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Jean-Claude Juncker and Donald Trump are set to meet this Wednesday. They are seen here during the G20 summit in Germany, July 2017. Photo credit: European Commission/Etienne Ansotte 

Juncker hopes to warm EU-US relations

Jean-Claude Juncker heads to the White House on Wednesday. The European Commission president aims to reduce transatlantic tensions with Donald Trump and avoid a brewing trade war between the EU and US, according to the AFP, Reuters and Wall Street Journal.

Mobile sales help fuel Google stock rise

Shares in Alphabet, which owns Google, were up 4% after posting net revenues that “jumped 25 per cent, the fastest growth rate in four years”, according to the Financial Times. Its strong performance overshadowed the €4.3bn antitrust fine levied by the European Commission last week.

Tesla financial worries

Tesla shares were down nearly 5% after news leaked that the electric carmaker has been asking suppliers for rebates, unnerving investors, reported the Guardian. This followed estimates that Tesla was burning $1bn in cash a quarter. The company stated: “Negotiation is a standard part of the procurement process”.

New Fiat Chrysler CEO

Mike Manley has taken over as chief of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, after Sergio Marchionne (“one of the all-time stars of the car industry”) stepped down earlier than expected due to ill health, reported the Economist. Manley had been in charge of company’s Jeep brand.

Dangerous heatwave and fires in Greece, Sweden and Japan

Forest fires in Greece have killed at least 20 people and injured more than 100, reported the BBC. Athens has requested assistance from other European countries in battling the blazes. Separately, Sweden is facing its most serious wildfires in decades, said the Associated Press. And more than 20 people in Japan have died due to a heatwave, reported DW.

Macon cabinet faces more scrutiny over Benalla case

France’s interior minister, Gerard Collomb, said that he did not tell Emmanuel Macron, the French president, about video footage showing Macron’s security aide beating up protestors, according to the AFP. The aide, Alexandre Benalla, was fired on Sunday, but some accuse Macron’s government of trying to cover up the affair, as explained by DW.

Toblerone fans triumph

Mondelez International said it would abandon the reduced sizes of its iconic Toblerone chocolate bars, reported Quartz. Fans of the Swiss chocolate brand had protested the shrinkage of the 170g bar to 150g and the 400g bar to 360g that were introduced in 2016. The company, however, will introduce a new 200g size bar.

Today’s breakfast briefing was written by @aarongrunwald.