Novo Nordisk with further positive study data on weight-lowering drug Wegovy

BAGSVAERD - Insulin maker Novo Nordisk has published further positive trial data on its weight-lowering drug Wegovy. In tests, the drug also proved superior to standard treatment for preventing serious cardiovascular complications such as stroke and heart attack. According to the results, the risk was reduced by a fifth in comparison, as Novo Nordisk announced on Tuesday in Bagsvaerd, Denmark. The stock market reacted with enthusiasm, with shares rising 16 percent to a record high. According to Jefferies analyst Peter Welford, market expectations were probably exceeded.

ROUNDUP: Airport operator Fraport becomes a little more optimistic - share rises

FRANKFURT - Passenger traffic at Frankfurt Airport is coming a little further out of its Corona low. In the important travel month of July, airport operator Fraport still counted about 13 percent fewer passengers at Germany's largest aviation hub than in the same month of 2019. In the current year, the Executive Board expects about 60 million passengers in Frankfurt - about 15 percent less than in the record year 2019 before the Corona pandemic. Looking at the profit trend, however, the management is becoming somewhat more optimistic, as the company announced on Tuesday. On the stock market, that went down well.

Italy introduces excess profits tax for banks

ROUNDUP 2/High demand from automotive sector: Norma Group increases profitability

ROME (dpa-AFX) - The Italian government has approved the introduction of a tax on banks' excess profits. With this newly introduced 40 percent tax, the government hopes to raise "several billion" euros to in turn ease the burden on citizens, Italy's Deputy Prime Minister and Lega leader Matteo Salvini said Monday evening after a cabinet meeting. The measure is valid for 2023.

ROUNDUP 2/High demand from automotive sector: Norma Group increases profitability.

MAINTAL - Fastener specialist Norma Group grew in the second quarter thanks to an upturn in demand from the automotive industry and price increases. This more than made up for lower demand in the water management segment, as the SDax-listed company announced in Maintal on Tuesday. Also, more of the sales remained as adjusted operating profit than a year ago. The group confirmed its targets for the year. To make the company more profitable, Norma Group had begun an efficiency and growth program. The stock rose more than nine percent in early trading.

ROUNDUP: UPS parcel service cuts annual targets again - share price plummets

ATLANTA - U.S. package delivery company UPS is slashing its annual targets even further in the face of a slump in business and rising wages. Revenue is expected to reach only about $93 billion (84.6 billion euros) instead of $97 billion, the DHL Group rival announced Tuesday in Atlanta. In addition, management expects higher personnel costs - and therefore lower profits - following a preliminary agreement with the Teamsters transport workers' union. UPS shares recently lost around five percent after the news in pre-borsday U.S. trading.

ROUNDUP: Bayer more cautious for agricultural and pharmaceutical divisions - future still open

LEVERKUSEN - Bayer is becoming more pessimistic about the current year for its two largest divisions, CropScience and Pharmaceuticals. The DAX-listed company had already lowered its outlook for the year in July, referring in particular to the now significantly lower prices for the weedkiller glyphosate after a boom in the previous year. Now it appears that the business with prescription medicines is also weakening. However, there was no news on the future of the group under the new boss Bill Anderson on Tuesday morning.

ROUNDUP: Sixt increases sales strongly thanks to premium prices - outlook confirmed

PULLACH - Significantly higher rental car prices than before the pandemic have helped the Sixt Group to a jump in sales in the completed quarter. However, profit growth was more meager. The Sixt board also moved to readjust its annual targets. "Decisive for the further development will be above all the course of business in the rest of the summer season," it said in a statement on Tuesday. Sixt says it generates about half of its annual earnings in the third quarter - the peak summer travel period. Sixt's preferred shares rose a good two percent briefly in the morning, while its MDax-listed common shares were up slightly less.

ROUNDUP 2: Taiwanese chip company TSMC builds plant in Dresden, Germany

TAIPEH/DRESDEN - Taiwanese chip manufacturer TSMC plans to build a semiconductor plant in Dresden. The group made the announcement after a board meeting on Tuesday. Accordingly, TSMC expects the total investment sum to exceed ten billion euros. Half of the investment cost will come from taxpayers in Germany, as the deal includes a government subsidy package, as is customary internationally.

Commercial vehicle supplier SAF-Holland raises outlook after good quarter

BESSENBACH - Following a better-than-expected second quarter, commercial vehicle supplier SAF-Holland has raised its annual targets. Group sales for the full year are now expected to be slightly above 2 billion euros, the company announced in Bessenbach on Tuesday. Previously, management had targeted the upper end of the forecast range of 1.8 to 1.95 billion. The margin before interest and taxes, adjusted for special items, is expected to be up to 9 percent. Previously, the target was 7.5 to 8.5 percent. The share price rose by three percent.

ROUNDUP: Advertising slump: RTL revises annual forecast downward

LUXEMBOURG - German private television is struggling with the slump in the advertising market. Television group RTL has now revised its annual forecast downward, as the television group announced in Luxembourg on Tuesday. Revenues and the adjusted operating result would thus be below the figure for the full year 2022. At the same time, the listed RTL Group is sticking to its streaming targets.

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Further announcements

-ROUNDUP/Zoom: Data use for AI training only with users' consent.

-Chinese auto demand does not decline as much as thought in July

-VW umbrella company Porsche SE confirms annual targets - profit down

-Fund company DWS brings in new finance chief from Allianz

-EU Commission investigates Adobe takeover of web design platform

-Hamburg Airport establishes company for planned wind farm

-ROUNDUP/Without real presenters: New web radio program with AI voices

-Habeck: TSMC chip plant in Dresden important for semiconductor supply

-Negotiations with investor for Ford plant in Saarlouis 'in full swing'

-Tesla CFO resigns

-Construction equipment manufacturer Wacker Neuson also optimistic for 2024

-Paypal with its own digital currency

-More money for Musk's brain implant company Neuralink

-Eli Lilly raises targets again -Diet wave continues to cause supply delays

-Federal Ministry of Economics allows Elmos wafer sale to Littelfuse

-ROUNDUP: Air traffic much more stable in summer than last year

-ROUNDUP: Demand for heat pumps declines significantly

-Scout24 with operating earnings jump in second quarter

-Qiagen receives FDA approval for Therascreen PDGFRA kit - share price rises

-Norma Group CEO: Are in a phase in which economic areas are closing off

-ROUNDUP: U.S. publisher Simon & Schuster goes to financial investor KKR°

Customer Notice:

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

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