The British government is making a twofold gamble on finance and Brexit. First, ministers seem to believe that London’s financial firms are crying wolf when they warn about the potential domestic cost of a so-called hard Brexit. Second, British officials seem convinced that the European Union is so reliant on the City that threats to raise the drawbridge are ...

  lf Mark Schneider, the new chief executive of Nestle SA, is wasting no time in hunting out acquisitions.The Swiss consumer group is considering a takeover of Mead Johnson Nutrition Co., the US baby-formula producer, according to a report yesterday from StreetInsider. But right now, Nestle’s sprawling portfolio needs pruning, not fresh additions. This looks like a deal it should ...

  It is no exaggeration to say that a bizarre new phase in human history began on January 20 as Donald J. Trump becomes the world’s most powerful man. All bets, to put it mildly, are off. Those entrusted to report on and analyze the contemporary world are especially befuddled. One can condemn Trump’s open loathing for the mainstream media. ...

  DUBAI / Reuters Share prices in Kuwait jumped in very heavy trade on Sunday, the top performing market in a strong Gulf region, while tax fears continued to weigh on prices in Egypt. The Kuwaiti market index surged 3.2 percent, its biggest rise in more than two years, to a 23-month high, while trading volume was the biggest since ...

  Bloomberg US stocks rose as an increase in crude oil spurred gains in energy companies. The benchmark index pared earlier gains as President Donald Trump delivered his inauguration address. Consumer staples shares climbed as Procter & Gamble Co. reported quarterly earnings that topped estimates. The S&P 500 Index added 0.3 percent to 2,271.29 at 4 p.m. in New York ...

  Bloomberg European stocks closed little changed as investors turned their focus to the inauguration of Donald Trump as US president, and whether he can continue to fuel investor expectations of stronger economic growth boosted by more deficit spending and tax cuts. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell less than 0.1 percent at the close. The index has lost momentum ...

  Bloomberg American International Group Inc. agreed to pay $9.8 billion to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. to take on long-term risks from commercial policies written in prior years. The reinsurance deal transfers liabilities on certain US policies from 2015 and earlier, representing reserves of about $34 billion as of Jan. 1, 2016, New York-based AIG said in a statement. ...

  Bloomberg French lensmaker Essilor International SA agreed to buy Luxottica Group SpA, the maker of Ray-Ban sunglasses, for about 22.8 billion euros ($24 billion) in stock, combining the largest manufacturer and retailer in eyewear. Leonardo Del Vecchio, who created Luxottica in 1961 and controls 62 percent of its stock, will be executive chairman and chief executive officer of the ...

  SARASOTA / AP Goodbye to death-defying feats — daring young men (and women) on the flying trapeze, whip-wielding lion tamers, human cannonballs. Goodbye to the scent of peanuts and popcorn, the thrill of three rings, the jaunty bum-bum-dadadada of circus music. Send out the clowns. The Big Top is coming down — for good. Officials of the company that ...

  Bloomberg Hitachi Ltd. said Britain’s vote to quit the European Union may become more of a concern when the Japanese conglomerate’s train factory in northern England becomes more reliant on exports after 2019. For the next few years the Newton Aycliffe plant will be busy making the vehicles it was set up to build when Hitachi won Britain’s biggest ...