Year-on-year diesel sales volume in July was down by a modest 23k units according to our figures – a better result for diesel than seen in June when a 50k loss was experienced.
To date in 2025, the decline in diesel car sales volume is 226k units, with a YTD diesel share of new car sales standing at 11.6% to July – just over three percentage points lower than the January to July 2024 figure. Year-to-date, Austria followed by Ireland and Germany have seen the largest percentage drops in diesel demand, but the downward trend remains relatively gentle as there is considerable consumer caution in many European markets over switching to BEV, meaning the ICE segment in general is only decaying slowly.
Source: GlobalData
The chart below shows just how resilient Germany’s diesel car market is compared with most others in the region. Its share of overall diesel cars sales was a steady 20% until the full impact of “Dieselgate” – the story of which broke in 2015 – hit the diesel market from 2017/18.
Source: GlobalData
While many markets started to turn their backs on diesel quite quickly after this point, its importance to both German OEMs and to German car buyers resulted in Germany’s share doubling within five years. That trend has continued to the present day and German car buyers now account for nearly 50% of all diesel car sales in the region.
Source: GlobalData
This article was first published on GlobalData’s dedicated research platform, the Automotive Intelligence Center.
“July brought Western European’s diesel car share to 12.2% – GlobalData” was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand.
The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Gold price trades higher as investors turn cautious ahead of Trump-Zelenskyy meeting.
US President Trump and Russian leader Putin met each other in Alaska on Friday.
Traders are confident that the Fed will cut interest rates in September.
Gold price (XAU/USD) moves higher to near $3,360 during the European trading session on Monday. The precious metal gains as financial market participants turn cautious ahead of meeting between United States (US) President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and a few NATO members at the White House during the day.
Leaders from Europe and US President Trump are expected to discuss concessions proposed by Russian leader Vladimir Putin, in a summit with Trump in Alaska on Friday, for ending war in Ukraine.
The post from Donald Trump on Truth.Social signals that Ukraine needs to push backs its ambitions of claiming Russian-occupied region of Crimea and NATO membership.
“President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight. Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE. Some things never change!!!,” Trump wrote.
Signs of a truce between Russia and Ukraine would dampen the appeal of safe-haven assets, such as Gold.
This week, investors will also focus on the Jackson Hole Symposium, which is scheduled for August 21-23. Investors will pay close attention Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s comments for fresh cues on the US interest rate outlook.
In the July’s monetary policy meeting, Jerome Powell argued in favor of a “wait and see” approach as the tariff impact has started feeding into prices. Meanwhile, traders are confident that the Fed will cut interest rates in the September policy meeting, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
Lower interest rates by the Fed bode well for non-yielding assets, such as Gold.
Gold technical analysis
Gold price trades in a Symmetrical Triangle, which indicates a sharp volatility contraction. The upper border of the above-mentioned chart pattern is plotted from the April 22 high around $3,500, while the downward border is placed from the May 15 low near $3,180.86.
The yellow metal wobbles near the 20-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) around $3,351.00, indicating a sideways trend.
The 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) oscillates inside the 40.00-60.00 range, suggesting indecisiveness among market participants.
Looking down, the Gold price would fall towards the round-level support of $3,200 and the May 15 low at $3,121, if it breaks below the May 29 low of $3,245.
Alternatively, the Gold price will enter an uncharted territory if it breaks above the psychological level of $3,500 decisively. Potential resistances would be $3,550 and $3,600.
Gold daily chart
Gold FAQs
Gold has played a key role in human’s history as it has been widely used as a store of value and medium of exchange. Currently, apart from its shine and usage for jewelry, the precious metal is widely seen as a safe-haven asset, meaning that it is considered a good investment during turbulent times. Gold is also widely seen as a hedge against inflation and against depreciating currencies as it doesn’t rely on any specific issuer or government.
Central banks are the biggest Gold holders. In their aim to support their currencies in turbulent times, central banks tend to diversify their reserves and buy Gold to improve the perceived strength of the economy and the currency. High Gold reserves can be a source of trust for a country’s solvency. Central banks added 1,136 tonnes of Gold worth around $70 billion to their reserves in 2022, according to data from the World Gold Council. This is the highest yearly purchase since records began. Central banks from emerging economies such as China, India and Turkey are quickly increasing their Gold reserves.
Gold has an inverse correlation with the US Dollar and US Treasuries, which are both major reserve and safe-haven assets. When the Dollar depreciates, Gold tends to rise, enabling investors and central banks to diversify their assets in turbulent times. Gold is also inversely correlated with risk assets. A rally in the stock market tends to weaken Gold price, while sell-offs in riskier markets tend to favor the precious metal.
The price can move due to a wide range of factors. Geopolitical instability or fears of a deep recession can quickly make Gold price escalate due to its safe-haven status. As a yield-less asset, Gold tends to rise with lower interest rates, while higher cost of money usually weighs down on the yellow metal. Still, most moves depend on how the US Dollar (USD) behaves as the asset is priced in dollars (XAU/USD). A strong Dollar tends to keep the price of Gold controlled, whereas a weaker Dollar is likely to push Gold prices up.
The private members’ club Soho House is reportedly close to reaching a $1.8bn (£1.3bn) deal to take it private after a tricky four years listed on the New York stock exchange.
New York-based MCR Hotels is poised to lead new equity investors in the chain of clubs as part of a deal that would involve it ditching its stock market listing, the Wall Street Journal first reported.
Soho House was founded in 1995 with a single club in the central London area from which it takes its name. It was founded by the restaurateur Nick Jones, who has a 5% stake, although the biggest investor is the US retail billionaire Ron Burkle, who holds 40% of the company. Richard Caring, the owner of the Ivy restaurant chain, has a 21% stake.
The new investors are expected to pay about $9 a share for about 15% of the Soho House & Co shares that trade publicly. That would value the company at about $1.8bn – well below the $2.8bn valuation it achieved soon after listing in 2021.
MCR Hotels is the third-largest hotel operator in the US, with more than 150 sites including the High Line hotel and the TWA at JFK airport, both in New York. It is converting the BT Tower in London’s Fitzrovia into a hotel, after reaching a deal to buy it for £275m last year.
Soho House operates 10 locations in London, and 48 that are either open or planned around the world, ranging from Paris and Istanbul to Bangkok and Mumbai. It has four clubs in Los Angeles and three in New York.
It attracts celebrity clientele, with Kate Moss, Kendall Jenner and Ellie Goulding among those spotted at its clubs. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan, met on a blind date in 2016 at its 76 Dean Street house in London.
However, the company has had to balance the rapid and expensive global expansion of the chain with the difficulty of retaining the feeling of exclusivity demanded by the 270,000 members who must pay an annual fee of up to £2,920 a year for access to every property.
Its share price has dropped from above $14 in August 2021 to $7.64 on Friday. The company has lost a cumulative $739m in the four years it has been listed, although it has made a net profit in its past three quarters.
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Its struggles have attracted attention from activist investors who push for improvements in companies. Third Point, the hedge fund run by the billionaire Dan Loeb, had argued that Soho House should seek other investors to try to push for a competitive bidding process.
The Wall Street short sellers GlassHouse had previously raised concerns about Soho House’s accounting, although these were rejected by the company.
U.S. stock futures are lower after last week’s gains on increased expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut in September.
With that in mind, investors will be focused on remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell at the end of the week at the annual Jackson Hole Economic Symposium of global central bankers and finance chiefs. They’ll be looking for hints Powell may be done waiting to see tariff effects before cutting rates again.
“To the extent Powell does talk about the policy outlook next week, we see him noting the softer July jobs report as tilting some of the employment-inflation risk balance,” wrote Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at J.P. Morgan. “However, with several Fed speakers recently stating that the case for a cut has not been made, and with more employment data to come, we don’t think Powell can firmly guide toward easing at the next meeting.”
The CME FedWatch tool that tracks the odds markets give for a rate move at each Fed policy meeting showed expectations for a Fed easing at the next policy meeting jumped to more than 90%. Since then, chances have dropped back to a nearly 85% chance.
Before Powell’s speech, investors will get a glimpse midweek of the dissents at the last Fed meeting. Fed governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman voted against the central bank’s decision to keep rates unchanged between 4.25%-4.50% last month. It was the first time since 1993 that two governors dissented.
At 6:45 a.m. ET, futures tied to the blue-chip Dow slipped -0.12%, while broad S&P 500 futures fell-0.13% and tech-heavy Nasdaq futures lost -0.13%.
Discount giants Walmart and Target, and home improvement chains Home Depot and Lowe’s are among the key retailers slated to report earnings this week. How the retail chains are faring can provide a window into tariffs effects and the health of consumers.
Of the more than 92% of S&P 500 companies that have already reported this quarter, almost 82% have surpassed Wall Street’s expectations, according to FactSet.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JANUARY 22: Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during morning trading on January 22, 2025 in New York City. Stocks continued an upward swing opening up high a day after the Dow Jones closed up 500 points and the S&P 500 approaching an all-time high. The rise comes after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son and Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison made an announcement alongside President Donald Trump that they will create a new company, called Stargate, to grow artificial intelligence infrastructure in the U.S. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Michael Saylor, executive chairman of Microstrategy, posted on Aug. 17 on social media a chart suggesting that the company may buy more Bitcoin to add to its treasury.
Medora Lee is a money, markets and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at mjlee@usatoday.com and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday morning.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: US stock futures lower as investors focus on Powell remarks
Emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) are now considered to be fostering the military strategies and national security of major powers. China and the United States (U.S.) are at the forefront, having incorporated these cutting-edge technologies into their defence strategies as well as civil purposes to gain maximum economic gains. However, their hostile relations in the wake of these emerging technologies have implications for global power dynamics. The U.S. and China have been compelled to improve their military capabilities by using AI as a deterrent against potential aggression from enemies in a world, dominated by geopolitical turmoil. Concerns regarding potential future conflicts between these two military powerhouses have been raised due to the critical role that AI-centric mechanisms and capabilities have taken in their strategic policies. This study being exploratory research, examines how the U.S.-China tech competition, particularly in the field of AI, may or may not influence the present political landscape unravelling the future global power dynamics. The paper concludes that Sino-U.S. relations in the exploration of AI has ignited a competition between the two giants having profound implications for the global balance of power.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has announced that it will launch its upgraded payment and settlement system, called PRISM+, tomorrow. This advancement marks a significant milestone in the ongoing evolution of Pakistan’s financial infrastructure.
The new system represents a major step forward in modernizing how money and government securities move across the country’s financial system.
PRISM+ is based on the global ISO 20022 messaging standard, which is widely used in many advanced financial systems around the world. It includes two key components: a faster Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system for large payments among participants, and a brand-new Central Securities Depository (CSD) that manages government securities such as T-Bills, PIBs, and other government instruments.
PRISM+ offers a faster and smarter banking system with several new tools and features for banks to better manage their daily operations. These include real-time transfer of large payments between participants, the option to schedule payments for a future date, priority-based payment processing where important payments are settled first, live dashboards showing balances, pending payments, and settlement statuses, and automatic calculation of fees and invoices.
The CSD in PRISM+ also allows banks to buy, sell, and manage government bonds more efficiently. Banks can participate in primary market auctions by submitting bids and receiving results in real time, engage in secondary market trading with quick matching and settlement of trade instructions, and manage collateral by tracking and valuing pledged securities while monitoring available resources. Additionally, the system supports open market operations, enabling the SBP to inject or withdraw liquidity in the market and settle transactions instantly.
The system also brings greater transparency and security. Every transaction includes a full audit trail, role-based access ensures that only authorized users can perform actions, and real-time alerts notify banks about any issues with settlement.
PRISM+ introduces new tools for liquidity and payment management, such as liquidity-saving queues that prioritize high-priority payments for immediate settlement while lower-priority payments are batched to avoid congestion.
Banks can earmark reserves specifically for systems like Raast, 1Link, NIFT, or NCCPL, ensuring that critical transactions are not delayed due to general liquidity usage. The Intraday Liquidity Facility (ILF) allows banks to access short-term liquidity by assigning eligible government securities, ensuring smooth settlement even during cash shortfalls.
Other improvements include longer operating hours for better access, real-time handling of payment cancellations and return messages, and the option to deposit or withdraw cash at the SBP Karachi office for certain operations.
PRISM+ is expected to make Pakistan’s financial system faster, safer, and more modern. It will help participants move money more efficiently, manage liquidity more effectively, handle securities transactions with ease, and reduce risks in the system.
The system has been developed in alignment with SBP’s Vision 2028, which aims to establish a modern, inclusive, and robust financial ecosystem. Extensive stakeholder engagement throughout the development process has ensured that PRISM+ reflects international best practices while catering to Pakistan’s unique market needs.
The price assessment for AG-PLM-0017 Crude palm oil, Indonesia PTPN tender will not be published on Monday August 18 due to an ad hoc additional national holiday declared by the Indonesian government, which results in no local tender carried out on the day.
Fastmarkets’ pricing holiday calendar has been updated to reflect these changes. You can find the pricing holiday calendar here: https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology/price-schedules/
This price is part of the Fastmarkets Ags Oils, Fats and Biofuels package.
For more information or to provide feedback on the amendment of the pricing schedule, or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter to this price, please contact Regina Koh by email at regina.koh@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading “FAO: Regina Koh, re: Crude palm oil, Indonesia PTPN tender”.
Please indicate if comments are confidential. Fastmarkets will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.
To see all Fastmarkets pricing methodology and specification documents, go to https://www.fastmarkets.com/methodology.
