Share Sounds from Share Radio Breakfast related to Politics

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) on Thursday finished their annual analysis of the Autumn Statement, spending all night closely scouring the facts and figures to find out what the Chancellor is really saying. To get a grasp of the ins and outs of how the IFS saw the Autumn Statement, Matt Cox went along to the event to investigate.

Josh Lowe, Reporter at Newsweek, joined Share Radio for his weekly take on politics. He talked the Autumn Statement, Jo Cox's funeral, Nigel Farage's party at Ritz to celebrate Brexit victory and Trump's suggestion that he should be appointed Ambassador in the US.

US president-elect Donald Trump is promising to pull the US out of the international trade Trans-Pacific Partnership, known as TPP. This promise was released in a video just hours after Japan's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, warned that the TPP would be "meaningless" without US participation. Seijiro Takeshita, Professor of Management and Information at the University of Shizuoka, joined Share Radio Breakfast to give a take from Japan.

Jack Sommers of the Huffington Post joined Share Radio Breakfast to round up the latest political headlines. Jack looks ahead to the Autumn Statement, whilst also giving his take on Theresa May’s CBI speech. There are reports of a Richard Branson move against Brexit and a suggestion by Donald Trump that Nigel Farage should be the UK ambassador to the United States.

The Autumn Statement is the second of the two big economic statements made by the government every year - the first being the Budget which happens in the Spring. This year's Autumn Statement is the first to be delivered by the new Chancellor of the Exchequer, but will he make an impact as the economy is at a critical juncture? To find out more, Ian Stewart, Chief UK Economist at Deloitte, joined Share Radio Breakfast.

Angela Merkel will stand for a fourth term as German Chancellor. The announcement has already had some market comments: Laura Foll, of Henderson Global Investors, said she would welcome her re-election because Mrs Merkel has proved to be "quite pragmatic" about Brexit negotiations, "more so than other European leaders". Share Radio's Politics Presenter Colin Bloom joined us to discuss this and other political developments in Europe, which have been upsetting the single currency and markets.

The French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has admitted that Front National leader Marine LePen could win the upcoming presidential election. Mr Valls says Donald Trump's victory in America had shown that similar anti-globalisation nationalist rhetoric could triumph in France as well. Ms Le Pen's centre right rival French ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy has been knocked out of the primary to choose a presidential candidate, and with the mainstream parties struggling to decide on their preferred candidate, the Front National leader is wasting no time in trying to appeal to voters. Share Radio's Robert Van Egghen reports.

Ryan Heath, Senior EU Correspondent and Associate Editor at Politico Europe, joined Share Radio Breakfast to give his take on the latest news in European politics. Barack Obama is on a trip to Europe, most recently visiting Berlin, where he spoke about Brexit. There’s also talk about a new role for Angela Merkel, whilst Ryan discusses Trump's Wall Street government.

Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen has insisted she will serve her full term until 2018, despite criticism of her and Fed policy by president-elect Donald Trump. However, while Ms Yellen may be staying put, Fed-watchers fear the next President could still remake the organisation in his own image with vacancies on the FOMC board waiting to be filled. Robert Van Egghen spoke to editorial fellow at the Peterson Institute and former Federal Reserve correspondent at the Wall Street Journal, Pedro da Costa, to find out how much of a threat Trump poses to the Fed's independence.

A US interest rate rise could come "relatively soon" according to Federal Reserve Chair, Janet Yellen. Speaking to the Joint Economic Committee, Yellen signalled she was confident that jobs data and inflation would continue to support plans for a rate rise, with some analysts expecting one as soon as December. But is this the right time, so soon after the US election and with President-elect Trump's policies still uncertain? Matt Cox spoke to Colin Cieszynski, Chief Market Analyst at CMC Markets Toronto, to find out more.