Bloomberg The pound slipped as polls showed the ruling Conservative party’s lead narrowing into a December election, with tightening race raising investor fears about an inconclusive result. The UK currency weakened versus all of its Group-of-10 peers as the latest surveys of voting intention showed the opposition Labour party making up some ground following the release of its manifesto. The …

Bloomberg Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell struck an upbeat tone in gauging the ability of policy makers to extend the record US economic expansion, while signalling interest rates would probably remain on hold. “At this point in the long expansion, I see the glass as much more than half full,” Powell said in Providence, Rhode Island. “With the right policies, …

Bloomberg Brian Hartzer succumbed to the inevitable and resigned as Westpac Banking Corp chief executive officer, forced out by an investor backlash over allegations the lender committed the biggest breach of money-laundering laws in Australia’s history. The 52-year-old becomes the third of Australia’s big-four bank CEOs to be undone by scandal in the past two years. The laundering suit, including …