
Exploring Citroën's Electric Future
Electric vehicles editor Steve Fowler quizzes Thierry Koskas on the challenges and opportunities in the electric vehicle market and the potential revival of iconic models like the 2CV.
Watch more from Drive Smart on Independent TV.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Reuters
13 minutes ago
- Reuters
European second-quarter corporate profits expected to fall 0.3%
July 22 (Reuters) - The outlook for European corporate health has slightly improved, the latest earnings forecasts showed on Tuesday, despite continued uncertainty over global trade and the European Union preparing for counter-measures against any major U.S. tariffs. European companies are expected to report a drop of 0.3% in second-quarter earnings, on average, according to LSEG I/B/E/S data. That is slightly above the 0.7% fall analysts expected a week ago. Forecasts for Europe-wide STOXX 600 (.STOXX), opens new tab company earnings have steadily worsened since U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans for "reciprocal" tariffs in February. Analysts expected second-quarter earnings to increase 9.1% year-on-year right before the announcement, according to the data. The consensus forecast for second-quarter revenue, on the other hand, has continued to weaken, the LSEG report showed, with analysts now expecting a 3.1% fall versus a 3.0% drop last week. That would be the worst quarterly performance in more than a year. A year ago, STOXX 600 companies on average delivered a 3.0% increase in second-quarter earnings and a 0.8% drop in revenues. This earnings season will highlight how Trump's tariff threats are affecting European companies, as many of them scramble to minimise risks and prepare strategies to counter uncertainty. Italian-listed Stellantis ( opens new tab said on Monday tariffs had already cost the auto group 300 million euros ($351 million) and pharma firm AstraZeneca (AZN.L), opens new tab announced plans to spend $50 billion expanding in the U.S. by 2030. Among sectors, the earnings of STOXX 600 technology firms are expected to increase 26.5% in the second quarter, while those of consumer cyclicals - auto, retail and entertainment companies - are forecast to shrink 23.6%, the LSEG data showed. ($1 = 0.8545 euros)


Auto Car
13 minutes ago
- Auto Car
You never knew the amazing origin story of this best-selling European car brand...
Renault offered the innovative 16 as an alternative, but the party deemed this too pricey. So the factory would have to start off making the older, rear-engined 8. It was renamed the Dacia 1100 (Dacia was the name of Romania in antiquity), and efforts would be made to localise its supply chain. The very first 1100 was driven off the line by Ceausescu in August 1968, and a year later it was joined by a rebadged 12, the Dacia 1300 – and Mioveni also started making parts for Renault. From around 30% initially, local content would rise to 100% through the 1970s. Production totalled about 20,000 cars annually, many of them exported to France. Such was Dacia's success that in 1973 the party asked Renault about adding a smaller, more frugal car (the new 5, we would imagine) – but the answer was no. So instead it partnered Citroën, creating the Oltcit brand. A new factory was built in Craiova, opening in 1981 with production of the new Visa and Club superminis – the latter developed from an old proposal for a 2CV successor and sold abroad as the Axel. None of this was reported by Autocar when it happened, due to the obfuscation of the Iron Curtain and the lack of relevance to British drivers. That changed in 1981 with an announcement by Yorkshire company Tudor Vehicle Imports. TVI had begun life two years prior importing 4x4s and commercial vehicles made by Romania's ARO and TV firms, and now it was adding the Dacia 1300 saloon/estate to its dealerships.


The Independent
13 minutes ago
- The Independent
Water companies reveal why they haven't issued a single hosepipe ban fine
Major water companies in England, including Southern Water and Thames Water, have not issued any fines for breaches of hosepipe bans over the last five years. Despite having the legal power to fine up to £1,000, companies say they have relied on public goodwill for compliance during multiple bans imposed since 2020. Campaigners argue that water companies' own failings, such as leaking pipes and underinvestment, pose a greater threat to supplies than household water use. The water sector faces scrutiny over a 60 per cent rise in serious pollution incidents in 2024, prompting government plans to overhaul regulation and scrap Ofwat. Experts warn that the UK is running out of water, stressing the need for broader solutions beyond hosepipe bans, including everyone reducing water waste.