Wednesday newspaper round-up: Tariffs, Brexit, pay, Facebook
The Trump administration has raised the stakes in a growing trade showdown with China by placing 25% tariffs on some 1,300 industrial technology, transport and medical products to try to force changes in Beijing’s intellectual property practices. The US announcement targets about $50bn of estimated 2018 imports and is aimed at hampering China’s efforts to upgrade its manufacturing base. The goods include electronics, aircraft parts, medicine and machinery. - Guardian
The influential Commons Brexit committee has urged the government to consider negotiating continued membership of the European Economic Area (EEA) or joining the European Free Trade Association (Efta) after the UK leaves the European Union. The Brexit secretary, David Davis, has previously ruled out both options, calling them “the worst of all outcomes”. - Guardian
Shop prices are falling at the fastest pace in more than a year as retailers battle for a bigger slice of shrinking household incomes. Deflation in the shops accelerated to 1 per cent in March compared with last year, according to a monthly release by the British Retail Consortium and Nielsen. In February prices fell at annual rate of 0.8 per cent. - The Times
Trade deals with China should be a “priority target” for Britain as it leaves the European Union because it can take advantage of the growing demand for drugs and medical equipment in the world’s second largest economy, the UK’s new trade commissioner for the country has argued. Richard Burn aims to persuade China to reform its highly regulated markets, such as pharmaceuticals, to make it easier for British exporters to sell products there. - The Times
A woman opened fire at YouTube’s headquarters in California overnight, injuring at least three people before apparently killing herself. About 200 staff at the video-sharing site, which is owned by Alphabet's Google, fled the building after hearing gunshots at lunchtime. Three victims were taken to local hospitals, two women aged 32 and 27 and a 36-year-old man who was in a critical condition last night. - The Times
Sports Direct, Savills and Foxtons are among the hundreds of British businesses yet to disclose their gender pay gap figures despite the government deadline being midnight on Tuesday. All UK companies with more than 250 staff have to publish their gender pay gap figures by April 4 under new laws, with around 9,000 businesses estimated to be eligible to do so. But hundreds of names were still missing from the register by Tuesday evening. - Telegraph
The UK equality watchdog must be more aggressive to enforce changes that would reduce the size of the gender pay gap, Harriet Harman has said. The Labour MP – a key architect of the Equality Act 2010, which requies businesses with 250 or more employees to reveal the differences in what they pay men and women – said that the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC)should set up a series of inquiries and force change. - Guardian
EDF has threatened to abandon work on a proposed nuclear plant in Suffolk unless it receives assurances from the government this year that a viable funding model exists. Simone Rossi, EDF Energy’s UK chief executive, said that rapid progress was needed on the development of the sister project to its £19.6 billion Hinkley Point C plant in Somerset because promised cost savings would not materialise if there was a significant delay between work on the two. - The Times
The RAC could be forced to offer refunds to up to 1 million breakdown recovery customers after its policy renewal letters failed to prominently display the previous year’s premium. Under transparency regulations introduced a year ago by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), companies have to clearly show the amount the customer paid the previous year alongside the renewal price. - Guardian
Spotify's value shot up dramatically in its New York listing on Tuesday, pushing the music streaming giant’s market capitalisation as high as $30bn (£21bn) and making its flotation the third-biggest for a technology company on record. The Swedish company defied some predictions of a tricky first day on the markets to open trading at $165.90, well above the $132 “reference price” that had been set the night before, although shares later lost some ground to close at around $149. - Telegraph
Facebook has removed 135 accounts which it believes are linked to the Russia-based Internet Research Agency (IRA), an organisation accused of spreading divisive messages across the internet, supporting the Russian government and attempting to weaken its rivals. The social media giant said the IRA - among those charged by a US grand jury with conspiracy to defraud the United States - has no place on Facebook after abusing the service. - Guardian
Young's Seafood is planning to close its Pinney's site in Annan, in the south of Scotland, putting 450 roles at risk, saying it is "no longer financially sustainable" to keep the factory open. Under the proposals, the facility, which had been largely dedicated to producing seafood for Marks & Spencer, would close before the end of 2018. - Guardian