Auto makers reported lower customer demand and results Thursday
in the first full quarter to show the global effects of the new
coronavirus.
Daimler AG's net loss widened and revenue fell in the second
quarter as a result of the closure of sales centers in its core
markets due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The German premium car maker said it is now seeing the first
signs of recovery, especially at Mercedes-Benz passenger cars, with
strong demand for its top-end models and electrified vehicles.
Still, Daimler expects a significant contraction of the global car
market in 2020 and assumes that coronavirus-related unit sales
decreases won't be offset in the rest of the year.
South Korean car makers Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp.
saw sharp falls in their second-quarter profits, weighed mainly by
the pandemic suppressing demand for vehicles overseas.
Great Wall Motor Co. also had lower sales during the pandemic.
The Chinese car maker said its first-half net profit fell 24% from
a year earlier.
Other earnings reported Thursday:
Air Products & Chemicals Inc.: The gas and chemical company
reported an 8.5% fall in third-quarter profit, largely due to the
negative effects of the pandemic on the business.
American Airlines Group Inc.: The airline posted a big loss for
the second quarter. "COVID-19 and the resulting shutdown of the
U.S. economy have caused severe disruptions to global demand for
air travel," CEO Doug Parker said. The airline ended the quarter
with $10.2 billion in available liquidity, after receiving bailout
funds from the U.S. government and issuing $1.2 billion of
debt.
AT&T Inc.: The telecom and media company's second-quarter
profit fell as the pandemic and an already unhealthy satellite-TV
business overshadowed the launch of its make-or-break streaming
video service.
Beazley PLC: The U.K. specialty insurer reported a swing to
pretax loss for the first half as the pandemic boosted claims.
CapitaLand Commercial Trust: The company's second-quarter
distribution per unit fell 23% on year due to fall in income from
Singapore properties caused by lower occupancies and rental waivers
to tenants affected by pandemic.
Croda International PLC: The FTSE-100 chemicals company said
pretax profit for the first half of 2020 fell after booking higher
costs, and, although trading has stabilized, visibility is limited
and the timing of recovery remains unclear due to the pandemic.
Daily Mail & General Trust PLC: The U.K. media group said it
swung to an adjusted operating loss for the third quarter of its
fiscal 2020, as the pandemic disrupted its U.K. property
information, events and consumer media operations.
Dow Inc.: The materials company swung to a second-quarter loss
as revenue declined amid lower volumes during the continuing
pandemic.
Getlink SE: The French operator of the Channel Tunnel between
the U.K. and France said it swung to a net loss in the first half
of the year, while revenue suffered the consequences of the
pandemic.
G4S PLC: The FTSE-250 security services company posted a higher
profit before tax for the first half of the year, but its
underlying performance was hit by the pandemic and the company
suspended its interim dividend.
Hershey Co.: The candy maker reported a weaker profit and
falling sales for the second quarter, as retailers, struggling with
the effects of the pandemic on their businesses, pulled back on
candy orders.
Howden Joinery Group PLC: The U.K. maker of kitchen and joinery
products swung to a pretax loss for the first half of the year
after it booked higher costs and revenue fell. Howden Joinery said
predictions of future demand levels are difficult due to the effect
of the pandemic.
Immunodiagnostic Systems Holdings PLC: The diagnostic testing
kit provider said revenue in the first quarter of fiscal 2021 has
been hurt by the pandemic, with April suffering the hardest hit and
June seeing some recovery.
Kimberly-Clark Corp.: The home-goods company reported a higher
profit in the latest quarter, driven in part by cost-saving efforts
and by higher consumer-tissue sales during the Covid-19
pandemic.
Learning Technologies Group PLC: The U.K. provider of services
and technologies for digital learning said first-half trading rose
in line with management views despite a limited coronavirus hit on
the underlying business.
Loblaw Cos. Ltd.: The food retailer company reported a 40% fall
in second-quarter profit despite higher revenue in the period and
said Covid-19-related expenses negatively affected earnings.
Mapletree Commercial Trust: The Singapore-based trust's net
property income fell almost 11% in its fiscal first quarter,
largely due to rental rebates granted to retail tenants hard hit by
the pandemic.
Maxis Bhd.: The Malaysian cellular service provider's net profit
for the second quarter dropped 14% from a year earlier, mainly due
to its weaker wholesale business and higher impairment of
receivables amid the pandemic.
Novolipetsk Steel: The London-listed Russian steelmaker reported
a fall in net profit and revenue for the second quarter as the
pandemic dented demand.
Property Franchise Group PLC: The estate and lettings agency
said its overall performance in the first half was strong despite
the coronavirus and it returned to growth in June, reinstating its
interim dividend.
Publicis Groupe SA: The major advertising agency conglomerate
reported a 2.6% increase in net revenue in the second quarter, but
organic revenue -- a key industry measure that strips out currency
effects, acquisitions and disposals -- fell 13%. Chairman and CEO
Arthur Sadoun said the wider economic upheaval prompted by the
coronavirus was proving to be at least as bad as he anticipated
after the first quarter. The social unrest following the police
killing of George Floyd has added another layer of challenges, he
said.
Quest Diagnostics Inc.: The diagnostics company reported a
smaller second-quarter profit than last year's amid a 6.4% revenue
decline as the pandemic skewed the demand for health-care
services.
RELX PLC: The FTSE 100 information and analytics group said net
profit for the first half fell 30% as the pandemic hit revenue, and
its full-year outlook for its events division is highly
uncertain.
Repsol SA: The Spanish energy company swung to a loss in the
second quarter due to the historic fall in oil and gas prices
caused by the pandemic.
Roche Holding AG: The Swiss pharm giant reported a 6.3% fall in
first-half net profit as the pandemic hurt sales across its whole
business. Roche cited travel restrictions, canceled or delayed
patient visits, and minimized visits to pharmacies by
consumers.
Severstal PAO: The Russian steelmaker reported a sharp rise in
second-quarter net profit on foreign exchange gains but said
first-half results were hurt by the pandemic and weak steel
prices.
Southwest Airlines Co.: The carrier posted a loss for the second
quarter and said improvements in passenger traffic stalled in July
as some states saw a resurgence in Covid-19.
Suntec Real Estate Investment Trust: The Singapore-based trust's
first-half distribution to unitholders fell 31% from a year earlier
as it retained capital to guard against financial stresses from the
pandemic.
Twitter Inc.: The social media company reported strong user
growth but experienced lingering impacts from the pandemic in its
latest quarter, as the platform will have to navigate a rocky
advertising climate and the fallout from a major security breach in
the weeks ahead.
Unilever PLC: The consumer-goods company reported
better-than-expected second-quarter sales as a strong performance
in the U.S. outweighed coronavirus-related declines elsewhere in
the world.
Union Pacific Corp.: The U.S. railroad reported a weaker
second-quarter profit, reflecting how demand for shipments across
the company's business lines fell off amid coronavirus-related
shutdowns earlier this year.
Vodacom Group Ltd.: The telecommunications company's revenue
rose 5.6% in the first quarter, as the coronavirus lockdown boosted
mobile and fixed traffic in South Africa. As a result of increased
demand, the company accelerated network infrastructure spending by
22% and used a temporary assignment of spectrum to increase its
network capacity and fast-track the launch of its 5G network.
W.W. Grainger Inc.: The company reported a smaller
second-quarter profit amid an estimated decline in its primary
market for maintenance, repair and operating products during the
pandemic.
Write to Rose Manzo at rose.manzo@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 23, 2020 11:41 ET (15:41 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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