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☆ Germany's Scholz: G20 consensus statement on war in Ukraine to be 'tough ride'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SINGAPORE, Nov 14 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Monday that it would be difficult to come up with a clear statement on global issues and the war in Ukraine at the G20 meeting in Indonesia later this week. "We are working very hard to ensure that we not only make clear, important statements on all the issues that affect the world together ... but also on the issues of peace and the consequences of the Russian war of aggression on Ukraine," he said during a joint news conference with Singapore's prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong. "That's going to be a tough ride, and I think it's going to take up a lot of our time and efforts in Bali." Reporting by Miranda Murray, editing by Kirsti KnolleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Stellantis strikes deal with Infineon to secure silicon carbide chips
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Global carmaker Stellantis (STLA.MI) has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) with German chipmaker Infineon (IFXGn.DE) for a multi-year supply of silicon carbide semiconductors, Infineon said in a statement on Monday. According to the agreement, Infineon will reserve production capacity and supply the power semiconductors directly to Stellantis suppliers in the second half of the 2020s. Well over 1 billion euros' ($1.03 billion) worth of chips could be involved, said Infineon, adding that the chips would be meant for electric vehicles under the Stellantis brands. Chip shortages over the past couple of years have forced global automakers to scrap production plans for millions of cars. ($1 = 0.9696 euros)Reporting by Christina Amann; Writing by Miranda Murray; Editing by Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Infineon plans 5-billion-euro Dresden site, raises targets
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Infineon (IFXGn.DE) is planning a new 5-billion-euro factory in the eastern German city of Dresden to expand its 300-millimetre production capacities, the German chipmaker said on Monday, while also raising its long-term financial targets. The plant, subject to adequate public funding, could go into operation in autumn 2026 and create up to 1,000 jobs, added Infineon. The company also raised its future target operating model and now expects its average rate of revenue growth to be more than 10%, up from a previous 9%. The German chipmaker saw growth driven in particular by electromobility, autonomous driving, renewable energies, data centres and the internet of things, it said. The segment result margin is also expected to reach an average level of 25% versus 19% to date.

The maker of IWC and Piaget watches surprised to the upside by reporting sales and operating profit from continuing operations rising by a quarter during the six months to the end of September. Jewellery sales rose by 24% in the period, with customers snapping up collections such as Cartier's Clash and Trinity rings and necklaces. The figures also showed the quality of the group's brands, "particularly its best in class jewellery business", Cox added. But from continuing operations, which removed the impact of the write-down and YNAP's losses, Richemont's profit increased by 40% to 2.1 billion euros. The latest results showed "excellent sales growth, profit and cash flow results", he added.

☆ Daimler Truck's Q3 unit sales jump as chip shortage eases
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Fabian BimmerBERLIN, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Daimler Truck reported a 27% jump in third-quarter unit sales to nearly 135,000 units on Friday, as the chip shortage that hit the heavy truck business particularly hard a year earlier began to ease. The jump in earnings was highest in Europe at 316% from the same quarter last year compared to 111% in North America, traditionally Daimler Truck's strongest market. In Asia, however, where a depressed Chinese market prompted the company to lower its regional adjusted earnings margin last quarter to 1-3% from 3-5%, earnings fell 63% even as revenues and unit sales increased. Sales of Daimler Buses, which did not grow at all in 2021, were up 18% this year so far, with earnings more than tripling to 23 million euros ($23.51 million). ($1 = 0.9785 euros)Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Ilona Wissenbach Editing by Miranda Murray and Rashmi AichOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ German harmonised inflation +11.6% y/y in October
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Germany's consumer prices, harmonised to compare with other European countries, were 11.6% higher year-on-year in October, the Federal Statistical Office said on Friday, confirming preliminary figures. On a non-harmonised basis, consumer price inflation was also confirmed at 10.4%. The office offers more detailed economic data on its website. Writing by Miranda Murray, editing by Rachel MoreOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Luxury group Richemont sounds cautious note on cost-of-living pressures
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( John Revill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Still, from its continuing operations, which removed the impact of the write-down and the contribution from YNAP, Richemont's profit increased by 40% to 2.1 billion euros and profit margins improved. Sales increased by 24% to 9.67 billion euros, helped by a recovery in the Asia Pacific region and double-digit percentage sales growth in all other regions as previously locked-down customers returned to its luxury boutiques. Chairman Johann Rupert described the figures as "another set of strong results," but added a note of caution about the future. "Richemont is well known for giving cautious guidance, which this time is to the point, considering the ongoing tough environment," Bertschy said. ($1 = 0.9785 euros)Reporting by John Revill, Editing by Miranda Murray & Shri NavaratnamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Daimler Truck raises unit sales as chip shortage eases
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Daimler Truck raised unit sales by 27% to nearly 135,000 units in the third quarter, as the chip shortage that hit the heavy truck business particularly hard in the same period last year began to ease. Incoming orders were down 18% from the third quarter last year and down 14% this year so far, the company said in a statement, a sign that the backlog of demand outstripping supply as chip shortages prevented automotive manufacturers from delivering goods is clearing up. Higher pricing, favourable exchange rate effects and a strong after-sale business pushed revenues up 47% and earnings before interest and taxes up 159%, the truckmaker said on Friday, confirming results released in an ad-hoc statement in late October. Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Ilona Wissenbach Editing by Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Insurers face potential losses of up to $60 billion from Hurricane Ian, which ravaged Florida and the Carolinas in September in what could be the second-largest natural catastrophe loss in U.S. history. Zurich sees its overall catastrophe loss ratio for the first nine months around two percentage points above long-term trends. Zurich holds an investor day next week when it will set out its 2023-2025 targets. Quinn said the targets will likely be tougher, after "robust premium increases" helped the insurer's recent performance. Zurich announced a 1.8 billion Swiss franc ($1.83 billion) share buyback programme at half-year results, which Quinn told an earlier media call would likely kick off in the fourth quarter.

Apart from generating and selling electricity, RWE also operates a large desk that trades in electricity, gas and CO2 certificates as well as other commodities, which can lead to bumper profits in times of significant price swings. "We have a very fundamental understanding of how markets work," Chief Financial Officer Michael Mueller told reporters on Thursday. Stifel Research, keeping a "buy" rating on RWE shares, said trading results were driven by so-called contango, where the futures price of a commodity is higher than spot levels. Nine-month adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose to 4.1 billion euros ($4.1 billion), up from 2.4 billion a year earlier. Apart from the strong performance in trading, where profits were up 59%, results also benefited from higher electricity wholesale prices for gas and biomass, Mueller said.

☆ Germany to Hungary: no grey area on ratifying Sweden, Finland NATO accession
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Germany has made it clear to Hungary that there is no grey area when it comes to the ratification of Sweden and Finland's accession to NATO, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in Berlin on Thursday. "With regard to the question about Hungary: I would like to underline this clearly ... there is no grey area," Baerbock told a joint news conference with her Swedish counterpart, Tobias Billstrom. Hungary's parliament will discuss the ratification during its autumn session after a series of EU-related bills have been passed, Prime Minister Viktor Orban's chief of staff said on Wednesday. Writing by Miranda Murray Editing by Paul CarrelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Allianz deal to sell Russia operations faces delay due to regulator
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Andreas Rinke | Miranda Murray | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

FRANKFURT, Nov 10 (Reuters) - The insurer Allianz said on Thursday that a deal to sell a majority stake in its Russian operations was delayed as it awaits regulatory approval. Allianz said that the financial hit of around 400 million euros ($401.36 million) to profit from the deal would now occur in the fourth quarter of this year or in the first quarter of 2023. Allianz had previously said it expected the hit in the third quarter. "It's simply a delay driven by the regulator" in Russia, an Allianz spokesperson said. ($1 = 0.9966 euros)Reporting by Tom Sims and Alexander Huebner, Editing by Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Top 5 investor in UK's Aveva plans to reject Schneider takeover
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Andreas Rinke | Miranda Murray | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - A top five investor in British software company Aveva (AV.L) plans to reject a 9.5 billion pound ($11 billion) takeover bid by French industrial group Schneider Electric (SCHN.PA), joining two other shareholders who have already said they would do the same. In September, when the deal was announced, Canada-based Mawer Investment Management and M&G Investments, two Aveva shareholders, said they intended to reject the offer. Schneider Electric has offered 31 pounds per share, a premium of about 41% to Aveva's share price in August before it announced the suitor was considering making an offer. It took majority control in 2017 in a reverse takeover that enabled the British company to retain its London listing. "The timing of the approach by Schneider is highly opportunistic and comes on the back of a broader market decline as well as weakness in Aveva's own share price," Davidson Kempner said.

Saudi Press Agency/Handout via REUTERSDUBAI, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) is working with Lazard (LAZ.N) on funding options and a potential initial public offering of Masar, a $27 billion mega project in the holy city of Mecca, two sources with direct knowledge told Reuters. The PIF, Lazard and Masar did not respond to a Reuters query for comment. Bloomberg first reported Lazard was advising the sovereign wealth fund on NEOM. Masar is a 1.2 million square metre urban development project in the western part of Mecca. Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh;Editing by Elaine HardcastleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Nov 10 (Reuters) - Russia does not intend to postpone the sale of bailed-out lender Otkritie to Russia's second biggest bank VTB (VTBR.MM), central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said on Thursday. She said that she is confident the deal will be completed before the end of the year. Reporting by Reuters. Editing by Jane MerrimanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Chile's Boric slams 'terrorist' violence in rural south in rhetorical shift
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Natalia A. Ramos Miranda | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SANTIAGO, Nov 10(Reuters) - Chile's President Gabriel Boric condemned "terrorist" violence during a visit to the country's restive southern region on Thursday, a rhetorical shift for the leader who had pledged to focus on dialogue with indigenous local Mapuche groups and eschew former President Sebastian Pinera's militarization of the region. Boric later reinstated a state of emergency, keeping a strong military presence in the region. During the speech, Boric announced that the government would create two support centers for victims of violence in the region. "We haven't been capable as a state to solve the lag in terms of poverty," Boric said. Report by Natalia Ramos; Writing by Alexander Villegas; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Emily Blunt is game for a 'Devil Wears Prada' sequel
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Dan Heching | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Emily Blunt would be more than game to return to the role that made her one of film’s most iconic fashion mean girls. Hathaway, whose career also skyrocketed thanks to “Prada,” shared a bit more hesitation around the prospect of a sequel when she visited “The View” just last week. Now, everything’s gone so digital, and that movie centered around the concept of producing a physical thing. It’s just very different now.”“Although, it is tempting to think about Andy and Emily needing to get Miranda her coffee and she’s somewhere in Europe,” she added. “And then along the way they pick up Stanley Tucci in Italy, who’s at a restaurant.

☆ RWE posts 72% rise in 9-month profit on higher demand, strong trading
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Rwe Ag FollowFRANKFURT, Nov 10 (Reuters) - RWE (RWEG.DE) on Thursday posted a 72% increase in core profits for the first nine months, boosted by higher demand and prices for power across Europe as well as what it called an unusually strong commodity trading performance. Nine-month adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose to 4.1 billion euros ($4.14 billion), up from 2.4 billion, Germany's largest power producer said. In its commodity trading division, profits were up 59% due to improvements "with regard to almost all commodities and regions". The group confirmed its 2022 outlook, still expecting adjusted EBITDA of 5 billion to 5.5 billion euros and adjusted net profit of 2.1 billion to 2.6 billion euros. ($1 = 0.9968 euros)Reporting by Christoph Steitz, editing by Kirsti Knolle and Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Adidas slashes 2022 outlook after Kanye West split
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Rachel More | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Adidas now expects its currency-neutral revenue to grow at a low-single-digit rate in 2022, down from a previously forecast mid-single-digit rate. An Adidas logo is pictured inside a shoe before the company annual general meeting in Fuerth near Nuremberg, Germany, May 11, 2017. It posted net income from continuing operations of 66 million euros, revising down its preliminary figure by almost two-thirds following the end of the Ye partnership. The termination of the partnership is expected to reduce annual earnings by half, the company previously said, with net income from continuing operations of around 250 million euros ($252 million) now expected this year. ($1 = 0.9939 euros)Writing by Rachel More; Editing by Miranda Murray and Bradley PerrettOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Bruce Springsteen to take over ‘The Tonight Show’ hosted by (his best impersonator) Jimmy Fallon
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Dan Heching | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Bruce Springsteen is about to take the stage at a place where he’s often been talked about. The legendary entertainer is set to take over “The Tonight Show” for four nights of performances, also participating as a guest of host Jimmy Fallon – who has done a killer Springsteen impersonation over the years. Late night funnyman Fallon, meanwhile, has made a bit of a side-career off of his Springsteen impersonation, even performing alongside the real deal on multiple occasions. Other musically gifted stars who have done takeovers of “The Tonight Show” include Mariah Carey, Taylor Swift and Lin-Manuel Miranda. “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m.

☆ Deutsche Bank joins recent industry criticism of ECB
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

FRANKFURT, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) on Wednesday waded into the financial industry's criticism of the European Central Bank, with the German lender's finance chief saying authorities should do more to champion banks. The ECB and other parts of official sector "should be moving to championing the banks to help the economy rather than not," Chief Financial Officer James von Moltke said at a financial conference. Reporting by Tom Sims, Editing by Miranda MurrayOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ German economy ministry wants to skim electricity windfall profit from November - draft paper
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Germany's economy ministry wants to begin skimming off electricity providers' windfall profits retroactively from November, according to a draft paper seen by Reuters. Only plants with output of more than one megawatt would be affected, and storage, hard coal, gas and biomethane would be excluded, according to the proposal from the ministry. The draft paper proposes skimming off 90% of reference revenues plus a surcharge of 3 cents per kilowatt hour on the spot market. Renewables can keep a further 4% of the monthly base price, said the paper seen on Wednesday. Reporting by Markus Wacket, Writing by Miranda Murray; Editing by Madeline ChambersOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Adidas halves FY income outlook after Kanye West split
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Adidas (ADSGn.DE) slashed its net income forecast for 2022 in half on Wednesday as it weighed the impact of its split from the rapper formerly known as Kanye West ahead of the key Christmas season. The company now expects net income from continuing operations of around 250 million euros ($251.53 million) this year, down from a target of around 500 million euros set out in a statement on Oct. 20. The new estimates reflect the high seasonality of the Yeezy business geared towards the fourth quarter, the company said. On Wednesday, Adidas reported third-quarter net income from continuing operations of 66 million euros, revising down its preliminary figure by almost two-thirds following the end of the partnership. Shares in Adidas fell by 2.1% in pre-market trade after the quarterly results announcement.

☆ CMA Awards 2022: See the full list of winners
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Dan Heching | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Country music threw a party on Wednesday night as the CMA Awards were presented. First-time nominee Lainey Wilson topped the list of nominees going into the show and ended the night with major wins, including new artist of the year and female vocalist of the year. The emotional Wilson declared in one acceptance speech: “I know I’m new to a lot of folks, but I won’t let y’all all down. I promise you.”Luke Combs also had a big night, taking the stage both as a performer and winner. Other performers included Kelly Clarkson, who performed with Kelsea Ballerini and Carly Pearce, and Luke Bryan, who pulled double duty as host alongside Peyton Manning.

Nov 10 (Reuters) - Origin Energy Ltd (ORG.AX), Australia's no.2 power producer and energy retailer, backed an A$18.4 billion ($11.8 billion) non-binding buyout offer from a consortium led by Canada's Brookfield Asset Management, the companies said on Thursday. The deal sent Origin's share price soaring nearly 40% in early trade to A$8.14. Origin opened its books to the consortium after it raised its offer to A$9 per share in cash, a near 55% premium to Origin's last close of A$5.81. The bid from Brookfield comes after it was rebuffed earlier this year when it led a $3.5 billion takeover offer for Australia's top power producer, AGL Energy (AGL.AX). Under the indicative proposal submitted on Thursday, Brookfield would acquire Origin's energy markets business, while MidOcean Energy, the other consortium partner, would take control of Origin's integrated gas business, including its 27.5% stake in Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG).

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