1. NISSAN BRINGS BACK THE DATSUN
On Monday, Nissan unveiled the Datsun Go, a $6,680 model that soon will be available in India and other emerging markets. Nissan hopes the Datsun's new incarnation will help the company gain 8 percent of the global market by the fiscal year ending March 2017. "Our production plans for Datsun reflect Nissan Motor's commitment to building manufacturing capacity and establishing a meaningful presence in high-growth markets like India, and to keep pace with rapid changes in the global auto industry," said Nissan's chief executive. [The Wall Street Journal]
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2. CITIGROUP'S PROFIT IS UP 42 PERCENT
Citigroup's profits rose 42 percent in the second quarter, easily surpassing analysts' expectations. Profits reached $4.18 billion, or $1.34 a share, compared with $2.94 billion, or $1 a share, for the same quarter last year. Strong home prices, fewer mortgage losses, and bond trading all contributed, as did a $477 million gain from a valuation adjustment on Citigroup’s debt. "What you see is the result of a lot of the repositioning and restructurings we have done over the last two to four years," Chief Financial Office John Gerspach told journalists. [The New York Times, Reuters]
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3. RETAIL SALES FLOUNDERED IN JUNE
Americans bought more vehicles, furniture, and clothes in June, according to the Commerce Department, but spent less at restaurants, bars, and home improvement stores, and bought fewer computers and electronics. While overall retail sales rose 0.4 percent in June from May, much of that came from autos, gasoline, and building supplies. Core retail sales, a more reliable barometer of overall growth, gained only 0.15 percent, the weakest showing since January. [The Washington Post]
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4. TWINKIES HAVE SHRUNK
It has been reported that a box of Twinkies now weighs 13.58 ounces, down from the 15 ounces it weighed just over a year ago. Fans are worried that Hostess Brand, which just brought Twinkies back to the market, shrunk the cakes, but Hostess denies it. "They are exactly the same size as they were when the old company went out of business last year," said a company spokesperson. CNN says boxes were indeed cut down to 13.5 ounces before the company went out of business. "So technically it seems that the boxes now weigh eight one-hundredths of an ounce more than they did before the company's shutdown." [CNN]
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5. AUSTRALIAN VINTNER DESTROYS THOUSANDS OF BOTTLES
Treasury Wine Estates, a global winemaking business based in Australia, will destroy $35 million worth of wine and spend another $40 million on discounts because of a serious wine glut in the U.S. CEO David Dearie said the group had been "over ambitious," but has no plans to pull out of the market. "If we're going to be the most celebrated and successful wine company, we have to participate in the marketplace that is the largest and what we believe is a growing opportunity," he said. Shares of Treasury, which owns the Penfolds, Wolf Blass, Rosemount, and Beringer labels, fell 12.2 percent on the news. [The Herald Sun]
