United Statesukgov

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.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan discusses artificial intelligence, migration, affordable housing and why voters shouldn't back the populist Reform UK in next week's local elections, describing Nigel Farage's party as a "poor man's version of President Trump and MAGA." Khan also backed Prime Minister Keir Starmer to survive the growing scandal around his 2024 appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington. He talks with Chad Thomas at Bloomberg's CityLab conference in Madrid, where a new forum involving mayors from across the world to ensure artificial intelligence works for effectively for cities was announced.

Ukraine is open to delay access to the EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funding initially, however, it may become part of negotiations over the next seven-year budget, which would begin in 2034, Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka says in an interview on Bloomberg TV.

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.

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.

UK inflation dropped to a 10-month low, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday, bolstering the case for an interest-rate cut when the Bank of England meets next month. Jefferies economist Modupe Adegbembo, speaking on Bloomberg Television, forecasts 75 basis points of rate reductions in 2026. "We think growth is weaker than expected," she says. "The second factor is that we think looking at the labor market, the labor market conditions are not doing well right now."