International business briefs: BYD to roll out first car made in Pakistan

BT Group appoints first female finance chief

Bengaluru — BT Group, Britain's largest broadband and mobile provider, named Patricia Cobian, now with rival Virgin Media O2, as its first female CFO on Thursday, succeeding long-time finance chief Simon Lowth.

The change comes more than a year after CEO Allison Kirkby took the helm at BT amid a transformative plan set in motion by her predecessor Philip Jansen.

Lowth, who became CFO in July 2016, played a role in implementing the company’s cost-cutting measures and sharpening its strategic focus. Reuters

IG Group to buy back shares as trading surges

Bengaluru — British online trading platform IG Group beat full-year pretax profit expectations and launched a £125m share buyback programme on Thursday, driven by a surge in trading volumes amid recent market turbulence.

Firms such as IG Group and Plus500 benefited from elevated trading volumes in recent months, fortunate to be on the flipside of the tariff turmoil as clients rushed to adjust their portfolios and get ahead of the volatile market conditions.

The company has been expanding its services to capitalise on missed opportunities, becoming the first London-listed company to offer crypto buying, selling, and holding after it launched trading in the UK earlier in June. Reuters

BYD to roll out first car made in Pakistan next year

Karachi — Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD plans to roll out its first car assembled in Pakistan by July or August 2026 to capture growing demand for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles in the region, a company executive said on Wednesday.

BYD, the world’s top EV maker, has been expanding rapidly outside its home market, where it is in a strong price war. The Pakistan plant addresses rising demand from emerging markets and allows the company to take advantage of incentives offered by the Pakistani government.

The plant has been under construction since April near Karachi in a partnership between BYD and Mega Motor Company, a subsidiary of Pakistani utility Hub Power, Danish Khaliq, vice-president of sales and strategy at BYD Pakistan, said.

It would initially have the capacity to produce 25,000 units a year on a double shift, he said. He did not elaborate on when the plant would achieve full capacity or say when mass production would begin there. Reuters

Lloyds interim profit increase beats estimates

London — Lloyds Banking Group reported an estimate-beating 5% increase in first-half profit on Thursday, driven by higher income from mortgages and unsecured consumer lending, but said corporate defaults rose in one sector.

The British lender said that statutory profit before tax for the first six months of the year was £3.5bn, above a forecast of £3.2bn.

The bank also said it would pay an interim ordinary dividend of 1.22p per share, equivalent to £731m, up 15% on the previous year.

Lloyds shares rose 1.5% in early trading, outperforming a 0.3% gain in the benchmark FTSE 100 index. Reuters

Nokia upbeat on second half despite profit warning

Gdansk — Nokia expects the second half of 2025 to be stronger than the first, CEO Justin Hotard said on Thursday, two days after the network equipment maker issued a profit warning due to a weaker US dollar and tariffs.

“Considering these two headwinds, we decided it was prudent at this point to lower our comparable operating profit outlook,” Hotard said in a statement.

He told reporters in a call that other foreign exchange moves were a risk in the near term, estimating an impact of €10m-€15m for every one cent of change in the euro-dollar exchange rate.

Nokia’s shares were up about 1% in early trade. They had fallen 7.6% on Wednesday after the profit warning the night before. Reuters

Vodafone eyes Germany growth in ‘next few quarters’

London — Vodafone said it is close to returning to growth in Germany, its biggest market, as the mobile operator reported a tick up in first-quarter group organic service revenue growth.

Vodafone has struggled in Germany since it was tripped up by a change in the rules on selling cable television to apartments.

Its performance there is, however, on an improving trajectory. While first-quarter organic service revenue growth in Germany fell 3.2%, this was an improvement on the previous quarter’s 6.0% decline.

“We are close to returning to growth (in Germany), it will happen in the next few quarters,” CEO Margherita Della Valle told reporters on Thursday.

“We can’t give you the precise month, but it’s coming,” she said. Reuters

Walmart plans AI-powered ‘super agents’ for stores

New York — Walmart unveiled plans on Thursday to roll out a suite of AI-powered “super agents” designed to improve the shopping experience for customers and streamline operations.

The world's largest retailer said the four agents powered by agentic AI — designed for Walmart shoppers, store employees, suppliers and sellers, and software developers — would soon be the primary way people engage with Walmart.

The super agents will be the entry point for every AI interaction these groups have with Walmart, replacing several existing agents and AI tools, along with new ones yet to be built, the company said. Walmart is betting on AI to drive its e-commerce growth, aiming for online sales to account for 50% of its total sales within five years. The company reported annual sales of $648bn last year. Reuters

MCME Carell to buy rest of City Office Reit for $1.1bn

London — Real estate company City Office Reit said on Thursday it has agreed to be taken private by MCME Carell in a deal valued at nearly $1.1bn.

MCME Carell will acquire all the outstanding shares of City Office it does not already own for $7 per share in cash, representing a 26% premium to the stock’s last close.

Shares of the company rose more than 24% to $6.92 in premarket trading.

The deal is subject to certain agreements including among other things, the sale of the company’s Phoenix portfolio. Reuters

Valero Energy slides on lower throughput volumes

Bengaluru — Refiner Valero Energy reported a fall in second-quarter profit on Thursday, hurt by lower throughput volumes and a loss in its renewable diesel segment.

Valero said earlier this year it plans to operate its 14 refineries at up to 88% of their combined total complete capacity of 3.2-million barrels per day (MMbpd) in the second quarter.

The company’s throughput volumes stood at 2.9 MMbpd in the quarter, compared with 3.0 MMbpd a year earlier.

Its renewable diesel segment, which comprises the Diamond Green Diesel joint venture, reported an operating loss of $79m for the quarter, compared with a profit of $112m from a year ago. Reuters

Canadian retailer Loblaw beats quarterly estimates

Bengaluru — Canadian retailer Loblaw Companies beat second-quarter revenue and profit estimates on Thursday, driven by strong demand for essential products such as groceries and medicines at its Real Canadian Superstore locations and discount banners, including Maxi.

Consumers seeking lower-priced alternatives across categories ranging from food to healthcare have boosted demand for discount retailers such as Loblaw.

Same-store sales at its food retail segment rose 3.5% in the second quarter, while drug retail unit sales increased 4.1% from a year earlier.

The “Buy Canadian” movement, sparked by trade disputes between the US and Canada, has also led to consumers switching to locally made goods. Reuters

Howden first-half profit grows on price increases

Bengaluru — Kitchen and interior fittings supplier Howden Joinery reported a 4.4% rise in first-half profit on Thursday, helped by price hikes and market share gains, sending the British company's shares up by more than 10%.

The British company, which relies on home repairs, maintenance and improvements, has been expanding its business and products to attract customers amid subdued consumer confidence and cooling housing demand in a slowing UK economy.

Shares in Howden rose 11.7% to 934 pence in morning trade, topping Britain’s blue-chip FTSE 100 index.

Howden plans to open about 25 new depots and refurbish about 60 older ones in its core UK market, which accounts for more than 96% of group revenue.

Newly appointed CFO Jackie Callaway said the boost from price increases to revenue is expected to increase through the rest of the year. Reuters

CenterPoint Energy misses analysts’ estimates

Bengaluru — US electric and gas utility CenterPoint Energy's second-quarter profit was just shy of analysts’ estimates on Thursday, weighed down by higher expenses.

The country’s electrical grids have been facing an onslaught of extreme weather and ballooning demand from electrification of industries and the technology sector’s data centre build out amid an AI boom, prompting utilities to seek rate increases to upgrade and pay for power infrastructure.

CenterPoint’s operations and maintenance costs increased 5.5% to $715m during the quarter ended June 30.

The company provides electricity and natural gas to more than 7 million customers across Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Ohio and Texas. Reuters

American Airlines expects bigger third-quarter loss 

Bengaluru — American Airlines forecast a bigger than expected third-quarter loss on Thursday, as sluggish domestic travel demand result in more unsold seats and an erosion in fares.

Shares of the carrier fell nearly 3% in premarket trading.

Most US airlines withdrew their financial forecasts in April due to uncertainty caused by President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs and budget cuts.

The US carrier expects adjusted loss per share in this quarter to be in the range of 10c to 60c, compared with analysts' estimates of a 7c loss, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Demand in the domestic travel market has remained subdued with budget travellers approaching their plans with caution. American, which had enhanced its focus on the US domestic market, sees itself more exposed to the trend. Reuters

LVMH quarterly sales slide more than expected

Luxury bellwether LVMH reported lower than expected quarterly sales on Thursday, with its core fashion and leather division losing further ground as the sector awaits an easing of trade tensions between Europe and the US.

France-based LVMH, which owns more than 70 brands ranging from handbags, high-end fashion and watches to spirits and hotels, has traditionally drawn on its size and geographical footprint to maximise profits and withstand headwinds.

Yet the group is struggling to shake off consumer fatigue and reignite desire for luxury items.

Sales for the second quarter to the end of June were down 4% to €19.5bn, falling short of a consensus forecast for a 3% decline compiled by Visible Alpha, cited by UBS. Sales at the group’s fashion and leather division, accounting for the bulk of profits, were down 9%, below expectations for a 6% drop. Reuters

McGraw Hill valued at $3.25bn in mixed IPO debut

Bengaluru — US publisher McGraw Hill was valued at $3.25bn as its shares opened at par in their New York debut on Thursday, hinting at a mixed response from investors in an otherwise upbeat IPO market.

McGraw Hill’s shares opened at $17 apiece, at par with its IPO price of $17. The Platinum Equity-backed company priced its shares below its targeted range of $19 to $22 on Wednesday to raise $414.63m by selling 24.39-million shares in its IPO. Reuters