For City Hall watcher Victor Viereck, Monday’s news that Los Angeles is looking at a $245 million shortfall is no surprise. “The city seems to spend more money without real consideration of their expenses,” said Viereck, an executive committee member for Valley Vote, an organization of residents, business leaders and others interested in improving local government in the San Fernando Valley.

Carlyle Group LP is preparing to raise an eighth U.S. real estate fund in the first half of 2017, people with knowledge of the matter said. The Washington-based private equity firm is planning to target $5 billion for the pool, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.

Shareholders at one point in the year were up more than 15%, but those gains gave way to minor losses, which then spiraled into a significant calendar-year decline. Zooming out, the stock is still soundly beating the market over the trailing three-year, five-year, and 10-year time frames.

Luxury carmaker BMW AG had a record sales year in 2016, delivering 5.3 percent more vehicles as its line of SUVs boosted results despite declining sales in the U.S. Sales rose to 2.37 million for the company, which besides BMWs, makes Mini and Rolls-Royce cars. Important markets were China, where sales rose 11 percent, and Europe.