Trump provides tariffs of $ 11 billion for planes, cheese and wine from the European Union – businesses live | Business

It's time for Mike Ashley to step down and accept his nearly 30% stake to be canceled, according to some City badysts.

AJ Bell director of investments Russ Mold compared Ashley to "a greedy child who wants a new toy" – even after winning a series of treats over the past year. He said:

While Mike Ashley seems to like the thrill of the hunt, it's time he admits his defeat by pursuing Debenhams and adding a new string to the bow of his retail empire.

Someone must hit him on the shoulder and remind him that he already has a core business to handle and that a little more attention is not waiting for him.

The team selling shares at Berenberg The investment bank agrees: the risks are high around Sports Direct's strategy, even if it succeeded, with a lot of work to straighten out Debenhams. They said:

We continue to believe that this long saga is a significant distraction for management at a time when Sports Direct's core business is under structural pressure.

Let's move on to another of today's big stories: the final phase of Debenhams pursuit by Mike Ashley.

Ashley's Sports Direct has offered Debenhams an injection of £ 200m in an ultimate attempt to secure an agreement that would prevent the loss of its stake in the company, the Guardian writes Sarah Butler.

But the department store group should reject the latest offer, as it is still linked to Ashley's appointment to the position of general manager, which the group's lenders oppose.

Debenhams remains on track to be handed over to its lenders on Tuesday via a "pre-pack" administration that would allow the stores to continue trading but make the stock worthless.

UK retailers this morning blamed Brexit for delaying larger purchases – consumer reluctance being seen as a major factor in the UK's recent record growth.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the KPMG accounting firm said their sales growth fell to 0.5% in March from 2.3% a year ago. Richard Partington.

While the Easter calendar has probably resulted in distortions in the numbers, uncertainty is holding back consumers, the BRC said. You can read more here:

Michel Barnier, EU negotiator for Brexit, is holding a press conference.

He suggested that the EU could not grant a long extension of Article 50 unless May supports a customs union, Andrew Sparrow reports on the Guardian's political blog.

Sterling is stable against the euro at 1,1609 € at the time of writing this article, but has oscillated in morning trading, although it has varied between yesterday's movements.

Against the US dollar, the pound rose 0.15% to $ 1.3087, after briefly surpbading $ 1.31 earlier this morning.

You can follow the press conference and all the political developments here:

Another price reaction: While Donald Trump describes his rates as part of his "America First" policy, most economists believe they are primarily used to raise prices for consumers, the same ones that the US president says want to help.

Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Managementthis morning described the rates as "tax increases" that will directly affect consumers.

US President Trump has put together a small list of things for which US consumers can be taxed. The latest tariff series concerns the European Union, following a World Trade Organization decision against subsidies to Airbus.

It remains to be seen whether the US President 's renewed enthusiasm for the WTO will persist if the WTO rules against Boeing in a similar case remain to be determined.

The White House's willingness to comply with the WTO's process in this case could actually be of benefit to the troubled organization, Donovan added.

Let's take a closer look at the list of products at risk if the United States responds to its $ 11 billion tariff threat.

Just like previous EU threats to hit American export icons such as Harley Davidson motorcycles, Levi jeans and Bourbon whiskey, the United States is targeting iconic European products.

Non-military aircraft top the list, with an obvious reference to the dispute over the EU's subsidies to Airbus. Airbus shares are down 1.7% today, although it's interesting that they are still up more than 40% since the beginning of the year, with US rival Boeing was affected by the fallout of two air accidents that led to the grounding of its 737 fleet.

Beyond planes, however, there is a profusion of culinary delights on which customs duties may be levied. Swordfish steaks, salmon fillets, crabs, scallops, mussels, oysters, octopus, various jams and olive oil are on the list with 12 categories of wines to be washed.

Some 40 categories of cheese are listed, including Roquefort, Pecorino and Gouda, as well as British Stilton and Cheddar – even the EU's "American-style" cheese is included.

Other more unusual (and inedible) products include ski suits, swimwear, hunting knives and even wall clocks to be wound up.

The complete list is here.

European equity markets resumed after falling earlier in the morning.

the FTSE 100 is now only slightly down, by three points or 0.04%. From Germany Dax is down 0.14% while France Cac 40 is down 0.1%.

The largest Stoxx 600 the index is up 0.1%.

It seems that the EU is preparing to respond to Trump's latest tariff threat, according to Bloomberg.

Economists fear that we will impose equal tariffs, as they risk degenerating into a real trade war if no compromise is found.

Nissan reacted to Ghosn's video, flatly accusing his former leader.

The Japanese builder first reported Ghosn to the authorities for his underreporting of income, which led to his arrest in November. Another former Nissan executive, Greg Kelly, was also arrested.

In a statement, Nissan said:

The bad conduct of Ghosn and Kelly is the only cause of this sequence of events. In addition to criminal cases, Nissan's internal investigation has uncovered substantial evidence of unethical behavior. This culminated in a unanimous vote of the board of directors to remove Ghosn and Kelly as chairman and director representative, followed by a shareholder vote to remove him from office.

New discoveries related to Ghosn misconduct continue to emerge. The company is still focusing on weaknesses in governance that have not helped prevent this misconduct.

If you have a little less than eight free minutes, the preregistered video of Carlos Ghosn (see 08:06) is definitely worth watching to give you a glimpse of one of the biggest corporate breakups of recent times.

Ghosn's lawyer said the video was mounted to remove the names of people, according to the agency France Presse, but he has not shot much more shots. He had intended to give the message in person at a press conference, but he was arrested again before he could appear.

The former boss of Nissan has accused former anonymous colleagues of plotting to overthrow him in order to prevent the Japanese automaker from losing control of its alliance with Renault.

But badysts of Deutsche Bank's macro-strategists, led by Jim Reid, point to an important – and geopolitically interesting – point: tariffs will only be applied once the World Trade Organization (WTO) has made a final decision on which EU grants this summer.

Reid and his colleagues Craig Nicol and Quinn Brody wrote:

The Trump administration has not always trusted the WTO on these issues, so it is interesting that they are here. Items on the list include new pbadenger helicopters, various cheeses and wines, ski suits and some motorcycles.

This news could also remind investors that the US report on the risk of imports of motor vehicles for national security was submitted in February without any official response. That said, the United States first complained to the WTO about Airbus subsidies 15 years ago. This dispute has been going on for a long time.

Relying on the WTO at this stage seems odd, given Trump's almost systematic dismantling of his legitimacy and his obvious aversion to the commercial world order he presides over.

However, given that the United States has achieved real success with the WTO decision on EU Airbus subsidies, they may think that it makes sense to continue with the traditional rules-based approach. even if they are trying to fundamentally undermine the WTO.

In addition, the timing of these disputes is also noteworthy: trade negotiations are difficult.

Let's think about the possibility of $ 11 billion in US tariffs on EU goods.

Neil Wilson, Chief Market Analyst at Markets.com, said the tariff threat appeared to be a relatively contained problem, but added that there was a "risk of contagion if the EU decided to respond in kind" – and to do nothing for the confidence of the companies in the EU.

We are now back to their state before Mr. Juncker's visit to Washington – there is a real risk of a commercial battle between the EU and the US, and so should weigh on the risk.

In the meantime, we are still waiting for a breakthrough between the United States and China. Despite warm words, nothing has materialized yet.

The decision does not bode well for EU-US trade, with the imminent threat of tariffs on cars – which would be a blow to relations and probably to the global economy.

Lee Hardman and Fritz Louw, monetary badysts at MUFG, said that a return to an EU-US trade war could hurt the prospects of the euro.

The escalation of trade tensions would further aggravate the downside risks for the euro if the Trump administration also decided to raise tariffs on motor vehicle imports.

May will have to convince her EU counterparts that she can achieve real progress, whether it is a compromise with the Labor Party or whether she can get her withdrawal agreement through the House of Commons with a new breath.

Andrea Leadsom, President of Brexiter in the House of Commons, just said that the conclusion of a May / EU agreement by Parliament would be the best possible outcome – if the EU backed measures on the thorny issue , the insurance policy of the Irish border.

You can read more about Brexit here:

With the early news stream, we have three articles on the live blog without mentioning the word "B". But Brexit is only three days away, unless something happens.

The first signs, in anticipation of the crucial summit of tomorrow's European leaders, suggest that we could find ourselves in a difficult stalemate in the coming days.

Prime Minister Theresa May will go to Paris and Berlin to plead with Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron for an extension of Brexit today, but the French Minister of European Affairs said he would like the UK to give a good reason to extend the period of negotiation.

Enter the meeting of EU Ministers in Luxembourg today, the Amelie Montchalin "We want to understand why the UK needs this extension."

Then come the questions of conditions; what role does the United Kingdom want to play during this period of extension, in what type of decisions it wants to take part.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said earlier that France needed a clear reason for any delay in Brexit.

The major European stock markets have all fallen off the open, with investors taking into account the threat of US $ 11 billion of tariffs from the United States.

The London FTSE 100 was down 0.2% early in the session, while the German Dax and Cac 40 French both fell 0.3% due to the opening of markets.

Actions in AirbusFranco-German planner at the center of the trade dispute dropped 2.3%, making it the worst performance of the CAC 40 in early trading.

Carlos Ghosn, the former boss of Nissan, has accused a "conspiracy" of his arrest and his continued detention in Japan.

Ghosn faces numerous charges from Japanese prosecutors, including underreporting his income to the authorities. He has also been accused of ethical offenses by the French automaker Renault, whose alliance with Nissan has been under pressure since Ghosn's arrest.

In a video message posted in front of his new record in Tokyo last week in front of his record, Mr Ghosn said that he had been plotted by Nissan employees who thought that an alliance project more close with Renault would jeopardize the autonomy of the Japanese manufacturer. He said:

This is a plot. It's not about specific events, it's not about greed, it's not about dictatorship. It is a conspiracy, it is a conspiracy, it is a stabbing.

Ghosn said that he had been unfairly described as a dictator in order to discredit him.

I am innocent of all the charges against me. I am also innocent of all the charges around these accusations, which are all biased, taken out of context, twisted so as to portray a greedy character and a character of dictatorship.

However, Ghosn said his love for Nissan and Japan was "intact" since his arrest in November.

I love Japan and I love Nissan. Nobody spends 20 years in a country, nobody works 20 years running a business without love and without attachment.

Hello and welcome to our slippery coverage of the global economy, financial markets, the eurozone and businesses.

Donald Trump's White House has threatened to impose $ 11.2 billion in tariffs on European products, including cheese, wine and French planes, which would significantly worsen trade tensions between the biggest players commercial blocks of the world.

Trump US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer announced a list of products likely to be hit by tariffs on Monday night in retaliation for EU subsidies to Airbus, the European aerospace manufacturer.

The 14-page list contains quite symbolic targets, with "French cheese", Roquefort cheese, wine, champagne, olive oil and seafood such as oysters.

Airbus and Boeing, the two main civil aerospace operators, have been at the center of a long-running battle over subsidies granted by their respective governments. Lighthizer said:

This case has been in dispute for 14 years and the time has come to act. The administration is preparing to react immediately when the WTO publishes its conclusion on the value of US countermeasures. "

Our ultimate goal is to reach an agreement with the EU to put an end to all WTO-inconsistent subsidies for large civil aircraft. When the EU terminates these harmful subsidies, additional US duties imposed in response may be lifted.

In the city, Debenhams will probably reject a £ 200m bid from Sports Direct to take over the distressed chain of stores.

The offer is still subject to the condition that the founder of Sports Direct and the retail manager, Mike Ashley, become the managing director of Debenhams. On the previous forms, Debenhams' board is unlikely to fly, which means that a pre-pack administration could still be considered.

You can read a lot more details here:

And later, the International Monetary Fund will expose its latest thoughts on its prospects for the global economy.

L & # 39; s calendar

• 14:00 BST: International Monetary Fund press conference on global economic outlook
• 15h (Paris time): Vacancies at US JOLT