28/01/2026

BIZ & FINANCE WEDNESDAY | JAN 28, 2026

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Gold rises as investors seek safety amid US policy jitters

Hybrid cars top choice for consumers in Europe in 2025 PARIS: Hybrid-electric vehicles dethroned purely petrol-powered cars as the top power option among consumers in Europe last year, data showed yesterday. Some 1.88 million new vehicles were registered in 2025 in the European Union, an increase of 1.8% from the previous year, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA). New car sales “remain well below pre-pandemic levels”, however, the trade association said in a statement. Despite the only modest overall sales growth, consumers continued to shift towards hybrid and battery-electric vehicles. Sales of hybrid-electric vehicles climbed by 13.5% last year to account for 34.5% of total sales in the EU last year, putting them ahead of petrol cars at 26.6%. Sales of battery-electric vehicles jumped by 30% to account for 17.4% of overall sales, although the ACEA noted the gain was from a weak performance in 2024 and needs to rise further to stay on track with the EU’s transition goals. Sales of plug-in hybrids also rose, but sales of petrol and diesel vehicles dropped. The combined market share of petrol and diesel cars fell to 35.5%, down from 45.2% in 2024. Volkswagen Group saw sales rise by 5.5% last year to increase its lead as the top-selling carmaker in Europe. Renault saw similar growth, but Stellantis saw sales slide by 4.7%. Chinese carmaker BYD tripled its sales in the EU last year, although from a small base. – AFP UK to cap ground rents in sweeping property overhaul LONDON: Britain will cap ground rents at £250 (RM1,350) a year in an overhaul of its antiquated property system, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said yesterday, a move he said would ease pressure on millions of households facing rising costs. Starmer’s Labour Party promised in its 2024 election manifesto to tackle unregulated and unaffordable ground rent charges for those living in leasehold properties, a commitment he said had now been fulfilled. In Britain, homes are generally sold as either freehold, where the owner controls the property and the land it sits on, or leasehold, where the buyer owns only the right to occupy a home while paying charges such as ground rent to the freeholder. Ground rents in Britain originated in medieval feudalism, evolving from landholders charging fees for land use, and they were formalised in the 1920s as long-term residential leases. The reform will apply to more than five million leaseholders in England and Wales and will ultimately reduce permitted ground rents to a nominal “peppercorn” after 40 years, the government said in a statement. – Reuters

Deutsche Bank and Societe Generale anticipate gold prices to reach US$6000/oz in 2026, highlighting the scope for further gains. Market focus is now on the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting this week, where it is expected to hold interest rates steady, with investors also awaiting news on chairman Jerome Powell’s replacement. Spot silver jumped 8.4% to US$112.57 an ounce, after hitting a record high of US$117.69 on Monday. It has already surged more than 50% so far this year. “We expect prices to ease in the coming months as supply tightness eases and industrial demand for silver starts to peak with a slowing mainland Chinese economy,” BMI, a unit of Fitch Solutions, said in a note. Spot platinum tumbled 2.5% to US$2,689.12 per ounce after hitting a record US$2,918.80 in the previous session, while palladium added 3.3% to US$2,048.28.

Gold could be had for just over US$2,000 an ounce only two years ago. “It vaulted over the psychologically important 5,000 mark on a glittering streak, heading sharply higher as trade tensions emanating from the US unnerved investors,” said Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club. “The relentless quest for hard assets continued amid yet more talk of tariffs and US government shutdowns,” said Neil Wilson, a strategist at Saxo UK. US investors largely shrugged off a growing furor in the United States over the latest killing of a civilian by Trump’s crackdown in Minnesota over immigration enforcement. Several US senators said they would vote against coming government spending bills after federal agents killed a second American citizen in Minneapolis, significantly increasing the chances of a government shutdown next week. – Agencies

o Quest for hard assets continues amid more talk of tariffs and govt shutdowns

LONDON: Gold climbed yesterday, hovering just shy of the US$5,100 per-ounce level breached for the first time in the previous session, as uncertainty around US President Donald Trump’s policymaking prompted investors to seek safety in bullion. Spot gold rose 1.6% to US$5,092.09 per ounce, as of 1012 GMT (6.12pm in Malaysia). It hit an all-time high of US$5,110.50 on Monday. US gold futures for February delivery gained 0.1% to US$5,089 per ounce. “The constant back and forth (on tariffs) by President Trump and the US administration, coupled with growing concerns around a military

operation in Iran” are unlikely to curb safe-haven demand anytime soon, said Zain Vawda, analyst at MarketPulse by OANDA. Gold has surged 18% so far this year, building on gains from last year due to factors including sustained safe-haven demand amid geopolitical and economic uncertainty, expectations of US rate cuts, and robust central bank purchases. In trade news, Trump said on Monday that he would hike tariffs on autos and other goods imported from South Korea. Meanwhile, the United States is “open for business” if Iran wishes to contact Washington, a US official said on Monday, after Trump renewed warnings to Tehran.

Customers browsing in an Anta store in Shanghai

yesterday. – AFPPIC

Anta Sports to become top Puma shareholder

BEIJING: Chinese athletic goods giant Anta Sports will buy a controlling stake in historic German sportswear brand Puma for US$1.79 billion, a stock exchange filing showed yesterday, as it expands its international presence. Anta will buy 43 million shares for €35 apiece from the French billionaire Pinault family’s Artemis group, the statement to the Hong Kong exchange said, giving it a 29% stake. The price is a more than 60% premium to Puma’s last close, according to Bloomberg data,

It also controls rights in the vast Chinese market for foreign sportswear firms including Fila and Descente. Puma, however, has been struggling with weak demand in recent months and saw sales decrease more than 15% in the third quarter of last year. CEO Arthur Hoeld, who took over the company last year, has said the brand had become “too commercial” and was undergoing a “reset” last year to improve on brand heat, distribution quality and product offering. – AFP

between the two parties in the future”. Anta declined to comment on the deal when contacted by AFP. The firm, based in the southeastern Fujian province, is one of the world’s largest sportswear companies. Founded in 1991, it is the parent company of many global brands through its subsidiary Amer Sports, including Wilson, Arc’teryx and Salomon. Anta closed its acquisition of Finland-based Amer in 2019, leading a consortium in a deal worth about US$5.2 billion.

and values the deal at €1.51 billion. Anta said in the statement that the stake would “further enhance its presence and brand recognition in the global sporting goods market”, including China. “We believe Puma’s share price over the past few months does not fully reflect the long-term potential of the brand,” Anta chairman Ding Shizhong said. While the statement said Anta had no plans to launch a full takeover of Puma, the Chinese company will “carefully assess the possibility of further deepening the partnership