Bloomberg Air France-KLM Group’s French pilots approved a pay deal, putting an end to last year’s labour conflict and handing Chief Executive Officer Ben Smith more freedom to define his new strategy. The accord, hammered out during months of talks between management and unions, was approved by 85 percent of pilots, the SNPL union said in a phone message. It …

Bloomberg Walmart Inc. finally gave the US retail sector some good news. The company brushed off the industry’s disappointing December sales with its best holiday quarter in at least a decade, soothing concerns about the sector’s outlook for 2019. Comparable sales for Walmart stores in the US — a key performance barometer — rose 4.2 percent in the quarter that …

Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co. said it would investigate the cause of an operational emergency that’s seen an “unprecedented number” of aircraft taken out of service for mechanical issues, and indicated the groundings may be related to ongoing contract talks with a labour union. The disruptions started February 12, days after the airline’s last contract talks with the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal …