean were included in the exhaustive list. But one country was notably missing: Russia.
One of the United States’ largest adversaries was omitted from the list of countries slapped with even the 10 percent baseline tariff – a move that raised some eyebrows given Trump’s previously friendly relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News on Wednesday that Russia was exempt because the U.S. doesn’t trade with them under heavy sanctions placed on the country after it invaded Ukraine in 2022.
However, the U.S. Trade Office indicates the U.S. does some trade with Russia, though significantly less than it did. Last year, the total goods trade with Russia was $3.5 billion.
Read more from Ariana Baio here:
Turkey in good position after 10% tariff, vice president says
Saturday 5 April 2025 12:46
,
Holly Bancroft
The relatively low 10 per cent baseline tariff that the US has applied to Turkey could favour Turkish exporters, Turkey's vice president told broadcast media on Saturday.
Along with the baseline tariff that took effect on Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump has announced higher levies on goods from 57 larger partners including China, European Union, Vietnam and Japan that are due to start next week.
The decision not to impose such levies on Turkey "seems to be to our advantage as of now, for access to the American market", Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz told CNN Turk.
"There were already tariffs on iron, steel and aluminium (exports from Turkey to the U.S.). When (the U.S.) imposed similar tariffs on the others, there was an equalisation there, it was in our favour," he added.
Mr Yilmaz said that as an importer, Turkey would also benefit from a drop in international commodity prices, including oil, following Mr Trump's announcement.
US should 'stop using tariffs as weapon against China', foreign ministry says
Saturday 5 April 2025 12:21
,
Holly Bancroft
China has taken and will continue to take resolute measures to safeguard its sovereignty, security and development interests, the Chinese foreign ministry has said.
The US should "stop using tariffs as a weapon to suppress China's economy and trade, and stop undermining the legitimate development rights of the Chinese people," the ministry said.
Trump introduced additional 34 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods as part of steep levies imposed on most US trade partners, bringing the total duties on China this year to 54 per cent.
This prompte
