Technology giant Microsoft has said its profit soared above expectations in the recently ended quarter, driven by its cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) units.

Microsoft reported profit of $27.2bn on revenue of $76.4bn, some $29.9bn of which was brought in by its Intelligent Cloud business.

"Cloud and AI is the driving force of business transformation across every industry and sector," Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella said in an earnings release.

"We're innovating across the tech stack to help customers adapt and grow in this new era." Microsoft's Azure cloud computing offerings brought in more than $75bn for the company's fiscal year, which ended on June 30, in an increase of 34% from the prior year, according to Nadella.

"This was a slam-dunk quarter for Microsoft with cloud and AI driving significant business transformation across every sector and industry," Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said in a note to investors. "The company continues to capitalize on the AI Revolution."

Microsoft is well-positioned to make money as increasing numbers of companies ramp up efforts to take advantage of artificial intelligence in their businesses, according to Ives.

Microsoft was one of the first tech giants to double down on artificial intelligence when the launch of ChatGPT in 2022 rocked the tech industry.

Like its rivals, it has spent massively on building the infrastructure necessary to power the AI revolution, with analysts keeping a close eye on the return on investment.

The company in January said it was on track to pump about $80bn into capital and infrastructure in the fiscal year.

Nadella has said finding enough power sources for its AI data centre needs was a priority.

Microsoft in early July slashed a little less than four % of its global workforce as it seeks to cut layers of middle management and leverage new technologies.

"We continue to implement organisational changes necessary to best position the company and teams for success in a dynamic marketplace," a Microsoft spokesperson said in an email.

The job cuts follow a round in May that saw about 6,000 positions culled from its global workforce.

Ferrari

Italian luxury carmaker Ferrari posted a slight rise in quarterly profit on Thursday, helped in part by higher sponsorships, on a 4% boost in revenues.

Shipments were flat in the quarter, with 3,494 vehicles delivered.

The automaker stood by a full-year outlook for net revenues to exceed €7bn, as is had in its first quarter.

Ferrari said it had removed a previous warning about margins being squeezed by 50 basis points, due to the recent deal reached between the EU and US, a key market for the luxury automaker.

In the second quarter, meanwhile, there was "no significant impact from the introduction of new import tariffs on EU cars into the US," it said in a statement.

Industrial costs are also expected to decline in the second half of the year, helping margins, Ferrari said.

Chief Executive Benedetto Vigna said the company was seeing "overwhelming demand" for the 296 Speciale two-seater sports car and "excellent" early feedback on the Ferrari Amalfi coupe, which it launched on July 1.

Operating margins improved during the second quarter by 100 basis points as the carmaker posted net profit of €425mn, up 2.9% over the year-ago quarter, with earnings per share of €2.38.

BBVA

Spanish banking giant BBVA raised its 2025 financial targets on Thursday after posting a record net profit for the first half as a strong performance in Mexico offset lower eurozone interest rates.

BBVA, Spain's second-biggest bank with a big footprint in Latin America and Turkey, reported a net profit of €5.45bn ($6.23bn) for the first six months of the year, up 9.1% from €4.99bn in the same year-ago period.

The result is above the €5bn forecast by analysts polled by FactSet and comes a day after Spain's largest bank, Santander, also reported a record net profit for the first half of €6.83bn.

"BBVA is living through one of the best moments of its history. We are one of the most profitable banks in Europe, with the best growth profile," the bank's chief executive officer, Onur Genc, said in a statement.

The bank attributed the results to its "strong activity" in Mexico, its largest market, where lending — especially in the retail portfolio — and customer deposits rose.

Growth in lending activity and customer funds also drove solid profit growth in Spain, its second largest market, despite recent interest rate cuts by the European Central Bank.

AirFrance-KLM

AirFrance-KLM said on Thursday its net profits quadrupled in the second quarter as fuel prices fell and it flew more passengers.

The net profit of €649mn ($742mn) was in large part thanks to an 11 % drop in its fuel bill.

Group revenues rose by 6.2% to €8.4bn euros as it carried 5.9% more passengers.

"Although the external environment remains complex, Air France-KLM continues to demonstrate its resilience and is well positioned to achieve its targets," said chief executive Benjamin Smith.

However higher airport taxes at Amsterdam-Schiphol where KLM is based and an increase in the airline ticket tax in France are expected to weigh on annual operating results by as much as €170mn.

Meanwhile Air-France-KLM said it was dropping out of the running to acquire a majority stake in indebted Spanish carrier Air Europa.

Earlier this month Air-France-KLM moved to acquire a majority in SAS and it is interested in acquiring a stake in TAP Air Portugal.

BMW

German carmaker BMW stuck to its 2025 targets on Thursday despite quarterly profits tumbling a third due partly to US tariffs, insisting its large American operations meant it could weather the storm.

Their optimism stands in contrast to domestic rivals Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, who cut their outlooks in the past week as they grapple with the fallout from US President Donald Trump's hardball trade policies.

Automakers have faced US import taxes of 27.5% since April, part of Trump's tariff blitz, although these are set to be cut to 15 % from August under a deal between the US and the EU.

"Our footprint in the US is helping us limit the impact of tariffs," BMW finance chief Walter Mertl said in a statement. "We set ourselves apart in the automotive industry with our global footprint and our highly flexible operations. This strong strategic positioning... allows us to adapt swiftly to changing market conditions."

The group's largest plant worldwide is in the US, in South Carolina, where they produce 400,000 vehicles annually.

Despite the upbeat statements, BMW still saw second-quarter net profits slide 32% year-on-year to €1.8bn ($2.1bn), hit by the US import taxes as well as falling sales in China.

Revenues fell to €34bn.

While they did not give a precise figure, BMW said tariffs pushed down profit margins in its auto segment by two percentage points in the April-June period, amounting to a hefty hit.

The Munich-headquartered group also forecast the levies would cut 1.25 percentage points off margins over the whole year.

But the manufacturer stuck to its full-year guidance of achieving margins of between five and 7% in its auto segment.

That is similar to the 6.3% level recorded last year but below a long-term aim of between eight and 10%.

It is also continuing to forecast earnings before tax in 2025 on par with the previous year when they were just below €11bn.

BMW's position is "more stable" compared to its domestic rivals, said Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer, director of the Center Automotive Research institute.

"The large plant in (the US) and the SUVs produced there have helped to make the slump more manageable and BMW was able to sell more cars in the US despite the tariffs," he said.
Renault
French automaker Renault said on Thursday that the tough retail and commercial van market in Europe had squeezed profits although it was able to maintain profitability better than most rivals.

Excluding exceptional items Renault saw its first half net profit slump 69% to €461mn ($528mn).

However it suffered €11.6bn in exceptional losses due its partner Nissan, including the 9.3bn it announced at the beginning of the month due to switching the accounting treatment of its Nissan stake so it will no longer impact its operating results.

Renault rescued Nissan in 1999 and the two automakers have held stakes in one another since, in a rocky partnership that never saw them merge.

Heavily indebted Nissan has hit another rough patch, posting a net loss of $4.5bn for the financial year to March 2025 and announcing plans to cut 15% of its workforce.

Renault has fared well in recent years thanks to a number of new models to market under its own brand as well as that of its low-cost unit Dacia, as well as by tapping into a consumer shift to hybrid models.

However Renault's heavy reliance on Europe, where the market has never fully recovered from pandemic-era drop in sales and contracted by 1.9% in the first half of the year, means it faces a difficult road ahead.

Moreover it lost in in June the dynamic Luca de Meo as chief executive to Kering, a French luxury conglomerate that includes Gucci.

He was replaced on Wednesday by Francois Provost, a long-time company veteran who has been helping execute its strategic plan.

Renault's revenue rose by 2.5% overall, but automotive revenue only edged 0.5% higher in the first half of the year.
Unilever
British consumer goods giant Unilever on Thursday said net profit fell 5% in the first six months of the year, as it prepares to demerge its ice cream business.

Profit after tax dropped to €3.5bn ($4bn) compared with the first half of 2024, said the maker of products ranging from Dove soap and Cif surface cleaner to Hellmann's mayonnaise.

Unilever's turnover slipped three % to €30.1bn euros, while underlying sales grew more than expected thanks to a strong performance from its ice cream business making the Ben & Jerry's and Magnum brands Unilever is undergoing a turnaround to boost its performance, which has included spinning off its ice cream division, job cuts and bringing in new chief executive Fernando Fernandez.

The new standalone firm, The Magnum Ice Cream Company, is on track to begin operating by mid-November.

Fernandez on Thursday said Unilever would focus on growing sales in the US and India, as well as prioritising its personal care and beauty divisions.

The group maintained its sales outlook for the full-year.

Without specifically referring to US tariffs, it highlighted an "uncertain" macroeconomic and currency environment, adding that the group "will be agile in adjusting... plans as necessary".

Fernandez took over as CEO in March after Hein Schumacher spent less than two years in the role, during which time the company posted two sets of disappointing annual results.

ArcelorMittal

The world's number two steelmaker, ArcelorMittal, said on Thursday its half-year net profit jumped on exceptional items but US tariffs began to eat into its margin.

Net profit for the period from January through June rose 39% from the same period in 2024 to hit $2.6bn, thanks to a $1.7bn exceptional gain from acquiring a stake in a US unit ceded by Nippon Steel.

But operating earnings that strip out interest costs, depreciation and taxes, slid by 10% to $3.4bn, notably due to US tariffs on steel imports.

US President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on steel and aluminium to 50% at the beginning of June, including on its neighbour Canada which is the largest foreign supplier to the US, as well as Mexico.

ArcelorMittal says its global footprint, it produces steel in 15 countries and serves customers in 129, enables it to benefit from high-growth markets such as India and Brazil.

However the introduction of US steel tariffs complicates ArcelorMittal's operations in North America, where it has factories in Canada, Mexico and the US.

First half sales slid 5.5% to $307bn, but that 7.5 % drop in average steel prices.

"The underlying strength of the business is good, but like every company we must navigate the backdrop of ongoing geopolitical and tariff disruptions," chief executive Aditya Mittal said in a statement.

"Despite the many challenges facing global business today, I am confident that ArcelorMittal has a profile that will enable us to continue to grow and thrive," he added.

Lufthansa

German airline group Lufthansa said Thursday its profits more than doubled in the second quarter as demand grew and stuck to its targets despite heightened global uncertainty.

Net profit for the April-June period came in at €1bn ($1.2bn), up from €469mn a year earlier, with the result also boosted by tax and currency effects.

Sales grew 3% to €10.3bn.

Analysts surveyed by financial data firm FactSet had forecast net profits of just over €500mn for the group, whose carriers include Lufthansa, Eurowings, Austrian, Swiss and Brussels Airlines.

"The Lufthansa Group remains on course," said CEO Carsten Spohr. "Although the second quarter was again marked by geopolitical crises and economic uncertainties, we are today confirming our positive outlook for the full year."

The group expects operating profits to be "significantly higher" than the 2024 result of €1.6bn.

More than 37mn passengers flew with the group's airlines in the second quarter up from 35.9mn a year earlier.

Samsung

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics' operating profit dropped by more than 50 % year-on-year in the second quarter, its regulatory filing showed Thursday, as US curbs on AI chip exports to China hit sales.

The company reported an operating profit of 4.7tn won ($3.4bn) for the April-June period, marking a 55 % decline from a year earlier, according to the filing.

The company's net profit came in at 5.1tn won, marking a 48 % year-on-year decline, the filing showed.

"Despite significant growth in revenue from the first quarter, earnings for the Foundry Business remained weak due to the impact of inventory value adjustments that stemmed from US export restrictions on advanced AI chips to China," Samsung said in a press release.

Going into the second half of the year its foundry business will "ramp up mass production", the company said, adding it will strive to "improve factory utilisation and profitability through expanded sales to major customers".

"AI demand is expected to remain robust due to continued investments by major cloud service providers, and therefore server demand for both DRAM and NAND is expected to stay strong," Samsung said, referring to processing chips and chips used for data storage.

Samsung Electronics is the flagship unit of South Korea's Samsung Group, by far the largest of the family-run conglomerates that dominate Asia's fourth-largest economy.

The disappointing earnings report comes on the heels of two positive developments: the end of legal jeopardy for its chairman Lee Jae-yong and a multi-billion-dollar deal with Tesla.

Lee was accused of stock price rigging, breach of trust and accounting fraud by prosecutors but his acquittal was upheld by the country's highest court earlier this month, ending a years-long legal drama at the tech titan.

It also follows Samsung's signing of a $16.5bn deal with Tesla under which it will provide the electric car maker with AI6 chips through the end of 2033.

Ford

Ford reported a narrow loss Wednesday despite surging sales from consumers seeking to beat tariff impacts as the automaker projected a $2bn full-year earnings hit due to the levies.

The major US automaker pointed to one-time costs related to vehicle recalls and the cancellation of an electric vehicle program as factors behind a second-quarter loss of $36mn, compared to profits of $1.8bn in the prior year.

But revenues jumped 5.0% to $50.2bn, a record, as the company notched robust sales of popular truck models and reported strong demand for new sport utility models.

The automaker estimated the second-quarter impact from tariffs to be about $800mn, and it projected a full-year gross tariff hit of $3bn for 2025, although Ford said it was able to offset about $1bn of the costs.

US President Donald Trump has announced a slew of tariffs on other countries and on key materials like steel, while pursuing trade deals with major partners.

So far, Trump has sealed agreements with Japan and the European Union that set imports of finished cars at 15%. That levy is below the current 25 % tariff on autos imported from Mexico and Canada. Ford is also affected by Trump levies on imported auto parts.

Japanese producers enjoy "a substantial structural advantage" over Ford due to these dynamics, said Ford Chief Financial Officer Sherry House, who described the Michigan company as in "near daily" communication with the White House. "We're having very constructive conversations to ensure a level playing field," House said in a conference call with reporters. "We are optimistic at this point, but we do have more work to do."

Airbus

European aerospace group Airbus posted an 85% rise in first-half profit Wednesday to $1.7bn, even though it delivered fewer commercial planes compared with the same period last year.

Citing "persistent engine supply issues" for its popular A320 jets, Airbus said 306 planes had been delivered overall in the first half, down from 323 in the first half of 2024.

It said it secured net orders for 402 aircraft in the first half, up from 310 in the same period last year, helping to push revenues up three % to €29.6bn.

The jump in profits to €1.5bn came a year after Airbus reported a 46% slump in earnings for the first half of 2024.

Operating profit, which analysts often consider a better gauge of underlying business performance, rose 11% to €1.6bn.

Looking ahead, Airbus said its targets did not exclude the potential impact from the US tariffs being imposed by President Donald Trump, and it still expected to deliver 820 commercial aircraft this year.

"On tariffs, the recent political agreement between the EU and the US to revert to a zero-tariff approach for civil aircraft is a welcome development for our industry," chief executive Guillaume Faury said in a statement.

At the end of last month, 60 planes were still waiting to receive their engines from CFM, a joint venture between the Safran and GE groups, as well as Pratt & Whitney engines, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said in a press conference call.

The company's forecast for 2025 remained unchanged as it said it was targeting adjusted operating profit "of approximately €7bn." Airbus said it had already felt the "impact" of 10% tariffs in effect since April and was "reassured, but cautious" after the agreement announced Sunday between the US and the European Union reestablishing a zero-tariff regime for aeronautics.
Shell
British energy giant Shell on Thursday said its net profit slid 23% in the first six months of the year, hit by lower oil and gas prices.

Profit after tax dropped to $8.4bn compared with $10.9bn in the first half of 2024, Shell said in an earnings statement.

Group revenue dropped nearly 9% to $136.6bn in the reporting period.

Shell pointed to "lower realised liquids and gas prices", while chief executive Wael Sawan said the company had been operating "in a less favourable macro environment".

Energy prices have come under pressure in recent months on concerns that US President Donald Trump's tariffs will hurt economic growth, while OPEC+ nations have produced more oil.

"Against a backdrop of geopolitical and economic uncertainty we saw knock-on effects on both physical trade flows as well as commodity prices and margins more broadly," Sawan added. "In spite of this, we delivered a robust set of results, with strong operational performance." Shell's adjusted earnings beat market expectations, helping to lift its share price by 2.5% in early London trade.

Its stock won additional support from Shell's latest dividend payment and news that it plans to repurchase $3.5bn of shares.

"Shell's diversity of operations across oil, gas, chemicals, and retailing regularly allows one area of strength to counter another of weakness," Keith Bowman, equities analyst at Interactive Investor, said following the results update.

However he cautioned that "heightened geopolitical tensions and potential for operational disruption remain an investor concern".

Shell in March announced plans to slash costs by billions of dollars and increase shareholder returns, as it focuses on its liquefied natural gas (LNG) business.

Shell aims to reduce costs by between $5bn to $7bn by 2028, compared with 2022 levels.

Savings to date stand at $3.9bn, Sawan noted Thursday.

Shell's previous target had been for savings of between $2bn and $3bn by the end of 2025, which involved hundreds of job cuts across its oil and gas division.

Gas is being touted by energy companies as cleaner than other fossil fuels as countries around the world strive to reduce their emissions and slow global warming.

Earlier this year, Shell's British rival BP launched a major pivot back to its oil and gas business, shelving its once industry-leading ambitious renewable energy strategy.