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Trade, Regulation & Policy

Changes to tariffs, product rules, data requirements or other conditions affecting entry.

An online retail worker weighs a plain parcel beside a laptop in a UK dispatch room.

CMA warns UK retailers over compulsory delivery fees

Online retailers face fines of up to 10% of worldwide turnover for pricing breaches as the CMA presses businesses to disclose compulsory delivery fees upfront.

11 Nov

An anonymous worker loads crates of vegetables into a refrigerated lorry at a food distribution warehouse in England.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

UK and EU agree draft deal to remove food trade checks

A draft UK-EU food trade agreement would remove costly certificates and reopen export routes, with ministers forecasting £5.1bn in eventual annual economic benefits.

03 Nov

Anonymous shipyard workers beside an unfinished steel hull at a defence shipbuilding yard in Glasgow.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

UK plans matching investment rule for foreign defence suppliers

Foreign suppliers winning UK defence contracts worth more than £50m would have to match their value with British investment under rules starting in April 2027.

01 Nov

An e-commerce worker reviews a laptop beside unbranded household items at a desk in Brussels.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

EU accepts Temu’s DSA action plan after €200m fine

Temu’s plan to address EU risk assessment failures has been accepted, but regulators want closer scrutiny of gaps and an independent audit of implementation.

27 Oct

Workers pack plain cardboard parcels inside a UK online retailer’s dispatch unit.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

UK Budget could shift VAT collection to Amazon, eBay and Temu

Online marketplaces could take responsibility for sellers’ VAT as the Treasury weighs measures that together could raise about £3.5bn a year, BBC Business reports.

25 Oct

Steel sections being lifted beside a freight wagon in a Ukrainian steelworks yard, with two workers standing nearby.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

Metinvest seeks Ukraine exemption from tighter EU steel limits

Ukraine’s steel industry expects exports to the EU could fall by 50–60% as tighter import limits add to the pressures facing producers during Russia’s war.

19 Oct

Startup team reviewing folders around a meeting table in a Brussels office

Trade, Regulation & Policy

EU Inc supporters warn negotiations risk weakening startup reform

Campaigners warn that changes to EU Inc could undermine Europe’s proposed company framework, as UK public investors commit fresh capital to technology funds.

18 Oct

Automotive components in unmarked crates beside a loading bay at a UK warehouse, with a worker checking a pallet.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

Lescure urges UK to rejoin EU amid manufacturing access concerns

France’s finance minister has encouraged Britain to return to the EU as proposed industrial support rules raise concerns over UK supply chains.

08 Oct

An offshore oil and gas platform in UK North Sea waters, seen from a supply vessel with crew on deck.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

Equinor warns UK investment hinges on Rosebank and Jackdaw

Equinor says rejecting Rosebank and Jackdaw could put future UK investment at risk, as ministers weigh energy supply, climate assessments and public objections.

07 Oct

An anonymous software developer at a keyboard in a Brussels office, with an out-of-focus monitor.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

OpenAI to watermark ChatGPT and Codex text in the EU

OpenAI will introduce invisible text watermarks to meet EU AI Act requirements, while giving developers worldwide an optional setting for selected models.

06 Oct

An anonymous driver refuels a delivery van with diesel at a UK roadside forecourt.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

UK prepares for possible US diesel export ban

The US supplies about a third of UK diesel imports, leaving businesses exposed to further fuel-cost increases as diesel reaches 199.18p a litre.

28 Sept

Legal representatives carrying folders outside a court building in Luxembourg, where digital regulation is contested.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

US seeks to back X in challenge to €120m EU fine

Washington wants to intervene in X’s appeal against an EU digital rules penalty, bringing regulatory jurisdiction into focus for US technology businesses.

26 Sept

Business travellers carrying laptop bags and wheeled luggage through an airport departures concourse in Zurich, Switzerland.

Trade, Regulation & Policy

UK–Switzerland trade deal targets £5.2bn services export boost

The enhanced agreement sets out new rules for staff transfers, digital trade and market access, with UK services exports forecast to rise by £5.2bn annually in the long run.

26 Sept