German Heavyweights Lead Wave of Outlook Cuts as Demand Sags

A string of European industrial and consumer groups issued profit warnings or cautious outlooks on Thursday, underscoring the pressure that weak demand, lower prices and trade frictions continue to exert on the region’s corporate sector. German utility RWE reported a 43 % slide in first-half adjusted net income to €775 million and a 26 % drop in adjusted EBITDA to €2.14 billion, hurt by softer wind output and trading results. Despite the decline, the company reaffirmed its 2025 guidance for adjusted EBITDA of €4.55 billion to €5.15 billion and adjusted net income of €1.30 billion to €1.80 billion. Industrial conglomerate Thyssenkrupp lowered both profit and revenue guidance for the year and pared its investment programme after posting a deeper third-quarter loss, citing sluggish order intake and falling steel prices. Specialty-chemicals maker Lanxess cut its full-year adjusted EBITDA target to €528 million–€580 million, down from €600 million–€650 million, warning that there is “no improvement in sight” for market conditions amid escalating tariff disputes and muted industrial activity. Container-shipping company Hapag-Lloyd said first-half net profit fell 3.1 % and trimmed the upper end of its full-year earnings forecast, pointing to geopolitical tensions that are weighing on freight volumes, while brewer Carlsberg reported lower-than-expected first-half earnings and signalled it does not expect the consumer environment to improve in 2025 even as it targets 3–5 % growth in organic operating profit. The flurry of downgrades highlights the breadth of the slowdown across energy, manufacturing, chemicals, transport and consumer goods, raising fresh concerns about the resilience of Europe’s industrial backbone in the face of high input costs and persistent trade headwinds.