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Early results in the local elections showed Nigel Farage's populist Reform UK racking up sweeping gains over Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour. The results reaffirm a splintering of British politics that's seen the insurgent Reform and Green parties make up ground on the right and left. Bloomberg's Alex Morgan reports from London.

Polling analyst and Conservative Party peer Robert Hayward says early indications following UK local elections show the results are "as bad as people were predicting for Labour", but London so far appears to be the one exception. Early results suggest a "great night for Reform", according to Hayward. But a full picture of the results might not come into focus until late in the UK day. In an interview on Bloomberg Daybreak Europe, Hayward said it will be a "summer of discontent" for Labour as they argue over whether or not to replace Prime Minister Keir Starmer. He added that he "wouldn't be at all surprised" if this happened over the next few months.

Sam Lynton-Brown, head of global macro strategy at BNP Paribas Markets 360, discusses the economic situation in the United Kingdom. Speaking on Bloomberg Television, he says BNP is not expecting UK long-term borrowing costs to go higher following the yield on 30-year gilts' jump to 5.78% earlier in the week. "We think that's actually one of the DM bond markets that should be a little bit more insulated given how cheap valuations already are," Lynton-Brown says.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said inflation is expected to rise to "a little over 3.5% by the end of the year" as a direct consequence of the conflict in the Middle East. He was speaking during a press conference following the central bank's decision to keep interest rates on hold with several policymakers saying they might consider future hikes.

UK inflation accelerated in March, as a surge in energy costs triggered by the Iran war started to hit consumers in the pocket. The consumer prices index rose 3.3% from a year earlier, up from 3% the previous month, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday. Santander Corporate and Investment Banking Economist Victoria Clarke reacts to the data on Bloomberg Television.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer traveled to the Gulf to meet with leaders in the region and discuss efforts to support and uphold the ceasefire between the US and Iran. Bloomberg's James Woolcock breaks down the situation.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey says it was appropriate to keep interest rate on hold at 3.75% on Thursday due to the situation in the Middle East. There has been a "huge increase in uncertainty," Bailey said in a pooled interview clip. "None of us know how this is going to play out."

Blackstone President and Chief Operating Officer Jon Gray says the UK government's attempts to balance the books through higher taxes are pushing entrepreneurs to move abroad. In an interview for the upcoming podcast series, Leaders with Francine Lacqua which launches March 16, Gray also says that recent ructions in the world of private credit aren't indicative of systemic issues. He also expects dealmaking to pick up sooner than people expect despite a pause in transactions because of the Middle East conflict.

UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said the Office for Budget Responsibility forecast she would meet her key fiscal rule to cover day-to-day expenditure with tax revenues in 2029/30 with a £23.6 billion ($31.4 billion) buffer, higher than the £21.7 billion headroom Reeves left herself in November. She was speaking in the House of Commons.

Senior US officials say President Donald Trump's tariff defeat at the Supreme Court will not unravel trade deals negotiated with key US partners, as the administration moves to defend its assertive trade policies. Agreements reached with China, the European Union, Japan and South Korea remain in place, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on CBS's Face the Nation. However, Trump's pledge to reimpose tariffs at 15% on all nations could result in the UK facing the largest increase, up from its previous reciprocal tariff rate of 10%. Crawford Falconer, Former UK Chief Trade Negotiation Adviser and currently senior advisor to Bradshaw advisory joins Stephen Carroll and Caroline Hepker on Bloomberg Radio to discuss.