It is protected by Washington state’s lopsidedly Democratic political class, which knows who butters its bread. It has been provided with bespoke law, tailored for its comfort. Nevertheless, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has been so avaricious in its objectives and so thuggish in its methods that it has been bested by the Freedom Foundation. This small conservative outfit, ...

Bloomberg The day after the European Union’s chief negotiator warned that there could be no special deal for Britain’s finance sector, the UK sent a message back: You need our banks as much as they need you. “The City of London is actually the banker for Europe,” Prime Minister Theresa May told a parliamentary committee. “It’s a significant provider of ...

Bloomberg The Czech Republic is set to leave further interest-rate increases until next year as a slowdown in inflation sidelines calls from some within the central bank to raise borrowing costs more aggressively. After raising its benchmark rate in August and November to cool price growth in one of Europe’s fastest-growing economies, the central bank will hold it at 0.5 ...

Bloomberg The International Monetary Fund lauded Egypt’s economic reform efforts but urged the central bank to be ready to take action if slowing inflation heats up. The fund sounded its note of caution as its executive board signed off on the latest review of Egypt’s reform program. The seal of approval opened the door to another $2 billion tranche of ...

Bloomberg Sweden’s financial regulator says giving national supervisors additional powers over bank branches — even systemically important ones like Nordea Bank AB — is bad policy. According to Martin Noreus, deputy director general of the Financial Supervisory Authority in Stockholm, national regulators risk missing the big picture. “It is sub-optimal and risky when different supervisors act too much in silos,” ...

Bloomberg A lawyer for UBS Group AG urged a New York jury to reject the tale of a former senior bond strategist who claims he was fired for refusing to let the Swiss bank’s traders influence his research reports. Trevor Murray, a onetime UBS strategist for commercial mortgage-backed securities, alleges he was dismissed in 2012 for blowing the whistle on ...

Bloomberg Boeing Co. is weighing a potential combination with Embraer SA of Brazil, setting the stage for a blockbuster deal that would fuel the US aerospace giant’s rivalry with Airbus SE in the highly competitive market for smaller jets. The planemakers have been exploring a takeover for more than a year, with senior-level talks that gained urgency in recent months ...

Bloomberg Freight hauler XPO Logistics Inc. jumped the most two years after Recode reported that Home Depot Inc. is weighing a possible acquisition as part of a push to compete with Amazon.com Inc. The home-improvement retail giant has held internal discussions in recent months about making a bid, according to the report, which cited an unnamed person familiar with Home ...

Bloomberg Phoebe Philo, the widely praised creative director of LVMH’s Celine label, is leaving her position in January, the company said. LVMH didn’t announce a successor in its emailed statement. Philo’s departure was well-telegraphed, with the trade publication Business of Fashion reporting in October that the luxury conglomerate was interviewing potential replacements. Still, the move is significant for Celine, which ...

Bloomberg Nike Inc. shares fell the most in nine months after its North American sales slump worsened, overshadowing strong growth in other regions. The world’s largest sports brand posted quarterly sales that fell short of estimates in its home market, while beating them in Greater China and Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The results show that Nike still faces ...