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Kate Forbes has rejected a job offer from Scotland’s new first minister Humza Yousaf and will return to the backbenches after serving in government for almost five years.

A senior source told Sky News that Ms Forbes, who narrowly lost the SNP leadership race to Mr Yousaf on Monday, was asked to take on the role of rural affairs secretary – a big demotion from her previous role as finance secretary.

But the source said she turned down the position, meaning she will leave the frontbench and return to focusing on her job as a constituency MSP.

Tweeting after the news broke, Ms Forbes did not confirm the job offer or rejection, instead saying Mr Yousaf had her “full support as he governs well [and] furthers the case for independence”.

She added: “I have full confidence he will appoint a talented cabinet andministerial team, able to meet the challenges facing the country.”

Politics live: Sunak defends home secretary’s language in grilling by MPs

After former health secretary Mr Yousaf was named as the successor to Nicola Sturgeon on Monday – following her shock resignation last month – he suggested he would offer both Ms Forbes and his other rival, Ash Regan, roles in his new cabinet.

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“We are no longer team Humza, Ash or Kate,” he said. “We are one team. And we will be the team, we will be the generation that delivers independence for Scotland.”

But Ms Forbes’s rejection casts a shadow on the protestations of unity from all three candidates after the result was announced.

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Reacting to the result on Monday, Ms Forbes said she would support the new SNP leader

It is not yet clear which role might be offered to Ms Regan, or whether she would accept it.

However, one new position that has been confirmed is deputy first minister, which will be taken by former health secretary and social justice secretary Shona Robison.

Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed on Tuesday he had spoken to Mr Yousaf to congratulate him on his new job.

In a tweet, he added: “I’m looking forward to working with him to deliver on the priorities that matter most to people across Scotland – from cutting NHS waiting lists to growing our economy.”

Mr Yousaf also tweeted that the pair had “a constructive discussion on a range of issues, including helping people through the cost-of-living crisis”.

He added: “I also made clear that I expect the democratic wishes of Scotland’s people and parliament to be respected by the UK government.”

Leadership clashes

The contest to become Scotland’s new first minister got personal at times, particularly with clashes between Mr Yousaf and Ms Forbes, who were considered the frontrunners.

During a TV debate, she attacked his record in government, suggesting there would be a place for him in her cabinet but “maybe not at health”.

After she accused him of being the “continuity” candidate, Mr Yousaf said: “If change means lurching to the right, Kate, if it means rolling back on progressive values, that’s not the right change.”

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Ms Forbes also faced a backlash during the race over her views, having said she would have voted against gay marriage in Scotland at the time it was made legal almost a decade ago.

She later told Sky News that her faith as a member of the Free Church of Scotland also meant having children outside of marriage is “wrong” and something she personally would “seek to avoid”.

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs – in worst day for indexes since COVID

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs - in worst day for indexes since COVID

Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.

While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.

As it happened: Worst week’s trading in five years

All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.

The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.

Read more: What’s a bear market?

Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.

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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.

The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.

And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.

Pic: Reuters
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US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters

Trump holds trade deal talks – reports

It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indian and Israeli representatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.

The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.

Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.

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Do Trump’s tariffs add up?

Read more:
Markets gave Trump a clear no-confidence vote
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow

China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.

Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.

Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.

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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump

He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’

“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they’re also battling with another problem

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they're also battling with another problem

Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.

The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.

The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.

Tariffs latest: FTSE 100 suffers biggest daily drop since COVID

Financial investors had been gradually re-calibrating their expectations of Donald Trump over the past few months.

Hopes that his actions may not match his rhetoric were dashed on Wednesday as he imposed sweeping tariffs on the US’ trading partners, ratcheting up protectionism to a level not seen in more than a century.

Markets were always going to respond to that but they are also battling with another problem: the lack of certainty when it comes to Trump.

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He is a capricious figure and we can only guess his next move. Will he row back? How far is he willing to negotiate and offer concessions?

Read more:
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow
Trade war sparks ‘$2.2trn’ global market sell-off

These are massive unknowns, which are piled on to uncertainty about how countries will respond.

China has already retaliated and Europe has indicated it will go further.

That will compound the problems for the global economy and undoubtedly send shivers through the markets.

Much is yet to be determined, but if there’s one thing markets hate, it’s uncertainty.

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

South Korea’s constitutional court has confirmed the dismissal of President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached in December after declaring martial law.

His decision to send troops onto the streets led to the country’s worst political crisis in decades.

The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.

The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.

Demonstrators who stayed overnight near the constitutional court wait for the start of a rally calling for the president to step down. Pic: AP
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Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP

Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.

The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.

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Highs and lows of Five-Year Keir
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The Constitutional Court is under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement of the impeachment trial. Pic: AP
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The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP

After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.

He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.

His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.

The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.

South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.

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