Category: Newswire

Henkel cuts outlook, blames lower Q2 sales on beauty, adhesives units

GERMAN consumer goods company Henkel lowered its full-year outlook for sales and earnings on Tuesday, blaming disappointing performance at its beauty unit and a hit to its adhesives business from falling industrial production.Sales of beauty care fell 2.4 per cent, sagging in western Europe and North America, and hit by stock issues in China, although the professional haircare business kept growing strongly.The laundry and home care division is still expected to grow 2-4 per cent in the full year after expanding 2 per cent in the second quarter, helped by a global relaunch of Persil detergent and a drive to sell more online-friendly products.

Avtovaz resumes production after three-week holidays

MOSCOW, August 12. /TASS/. Avtovaz resumed operations after the three-week corporate vacation, the Russian automaker’s press service told TASS.
“Yes, Togliatti and Lada Izhevsk got back [from vacation – TASS],” the press service said.
Scheduled upgrade and required repair activities continued at enterprises of the Avtovaz Group during the vacation period from July 22 to August 11.
Avtovaz increased Lada car sales on the Russian market by 2.2% year-on-year in January -July 2019, the company reported. Lada sales in July 2019 rose 0.3% annually to 29,500 cars, Avtovaz said.
Avtovaz is the Russia’s largest carmaker, with over 560,000 vehicles produced in 2018. The Avtovaz Group is part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance.

Disused electric car batteries to be repurposed for storage

Electric car companies and battery makers are exploring new ways to recycle used batteries as China braces for a wave of them being taken out of service.Daimler AG’s subsidiary Mercedes-Benz Energy and Beijing Electric Vehicle intend to establish energy storage systems in China with disused batteries from the Chinese electric carmaker.It was co-built by Shenzhen Bak Battery and China Southern Power Grid using disused Bak batteries which were previously used to power electric vehicles.

Kia Motors America Launches Redesigned Kia.com

“In this ever-changing digital world, we wanted to ensure that Kia and Kia.com were ahead of the curve by providing customers with solutions based on their individual needs and ones that instantly and intuitively support their shopping decisions,” said Michael Cole, chief operating officer and EVP, Kia Motors America. “We also wanted to give consumers… Continue reading Kia Motors America Launches Redesigned Kia.com

FAW-Volkswagen recalls defected Audi sedans in China

BEIJING, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) — Sino-German joint venture FAW-Volkswagen will recall 4,605 Audi A4L vehicles for fuel leak risk, according to China's market regulator.
The recall, starting Aug. 16, involves some domestic Audi A4L sedans manufactured between April 28, 2016 and Sept. 20, 2018, said a statement on the website of the State Administration for Market Regulation.
A production line glitch may cause several bolts in the aforementioned vehicles' fuel supply system to loosen over time, posing hazards of fuel leak and fire, according to the statement.
The company said it would fasten the bolts on the affected vehicles free of charge.

BMW to recall over 22,000 vehicles in Russia due to wiring problems, says watchdog

MOSCOW, August 9. /TASS/. BMW Russland Trading, Russian’s official dealer of BMW, will recall 22,286 cars in Russia of 5 and 6 series sold in the period between June 2003 and August 2010, the Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology said in a statement on Friday.
The risk of corrosion in threaded joints of the positive wire of battery is the reason of the recall. “That may lead to increased contact resistance in the joints, as well as various malfunctions, including start failure,” the statement said.
Moreover, in certain cases corrosion may lead to wiring melting, the agency warned.
Faulty attachments will be checked and updated in vehicles subjected to recall. All repair works will be carried out free of charge for vehicle owners.