ROUNDUP 2: Lufthansa may take over Italian state airline Ita

BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/ROM - Lufthansa may take over the Italian state-owned airline Ita. After a lengthy review, the EU Commission has given the green light. However, the long-established company must first fulfill a number of conditions. Among other things, the competition regulators from Brussels require the partners to relinquish take-off and landing rights in Milan-Linate and to provide start-up assistance to new competitors on medium and long-haul routes. Negotiations with competitors are also planned.

ROUNDUP: Grenke with significant increase in new leasing business - share price rises

BADEN-BADEN - The leasing specialist Grenke generated noticeably more new business in the second quarter than a year earlier, benefiting from growth in Southern Europe in particular. With the new contracts, the profit from this business also increased. CEO Sebastian Hirsch saw a "stage victory" on the way to the targeted record year. CFO Martin Paal predicted further strong growth with stable profitability for the second half of the year. The SDax-listed share, which has performed poorly so far this year, rose significantly.

ROUNDUP: German carmakers in the USA with light and shade - VW with a clear plus

RESTON/WOODCLIFF LAKE - Despite headwinds from high interest rates, carmaker Volkswagen is currently having a good run on the US car market. By contrast, things are looking much more difficult for the Group subsidiary Audi. The Bavarians from BMW were also able to make further gains, mainly thanks to their electric cars, which continue to do well. The overall market in the USA, on the other hand, is stuttering due to high interest rates and reluctant buyers.

Chinese car market with a further dip in June

PEKING - The important Chinese car market remained under pressure in June. Sales of passenger cars to end customers fell by 8 percent year-on-year to 1.76 million cars, according to preliminary data released by the China Passenger Car Association (PCA) in Beijing on Wednesday. There had already been slightly fewer sales in the People's Republic in the two previous months compared to the previous year. Compared to the previous month, however, the number of sales rose by two percent in June.

ROUNDUP 2: Car industry warns of punitive tariffs on Chinese e-cars

BRUSSELS - Shortly before the expected entry into force of provisional EU punitive tariffs on Chinese e-cars, the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) has warned of the consequences for the domestic economy. The punitive tariffs are not expedient for either the EU or Germany, according to a key issues paper obtained by Deutsche Presse-Agentur. The association warns of the "enormous" damage that could be caused by potential countermeasures from Beijing. China is the largest car market in the world and, according to the VDA, was the third-largest export market for cars from Germany in 2023 - after the USA and the United Kingdom.

Plant manufacturer Krones targets significantly higher revenue and margin for 2028

NEUTRAUBLING - The manufacturer of filling and packaging systems Krones is aiming for further growth in the coming years. Sales are to increase to 7 billion euros by 2028, said CEO Christoph Klenk at a capital market day in Neutraubling on Wednesday. As already announced, the MDax group is targeting revenue of more than five billion euros for the current year. Krones had reported revenue of 4.7 billion euros in 2023. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) are expected to account for 11 to 13 percent of revenue in 2028. Krones is planning 9.8% to 10.3% for the current year. Krones had achieved a margin of 9.7 percent in 2023.

ROUNDUP: Engine manufacturer Deutz raises fresh money with capital increase

COLOGNE - The engine manufacturer Deutz has raised fresh money for the expansion of its business portfolio with a capital increase. In the course of an accelerated procedure, a good 12.6 million new shares were placed with the exclusion of subscription rights, generating gross proceeds of around 72 million euros, the company, which is listed in the second-line index SDax, announced in Koln on Wednesday. The share capital thus increased by around ten percent. The placement price of 5.71 euros per share is a good six percent below Tuesday's closing price of 6.085 euros.

Habeck confirms prohibition of planned China deal

BERLIN - The planned sale of MAN Energy Solutions' gas turbine business to the Chinese company CSIC Longjiang has been prohibited by the German government. This was confirmed by Economics Minister Robert Habeck in Berlin. The Green politician generally said that investments in Germany and also in companies located in Germany were welcome. The restriction is that technologies that are relevant to public safety and order must be protected from information leakage. This also applies to technologies that are used in security-critical areas. He could not give any details. However, this was the reason why the federal government had issued the ban.

^

Further news

-'HB': Rheinmetall faces possible major order from Italy

-ROUNDUP: Curevac cuts almost one in three jobs - billion-euro deal with GSK

-Sanofi blockbuster Dupixent: Approval in Europe for special lung disease

-Shareholder dispute at Heckler & Koch continues

-Right to fast Internet - Committee vote pending

-BVB professional Pohlmann moves to Portugal

-Europe's beacon of hope: Ariane 6 rocket about to take off

-ROUNDUP: Dangerous storm 'Beryl' approaches Jamaica

-ROUNDUP 2/Wirecard: Third defendant wants to break silence

-Kontron receives another million-euro order for wallboxes

-More parcels are being sent again

-More visitors in German city centers

-Class action against sports streaming service DAZN filed at Hamm Higher Regional Court

-Meyer Werft wants to cut fewer jobs than planned

-'Germany's largest solar park' in operation near Leipzig

-Joyn gains almost 50 percent more users in one year

-China beats the rest of the world in patents on generative AI

-Telekom surprised by rush of new customers before European Championship round of 16

-Tied caps on bottles compulsory from today

-Wiesnmaß cracks the 15 euro mark°

Customer tip:

ROUNDUP: You can read a summary in the company overview. There are several reports on this topic on the dpa-AFX news service.

/jha