The VW diesel scandal remains a key issue in the automotive industry and has far-reaching consequences for the company. The latest verdict in the trial brings to light the legal and financial consequences of the manipulations. These verdicts are not only important for Volkswagen $VOW3 (-0.74%) but also have an impact on the entire industry, as they could influence how similar scandals are handled in the future. The legal disputes, combined with massive financial burdens, represent a major challenge for VW. These problems will keep the company busy for a long time to come and it remains to be seen how the situation will develop.

In the USA, Volvo $VOLV A (-0.29%) is facing a difficult phase and is planning to cut 3000 jobs worldwide. CEO Hakan Samuelsson emphasizes that the automotive industry is undergoing a profound upheaval that requires serious decisions. In order to meet the challenges of this new reality, costs must be structurally reduced. Weak figures were already presented in the first quarter, underlining the need for job cuts. The measures are aimed at saving a total of 18 billion Swedish kronor, which corresponds to around 1.7 billion euros. To implement these drastic measures, special costs of around 1.5 billion Swedish kronor, i.e. around 140 million euros, will initially be incurred in the second quarter, which underlines the seriousness of the situation.

Sources:

https://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/vw-dieselskandal-was-die-urteile-im-prozess-bedeuten-meinung-a-ec66f7cf-0fdb-4574-ba7c-d255a3a3da01

https://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/unternehmen/volvo-autohersteller-plant-abbau-von-3000-stellen-weltweit-a-5574501b-4d11-4aad-95d7-a97344471398

Dear community, I'll provide a link as an example $OMV (-0.18%)
$HAUTO (+6.97%)
$BNP (+1.09%)
$VOLV A (-0.29%) because they pay good dividends and withholding tax is properly deducted.

If you want to save yourself the hassle of withholding tax refunds, couldn't you just sell the share the day before the ex-date and buy a new one the next day? As a rule, the share price falls by exactly the price of the dividend, sometimes even more. This way you indirectly get the dividend into your home, but you don't have to wait for the next calendar year or deal with the bureaucracy. Of course it's annoying because of the transaction fees, but depending on the volume and broker, these may also be limited. (Incidentally, you can also reduce taxable gains with a long investment horizon in this way, as you remain within the tax-free allowance and therefore do not realize the gains only after ten or twenty years).

I wonder whether this strategy has ever been seriously considered, discussed or even tried out by anyone.

In my case, I will probably try it out in two weeks with OMV, as I currently still hold the share with Revolut, but I am gradually "transferring" my European shares in particular to Trade Republic - not least because Revolut always pays so many fees into its own pocket for dividends and Revolut is also very annoying as a broker in other respects.

I'm curious to know whether you think this plan is completely crazy or somehow sensible. LG

BASF plans way out of the crisis

In Ludwigshafen, the world's largest chemical plant, BASF has been struggling $BAS (-0.19%) has been struggling for years with high energy costs and a global oversupply of basic chemicals. Despite these challenges, the company is considering closing further plants. However, the Board of Executive Directors emphasizes that Ludwigshafen will remain the most important site in the long term. Markus Kamieth, the Group's CEO, announced additional cost-cutting measures and a comprehensive restructuring program in September in order to get the chemical giant back on track. The plan is to sell business units and prepare the agricultural business for a stock market listing by 2027. Strategic options for areas such as battery materials and automotive catalysts are also being considered. BASF recently announced the sale of its Brazilian architectural coatings business to the US paint group Sherwin-Williams for 1.15 billion dollars.

Polestar secures fresh money

The Swedish electric car manufacturer Polestar $VOLV A (-0.29%) is once again looking for fresh capital and has secured a credit facility of up to 450 million dollars. This new financing has a term of twelve months and is urgently needed as the company is still loss-making. Polestar has also postponed the publication of its quarterly figures and annual financial statements for 2024. The figures are now not due to be published until April 2024, having previously been scheduled for March. This uncertainty has caused the company's US-listed shares to initially fall by more than 2%. The situation remains tense as investors hope for positive news to boost confidence in the brand.

Allianz achieves record profit

Allianz $ALV (+0.57%) has achieved a record profit, exceeding expectations in a challenging environment of subdued economic growth and numerous natural disasters. Chief Financial Officer Claire-Marie Coste-Lepoutre reported an operating profit and net profit for the year that reached new highs. An operating profit of between 15 and 17 billion euros is targeted for the current year. Net profit after minority interests now amounts to 9.9 billion euros, which corresponds to an increase of 16 percent. All Allianz segments ended the year above the mid-point of the target corridor for operating profit, impressively demonstrating the resilience of the business model. Despite the challenges, Allianz has shown that it is well positioned and can shine even in turbulent times.

Sources:

https://www.manager-magazin.de/unternehmen/industrie/basf-aktie-faellt-nach-verhaltenem-ergebnis-ausblick-a-96846ebb-a86c-42c1-a5d3-8490e66b7ced

https://www.manager-magazin.de/unternehmen/autoindustrie/polestar-elektroautobauer-sichert-sich-weiteren-kredit-und-verschiebt-bilanz-erneut-a-bdb8ff1e-e79b-463b-b744-02569eea7d24

https://www.manager-magazin.de/unternehmen/allianz-mit-rekordgewinn-oberhalb-der-eigenen-erwartungen-a-0d36f476-8419-4f96-ad17-0c28d8fab23b

Operating margin car manufacturers Q1/24

+38.2% Ferrari

+15.7% Porsche

+11.2% Stellantis

+10.8% Mercedes

+10.0% Toyota

+8.8%% BMW

+5.5% General Motors

+7.6% Renault

+7.2% Volvo

+6.6% Volkswagen

+5.8% Hyundai

+5.6% Honda

+5.5% Tesla

+4.7% BYD

+2.9% Ford

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