Bloomberg The Spanish economy beat expectations at the end of last year, benefiting from a surge in investment and strong export demand. Gross domestic product rises 2% in the fourth quarter following growth of 2.6% in the previous three months. That beats economist estimates for an increase of 1.4%. It’s also better than France’s 0.7% expansion and the contraction ...

  Bloomberg Swiss watch exports had a record year amid booming demand in the US, which overtook China to become the industry’s top market for the first time in more than a decade. Shipments rise 31% to 22.3 billion francs ($24.1 billion) last year, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said. The industry has recovered from a 22% decline ...

  Bloomberg Business closures in the UK jumped by 14% from a year ago in the fourth quarter as the coronavirus pandemic took a brutal toll. Almost every industrial group saw the number of closures rise, with the transport and storage sector posting the largest increase, the Office for National Statistics said. Only finance and insurance bucked the trend. Meanwhile, ...