Spring Statement news: Trump's mounting tariff war threat to UK economy amid National Insurance rise stand-off

Hello, and welcome to the latest Business Bulletin on Tuesday, March 25.

The Government has been accused of an absence of humanity over planned national insurance increases for employers. Members of the House of Lords maintained their stand-off over Rachel Reeves' plans, warning over the impact on hospices.

They inflicted a string of fresh defeats on the Labour frontbench, demanding safeguards to be introduced alongside the controversial tax rises.

Bid to ease Trump tariff trade tensions

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey has called for global economies to “come together” to help ease trade tensions. He was speaking at Leicester University on Monday - amid the mounting tariff war caused by Donald Trump’s policies in the US.

Annual profits at B&Q owner Kingfisher have dropped by more than a third. The company's cautioned over rising costs following government budgets in the UK and France. Kingfisher generated pre-tax profits of £307 million for the year to the end of January, which is a 35% decline on last year.

Shell cost-saving efforts

Oil giant Shell is ramping up cost-saving targets. It's vowed to deliver more value with less emissions, despite weakening its carbon reduction pledge last year.

The oil giant told investors it would now look to strip out a cumulative £3.9 billion to £5.4 billion a year by the end of 2028.

An energy sector body is urging the government to consent to new projects in the North Sea. According to Offshore Energies UK the North Sea could produce half of the oil and gas the UK needs over the next 25 years, but only if Labour allows companies to operate there. OEUK says it could be worth £150 billion to the UK economy.

That's all for today, more tomorrow.