The world according to Trump: American nationalism now drives US foreign policy November 14, 2016 “Every good citizen makes his country’s honour his own.” – Andrew Jackson, seventh US President Donald Trump’s overall foreign policy views are not the mystery the highly-discredited commentariat presently make them out to be. He largely hews to what Walter Russell Mead calls the Jacksonian nationalist strain of American foreign policy, long a minority (if [...]
Two people dead following New Zealand earthquake November 13, 2016 Two people have died following the earthquake which struck New Zealand at around midnight local time. The deaths were confirmed by the country's Prime Minister John Key. The earthquake was centred around the Christchurch area which was previously hit by a quake in 2011 that left many dead and the city badly damaged. It was followed by a series [...]
Theresa May would be “delusional” to think Donald Trump election can help post-Brexit trade deal with US, says top German politician November 12, 2016 Theresa May’s government would be “delusional” to think Donald Trump’s presidency will be good for the UK as it seeks a post-Brexit trade deal with the US, one of Germany’s most senior politicians has warned. The Prime Minister congratulated Trump on winning the election this week, saying: “[The UK and US] are, and will remain, strong [...]
Alibaba smashes record sales on Singles Day November 11, 2016 E-commerce giant Alibaba has topped its sales record for its annual Singles Day savings event in China. The biggest retail event in the world totted up $1bn worth of sales in the first five minutes, the retailer claimed, and by 20 hours in had reached $15bn (£12bn) as people snapped up bargains in its annual sale. Total [...]
Trump u-turns on support for protesters and says demonstrations show great passion November 11, 2016 It seems like a presidency under Donald Trump is going to be a rollercoaster and a half. Around 10 hours after the president-elect tweeted his disdain for protests against his election, Trump appears to have had a rethink. He said late last night that "professional protestors, incited by the media, are protesting. Very unfair!" Sounds [...]
Singles Day: What can British retailers learn from China’s version of Black Friday? November 11, 2016 Today marks the world’s largest e-commerce event. No, it’s not Black Friday yet – Singles Day is taking place in China, and it’s bigger than Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. At midnight local time it took Alibaba just 52 seconds to take its first 1bn renminbi (£116m) and just under seven minutes to reach 10bn [...]
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg rejects claims the network swayed the US election November 11, 2016 Mark Zuckerberg has denied claims that fake news on Facebook helped elect Donald Trump to the White House. The chief executive of Facebook said at the Techonomy technology conference in San Francisco last night that it was a "pretty crazy idea" and that voters "make decisions based on their lived experience". “The idea that fake news on [...]
The new bridge to China heralds the start of a golden age for UK fintech November 11, 2016 Over the past few years I’ve witnessed first-hand the UK’s fintech sector emerge as the world’s dominant hub – over traditional technology centres such as Silicon Valley, New York, Israel, Singapore, and Hong Kong. There is no question that more technology innovation and value creation in financial services comes from the UK than anywhere else [...]
Trump card: The Dow Jones has hit an all time high after Donald Trump’s win November 10, 2016 If there's one thing markets like, it's certainty. It may have been suggested a Donald Trump victory could lead to recession, then eventual doom for all of humanity – but now the markets have an idea of what they're in for, they're actually pretty cheerful. In fact, the Dow Jones hit an all-time high after [...]
Hammond vows “constructive” relationship with Trump but falls short of supporting his policies November 10, 2016 Philip Hammond has said Britain will have a "constructive" relationship with the US under Donald Trump, but gave warnings that he did not agree with the President-elect's plans to slap tariffs on foreign goods. The chancellor, speaking to the BBC this morning, said that he hopes talks will still be helpful, but indicated he would [...]