BERLIN, March 4 (Reuters) – The following are some of the factors that may move German stocks on Wednesday:
CORONAVIRUS
China reported another drop in new coronavirus cases as its attention turns to controlling the risk of infection from abroad, as clusters of the disease that originated in China appear around the world.
Germany is ready to help small- and medium-sized companies affected by the coronavirus to bridge sudden liquidity problems and avoid lay-offs through existing labour market instruments, Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said.
AUTOS
Mercedes-Benz is embarking on a sweeping cost cutting plan to free up cash to build electric and self-driving cars, a step which could see entire engine families and platforms eliminated, Daimler board member Markus Schaefer said.
Daimler Chief Executive Ola Kaellenius the automaker has “no issues” securing electric vehicle battery cells, and is ramping up battery production to meet high demand for plug-in models.
The CEO of Porsche has warned the cost of lithium-ion batteries is unlikely to drop for at least five years, the Financial Times reported.
Munich will succeed Frankfurt as the German auto show’s host city from 2021, the VDA association of German car makers said.
E.ON
Innogy holds an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting to put to vote a transfer of shares of remaining minority investors to E.ON, paving the way for a complete takeover.
LUFTHANSA
The airline threw its weight behind a proposed $4.2 billion takeover of Embraer’s commercial aircraft activities by Boeing, saying it would preserve a level playing field.
DELIVERY HERO
The food delivery company announced it will issue new shares at a price of 68.60 euros.
METRO
U.S. food distributor Sysco has contacted Metro about a potential takeover of the German wholesaler, two people close to the matter told Reuters.
MORPHOSYS
Morphosys and its U.S. partner Incyte announced that their collaboration and license agreement for the further development and commercialisation of Morphosys’ investigational compound tafasitamab has received antitrust clearance, triggering a $750 million upfront payment by Incyte to Morphosys.
TEAMVIEWER
Private equity firm Permira placed 22 million shares in Teamviewer with institutional investors in an accelerated bookbuilding process, a spokesman said. The placement price was 32 euros per share, representing about 11% of Teamviewer’s share capital.
BRENNTAG
Annual report due. Q4 EBITDA seen at 231.3 million euros. Poll:
DEUTSCHE PFANDBRIEFBANK
Preliminary 2019 results due
DIALOG SEMICONDUCTOR
Q4 results due. Net profit seen at 69 million euros. Poll:
EVONIK INDUSTRIES
Q4 results due. EBITDA seen at 503 million euros. Poll:
ANALYSTS’ VIEWS
MUNICH RE – Jefferies raises to hold from underperform
OVERSEAS STOCK MARKETS
Dow Jones -2.9%, S&P 500 -2.8%, Nasdaq -3% at close.
Nikkei +0.3%, Shanghai stocks -0.2%.
Time: 5:30 GMT
ECONOMY
* German January retail sales data due at 0700 GMT. Seen +1.0% m/m, +1.5% y/y
* German February Markit PMI due at 0855 GMT. Services seen at 53.3, composite seen at 51.1
DIARIES
REUTERS TOP NEWS (Reporting by Berlin Speed Desk)
