The Latest: German business urges swift Brexit resolution

LONDON (AP) — The Latest on Brexit (all times local):

9:10 a.m.

Germany's main business lobby group says it's up to the British government "not to waste any more time" and to secure an orderly exit from the European Union.

The Federation of German Industries placed responsibility for avoiding a no-deal Brexit squarely on London.

In a statement, the group's director general, Joachim Lang, appealed to "those responsible in London to organize a majority to avert a hard Brexit as soon as possible."

Otherwise, he said companies "will have to press ahead with implementing the necessary emergency measures for a disorderly withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU."

Lang said the withdrawal agreement Prime Minister Theresa May is struggling to sell in Britain "will help limit the damage on both sides of the Channel."

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9 a.m.

The pound has advanced further after British Prime Minister Theresa May won a confidence vote among lawmakers from within her Conservative Party.

The currency, which slumped earlier in the week to 20-month lows after May pulled a vote on her Brexit divorce deal with the European Union, has recovered ground since it became clear would win the confidence vote and that she would not face another one from her own party in the next year.

Traders think that means she may have more room for manoeuver in her dealings with Parliament that could mean Britain ends up having close economic ties with the EU after Brexit officially happens in March.

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, also said the defeat of her opponents in Conservative Party suggests that the "risks of a 'no-deal' Brexit may well have receded."

The pound was up 0.3 percent in morning trading at $1.2679.

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8:30 a.m.

Germany's foreign minister says he's relieved that Britain's governing party stopped short of creating "total chaos" in the Brexit process, but is indicating that he still sees little chance of substantial concessions to London on its European Union divorce deal.

Prime Minister Theresa May is expected at an EU summit Thursday after surviving a confidence vote by her party's lawmakers, many of whom loathe the agreement. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told Deutschlandfunk radio that "we now have another chance with Theresa May of her ... getting a majority for this accord, which is a compromise between both sides."

Asked what could be done to secure British approval without renegotiation or legal changes, Maas replied: "Ultimately the British have to tell us that because, if there are proposals from Brussels now, no one can tell given the confusion in London whether it is enough to get a majority in the House of Commons."

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8:10 a.m.

British Prime Minister Theresa May is seeking a lifeline from European Union leaders after winning a no-confidence vote triggered by Conservative lawmakers unhappy with her Brexit plan.

May will ask the 27 other EU leaders at a Brussels summit Thursday for reassurances about the Brexit divorce deal that she can use to win over a skeptical British Parliament. The British leader scrapped a planned vote on the deal this week when it became clear she would lose.

The bloc is adamant there can be no substantive changes to the legally-binding withdrawal agreement.

On Wednesday evening, May survived a vote on her leadership from Conservative lawmakers by 200-117. The victory gives her a reprieve from domestic pressure but the size of the rebellion underscores the unpopularity of her Brexit plan.