this is business live from bbc news with susannah streeter and maryam moshiri. as the us proposes a further $100 billion worth of tariffs on china, beijing say its prepared to pay any price to defend the country's interests. live from london, that's our top story on friday 6th april. as the rhetoric ramps up between china and the us, we'll look atjust how damaging this could be for the world's two biggest economies. also in the programme.... the electronics giant samsung posts another bumper set of results. we will be checking in with the financial markets to find out how investors have reacted to the latest trade spat. it's been a busy seven days for the social media giant facebook and we've also seen some of the most

influential companies in the world report their gender pay gap. later in the programme, we'll get a round—up of all of the biggest business stories of the week. as the tax on sugary soft drinks comes into force in the uk, we ask whether paying more will put you off sweet drinks? and should the government be getting involved in tackling our health issues? let us know, just use the hashtag #bbcbizlive. hello and welcome to business live. we start with the trade tensions between the united states and china. beijing says it's prepared to do what it takes to protect the country's interests following the latest proposals from washington. the us has added more fuel to the spat, threatening a further $100 billion in tariffs against china. these would be in addition to the $50 billon worth of us tariffs already

proposed on hundreds of chinese imports. earlier, washington set out about 1,300 chinese products it intended to hit with tariffs set at 25%. the proposal comes after china retaliated to that by threatening tariffs on 106 key us products, also worth some $50 billion. with me is our economics correspondent andrew walker. china is saying it is prepared to do whatever it takes to protect the country's interest coming yet another chinese negotiation tactic? there is a lot of, it is fair to say, strong positioning going on. you have too asked to what extent countries are defending their interests if they were to go ahead and take the actions they are threatening. i think most economists would tell you a trade more between two partners that are broadly

similar economic size, both sides tend to lose. it is another matter where one is much larger than the other but in this case we have the world's other but in this case we have the worlds to mac —— two largest economies and if they acted on these threats there would be losers on both sides. really, will it lead to a change in the trade deficit? isn't this all about the fact that china is really about the fact that china is really a superpower of savers? that is an important element. 0ne a superpower of savers? that is an important element. one of the striking things, it is certainly the case that president trump is a preoccupation about the trade deficit and bilateral deficit in particular, it is really striking that we had really very large imbalances in the run—up to the financial crisis, going back a decade. they have condemned enormously in the period sense. —— period since. china, hepeated around

10% of national income of gdp, now it is down to around 1.5% of gdp. the us had a deficit, got close to 6% to one point now it is below 3%. particularly in the case of the united states they are significant imbalances, but clearly the tension in terms of the potential for global economic disruption is enormously declined. if it has declined, why are these bilateral trade agreements so are these bilateral trade agreements so important to president trump? he ta kes so important to president trump? he takes the view that a trade deficit isa sign takes the view that a trade deficit is a sign that you are in some sense. . . is a sign that you are in some sense... of weakness, but by rectifying the trade deficit you could simply produce more stuff yourself and sell it more yourself. i think most economists would take the view that what is really going on, as susannah hinted, is that you

have trade deficits because you have relatively low levels of trading. china is a big saver, the us much less. it is economic arithmetic. if thatis less. it is economic arithmetic. if that is the case, you get these trade imbalances. thank you very much, andrew. andrew is talking about trade deficits, thatis is talking about trade deficits, that is one of the other stories making the news. the us trade deficit increased to a record high in february — that's according to figures from the us commerce department. the deficit was $57.6 billion — the largest monthly gap between exports and imports of goods and services since 2008. the gap was larger than analysts predicted, as imports of services rose. india's central bank is banning financial firms from dealing in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and etherium. the move comes as many governments around the world crack down on the digital currencies because they are unregulated. from today, shoppers buying sugary drinks here in the uk face a hefty new tax. it's all in a bid to cut

obesity rates and encourage healthier choices. the higher the sugar content the greater the tax, with consumers paying up to 33 cents per litre to satisfy their sweet tooth. many countries have either brought in a sugar tax, or are thinking about it. but does it actually change consumer's habits? with me is peter harding, head of lucozade ribena. good to talk to you. i believe you have already been cutting sugar from products? over the last five years we have taken 20% of the sugar out of lu coza d e we have taken 20% of the sugar out of lucozade and ribena. we have made a very bold step to lead the food and drink industry by taking in some cases well over 50% of the sugar out of lu coza d e cases well over 50% of the sugar out of lucozade and ribena. we have no high sugar products in our portfolio, they are although sugar. we see this as a key part in our role in helping change consumer behaviour and tackle the obesity

crisis. to what extent was this prompted by this tax? you have known about it for a while, would you have taken this action of the government hadn't laid this policy? we were on this journey and had taken a significant amount of sugar out already. we then talk to consumers about what they would really like us to do, they said on ribena, first and foremost, please keep the great taste, keep the functionality of lu coza d e taste, keep the functionality of lucozade with its glucose energy and the vitamins c and ribena, but please take the sugar out. so we made a massive investment in research and development to reformulating go to market with the lower sugar drinks. the 500 millilitre bottle of ribena still contains 11.6 grams of sugar, and a similar sized lucozade bottle is 62 grams of sugar, these are still high levels. it depends on how you define high, right? we look at government guidelines on what is high and what is lower sugar, what is low fat and

low salt. we have never sides that consumers should drink lucozade and ribena all day everyday. they are a permissible treat, that is how we see them. the food and drink industry and society is on a long—term journey to change dietary habits and secondly exercise habits. we believe business, government and the media need to play their role in changing this behaviour. do you support this sugar tax? in isolation, i do not think it will solve the problem. but if we have a broad coalition tackling exercise and diet, we have a chance. we are investing £30 million over the next three years with anthonyjoshua as oui’ three years with anthonyjoshua as our ambassador to encourage more people just to take more simple exercise daily, weather walking to the train station, cycling to work.

these are the things we had to change. to burn off the sugar? it would take a lot of walking to work to burn off fat level of sugar.m is not just to burn off fat level of sugar.m is notjust diet, the food and drink industry need to step forward. we have two great british brands leading the way. that is lovely, thank you for talking to us about your efforts and cutting sugar. tech giant samsung electronics has projected another record operating profit for the first quarter after last yea r‘s stellar performance. the south korean company predicted an operating profit of $111] billion for the first three months of 2018, up 58 % from a year earlier. leisha santorelli is in singapore. what is behind the strong numbers? the better—than—expected results are due to strong demand for samson's memory chips, the smartphones only account for about 40% of revenue. the smartphones market is incredibly

competitive but the samsung tack galaxy which has recently released has helped results. analysts are worried the boom in the memory chip market will subside and head future results, but it is worth marking that this is the first financial numbers we have got and since the head of the samsung group was unexpectedly released from prison in february he had received a suspended sentence for a bribery conviction and is expected to be back at work soon. and in the last few hours we've seen south korea's former president park geun—hye sentenced for involvement in the country's corruption scandal. correct. a scandal that involves her and the samsung conglomerate. she was sentenced to 2a years in prison after being found guilty of 16 out of 18 criminal charges, including bribery, abuse of power, coercion, leaking of state secrets. she has denied most of these charges and said her sentences considered pretty lenient because prosecutors were seeking a 30 yearjail term. this

park can still appeal the decision toa park can still appeal the decision to a higher court that her reputation is still pretty disgraced. —— miss park can. she is the first president in south korean history to have been impeached. she was proud to have colluded with a childhood front who had an almost rasputin like influence over her. they pressured business leaders in charge of the big korean conglomerates like samsung electronics. she and her childhood front basically as these company heads to donate milivojevic in terms —— in return for government favours, and the scandal led to a big backlash and south korea. we saw hundreds of thousands of people protesting on the streets of seoul last year, forcing rogers these corruption trials bid for big companies like samson to improve their corporate governance. many thanks for that update. it's been a session of volatile trading in asia as traders have been digested the latest developments in the us—china trade spat and eyed all—important us jobs data due out later today.

hong kong's hang seng was outperforming its regional peers, but the market was playing catch—up after being closed yesterday. wall street closed higher for the third straight day, as investors‘ fears over a full—blown trade war eased but that was before of course president trump ratcheted up the rhetoric. let's ta ke let's take a look at how europe has been faring since opening. we can bring up the page. the ftse 100 been faring since opening. we can bring up the page. the ftse100 was down, as was the cac a0 and the dax. 0verdue, maryam. don't youjust down, as was the cac a0 and the dax. 0verdue, maryam. don't you just hate it when that happens? joining us is simon derrick, chief markets strategist at bank of new york mellon. so good to talk to you. on wednesday we had president trump's top economic adviser talking about

negotiating with china, trying to play down a trade more. since then the rhetoric has yet again been ratcheted up. what investors make?” think they are confused. the reality is all the inside chat seems to be that not much was taking place in terms of negotiation. there is further pressure being brought on china. doi further pressure being brought on china. do i think there will be more attem pts china. do i think there will be more atte m pts to china. do i think there will be more attempts to calm market nerves? yes. doi attempts to calm market nerves? yes. do i think china will respond again? yes. do i think investors will be increasingly concerned? absolutely. yesterday we heard from the american soya bean association who say the effects of tariffs on their products could be devastating, china is such a huge importer. what do you think the effect will be?m you look up the cause of the last month or so as these tariff issues have risen, you have seen real downward pressure, notjust in soya beans baton of commodities like base

metals and things connected to commodities like the baltic dry index, a measure of shipping costs. it is interesting because it is very similar signals to the summer of 2008 when you had a slowing economy then. weather it will be quite the same this time around, i do not know, but it is still happening. the banks hold more money and things are a bit safer looking at the overall picture? from a bank perspective, absolutely. but from the of the global economy and trade, that is where the concerns. simon will be back with us later to look at the more paper stories. still to come... we'll take a look at the biggest business stories of the week, co—op group is back in the black after reporting a full—year profit of £72 million, compared to a £132 million loss in 2016 when it took a large writedown on its banking business.

like—for—like sales at its food business rose by 3.a% while revenues from its funeral and life planning rose a% to £3a3 million. for more on this we're now joined by our business correspondent theo leggett. keller group has been changing for a number of years. in 201a, it started getting out of the pharmacy business, and it has given up its banking business. —— co—op. the group sold off its remaining stake and it was the problems at the co—op bank that led to that big loss of £132 million in 2016. now, the group is focusing on its three main

business areas, which are convenience stores and wholesale foods, funeral planning and insurance. it is a big provider of all three. it has been trying to cut costs in those areas, slimmed down its business, and now that i is happy to be going well. the outlook is challenging. that is exactly the words managers have been using today. they talk about the challenging environment. there is an emphasis in all three areas where it does business. cost pressures are key. they are trying to keep costs toa minimum key. they are trying to keep costs to a minimum so they can keep their products competitive, keep prices down and continue to attract customers. they are expanding the business, opening another 100 food stores, and taking over a major provider of probate. a quick look at the website. you can

get the latest on what is happening in business and money. automatic enrolment into pensions. minimum contributions are rising to 3% of income. more on that on the website. you are watching business life. —— business live. you're watching business live. our top story... it's been another week of big stories in the business world. we have seen china and us jockey for tariff concessions in tit—for—tat trade standoff.

meanwhile, the screw tightens on facebook over data scandal and new data on gender pay proves uncomfortable experience. with me is mike ingram, who's the chief market strategist at wealth management firm wh ireland. trade, first of all. it is what eve ryo ne trade, first of all. it is what everyone is talking about, in this city and everywhere else! we are a lwa ys city and everywhere else! we are always one bad—tempered tweet from trump away from disaster. markets have been bungee jumping, trump away from disaster. markets have been bungeejumping, very anxious over recent weeks about the possibility of a trade war, with the announcement of $50 billion of sanctions from the us, and a quick retaliation from china within 2a hours of a similar level. the commerce secretary in the us said it will end in negotiations. trump over night arranged 100 billion in

additional sanctions. night arranged 100 billion in additionalsanctions. if night arranged 100 billion in additional sanctions. if you look at the numbers, you would have to say that china is more vulnerable, if only for the fact that although china is trying to rebalance towards consumption rather than net exports and investment, it is still relied on trade for growth. around 20% of exports go to the us, and last year it had a trade deficit of about $370 billion with the us. xi jin it had a trade deficit of about $370 billion with the us. xijin ping is accountable to know one, and he can be president for life if he wants to be, but donald trump is facing mid—term elections in november. that is one reason why he is ramping this up. facebook, as far as they are concerned, revelation after revelation. mark zuckerberg said

that even more users have been affected by this data breach. he will be giving testimony to the senate next week. we went into the week thinking that maybe facebook had facilitated the scraping of 50 million of its users to cambridge analytic. 0vernight, facebook said that all 2 billion of its users have been subject to this. i have worried that a lot of this data collection which is there two provides a better service to you potentially makes you the product. what we have seen in this whole story is that it has allowed people to be digitally profiled and sold unwittingly to a third party as a product, which makes immediately nervous. will it lead to broader regulation of this sector? let's see. until now, they have had a pretty easy time of it.

the deadline that was separate companies to come out with their gender pay gap has come. part of it has been explained away by, well, women tend to gravitate towards retail and hospitality, which have traditionally been lower paid. at the top level, there are only seven female bosses of ftse100 companies. there are more male ceos called dave, nine apparently. bonuses have been skewed with the proportion of women at the top. i always found a way that people were paid and promoted to be something of a black box. to some extent, the numbers we

have seen overnight have borne that out. mike, thank you forjoining us. in a moment we'll take a look through the business pages but first here's a quick reminder of how to get in touch with us. we have asked you for your views on the sugar tax that has come into force in the uk. john said: more needs to be done to educate us about food and drink. simon derrick is

back with her — what do you think about it? we tax tobacco because it is bad for our health, so why not sugar? some people think the government is trying to control how we eat. but i don't see why, if you consider something to be bad for people's health and you have been consistent, doing it for tobacco, why should sugar be different? the telegraph has a story about how prince charles is calling for a blue economy to save australia's great barrier reef. what is a blue economy? i will have to read the story to find out! we talk about the green economy, which means that we focus on the land, but he is making the point about ocean resources. the reason is that he has been to visit the great barrier reef in australia. it is 1% of the ocean surface but

has 25% of ocean life. he is calling for private firms to take an active role. he is very involved in these aspects and cares deeply about the environment. yes, and i think for someone in that position to take that role is superb. he's using the commonwealth games to promote it, with the world's dies on it. in the short term, people will always be thinking... in the long—term, managing these resources is good for us. the metro is focusing on the aaa, and —— on the automobile association, and one user was upset bya association, and one user was upset by a letter she received suggested that all mechanics are men. it is right that they were called out on that. i was a bit disappointed with

the name they came up with. mobile mechanics sounds a bit dull. what would you call them ? mechanics sounds a bit dull. what would you call them?” mechanics sounds a bit dull. what would you call them? i was trying to think of alternatives. i thought automobile repair mechanics. that was boring, too, actually! portable people? it's not good, is it? i even came up with a good acronym... this lady said that it would dissuade women from being mechanics. that is exactly the point. calling out things like that is superb and should continue. thank you very much indeed. great to have you on the programme. that is it from business live. more stories on the bbc web page. great to have you with us. the warmest day of the year so far,

highs of 17 celsius. spring sunshine gnome offer some of us, with outbreaks of rain in the north and west, drier and brighter outbreaks of rain in the north and west, drierand brighter in outbreaks of rain in the north and west, drier and brighter in east. low pressure in the west and the associated weather front bringing outbreaks of rain and more in the way of cloud. mild air is being dragged into the south—east, so temperatures could be particularly one, with temperatures of 18 celsius potentially on saturday. rain in the west of scotland is, some heavy. 0utbreaks west of scotland is, some heavy. outbreaks of rain in northern ireland, clearing in the afternoon. 0utbreaks ireland, clearing in the afternoon. outbreaks of showery rain and highs of 17 celsius. this evening, the

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