'World faces economic war' and 'TikTok talks'

The front page of the Daily Mirror shows a picture of Donald Trump pointing, with a small picture of Keir Starmer below. The headline reads: Trading blows. A secondary headline reads: Britain hit with lowest level of 10% while EU hammered at 20%. Above, there is a picture of a jockey on a horse racing. The headline beside reads: The grand national festival - all the silks, all the tips, all the form.

Few of this morning’s papers avoid mentioning the global trade war Donald Trump kicked off on Wednesday, with many reporting a version of the banner used on the front of the Daily Mirror: “World faces economic war”. Under the headline “Trading blows” the paper reports universal 10% tariffs will be placed on all imports into the US that were announced last night, which will go into effect on 5 April.

The Guardian front page shows a picture of Donald Trump holding up a large board that shows the tariffs and reciprocal tariffs that the US will impose on countries. The headline reads: Trump hits UK with 10% tariffs as US ignites global trade war. The headline above shows a picture of US actor Val Kilmer, with the words, 'A terrific screen presence'.

The Guardian situates Trump’s “global trade war” domestically by highlighting that the UK has been hit with “tariffs of 10% on exports to the US”, noting that this is lower than the 20% that Downing Street had been expecting – a difference, the paper says, which likely came from Starmer’s more “conciliatory approach to the Trump administration”.

The front page of the Daily Telegraph shows a picture of Donald Trump holding up a large board that shows the tariffs and reciprocal tariffs that the US will impose on countries. The headline reads: Trump unleashes tariffs.

The Daily Telegraph also leads on tariffs, but lower down its front page reports what it says is a “veiled dig” at Sir Keir Starmer by the Attorney General Lord Hermer over the prime minister’s criticism of an immigration judge. The attorney general said it was “entirely unacceptable” for MPs in Parliament to attack judges on a personal basis – a reference to comments by Starmer on the floor of the Commons a few weeks ago.

The front page of the Daily Mail shows a picture of Donald Trump, zoomed in, and he is pointing in the direction of the camera. The large headline above reads: Trump's tariff war on 'foreign scavengers'. There is a sub-headline above that larger one, that reads: Brexit Britain is hit with 10% export tariffs but EU hammered with 20% levy by US.

“Trump’s tariff war on ‘foreign scavengers'” reads the front page of the Daily Mail, which chooses to underscore the differences in levies that “Brexit Britain” will face (10%) compared to the EU – which has instead been “hammered with a 20% levy”. Some countries were hit even harder though, with Laos getting dinged with a 48% tariff rate and Cambodia 49%.

The front page of the i Paper shows a picture of a woman holding a young child, next to the headline: Ukraine's stolen children. Below is a large black font headline that reads: Trump triggers $1 trillion global trade war - in threat to UK jobs and wages.

The trade war that Trump “triggered” is a “threat to UK jobs and wages”, reports the i Paper, which pulls focus away from the US president and instead zeroes-in on how his global policies will impact every day Britons. “UK growth predicted to fall to 0% next year” it reports, but all hope is not lost. King Charles III – who is still due to host Trump for a second state visit – could act as a “soft power weapon” as British officials seek to minimise the impact of tariffs, diplomatic sources tell the i Paper.

The front page of the Metro shows a large black and white portrait of actor Val Kilmer, next to the years that he was alive (1959-2025). The headline next to him reads: Film world pays tribute to maverick Hollywood bad boy and movie icon. Below there is a picture of Nigel Wicking, the airline operators' chief, with the headline, "Heathrow had two fire warnings" in bold letters above. There is a sub-headline that reads: Blame game after airport meltdown.

Tributes to “maverick Hollywood bad boy and movie icon” Val Kilmer splash across many of today’s papers, but the Metro uses its full top spread to commemorate the 65-year-old Top Gun actor. His death was confirmed last night by his daughter, who said Kilmer died of pneumonia on Tuesday.

The front page of the Times shows a picture of Donald Trump holding up a document that he has signed. There are American flags draped behind him. The headline reads: Trump piles on the tariffs. Above there is a picture of a woman, with the headline that reads: Can an app really make me feel better? At the bottom, there is a headline for a short story that reads: Heathrow warning.

The Times spares little room for other stories on its front with Trump’s “pile of tariffs” dominating most of the page – but it manages to squeeze in an update on the fire that sent Heathrow into chaos a few weeks ago, reporting that Europe’s busiest airport had been warned by airlines about the risks of power failures, just days before it was shut down for more than 18 hours.

“TikTok talks” leads the Financial Times, where the paper reports that US’s hopes of making the Chinese owners of the popular social media platform sell to US investors have been “boosted” by a US venture capital firm. Talks on rearmament in Europe is also prominent. The FT reports that it has seen an informal paper that the UK government has circulated outlining its plans for a multilateral fund that would support weapons stockpiles and military equipment across the continent for the “coalition of the willing”.

The front page of the Sun shows a picture of horses racing, alongside the headline: Grand National - 12 pages of top tips & form. Below, in large white letters against a black backdrop, is the headline: 7/7 'Mr Big' back on UK streets. The sub-headline reads: Caged in US, now he'll walk free from secure unit. There is a small picture of a Haroon Aswat beside.

The Grand National – one of the world’s most famous horse race – is kicking off on the front page of the Sun, which teases “12 pages of top tips and form” to inform your following of this year’s race – which gets under way on Saturday. The paper also reports on Haroon Aswat, a British man who admitted to plotting to set up an extremist training camp in the US and was jailed there until 2022, who is expected to be released from detention in the “relatively near future”. He was returned to the UK late in 2022 and has been detained at Bethlem Royal Hospital, South London, the paper reports.