Daily Rewind: U.K. election drama
🇬🇧🙈 In case you haven’t heard, the British election was a total disaster. Prime Minister Theresa May, who called for the election, failed to score a majority in Parliament. That could mean bad news for Brexit negotiations. Here’s what you should know:
- May was hoping the surprise election would strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations. But it did just the opposite, dramatically weakening the conservative party’s position in Parliament.
- While May didn’t win the 326 seats needed for a Parliamentary majority, neither did her competitor Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn. May’s conservative party won 318 seats, while the Labour Party won 262.
- May said today that she will try to avoid political gridlock by forming a new government. To do so, she’ll team up with a smaller party.
- That new party will have to tackle the Brexit process (a.k.a how the U.K. will leave the EU). Brexit talks will address major issues related to trade, immigration and other business interests.
- The election disaster has actually boosted British stocks, because British companies are capitalizing of the demise of the pound. How? The companies included in London’s key stock index, the FTSE 100, make most of their money outside Britain. The Dow also hit a new record today, closing up 89 points.
Other business news to know:
General Electric is selling its iconic light bulb business. Yup, you read that right. GE, the light bulb company Thomas Edison founded, is in talks to sell its lighting division. It doesn’t have a buyer yet. Why is GE doing this after 125 years as the face of light bulbs? GE’s answer: To “streamline its portfolio and focus on its core digital industrial assets.” In other words, CEO Jeff Immelt wants to focus GE’s attention on industries like healthcare, trains, wind turbines and jet engines. Read more from CNNMoney’s Matt Egan.
Want more news? Check these stories out:
*Tesla zooms past BMW in market value (Bloomberg)
*Trump is willing to testify under oath about Comey’s claims (CNN Politics)
*SiriusXM invests $480 million in Pandora (The Verge)
You’re all caught up for now. Have a wonderful weekend! We’ll see you again on Monday.
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