Business News at a Glance

Tesla Model 3 Goes Upscale, and Base-Price Buyers Must Wait

Even as Tesla scrambles to master the production challenges of making its first mass-market electric car, the Model 3, the company is moving to add two high-end versions, which its chief, Elon Musk, said may be crucial to its profitability. Tesla began producing the Model 3 last summer, but has made only versions selling for $49,000 or more. The $35,000 base model is not yet available. In weekend tweets, Musk suggested that the company would suffer significant losses on the $35,000 model at this stage. Musk said two Model 3 variants were available for order — an all-wheel-drive version starting at $54,000, and a high-performance model at $78,000.

Bankers Hate the Volcker Rule. Now, It Could Be Watered Down.

The Volcker Rule was one of the most significant actions by the federal government to prevent a repeat of the financial crisis. It prohibited banks from making their own risky bets with their customers’ deposits. Banks loathed the rule and Republicans vowed to undo it. Now, a decade after the global financial meltdown, banks are on the brink of realizing their dream. The Fed and other federal banking regulators are poised to soften the Volcker Rule, making it easier for giant banks to engage in a wider range of trading that can be highly profitable, but also risky.

GE Spins Off Rail Unit in $11 Billion Deal as Part of Slimming Strategy

John Flannery took a step Monday toward his goal of making General Electric a “simpler, leaner” company by spinning off its railroad business in a deal valued at roughly $11 billion. It is the first move to shed an entire business since Flannery became chief executive in August, vowing to streamline the struggling industrial conglomerate and improve its financial performance. GE’s railway business will be combined with Wabtec Corp., formerly known as Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corp. Wabtec, based in Wilmerding, Pennsylvania, makes equipment for mass-transit and freight railways. Shares in GE were about 3 percent higher Monday.

Supreme Court Upholds Workplace Arbitration Contracts Barring Class Actions

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that companies can use arbitration clauses in employment contracts to prohibit workers from banding together to take legal action over workplace issues. The vote was 5-4, with the court’s more conservative justices in the majority. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justices Anthony M. Kennedy, Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr. joined the majority opinion, written by Justice Neil Gorsuch. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg read her dissent from the bench, a sign of profound disagreement. The court’s decision could affect some 25 million employment contracts.

Former Uber Engineer’s Lawsuit Claims Sexual Harassment

A former Uber engineer sued the company Monday, claiming that co-workers sexually harassed her during her time at the ride-hailing service and that its human resources department failed to act on her complaints. In the lawsuit, Ingrid Avendaño, who joined Uber in 2014 and left last year, also said that despite receiving praise for her work, she was denied promotions or pay increases in retaliation. “Each time Avendaño raised concerns regarding unlawful conduct, she was met with Uber’s entrenched disregard for the rights of its women employees and a refusal to take effective steps to prevent harassment,” according to the lawsuit, filed in San Francisco.

U.K. Unlikely to Block Comcast’s Proposed Sky Takeover, Minister Says

Britain’s culture secretary said Monday that he was unlikely to block U.S. cable giant Comcast’s proposed takeover of British satellite broadcaster Sky, the latest twist in a merger battle between Comcast and Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox. In a statement, Culture Secretary Matt Hancock said he was not inclined to intervene in Comcast’s $30.7 billion bid for Sky because “the proposed merger does not raise concerns in relation to public interest considerations which would meet the threshold for intervention." Hancock’s remarks came amid a protracted effort by Fox to win full control of Sky, in which Murdoch’s company holds a 39 percent stake.

U.K. Court Dismisses Charges Over Qatar Fundraising by Barclays

A London court has dismissed charges against Barclays tied to the bank’s 2008 efforts to raise a $15 billion lifeline from Qatar and other investors, a legal victory for the British lender as it tries to turn its businesses around. The decision is a blow to Britain’s regulators, who have pursued the case for years. The charges were the first in the country against a bank for actions during the global financial crisis. Barclays has sought to move past a welter of scandals and underperforming operations. Barclays reported better-than-expected first-quarter results, particularly in its trading unit.