International News

  Bloomberg Unilever Chief Executive Officer Paul Polman is channeling an aborted takeover coup by Kraft Heinz Co. into some shock therapy of his own. Acknowledging that the failed $143 billion bid had energized his company, Polman announced his most sweeping overhaul of the consumer-goods giant in a bid to protect its independence after being caught off guard by the ...

  Bloomberg Seven & i Holdings Co. agreed to pay $3.3 billion for some Sunoco LP shops and gasoline retailers in an ambitious push by the 7-Eleven convenience chain owner to expand its US footprint with its largest deal on record. The purchase by the Japanese retailer’s 7-Eleven Inc. unit will add 1,108 gas stations and convenience stores in Texas ...

  Bloomberg Let the blame game begin — again — with House Republicans saying they still can’t reach a deal on reviving their health-care bill, likely delaying any chance of action until at least May. “And this time, we’ll have two weeks to let this all fester,” said Representative Dennis Ross of Florida, referring to the two-week recess that starts ...

  Bloomberg Michigan, a state critical to Donald Trump’s presidential win, would be the hardest hit by a proposed 20 percent tax on US companies’ domestic sales and imports, according to a study released by conservative groups associated with billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch. The report, which used federal tax, labor and census data, was commissioned by Freedom Partners ...

  Bloomberg A home on Manhattan’s Upper East Side sold for $79.5 million, according to property records made public, making it the highest price ever paid for a townhouse in the borough. The 20,500-square-foot property, at 19 E. 64th St., had been owned by the Wildenstein family, billionaire art dealers whose gallery was located at the site for more than ...

  Bloomberg China National Chemical Corp. won European Union antitrust approval for its $43 billion takeover of Swiss pesticide maker Syngenta AG, a day after the US gave its blessing, bringing China’s largest foreign acquisition closer to the finish line. ChemChina’s offer to divest some pesticides and other agricultural products will remove “problematic overlaps” and allow EU regulators to clear ...

  Bloomberg Britain is looking for ways to scrap its 2020 clean energy targets while maintaining everyday trade in Europe’s energy market, an early sign of the kind of cherry-picking that threatens to sour Brexit negotiations. Officials in the Treasury and the business department are looking for a way to abandon the national goal of getting 15 percent renewable energy ...

  Bloomberg The UK’s services sector grew faster than expected in March and surging costs prompted companies to raise their prices at the quickest pace in 8 1/2 years. The momentum in IHS Markit’s monthly Purchasing Managers’ Index was accompanied by stronger growth in new business. Even so, the survey reflected gathering storm clouds for the UK economy as hiring ...

  Bloomberg Dan Ivascyn’s Pimco Income Fund keeps raking in money. The fund, co-managed by Ivascyn and Alfred Murata, celebrates its 10th anniversary this week by becoming the largest actively managed fixed-income mutual fund with $79.1 billion, according to Pimco’s website. Pimco Income passed Metropolitan West Total Return Bond Fund as investors added approximately $3 billion in March, a monthly ...

  Bloomberg Cyprus wants investors to see it as a comeback kid. With an accelerating economy, the island nation that was forced to seek a bailout and impose a levy on bank deposits in 2013 is betting on an end to its junk rating. That should make it an attractive place for investors, the country’s leaders are saying. “What has ...