Bloomberg Theresa May’s first meeting with Angela Merkel in Berlin will involve more pleasantries than hard bargaining. A week after taking office as UK PM, May, 59, will be keen to size up the woman who will be one of her main interlocutors as she navigates Britain’s exit from the EU. The German chancellor, in office for almost 11 …

  Bloomberg The U.K. labor market showed continued strength before the country’s decision to leave the European Union. The unemployment rate fell to 4.9 percent in the three months through May, the lowest since the third quarter of 2005, the Office for National Statistics in London said on Wednesday. Economists in a Bloomberg survey had expected the rate to stay …

  Bloomberg Embattled German auto giant Volkswagen said on Wednesday it booked a charge of 2.2 billion euros ($2.4 billion) in the first six months in relation to engine-rigging scandal, but its operating performance before that charge was better than expected. “The operating result for the Volkswagen group before special items is significantly higher than market expectations for the first …