International

• Monday, August 7th 2017 - 22:17 UTC

  Cable lashes out at Brexit “martyrs” and accuses them of “masochism” and nostalgic of an imperial past

  

  Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable has lashed out at hard line Brexit “martyrs” who view economic pain as a price worth paying to break away from Brussels. Cable accused them of “masochism” and claimed older Brexit voters with views “colored by nostalgia from an imperial past” had imposed their will on a younger generation more comfortable with the European Union.

• Monday, August 7th 2017 - 07:21 UTC

  Lord King calls for a “credible fallback”, in case no EU trade deal is reached

  

  The UK needs a “credible fallback” in case no EU trade deal is reached during Brexit negotiations, former Bank of England governor Mervyn King has said. Lord King said British negotiators needed to show Brussels the country has an alternative over a bad trade deal post-Brexit.

• Monday, August 7th 2017 - 07:13 UTC

  UK top ex diplomat says cabinet divided on Brexit and government has still to put forward a clear position

  

  The UK's Brexit negotiations have not begun well amid “differences” inside the cabinet, a former head of the diplomatic service has said. Sir Simon Fraser, chief mandarin at the Foreign Office until 2015, said the UK side had been “a bit absent” from formal negotiations in Brussels.

• Monday, August 7th 2017 - 06:20 UTC

  Banks leaving The City is serious, but “we should be concerned with investors leaving UK”

  

  Investors pulling money out of The City pose a greater risk to London’s financial dominance than banks exiting the UK because of Brexit, according to Square Mile official, Sherry Madera, the City of London Corporation’s special adviser for Asia.

• Sunday, August 6th 2017 - 22:38 UTC

  Bumper crops anticipate tough corn battle between leading exporters US and Brazil

  

  Brazilian farmers are in the midst of collecting their biggest corn harvest ever, and American supplies are also plentiful -- setting the stage for a stiff battle to win world buyers in the second half of the year.

• Sunday, August 6th 2017 - 04:53 UTC

  UN, including Beijing., agrees tough sanctions on North Korea banning more than a third of the country's exports

  

  The United Nations Security Council approved tough new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday including a ban on coal and other exports totaling more than US$1 billion — a huge bite in its total exports, valued at US$3 billion last year. U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley praised the new sanctions, telling council members after the vote that it is “the single largest economic package ever leveled against the North Korean regime.”

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 11:49 UTC

  Brexit will happen despite the “density of problems” says Juncker

  

  Brexit will still happen despite the UK becoming more aware of the “density of problems” during withdrawal negotiations, Jean-Claude Juncker has said. The European Commission president indicated he disagreed with the Maltese prime minister Joseph Muscat, who reportedly said last week he saw “hopeful signs” that “Brexit will not happen”.

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 08:21 UTC

  Ireland calls for “unique solutions” to preserve UK/EU relations after Brexit

  

  Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar has called for “unique solutions” to preserve the relationship between the UK and the European Union after Brexit. On his first official visit to Northern Ireland, he raised the possibility of a bilateral UK-EU customs union, and described Brexit as “the challenge of this generation”.

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 07:37 UTC

  The political motive behind football’s biggest transfer

  

  by Luke Blackstock -The change of employer for 25-year-old, Brazilian footballer Neymar da Silva Santos Jr and a diplomatic crisis halfway around the world apparently have no link. Neymar has become the world’s most expensive footballer after signing for Paris Saint-Germain, and priced away from one of its biggest clubs.

• Saturday, August 5th 2017 - 06:54 UTC

  Standard Chartered moves European base to Frankfurt because of Brexit

  

  Standard Chartered is set to spend about US$20m to turn its Frankfurt office into a European base due to Brexit. The bank plans to create a subsidiary at its German branch to maintain access to the European market after Britain withdraws from the European Union.