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Bloomberg Swatch Group AG, the maker of Omega and Tissot timepieces, reported the highest first-half profit in three years, fuelled by Asian demand and market share gains across its collection of 18 brands. Operating profit rose 70 percent to $628 million, the Biel, Switzerland-based company said in a statement. Analysts expected 612 million francs. The stock rose as much as ...

Bloomberg The Trump administration plans to open an investigation into whether uranium imports are harming national security, a move that could lead to tariffs on foreign shipments of the metal, said three people familiar with the matter. US uranium producers Energy Fuels Inc. and Ur-Energy Inc. filed a petition in January asking the Commerce Department to investigate the matter under ...

Bloomberg Google will be fined about $5 billion by the European Union (EU)over apps for Android mobile devices, setting a record for antitrust penalties, according to a person familiar with the EU decision. The penalty—the same amount the Netherlands contributes to the EU budget every year— is due to be announced by EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager at 1 pm ...

Bloomberg UK inflation unexpectedly held at 2.4 percent last month as cheaper clothing and computer games offset the rising cost of filling up a vehicle. The pound weakened as investors pared bets that the Bank of England will raise interest rates next month. Consumer prices were unchanged from May, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday. Annual inflation was ...

Bloomberg After the drama of President Donald Trump’s widely criticized news conference with President Vladimir Putin, one agreement the two leaders reached on the business front may go forward, according to the head of the Kremlin-backed Russian Direct Investment Fund. Kirill Dmitriev, an ally of Putin who heads the sovereign wealth fund sanctioned by the US, says American businesses are ...

Bloomberg Hundreds of German Tesla Inc. Model S drivers have been ordered to pay back a 4,000 euro electric-vehicle subsidy after a government agency deemed their luxury cars too expensive to qualify for the programme. Some 800 drivers who bought their cars before March 6 and have received the so-called “environmental bonus” will have to return it, Germany’s Federal Office ...

Bloomberg The home crowd that cheered on Russia’s run to the quarterfinals of the soccer World Cup may have been too preoccupied to do much shopping. Countries staging the world’s most-watched sporting event have a poor record when it comes to economic benefits off the pitch. In the three past World Cups, South Africa — the only host nation whose ...

When it comes to assessing the outlook for the US economy these days, the discussion usually starts with the bond market’s yield curve. At less than 30 basis points, the difference between two- and 10-year Treasury yields is the narrowest since 2007. This is classic late-cycle behaviour. The curve is signalling that the market thinks the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate increases, ...

Loss of credit insurance has played a part in several UK retail horror stories over the past decade. Investors in Debenhams Plc will be hoping the chain doesn’t follow the familiar narrative. One leading insurer, Euler Hermes, has reduced cover for suppliers, while rivals Atradius and Coface have refused to cover new shipments, the Sunday Times reported. Credit insurance protects ...

Mergers and acquisitions are booming, with 2018 projected to be the first year that global deal volume breaks $5 trillion. But merger arbitrage funds, which attempt profit on perceived market inefficiencies before or after an M&A deal is announced, are not doing well. The last three months for which data are available represent the first time MAFs have lost money ...