Author: BBC

Asian shares slid on Monday after US President Donald Trump followed through on his promise to impose tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. Investors are bracing for a turbulent period that could hit the earnings of major companies and dent global growth. Canada and Mexico have said that they will hit back with retaliatory tariffs while China promised “corresponding countermeasures” and vowed to challenge Trump’s move at the World Trade Organization.Trump has said the tariffs are necessary to halt the flow of illegal drugs and immigration into the US.Canada and Mexico are facing tariffs of 25% on their exports to…

Samantha Granville, Emma Vardy & Christal HayesBBC NewsReporting fromLos Angeles, California Getty ImagesThe week leading up to the Grammy Awards is typically a star-studded seven days. It is filled with exclusive parties that draw some of music’s top talents from across the globe – producers, singers, agents and musicians – all to the epicentre of the entertainment industry in Los Angeles. But nearly all of that is non-existent this year. Even the hallmark rowdy after-parties have been cancelled. There were questions over whether the Grammys ceremony, the “Oscars for Music,” would even go on as planned on Sunday after Los…

Koei TecmoDynasty Warriors: Origins released worldwide in January 2025 It is rare that a video game series becomes so popular it inspires copycats – but it is rarer still that it’s so unique it kicks off its own genre.But that’s what happened with Dynasty Warriors, a series which pioneered the so-called “1 vs 1,000” gameplay, in which the player defeats thousands of enemies in each level.Throughout years of development – the series has been going since 1997 on the original PlayStation – hardware limitations meant at its best only a few hundred enemies could appear on-screen at any one time.But…

Erica Donnelly, Jessica Tse, Jack LathamThe BBC spoke to six people – including Erica, Jessica and Jack – who have had their first cervical screening in the last six monthsPeople not knowing about options to make their cervical screening easier and more comfortable is “costing lives”, a cancer charity warned last month.To find out what having the test is really like for first timers, the BBC spoke to six people who have had their first cervical screening, formerly known as a smear test, in the last six months.Cervical screenings, offered by the NHS to all women and people with a…

Jessica Murphy in Toronto & Will Grant in Mexico CityBBC NewsGetty ImagesTrump had threatened to impose major tariffs upon taking officeCanada, Mexico and China have vowed to respond to sweeping new tariffs to their exports to the US announced by President Donald Trump.Trump said a levy of 25% on Canadian and Mexican imports as well as an additional 10% tax on Chinese goods would come into force on Tuesday. Canadian energy faces a lower 10% tariff.The US president said the move was in response to his concerns about illegal immigration and drug trafficking – two of the main promises on…

Emily in Paris star Lily Collins has welcomed her first child via surrogacy.The actress, 35, shared the news in a joint message on Instagram with husband, film director Charlie McDowell.”Welcome to the centre of our world Tove Jane McDowell,” the pair wrote.”Words will never express our endless gratitude for our incredible surrogate and everyone who helped us along the way.”The post was accompanied by a photo of their baby daughter sleeping alongside a blanket with her name on it.It ended by saying: “We love you to the moon and back again.”The announcement came a day after Collins posted a tribute…

Andrew RogersBBC NewsbeatBBCRacers, start your engines, and may the best smell, win!Modern video games look and sound more realistic than they ever have.But there’s one sense developers have yet to exploit – smell.Imagine playing as Mario, pirouetting through the Mushroom Kingdom as a waft of a Fire Flower power-up hits you.Or dropping into a hallway in the Last of Us crawling with Clickers – the deadly, stalking enemies mutated by an extinction-level fungal pandemic. James, a member of the Nuneaton Nitros esports team, says he’s curious about some of those weird aromas.”I could definitely say I’ve wanted to smell things…

Ben KingBusiness reporterBBCAdvert for heated tobacco product on display in a Sainsbury’s store in LondonSainsbury’s and Morrisons are displaying adverts for tobacco products in their stores which Trading Standards says are against the law.Video screens and posters promote devices that deliver nicotine by heating tobacco rather than burning it.The two supermarkets say they believe the laws banning tobacco advertising do not apply to the devices.Heated tobacco is less harmful than cigarettes, but experts say it is probably more harmful than vapes, and less effective at helping smokers quit.Tobacco adverts were banned in 2002. But if you walk into a Sainsbury’s…

Graham FraserTechnology reporterGetty ImagesBarclays bank is experiencing intermittent errors with payments and transfers amid serious IT problems that also earlier affected its app and online banking. Customers have told the BBC it is preventing them making essential transactions, ranging from buying baby milk to completing a house move.Barclays says cards and cash machines can be used as normal – though some customers have said this is not the case.The outage is occurring on what is pay day for many people in the UK, and the deadline for self-assessment tax returns.Barclays has not explained the cause of the IT problems, or…

Steven McIntoshEntertainment reporterBBCCassidy’s exit storyline will coincide with the show’s 40th anniversary in FebruaryActress Natalie Cassidy is to leave EastEnders, more than three decades after her first appearance on the soap as Sonia Fowler.In a statement the 41-year-old said she was “extremely sad” but also “very excited” to be moving on.Her exit storyline has not yet been confirmed, but the BBC said her final scenes would air around the time of the soap’s 40th anniversary in February. Cassidy said: “After another 11 solid years back on the square, I have decided it’s time to move on to pastures new. Natalie…