Bloomberg Axa SA agreed to buy XL Group Ltd. for $15.3 billion in cash, the biggest-ever European acquisition of a US insurer, sending its shares plunging. The French firm fell the most since June 2016, with analyst Daniel Bischof of Baader Helvea AG saying the deal has a sound logic but the price is at the upper end of expectations. ...

Bloomberg The Trump administration shows scant sign of watering down its plan to impose stiff tariffs on steel and aluminum imports with carve-outs for specific countries, despite opposition from US allies and Republican lawmakers. The president’s trade advisers fanned out across television news shows to defend the move, saying it was necessary to ensure the survival of the domestic steel ...

Bloomberg Prime Minister Theresa May will urge developers to “do their duty” and build more UK houses, threatening that those who delay construction after winning planning permission will find it harder to get permits in the future. Conscious that the all-consuming Brexit project is defining her government, May is trying to address concerns about rising housing costs that led many ...