Bloomberg BMW AG is targeting another ambitious hike in plug-in hybrid and battery car sales next year to defend its position in the electric-car shift as competitors like Volkswagen AG ready their own battery lineups. The planned increase to about 150,000 cars sold would represent a 50 percent rise from this year, and a jump of about two-thirds from last ...

Bloomberg The UK’s net worth increased the most on record last year, as the value of land continued to increase. The nation’s total worth was estimated at 9.8 trillion pounds ($13.2 trillion) at the end of 2016, the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday. That’s 803 billion pounds higher than the previous year— and, at almost 9 percent, the ...

Bloomberg UK services growth slowed in November from the fastest pace in six months as price pressures intensified. The services Purchasing Managers Index fell to 53.8 from 55.6 in October, IHS Markit said on Tuesday. Economists had forecast a reading of 55.0. Input costs increased the most since 2011 and prices charged rose at the fastest clip since 2008. While ...

Bloomberg The UK’s Cineworld Group Plc agreed to buy US theatre operator Regal Entertainment Group for about $3.6 billion to expand into the biggest movie market. The $23-a-share deal comes a week after the companies confirmed news reports of takeover discussions, jolting cinema-operator stocks. The price represents a 26 percent premium to Regal’s close on November 27, the day before ...

Bloomberg Saudi Arabian warplanes bombed the presidential palace in Yemen’s capital, stepping up attacks on Houthi rebels after they killed the country’s former president just when he appeared set to switch sides and offer the Saudis a way out of the conflict. The palace in Sana’a, currently used by the Houthi leadership, was pounded by at least seven airstrikes late ...

Bloomberg A divided US Supreme Court let President Donald Trump’s travel ban take full effect while legal challenges go forward, handing him a major vict- ory and suggesting the court ultimately will uphold the restrictions. Trump will now be able to bar or restrict entry by people from six mostly Muslim countries, even if they have a relationship with a ...

Bloomberg Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said he would introduce legislation to limit political meddling by foreign powers, citing reports of Chinese influence over a local lawmaker and Russia’s US election interference. People or organisations acting in the interests of foreign powers would be required to register and disclose their ties, Turnbull said, adding that foreign political donations would also ...

Bloomberg The Catalan election campaign kicks off on Tuesday with polls pointing to a finely balanced race in which turnout could play a crucial role. Surveys show it’s basically a toss-up whether the separatists will cling on to their majority in the regional parliament with the latest projections putting the three pro-independence parties on the cusp of the 68 seats ...

Bloomberg South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa won endorsement from most African National Congress branches to succeed President Jacob Zuma as ruling party leader, giving him an edge — but not a guarantee of victory — in this month’s election. Ramaphosa was nominated for the presidency of the ANC by 1,862 branches, while 1,309 backed his main rival Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, ...

We don’t need an economic boom, but that’s what we may be getting. Since the 2016 election, the stock market is up roughly 24 percent, reports Wilshire Associates. The price of the cybercurrency bitcoin soared more than 1,000 percent before retreating. The unemployment rate of 4.1 percent is the lowest since 2000. The economy’s growth has exceeded 3 percent for ...