Bloomberg The UK government is borrowing less than at any time since turn of the millennium, fuelling pressure on Chancellor Philip Hammond to end austerity. The budget deficit in the fiscal year through March fell to 24.7 billion pounds ($32 billion), or 1.2 percent of gross domestic product, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday. That’s the least since ...

Bloomberg Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG is plotting a faster course after spinning off its Alcon eye-care business. Earnings excluding some items are expected to increase by a high single-digit percentage, the Basel, Switzerland-based company said on Wednesday, raising its guidance. Adjusted earnings per share beat analysts’ estimates in the first quarter. The stock rose as much as 2.8 percent in ...

Bloomberg Key gauges of confidence in the euro area’s two largest economies unexpectedly deteriorated, signalling that a long-expected rebound may still be some way off. Manufacturing has been at the heart of economic weakness in Germany, fed by fears of protectionist trade policies and weakening global demand. In France, disruption caused by Yellow Vest protests has damped growth momentum. Consumers ...