this is bbc news. the headlines... the bbc understand that india owned tata steel is to push ahead with plans to close both blast furnaces at its port talbot works in south wales. it is expected to lead to the loss of over 3000 jobs. pakistan carries out strikes and what it called terrorist hideouts in iran's border province days after iranian attacks. nurses, teachers and civil servants are among tens of thousands walking out over pay in northern ireland's biggest ever strike. british prime minister rishi sunak urges the house of lords to do the right thing and back his rwandan migrant legislation after it passed its third reading in the house of

commons. time for a look at the business news now. we start with the unfolding crisis in the red sea and concerns that the continued attacks on cargo ships by yemen's houthi rebels will affect developing countries the hardest. that's the warning from the world trade organization. today the us has launched a fourth round of airstrikes against the rebels — the us military said it targeted missiles that could be intended for attacks on ships. as vessels divert to longer and more costly routes that avoid the red sea, supply chains have been disrupted and economists have warned it could add to inflation. the wto's director general, dr ngozi 0konjo—iweala, has been speaking to our economic editor faisal islam at the world economic forum in switzerland.

iamjoined i am joined here by the director—general of the world trade organization. thank you forjoining 0rganization. thank you forjoining the bbc. 0bviously people are concerned about the fluidity of trade given this big geopolitical challenge and the physical blockages we are seeing in the red sea. what is the situation?— is the situation? legacy that trade is the situation? legacy that trade is very resilient _ is the situation? legacy that trade is very resilient and _ is the situation? legacy that trade is very resilient and if _ is the situation? legacy that trade is very resilient and if you - is the situation? legacy that trade is very resilient and if you get - is the situation? legacy that trade is very resilient and if you get all i is very resilient and if you get all the ups and downs we have had, trade has been resilient because it enables you to find different channels to satisfy the needs. but that being said, are quite concerned about the disruption we are seeing in the red sea. we are also concerned about whether is this disruption is likely having the panama canal with the drought and lower level of the canal, but we are concerned with the red sea, costs are going up, container costs are going up, insurance costs, costs for

fuel, the number of days and the delay in delivering supplies. you know, there are some manufacturers who are really very time sensitive and we have calculated that for some of those sorts of manufacturers, the delays we're seeing could result in upwards of 23% tariff on those goods. an additional cost. 0thers goods. an additional cost. others have also done the work and have come up with about the same figures. that is quite a serious impact, just when we thought the cost of living pressures were still there but starting to fade, they are back with a vengeance. starting to fade, they are back with a vengeance-— starting to fade, they are back with a vengeance. they are, and trade is laruel a vengeance. they are, and trade is largely disinflationary _ a vengeance. they are, and trade is largely disinflationary in _ a vengeance. they are, and trade is largely disinflationary in the - a vengeance. they are, and trade is largely disinflationary in the world l largely disinflationary in the world because by allowing scale and allowing things to be made around the world cheaper, it helps to keep costs down, so when we have this we worry about the pressure on people, particularly in developing

countries. the ordinary consumer and producer. countries. the ordinary consumer and roducer. ~ ., , ., countries. the ordinary consumer and roducer. ~ ., countries. the ordinary consumer and roducer. ., , producer. what you can see, it could rolon: producer. what you can see, it could prolong the — producer. what you can see, it could prolong the inflationary _ producer. what you can see, it could prolong the inflationary cost - producer. what you can see, it could prolong the inflationary cost of - prolong the inflationary cost of living crisis, what we're seeing from the red sea and in other trade routes? ., ., ., h, from the red sea and in other trade routes? ., ., ., ,., . ., routes? you have heard some central bank governors _ routes? you have heard some central bank governors say _ routes? you have heard some central bank governors say there _ routes? you have heard some central bank governors say there will - routes? you have heard some central bank governors say there will be - bank governors say there will be higherfor bank governors say there will be higher for longer interest rates, i think that has been said. largely you can see that inflationary pressures have been coming down because of the work of the central banks. but this might add back. hopefully we will be able to solve the real problem of what is causing the real problem of what is causing the disruptions in the red sea and that way this may be temporary. well, let's stay in davos and as we've been reporting earlier this week, the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs around the world has been one of the key themes at this year's forum. the international monetary fund has estimated that 40% ofjobs globally could be impacted by ai. earlier i spoke to becky frankiewicz — chief commercial officer for the recuritment giant manpower group. she explained what she sees as the biggest trends for the

workers of today. i would say the dual transformation of the grain transition and generative ai will have the largest impact on the workforce of our time. we are actually saying that consumers or workers are feeling positive about green, less positive about al, 50% of workers have been optimistic but that means 50% are concerned or have fears or even worse, are uncertain about their understanding of the topic. so we need to put our arms around workers and ensure they see their place in the future with both generative a&e green transition. you the future with both generative a&e green transition.— green transition. you highlight the ureen green transition. you highlight the green transition _ green transition. you highlight the green transition and _ green transition. you highlight the green transition and ensure - green transition. you highlight the | green transition and ensure people are enthusiastic about that because there is still potential for real people injobs there is still potential for real people in jobs with that, but people feel like theirjobs are under threat from al. i know you have been

talking about a people focused strategy, that is the dream, that al strategy, that is the dream, that ai will free up people from repetitive jobs and allow them to be more creative. in reality, and employers not more likelyjust to see an opportunity to save money? there will be jobs _ opportunity to save money? there will be jobs that _ opportunity to save money? there will be jobs that had _ opportunity to save money? ii—ii” will be jobs that had instructed, tasks disrupted within jobs, yet every come in history, every significant transformation has been a netjob—creating, that is what we're seeing. companies are hiring for al skills and adding jobs versus reducing jobs. for al skills and adding jobs versus reducingjobs. it for al skills and adding jobs versus reducing jobs. it will be a time of transition for the labour market around the world. we transition for the labour market around the world.— transition for the labour market around the world. we have covered several stories _ around the world. we have covered several stories in _ around the world. we have covered several stories in this _ around the world. we have covered several stories in this programme l several stories in this programme and across the bbc about employers doing the opposite of that, seeing the opportunity to simply lose headcount. how you saying they are outliers or perhaps they cannot following the best outcome of ai? what do we do to avoid that? it is art of what do we do to avoid that? it is part of the — what do we do to avoid that? it 3 part of the transition, immediately you will implement ai and we are

going to have some automation of low skilled roles. however there will be the creation of higher skilled roles, the companies you are talking to are in a point of transition, seeing the benefit that comes from hiring roles that are not so different, data scientists, programmers, thejobs different, data scientists, programmers, the jobs will shift and be a little different. in terms of your question on how we avoid it, we avoid people losing rose by insuring they are ready for the future of roles and that means upscaling, reskilling and a new term we have introduced, pre—schooling, which means readying a workforce before they needed so they actually future proofed. to saudi arabia now where the state oil company saudi aramco has announced it's doubling the value of its venture capital arm. it's part of a wider push by riyadh to diversify the economy of saudi arabia, which is dominated by oil. the cash will be deployed over the next four years with spending on

sectors such as new energies, chemicals, transition materials and digital technologies. sameer hashmi explained the impact this could have on the oil sector. this is a plan which has been put in place to ensure that the company prepares for a post—oil future, which according to the saudis, is still many decades away. so they are not overtly worried about that, and if you look at the amount they have put in the capital venture, it is not massive if you compare it to, let's say, their sovereign fund which is the pif. in that sense, theyjust want to make sure that they are creating separate verticals within the company in aramco that could generate revenues in the decades to come, but for now, they are very clear that oil demand is here to stay. this is the saudis. and even 0pec and 0pec—plus, the organisation that controls 40% of global supplies, which saudi arabia heads, believes that oil demand will remain high for the next two decades.

interestingly, if you look at what the iea, the international energy association agency has been saying, they have been saying that oil demand, peak oil demand will have hit its peak by 2030. that is completely contrary to what 0pec—plus and countries like saudi arabia have been saying. so it'll be interesting to see how this pans out, but yes, coming back to the original question, it doesn't look like there will be an immediate impact, but definitely in the decades to come. let's turn now to singapore — a country to india now — in recent years, it's been trying to lure big manufacturers like foxconn away from china by giving them billions of dollars in subsidies. but raghuram rajan — a former governor of the country s central bank — has been telling my colleague nikhil inamdar that this is no longer a winning strategy for a low—income country like india. there are a few problems with that path right now. first is that typically what happened was these manufacturing economies got richer and left the simple manufacturing to others.

china isn't leaving, china still has a lot of workers that it needs to employ from agriculture into manufacturing. the second problem, however, is that the rents, the profits from doing this kind of activity have been completely completed away. foxconn, which does all apple's manufacturing — apple hasn't manufactured a thing since 200a. foxconn's value is $50 billion. apple's value is three trillion — 60 times. why? because manufacturing is not that profitable any more. so what india is trying to do — climb up the ladder that way — we think is a task which would have been better done 20 years ago. it's a little late to do this. yes, if they come — if manufacturers want to site in india because it's a china plus one strategy, great. but to subsidise them heavily to do that with the hope that they will stay in india, you're essentially trying to create profits for manufacturers.

the modi government, of course, has been spending billions of dollars in subsidising companies like apple, foxconn and chip—makers like micron, for instance. where do you think that money can be more optimally used for better economic outcomes? the deal india signed with micron, which at least prima facie is that india is going to subsidise the micron factory — 2.7 billion in investment, two billion of which will come from the indian government. no equity, no nothing — we're just going to give the money. now $2 billion seems for an industrial country like pennies — it's pocket change. for india, $2 billion is over one third — the entire higher education budget of the central government. so we're spending $2 billion for what? 5,000 jobs.

around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. this may look like a pleasant video of wildlife frolicking in the forest of wildlife frolicking in the forest of dean. but take a closer look at this day a's head. it is of dean. but take a closer look at this day a's head.— this day a's head. it is entered this day a's head. it is entered this side of— this day a's head. it is entered this side of the _ this day a's head. it is entered this side of the back _ this day a's head. it is entered this side of the back of - this day a's head. it is entered this side of the back of the - this day a's head. it is entered i this side of the back of the head, shared of and gone between the skull. and the ear, behind the ear. so it is hanging out. irate skull. and the ear, behind the ear. so it is hanging out.— so it is hanging out. we know the dsm five for— so it is hanging out. we know the dsm five for at _ so it is hanging out. we know the dsm five for at least _ so it is hanging out. we know the dsm five for at least three - so it is hanging out. we know the dsm five for at least three weeks | dsm five for at least three weeks because they've spotted it around christmas time. he didn't get a clear photo of it back then so he came back recently and within five minutes found india, and took this video. deeply moved by what he had seen, dave handing the video to police. i seen, dave handing the video to olice. ,., , seen, dave handing the video to olice. , ., police. i felt sorry for it, it really did- _ police. i felt sorry for it, it really did. that _ police. i felt sorry for it, it really did. that could - police. i felt sorry for it, it really did. that could have police. i felt sorry for it, it - really did. that could have totally missed and gone into the dense part

of the forest and hit somebody. for more stories from across the uk, head to the bbc news website. rather world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's get more now on the war in gaza, israel's forces are continuing their assault on khan younis in the south, with fierce fighting happening close to the biggest hospital in the territory. these are latest pictures from the rafah, as you can see smoke rising in the distance after a large explosion hit the surounding area. and this is the destruction in gaza city's al—rimal neighbourhood, one of the key battlegrounds in the territory. the health ministry in hamas—run gaza says 24,620 palestinians killed and 61,830 wounded in israeli strikes on gaza since october seven. meanwhile qatar says a consignment of medicines for israeli

hostages held by hamas and humanitarian aid for palestinians has entered gaza. earlier i spoke to former senior defence 0fficial to the state of qatar, nawaf al—thani. first of all qatar obviously has continued its support on the humanitarian side, in addition to the negotiations on the path and hopefully will continue in the future, and this point qatar has sentin future, and this point qatar has sent in just around 2000 tonnes of aid to include 61 tonnes that were just sent in to help the hostages and the persisting in refugees, palestinian civilian casualties. who

are now crowding down into the rafa area near the border. that has been something with the french could parry air force air force aeroplanes, two of them, shall correspond at mansion, flew the aid and now cross the border, obviously from egypt. and now cross the border, obviously from egypt-— from egypt. where would you say mediation. _ from egypt. where would you say mediation, talked _ from egypt. where would you say mediation, talked our _ from egypt. where would you say mediation, talked our terms - from egypt. where would you say mediation, talked our terms of i mediation, talked our terms of trying for example to ensure that more humanitarian aid can go through to gaza, and on course insuring their safe release of all the hostages are still being held, hostages are still being held, hostages taken by hamas on the 7th of october? i hostages taken by hamas on the 7th of october? ., hostages taken by hamas on the 7th of october?— of october? i think negotiations are vital. of october? i think negotiations are vital- there — of october? i think negotiations are vital. there is _ of october? i think negotiations are vital. there is no _ of october? i think negotiations are vital. there is no military _ of october? i think negotiations are vital. there is no military solution l vital. there is no military solution to the conflict in gaza. there is only a political one. i think we have seen this very clearly with all the civilians killed and israelis before that on october seven. all of that proved there is no military solution to this situation. qatar has always pushed and continues, as

i have seen any reports from the government, continue to push for negotiation, haven't stopped trying. but it needs partners and bedside, the israelis have shown some hesitancy to move forward in negotiations and the pastor now with this limited cooperation on medicine and humanitarian aid, i think this is some glimmer of hope that we can continue. but unfortunately we have seen about 170 palestinians killed in the past 2a—hours, this really needs to stop. and unless the israeli government realises that only with negotiations can therefore end, unfortunately this will continue. it end, unfortunately this will continue-— end, unfortunately this will continue. ., ., ., , , ., continue. it was negotiations before that securing _ continue. it was negotiations before that securing that _ continue. it was negotiations before that securing that temporary - that securing that temporary ceasefire which not only saw the release of some hostages but some much needed humanitarian aid getting into gaza. 0f much needed humanitarian aid getting into gaza. of course aid agency to last day in, day out it is still not

enough to deal with that humanitarian crisis. when do you see another ceasefire of any sort happening again? do you see that there could be progress being made, any breakthroughs in the next few weeks, even? any breakthroughs in the next few weeks. even?— any breakthroughs in the next few weeks, even? ~ . , , ., weeks, even? well, that depends on the israelis. — weeks, even? well, that depends on the israelis, obviously. _ weeks, even? well, that depends on the israelis, obviously. they - weeks, even? well, that depends on the israelis, obviously. they need i the israelis, obviously. they need to show that they interested in moving forward in negotiations. unfortunately the current israeli government, driven by the neo—conservatives, have shown no interest, even in the media, even a signal that they interested in negotiations, let alone laying down the terms. the other side is, the americans, the other partner in the negotiation, have signalled their may be a breakthrough in the coming weeks but we have yet to see that, obviously. the hope remains that qatar has made very clear, including the prime minister, saying yesterday

that they are pushing forward for a peaceful resolution and not giving up peaceful resolution and not giving up on negotiations and a negotiated settlement, but it really needs in the israelis to reach that conclusion and realisation that only through negotiations and not through military operation will this be resolved, otherwise this will continue, and as we have seen, will also continue to widen beyond gaza. bikinis from the reuters news _ widen beyond gaza. bikinis from the reuters news agency _ widen beyond gaza. bikinis from the reuters news agency that _ widen beyond gaza. bikinis from the reuters news agency that defence i reuters news agency that defence systems shot down an armed drone on thursday, in northern iraq, where us and other international forces are stationed, reuters escalating security sources. we will have more on that story when we get it. the nominations have been announced for this year's bafta film awards. christopher nolan's 0ppenheimer leads the way with 13 nominations, including for best film and best director. its big summer box office rival barbie received five, and missed out on a nod for best film.

jane crowther is edtior—in—chief of total films. it's interesting that love for it at the box office has rolled over into awards season. there was a sort of interest in whether barbie would make that move, as it is a sort of light comedy, but existentialist, as anybody who has seen it can tell you. but it is probably the time for nolan to get his award, having missed out in the past. 0ppenheimer is his big passion project, and i think it will do very well. i3 nominations, we have been saying, including for cillian murphy as well. what other things strike you as you look at the nominations list? any unusual nominees? i mean, it's the omissions that are quite interesting. lily gladstone, who is the lead in killers of the flower moon, has been sort of the frontrunner for the award season so far. and she is not listed as best actress. so, basically that one is emma stone's to lose. there is also no andrew scott for all of us strangers

which has done very well as well. and he is the lead in that and not seen here. poor things has been nominated for 11 awards but none for the director, so that is an interesting turn of events. and how much are the bafta nominations seen as a precursor to what might happen at the oscars ceremony? i mean, they are generally a bellwether for the oscars. we do see a lot of repetition, but what you see at the baftas is more a recognition of uk talent, and irish talent. so, it is likely that people like cillian murphy will be rewarded, but he may not be at the oscars. we will have to wait and see but often there is a lot of crossover. 0k. and, yeah, remind us when the baftas are. 18th of february at the royal festival hall, that is when we will find out who has won what. and it is presented by doctor who,

so what could be better? this is bbc news. last night was the coldest night of the winter so far for most of the uk, with temperatures falling to below —i3c in parts of scotland. the freezing temperatures have triggered cold weather payments in 200 postcodes in england and wales. 0ur cost of living correspondent coletta smith has been finding out how people are trying to keep warm. as the temperatures have dropped, everyone's focus has crystallised on how to stay warm. it is carol, all the way from snowy... i have four inches of snow on top of my bin, the dog has decided she wants to sleep in the bed because it is actually. she has got multiple layers on because it is absolutely freezing. it takes absolutely ages for the house to warm up and it is expensive. most of their house is pretty cold but the sitting room - we have got the log burner

on so it is not too bad. - also got a two—year—old so we had to put the heating on to make sure he did not get cold overnight. heath robinson would be proud, wood—burning stove, fans on top of the hob. in manchester, this is even more important than usual, giving out food parcels, a cuppa and a chance to chat in the warmth. it has been a lifeline to come here. walter is 93 and has struggled to heat his home. we have got to have it on to keep warm but i try to keep it off as much as i can because i cannot afford to. around 80 people arrive here every week with demand growing in the cold. people are struggling, people with their own businesses struggling with heating, so you can imagine being on a very low income, and benefits, to have somewhere where you can come and be warm and have a chat with somebody and share your problems and your thoughts. it's a no—brainer. £25 cold weather payments will be made in hundreds

of postcodes across northern england and wales and in scotland, payments should arrive in february, but campaigners say there should be cheaper energy for those who need it most. the government could be doing so much more but so far it has refused any attempts to extend the help, and in fact only last week it actually ruled out any form of tariff reform to bring in protection to those vulnerable groups. if you're struggling to keep warm, try to keep one room at at least 18 degrees, if you can, turn off the radiators in the rest of the house to save on those energy costs. and it is often cheaper and safer at this time of year during a very cold snap like this to keep the heat on for longer at a lower temperature rather than cranking it up to higher temperatures quickly. but at least this cold spell should not last beyond saturday. colletta smith, bbc news, manchester. a broken—hearted swan has

become a fixture at a school in telford in shropshire. the bird, who's been nicknamed sally, spends every day staring at her reflection in a window. the school says she began her daily trip after her mate died more than a year ago. 0ur midlands correspondent phil mackie reports. it was minus five and swan lake was thick with ice when sally started her slippy morning commute. every day she sets off for school, waddling injust in time for the day's first lesson, before settling down in front of her reflection. sally's been filmed making the journey since 2022, and drivers have had to get used to stopping to let her through. we saw it on, i think it was monday morning, walking over the zebra crossing. it was walking in front of us, so it's like it knows where to cross, doesn't it? she'll sit there and she'll, like, just be staring at her reflection in the window. there used to be two of them on this lake here, but now there's only the one, and all she does is

stay over this way. it's the story of a broken heart which began when sally's mate died and she was left alone. this is where she comes for companionship. she's often solitary on the lake - or near to the lake and then makes a journey over here on her own. her main company is members of the school community. - and her reflection? yeah, and her reflection, yeah. at one point they got some wildlife experts to move sally to a park not far away where there's another colony of swans, but she came straight back. so even though she might be lonely, she seems happy here. so for the time being sally hasn't got anywhere else to go. they really hope that a male swan will turn up this year and romance will blossom. until then, she only has a mirror image. phil mackie, bbc news, telford. in texas we are waiting for a news conference to take place, we are expecting to hear from the us

attorney general. that comes after we have been reporting that the results of a review into the way that that school shooting in 2022 was handled by the police is going to be formally released, so we will bring you that conference when it happens. another development on that is that the presidentjoe biden said he has not yet read that report. now it's time for a look at the weather. hello, good afternoon. it was the coldest night of the winter so far for most of us last night, but there is a lot of winter sunshine out there and blue sky today — including here in pontypridd in south wales. a few showers for western wales, showers clearing away from north sea—facing coasts, but still blizzard—like conditions in northern scotland, and we're set to stay in that cold air for the next couple of days before it turns a lot milder over the weekend, but also wet and very windy —

already, warnings in force for heavy rain and strong, gusty winds. and there's an amber warning in force across the northern isles and down through caithness and sutherland for heavy snow until six o'clock this evening — as much as 15 to 20 centimetres of falling snow. blizzard—like conditions with brisk northerly—to—north—westerly winds and drifting snow, too. wider warnings in force across northern ireland and much of scotland away from the south and the east for snow and ice. elsewhere, the winter sunshine continues. still maybe a few showers drifting into northwestern wales, down through parts of south—west wales, and into perhaps the far south—west of england through this evening. again, those snow showers pile into north—western areas of scotland. there will be icy stretches where we've seen the showers today, and maybe some freezing fog patches, too — particularly across the east midlands and down through eastern areas of wales, too. temperatures widely, of course, below freezing. but tomorrow we start to drag in some milder—feeling air, with more of a south—westerly wind starting to develop. the snow levels will gradually rise across north—western scotland,

so the snow turning back to rain and to sleet — particularly for lower lying areas, of course. temperatures coming up slightly to between four and seven degrees celsius. it will be largely dry and there will be quite a lot of winter sunshine around again. as we head into the weekend, it's all change — we start to look out to the atlantic again, various weather fronts moving through. look at the squeeze on the isobars — it's going to turn really very windy. most of us will wake up to temperatures above freezing as we head through saturday morning. there will be outbreaks of rain again — possibly heavy at times — just drifting in from the west, so some wet weather but look at these temperatures — rising back up into double figures for western spots as we head through saturday. warnings in place on sunday for strong winds for much of the uk and for heavy rain, too. it turns even milder into the start of next week. bye— bye.

live from london, this is bbc news. the bbc understands indian—owned tata steel is to push ahead with plans to close both blast furnaces at its port talbot works in south wales. the move is expected to lead to the loss of up to 3,000 jobs. pakistan carries out strikes on what it calls nurses, teachers and civil servants are among tens of thousands walking out over pay in northern ireland's biggest ever strike. a report into the deadly valley school shooting in texas in 2022 has criticised the police response to the attack describing it as a failure —— uvalde. this is the scene live in uvalde, where we are expecting to hear from the us attorney general. we will bring that to you as soon as it begins.

pakistan carries out strikes on what it calls