The daily business briefing: June 28, 2016
Global stocks rise after Brexit plunge, VW agrees to $14.7 billion cheating-scandal settlement, and more


1. Global stocks rise after two days of heavy post-Brexit losses
Dow futures jumped by more than 1 percent early Tuesday as global stocks rebounded after two days of heavy losses blamed on Britain's vote to exit the EU. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 lost 2 percent early Monday before regaining some ground. On Friday, global equity markets lost $2.08 trillion in value in the biggest global stock sell-off ever. The previous record one-day loss of $1.9 trillion came on Sept. 29, 2008 shortly after the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
MarketWatch The Washington Post
2. VW agrees to pay $14.7 billion to settle claims in diesel scandal
Volkswagen has agreed to pay $14.7 billion to settle U.S. lawsuits over its diesel emissions cheating scandal. The proposed agreement, which will be filed Tuesday in San Francisco, would include up to $10 billion to buy back cars at pre-scandal values or fix them to meet emissions standards, and give owners up to $10,000 extra per car. The auto maker also will pay $2.7 billion in fines to the Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board, and spend $2 billion on clean-emissions technology.
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3. Ratings agencies downgrade U.K. over Brexit fallout
Standard & Poor's Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings on Monday cut the U.K.'s credit rating, citing uncertainty and market turmoil following British voters' decision to leave the EU. S&P reportedly downgraded the U.K. from a AAA rating to AA, while Fitch knocked it down from AA+ to AA. "Fitch believes that uncertainty following the referendum outcome will induce an abrupt slowdown in short-term GDP growth, as businesses defer investment and consider changes to the legal and regulatory environment," the ratings agency said.
4. Perdue announces new animal welfare practices
Perdue, the fourth largest poultry producer, on Monday unveiled an overhaul of its animal welfare practices that will change the way it treats its chickens. The company is committing to standards similar to those in Europe, such as letting its birds spend time in sunlight. The changes will be extended over the next few years to all of Perdue's chickens, which numbered 676 million last year. "This is my second flock with the sunlight," said Karen Speake, whose family raises chickens for Perdue. "They're much happier birds."
5. U.S., Canada, and Mexico to make clean energy pledge
The U.S., Canada, and Mexico plan this week to commit to getting half of their electricity from clean energy sources by 2025, U.S. and Canadian officials said Monday. The pledge is expected Wednesday when President Obama, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto meet in Ottawa for this year's North American Leaders Summit. Canada already gets 59 percent of its electricity from hydropower, but the U.S. and Mexico have a long way to go due to their current reliance on fossil fuels.
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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.
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