EU car sales rose 10% in June and were up 25% in the first half compared with the same period in 2020, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.
Sales reached almost 5.4m vehicles – still 1.5m units below the pre-Covid volume recorded over the first six months of 2019.
Germany posted the biggest gain, with a 24.5% increase, followed by Spain (+17%) and Italy (+12.6%). In France, by contrast, passenger car sales fell 14.7% in June.
The Bank of Japan has kept monetary policy unchanged but downgraded its growth forecast to 3.8% for the current fiscal year to March 2022, from 4% estimated in April. It stuck to its view that the world’s third-biggest economy is headed for a moderate recovery, and raised its growth forecast for next year to 2.7% from 2.4%.
The BOJ also revised its consumer inflation forecast higher, to 0.6% from 0.1% this year, on the back of rises in energy costs and commodities prices.
Today, nickel prices climbed to a near five-month high, tracking gains in stainless steel. Nickel is used in electric vehicle batteries, and to make stainless steel. Three-month nickel on the London Metal Exchange rose as much as 2.3% to $19,205.
The central bank also announced a climate scheme, which will offer long-term loans at zero interest to banks that extend green and sustainability-linked loans and invest in green bonds and sustainability-linked bonds. It also said it would start buying green bonds using its foreign reserves.
A resurgence in Covid-19 infections forced the Japanese government to impose a new state of emergency in Tokyo, with the Olympic Games looming, dashing any hopes of a strong rebound in economic growth this quarter.
GSK has unveiled ambitious plans in Stevenage where it wants to turn its 92-acre research and development site into one of Europe’s largest clusters for biotechnology startups and other early-stage life sciences companies, creating up to 5,000 jobs.
Britain’s second-biggest drugmaker is looking to sell 33 acres of land and attract up to £400m investment from a developer to build out the campus, over the next five to 10 years.
GSK’s Stevenage site is one of its two global R&D hubs, and is already home to the UK’s largest cell and gene therapy cluster, the third largest globally. If successful, the new campus could attract several world-class research organisations to Stevenage.
The new campus would sit next to GSK’s existing site at Stevenage and the company hopes that work on a master plan could begin next year.
Burberry, the British fashion brand known for its trenchcoats and check scarves, has reported stronger than expected sales. Comparable sales surged 90% to £479m in the 13 weeks to the end June from a year earlier, when shops were closed, and were up 1% compared with 2019 levels.
Asian stock markets were mixed after a tough day on the markets in Europe and Wall Street yesterday. Japan’s Nikkei lost almost 1%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose almost 0.3% and the Australian market was flat.
European markets have opened higher, with the UK’s FTSE 100 index up 15 points, or 0.2%, at 7,027. Germany’s Dax and Spain’s Ibex rose 0.3%, while France’s Cac pushed 0.5% higher at the open.
The agenda
• 9am BST: Italy trade for May
• 9am BST: Spain trade for May
• 10am BST: eurozone inflation for June (forecast core inflation: 0.9%)
• 1.30pm BST: US retail sales for June (forecast: 0.4%)
• 3pm BST: US Michigan consumer sentiment for July (forecast: 86.5)
We’ll be tracking all the main events throughout the day ... |
Revolut valuation makes little sense when compared with Lloyds 
