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☆ European shares pulled down by Mercedes, defence stocks up after Poland blast
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Shreyashi Sanyal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SummarySummary Companies Mercedes slides on report of China EV price slashesEuropean autos sector eyes worst day in nearly 7 weeksBiden says missile that hit Poland may not have come from RussiaNov 16 (Reuters) - European shares fell on Wednesday, with Mercedes Benz Group leading losses in automobiles stocks, while a blast in Poland kept sentiment subdued and pushed up defence stocks. The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) index fell 0.4% by 0924 GMT. Auto stocks (.SXAP) tumbled 2.8% to lead sectoral declines, and were headed for their biggest one-day percentage fall in almost seven weeks. The European aerospace and defence (.SXPARO) sector climbed 0.9% following news of the blast. Multiple data points signalled a euro zone recession amid the European Central Bank's aggressive monetary tightening cycle to control record-high inflation.

☆ Retailers acclerate shift to forest friendly fibres at COP27
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Virginia Furness | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Maxim ShemetovLONDON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Retailers including H&M (HMb.ST), Kering <PRTP.PA and Inditex (ITX.MC) will purchase over half a million tonnes of low-carbon alternative fibres for clothing and packaging to help reduce global emissions, they said Monday. The announcement by 30 retailers coincides with COP27 climate talks taking place in Egypt until the end of this week to seek to step up ambition on curbing global warming. Retailers agreed to purchase 550,000 tonnes of alternative fibres - made from waste textiles and agricultural residues instead of forest fibres - which will prevent the release of around 2.2 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, NGO Canopy, which convened the group, said. Lower carbon fibres make up a tiny fraction of the 7.5 million tonnes of man-made fibres produced each year, which Rycroft said was in part because of the challenge of accessing finance to scale new technologies. The agreement will help to unlock finance for 10-20 low footprint pulp mills to produce these alternative fibres by securing offtake aggrements from retailers, Canopy said.

[1/2] People look at a Polestar car during the Munich Auto Show, IAA Mobility 2021 in Munich, Germany, September 8, 2021. The Swedish carmaker, founded by China's Geely (0175.HK) and Volvo Cars (VOLCARb.ST), posted an operating loss of $196.4 million, down from $292.9 million a year ago, while revenue rose to $435.4 million from $212.9 million. Polestar, which listed on the Nasdaq exchange in June via a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), said rising costs for raw materials used to make its batteries had not yet fully hit because of set contracts. "The full extent of that will then... partly offset the raw material costs," he said, adding that the carmaker expected to raise prices further. But Chief Executive Thomas Ingenlath said Polestar was on track to deliver 50,000 cars in 2022.

☆ Russia's Tele2 files lawsuit against Ericsson over Russia withdrawal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 11 (Reuters) - Russian telecoms firm Tele2 has started legal proceedings in Moscow against Ericsson (ERICb.ST) over what it says is the Swedish firm's refusal to honour agreements to supply equipment, Tele2 representatives told Reuters on Friday. A spokesperson for Ericsson said: "We are aware of a lawsuit reported in Russian news media, but cannot comment further at this time." In a statement to Reuters on Friday, Tele2 said: "We have initiated proceedings against Ericsson Corporation and Satel TVK due to the refusal of the companies to fulfil their obligations to provide equipment. Satel TVK is a Russian company that supplied Tele2 with Ericsson equipment. Tele2 said it had engaged in eight months of negotiations with Ericsson to attempt to find a solution, but had not received "constructive proposals" from the company.

Renault's joint venture with Geely will employ 19,000 people at 17 powertrain factories and three research and development hubs, the companies said, adding they expect to reach a final agreement and launch the new company in 2023. Renault and Geely will each hold 50%, the companies said in a statement that did not detail other financial terms. Nissan has said it is considering an investment in the Ampere electric venture. Renault and Geely said they expect their new joint venture would supply internal combustion engines and hybrid powertrains to both Nissan and the junior partner in Renault's existing alliance, Mitsubishi Motors (7211.T). Renault and Geely have an existing joint venture in South Korea.

☆ There have only been 2 Black elected governors in US history, but the 2022 midterm elections could usher in unparalleled change
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

There have only been two Black elected governors in US history, but that could change on Tuesday. With the victory, Wilder became the first Black elected governor in the United States, generations after P.B.S. He said people brag about him as the first Black governor elected in America. However, this year, Black gubernatorial candidates weren't overly reliant on the party leadership to help them land the nominations in their respective states. At the end of the day, if that's what I accomplished, that's not enough," Moore told Insider.

CompaniesCompanies Law firms Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson FollowVonage Holdings Corp FollowWASHINGTON, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Communications firm Vonage agreed to pay $100 million to resolve a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) lawsuit that alleged it had failed to provide a simple method for customers to cancel their telephone services, court documents filed Thursday show. Vonage, which was acquired by Ericsson (ERICb.ST) earlier this year in a $6.2 billion deal, had employed hurdles to deter and prevent customers from stopping recurring charges, the FTC said in filing a lawsuit and proposed settlement in U.S. District Court in New Jersey. Reporting by David ShepardsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Its other major shareholder, PSD Investment, will provide the same amount through "direct and indirect financial and liquidity support," Polestar said. "We welcome the continued support from our major shareholders at a time when the capital markets are volatile and unpredictable," Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath said in a statement. Volvo, like other major carmakers, has in recent years invested heavily in making its own electric vehicles and has also said it was committed to supporting Polestar. Volvo aims to sell only fully electric cars by 2030, while Polestar has a goal to launch three more cars by 2026. In February, Volvo formed a joint venture with battery manufacturer Northvolt to build a battery plant in Gothenburg which would produce battery cells specifically for electric Volvo and Polestar cars.

☆ Factbox: Companies count the cost of ditching Russia
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

INDITEX (ITX.MC)Zara owner will book a provision of 216 million euros after agreeing to sell its Russia stores to UAE-based Daher Group. TRATON (8TRA.DE)Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE) truck division Traton in September said disposing of some assets in Russia would cause a 550 million euro loss. CREDIT AGRICOLE (CAGR.PA)Credit Agricole provisioned more than 500 million euros related to its Russian exposure in Q1. LINDEThe world's largest industrial gases company's exit from Russia recorded impairments of $993 million from its Russia exit. SIEMENS (SIEGn.DE)The Munich-based engineering and tech firm said in May it would take a 600 million euro hit in Q2 for exiting Russia.

☆ Volvo Cars' sales up 7% in October on "robust" underlying EV demand
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

STOCKHOLM, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Sweden-based Volvo Car AB (VOLCARb.ST) said on Wednesday its sales grew 7% year-on-year in October to 54,317 cars. "Overall underlying demand for the company’s cars remains robust, especially for its recharge range of pure electric and plug-in hybrid cars," it said in a statement. Volvo Cars, which is majority-owned by Chinese automotive company Geely Holding (0175.HK), said fully electric vehicles accounted for 15% of sales. Recharge models including those not fully electric accounted for 37%. The group last week reported a drop in quarterly operating profit as higher costs bite and predicted slightly lower wholesale volumes in 2022 than last year.

Perpetual rejected a $A30 per share offer proposal from Barings Private Equity Asia (BPEA), which was recently bought by EQT (EQTAB.ST), and Australian firm Regal Partners (RPL.AX). Perpetual shares rose by as much as 10.1% early on Thursday, the company's best session in more than two years, before retreating to be up 6.6%. Perpetual said it would press on with its planned A$2.51 billion acquisition of rival Pendal Group (PDL.AX) announced in August. The private equity offer represents a premium of about 11.5% to Perpetual's last close of A$26.90. BPEA is one of the region's largest private equity firms and was bought by EQT in March.

☆ Geely’s pricey cars can hope for some premium spin
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, Nov 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Geely Automobile (0175.HK) is hiving off its young electric vehicle brand, Zeekr. The Hong Kong-listed group’s chairman and founder Li Shufu has a lot riding on how the deal is positioned as the valuations of its homegrown rivals crash. Parent Zhejiang Geely’s extensive experience building battery-powered models and the Volvo Car (VOLCARb.ST) owner’s track record overseas suggests the upstart can scale rapidly. So far so good: Zeekr, which launched only last year, sold nearly 40,000 premium cars in the first nine months. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Electrolux expects further demand decline as slips to loss
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Anna Ringstrom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"Market demand in both Europe and North America for the full-year of 2023 is expected to further deteriorate, i.e. Electrolux (ELUXb.ST) in September warned profit would drop as high inflation and low consumer confidence squeezed demand and large investments in North America had yet to pay off. Samuelson told analysts and media in a call that the group had massive inefficiencies in supply chain and production in North America in the quarter. Samuelson said most of the charge related to trimming staff at Electrolux, which had 52,000 employees at the end of 2021. The North America division reported a loss of 1.2 billion crowns.

☆ Morning Bid: Closer to fine
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Tom Westbrook. Having jumped the gun a few times, markets are again pricing in a pivot in monetary policy and might be getting closer to the mark. Bonds are rejoicing at this week's step-down in hiking speed at the Bank of Canada and hints the European Central Bank is getting closer to satisfied with its progress. Ten-year Italian BTPs are eyeing their best week in a decade, with yields down 73 basis points since last Friday's close. Markets now price a peak in the Fed funds rate around 4.8%, after flirting with 5% a week ago.

☆ Analysis: European retailers are on investors' naughty lists this Christmas
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Joice Alves | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

On stock markets, the European retail sector (.SXRP) has lost 40% of its value so far this year, more than twice the hit on the broader regional share index (.STOXX). Yet, JPMorgan and other strategists say the worst is yet to come for consumers and retailers alike. European retailersSURGING COSTSHigher energy bills and wages and elevated freight and fabric prices have pushed up costs for euro zone companies by more than 40% this year, according to Eurostat data. "A lot of these retailers are running with elevated inventory levels, in order to clear that you'd expect a lot more promotions and discounting. "Our exposure to retailers has remained highly selective all year," he said, adding that he prefers discount retailers, which could benefit from consumers trading down.

Some progress has been made, but it's not enough," Rebecca Marmot, chief sustainability officer at consumer goods company Unilever (ULVR.L), said. While regulators have pushed for more rigorous reporting on the companies' environmental impact and efforts to battle climate change, broader impact on nature and biodiversity has not yet been subject to similar scrutiny. The COP15 talks in Montreal will see countries try to agree a new Global Biodiversity Framework to combat the crisis that threatens over one million plant and animal species with extinction. "Assessment and disclosure are an essential first step to generate action, but it will only have an impact if it is made mandatory," the 330 businesses said in their statement. "Without this information, we are flying blind into extinction," Eva Zabey, executive director at global coalition Business for Nature, said.

☆ U.S. business equipment borrowings grew 11% in September - ELFA
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 25 (Reuters) - U.S. companies borrowed 11% more in September to finance their equipment investments compared with a year earlier, industry body Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) said on Tuesday, while raising doubts over the sustainability of this growth amid slowdown fears. The companies signed up for $10.2 billion in new loans, leases and lines of credit last month, compared with $9.2 billion a year earlier, according to ELFA. ELFA, which reports economic activity for the nearly $1-trillion equipment finance sector, said credit approvals totaled 77.3%, up from 75.2% in August. The Washington-based body's leasing and finance index measures the volume of commercial equipment financed in the United States. The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation, ELFA's non-profit affiliate, said its confidence index in October stood at 45%, compared with 48.7% in September.

Oct 21 (Reuters) - Garden equipment and tools maker Husqvarna (HUSQb.ST) on Friday reported third-quarter operating profit well below market expectations, and said it would restructure its business and cut 1,000 jobs. The Swedish company reported a 40% drop in its quarterly operating profit to 555 million Swedish crowns ($49.1 million), down from 926 million crowns a year earlier and below the 644.2 million crowns expected by analysts in a Refinitiv poll. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"Price increases compensated for higher raw material and logistics costs. However, lower volumes and higher costs related to supply chain disturbances had a negative impact," Husqvarna said. Husqvarna said the "vast majority" of the job cuts were related to the shift from petrol to battery-powered tools.

☆ Google, Netflix under scrutiny in South Korea over network fees
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Joyce Lee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Dado RuvicSEOUL, Oct 21 (Reuters) - South Korea's parliament saw heated debate on Friday over proposed legislation to make global content providers such as Netflix (NFLX.O) and Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google pay South Korean network fees. Others disagreed, saying imposing fees on the big tech companies could mean they could raise their own fees and undermine South Korean content creators. Liz Chung, a director at Netflix's South Korean unit, said her company was looking for ways to handle surging traffic. YouTube has 41.8 million active South Korean users, out of a population of 51.6 million. South Korean network provider SK Broadband has gone to court in the hope of making Big Tech pay fees.

FRANKFURT/LONDON, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley's infrastructure investment arm is weighing a sale of a 40% stake in German wind and solar power project developer PNE AG (PNEGn.DE) after being approached by potential suitors, three people familiar with the matter said. PNE confirmed on Thursday that Morgan Stanley and Photon Management intend to enter into open-ended preliminary talks with potential interested parties regarding Photon's stake in PNE. Photon, which is controlled by Morgan Stanley, is PNE's largest shareholder. Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners (MSIP) acquired the PNE stake following a failed takeover attempt in 2020. Buying the whole stake would trigger a mandatory takeover bid for all of PNE under German stock market rules.

Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners (MSIP) acquired the PNE stake following a failed takeover attempt in 2020. PNE, which has a project pipeline of more than 9 gigawatt and a generation portfolio worth 261 megawatt, has a current market capitalisation of 1.4 billion euros ($1.38 billion), valuing Morgan Stanley's stake at 560 million euros. Buying the whole stake would trigger a mandatory takeover bid for all of PNE under German stock market rules. A potential sale of MSIP's participation would result in chunky profits given the investment bank bought in at 4.00 euros per share and saw PNE's value grow to 18.50 euros. News about the potential stake comes in the wake of major renewables deal in recent weeks, including RWE's RWEG.DE $6.8 billion purchase of Con Edison's ED.N cleantech unit and BP's BP.L $4.1 billion takeover of U.S. biogas producer Archaea LFG.N.

While the revenue of both companies beat expectations thanks to the rollout of 5G, delayed royalty payments meant their core profit missed analysts' expectations. Shares in Ericsson slumped 12% and were the worst performers in the STOXX 600 (.STOXX) while Nokia shares fell almost 5% to be among the worst. Companies such as Ericsson charge $2.50 to $5 for every 5G handset they sell and come under pressure when negotiating new contracts. Ericsson's quarterly royalty revenue fell 1.1 billion Swedish crowns ($98.24 million) as it battled companies such as Apple (AAPL.O) over patents. Nokia's patent revenue was down by 62 million euros ($60.67 million), mainly due to a dispute with Oppo and Vivo.

☆ Truck maker AB Volvo posts third-quarter earnings slightly below forecasts
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Volvo trucks are seen for sale in Linden, New Jersey, U.S., May 23, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew KellyOct 20 (Reuters) - Swedish truck maker AB Volvo (VOLVb.ST) posted third-quarter core earnings slightly below market forecasts on Thursday and warned rising costs related to energy, materials and supply chain disruptions would continue to pose a challenge. The operating profit of the Gothenburg-based manufacturer rose to 11.87 billion Swedish crowns from 9.40 billion a year ago, missing the mean forecast of 11.96 billion seen by analysts polled by Refinitiv. Volvo also kept its forecasts for truck registrations in the company's European and North American markets unchanged at 300,000 in each region for 2022. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Marie Mannes, Editing by Michael KahnOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ericsson's quarterly earnings miss estimates
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

STOCKHOLM, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Sweden's Ericsson (ERICb.ST) on Thursday reported third-quarter core earnings that missed expectations for the second quarter in a row, as margins took a hit from higher component and logistics costs. The company's quarterly adjusted operating earnings fell to 7.1 billion Swedish crowns ($633.05 million) from 8.8 billion crowns a year earlier, missing analysts' mean forecast of 8.73 billion, according to Refinitiv data. ($1 = 11.2155 Swedish crowns)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm; editing by Niklas PollardOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ericsson earnings miss estimates as costs dent margins
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

STOCKHOLM, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson (ERICb.ST) on Thursday reported third-quarter core earnings that missed expectations for the second quarter in a row, as margins took a hit from higher component and logistics costs. The company's quarterly adjusted operating earnings fell to 7.1 billion Swedish crowns ($633.05 million) from 8.8 billion crowns a year earlier, missing analysts' mean forecast of 8.73 billion, according to Refinitiv data. Ericsson's quarterly revenue, however, rose to 68 billion crowns from 56.3 billion a year earlier, beating analysts' average estimate of 66.25 billion. Footprint gains with large-scale projects in early stages tend to have a dilutive impact on gross margins, Chief Executive Borje Ekholm said in a statement. ($1 = 11.2155 Swedish crowns)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm; editing by Niklas PollardOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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