Economy

• Saturday, August 19th 2017 - 07:46 UTC

  Weaker sterling helps boost the number of visitors to UK, up 7% in June

  

  The number of visitors to the UK rose to 3.5 million in June, up 7% from the same month last year, according to official figures. The number of visitors from North America shot up by 34%, and visitors overall spent £2.2bn, a rise of 2%, the UK Office of National Statistics, ONS, said.

• Saturday, August 19th 2017 - 06:57 UTC

  Falklands' all health and social services sites Smoke Free as of February

  

  The Falkland Islands announced that all Health & Social Services sites are to be Smoke Free from 1st February 2018. Following on from the ban on smoking in any Government property, the Health & Social Services Department are going one step further by banning cigars, cigarettes and any vaping devices from all Health & Social Services sites, starting from the 1st February 2018.

• Saturday, August 19th 2017 - 06:42 UTC

  Lord Hague: Brexit, “the most complex task”, any government has faced since the WW2

  

  Lord Hague has compared Brexit to taking control of a gun, saying it is possible to find a solution without using it to “shoot your foot off”. The former Conservative leader said he believes there is sufficient common ground among the different political parties to negotiate with the EU.

• Saturday, August 19th 2017 - 06:32 UTC

  Number of students accepted at UK university drops: demographics, funding and Brexit

  

  The number of students accepted on to UK degree courses has fallen this year, early UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) figures show. In total, 416,310 people have taken up places, down 2% compared with the same point last year.

• Friday, August 18th 2017 - 21:10 UTC

  Brazilian economic activity (and optimism) picking up

  

  Economic activity in Brazil expanded at a faster pace than expected in June, the latest in a batch of reports suggesting an economic recovery may be taking hold. Economic activity rose 0.50% from May after seasonal adjustments, the central bank said on Thursday.

• Wednesday, August 16th 2017 - 10:29 UTC

  UK post-Brexit customs plan “is almost laughable” says Scottish First Minister Sturgeon

  

  First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon has dismissed the UK government's plans for a post-Brexit customs deal with the EU as a “daft 'have cake and eat it' approach”. UK ministers have set out plans for an “ambitious new customs arrangement” with the EU after the UK leaves.

• Wednesday, August 16th 2017 - 09:22 UTC

  UK rejects any border posts between Ireland and Ulster, according to Brexit paper

  

  The United Kingdom government has said it does not want any border posts between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in its new position paper on Brexit. The paper is part of its negotiations with the European Union and the broad ideas in the document appear familiar.

• Tuesday, August 15th 2017 - 15:44 UTC

  Trump orders review of China's practices regarding intellectual property; Beijing warns it “will not sit idle”

  

  President Donald Trump has asked his country's top trade official to review China's practices regarding intellectual property. The move was incremental, but could eventually lead to the US imposing trade sanctions.

• Tuesday, August 15th 2017 - 14:52 UTC

  UK wants to secure a post-Brexit “ambitious new customs arrangement” with the EU

  

  The UK has set out the “ambitious new customs arrangement” it wants to secure with the EU after Brexit. Ministers said the plans would mean the “freest and most frictionless possible trade” with the rest of Europe and could include a “temporary customs union” after Brexit to prevent border problems as the UK leaves the EU.

• Tuesday, August 15th 2017 - 10:56 UTC

  Canada adopts resolute stance ahead of NAFTA renegotiation scheduled for Wednesday

  

  Canada signaled Monday that it would not give much, if any, ground on the benefits it provides to domestic industries when it joins the U.S. and Mexico to begin renegotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement this week. A key issue for the U.S. is getting Canada to stop policies that boost its dairy, poultry, and timber industries.