- Pakistan frets over security ahead of SCO summit
- Ronaldo scores 133rd Portugal goal in Nations League win over Poland
- 40 nations contributing to UN Lebanon peacekeeping force condemn 'attacks'
- Eight dead as heavy rain thrashes Brazil after long drought
- Jewish school in Canada hit by gunfire for second time
- Morocco crush Central African Republic, Guirassy scores hat-trick
- Dupont scores quickfire hat-trick on Toulouse Top 14 return
- Ronaldo scores in Portugal's Nations League win as Spain sink Denmark
- Interim boss Carsley has not applied for England job
- Mets hurler Senga ready to take on Dodgers in game one of NL Championship Series
- Ronaldo on target again as Portugal defeat Poland in Nations League
- Guardians rip Tigers 7-3 to advance in MLB playoffs
- AFP, BBC win top French war reporting awards
- Carsley goes back to basics as humbled England face Finland
- Alex Salmond: the man who took Scotland to the brink of independence
- Scotland's former leader Alex Salmond dies aged 69: party
- UN warns of catastrophe as Israel fights a two-front war
- Croatia extend Scotland's losing streak
- South Africa, New Zealand boost T20 World Cup semi-final hopes
- 'Very challenging': Israel faces Hezbollah in tricky terrain
- Farrell begins to feel at home as Racing 92 beat Toulon
- South Africa boost T20 World Cup semi-final hopes with Bangladesh win
- Samson ton powers India to T20 series sweep after record total
- Djokovic to face Sinner in Shanghai final with 100th title in sight
- UN peacekeepers to remain in Lebanon: spokesman
- Pro-Conquest film fuels debate in Mexico over colonial legacy
- Samson ton powers India to record 297-6 in Bangladesh T20
- New Zealand enjoy perfect start to America's Cup defence over Britain
- Pogacar emulates icon Coppi with fourth straight Il Lombardia triumph
- UN warns against 'catastrophic' regional conflict
- New Zealand crush Ineos Britannia in America's Cup opener
- Djokovic to face Sinner in blockbuster Shanghai Masters final
- With medical report Harris seeks to play health card against Trump
- Sri Lanka seeks to match success in W.Indies T20s
- Sinner reaches Shanghai final, will end year number one
- China-EU EV tariff talks in Brussels end with 'major differences': Beijing
- Sabalenka downs Gauff in three sets to reach Wuhan final
- Israel warns south Lebanon residents to 'not return'
- Sinner tames Machac to reach Shanghai Masters final
- Buried Nazi past haunts Athens on liberation anniversary
- Harris to release medical report confirming fitness for presidency: campaign
- Nobel prize a timely reminder, Hiroshima locals say
- Hezbollah fires at Israel as wars rage on Yom Kippur
- Analysts warn more detail needed on new China economic measures
- China tees up fresh spending to boost ailing economy
- China says will issue special bonds to boost ailing economy
- China offers $325 bn in fiscal stimulus for ailing economy
- Dodgers drop Padres 2-0 to advance in MLB playoffs
- Alexei Navalny wrote he knew he would die in prison in new memoir
- Last-minute legal ruling allows betting on US election
Cement giant Holcim's shares soar after N. America spinoff news
Shares in Swiss construction giant Holcim surged on Monday after it announced plans to fully spin off its North America business.
Holcim's share price jumped more than five percent at the open on the Swiss stock exchange before paring back some gains to trade 4.8 percent higher at 67.28 Swiss francs ($78.13) in morning deals.
The hike came a day after the company announced plans to list its North American business in the United States during the first half of 2025 "with full capital market separation".
It said it would communicate about the final structure later this year, but said the move would create a leading pure-play North American building solutions company.
Holcim, one of the world's largest cement makers, also announced Sunday that its board had picked Miljan Gutovic, who currently heads Holcim's European operations, to replace Jan Jenisch as chief executive officer from May 1.
Jensich, who has headed Holcim since 2017, will remain on as chairman of the group and will lead the US listing process, the company said.
Holcim is currently the largest cement maker in North America, where it counts 850 sites.
Jensich told reporters Sunday that once spun off, the new company could be valued at around $30 billion, adding that Holcim was not planning to hold onto a stake.
Jenisch highlighted that North America had been Holcim's best developing business in recent years.
"It's a rock star business," he said, pointing out that it had been growing sales by more than 20 percent each year for the past four years.
"This is simply too successful to be run as a subsidiary."
Holcim said the new US business would aim to nearly double its current sales of around $11 billion to over $20 billion by 2030.
Holcim, which merged in 2015 with French group Lafarge, has significantly increased its footprint in North America in recent years through a string of acquisitions.
The company dished out $3.4 billion in 2021 to buy US roofing manufacturer Firestone Building Products (FSBP).
In 2022 it bought Malarkey Roofing Products for $1.35 billion, and a year later it snapped up Duro-Last for $1.29 billion.
Analysts hailed the spinoff plan, with Mark Diethelm of Swiss investment manager Vontobel describing it as "the next step for growth and value creation".
In a research note, he hailed that the company had not, as some investors had expected, slowed down the pace of its transformation after the "significant M&A activity in the last three years".
"The company's intention to spin-off its North American business demonstrates the company's focus on value creation," he said.
P.Mathewson--AMWN