Britain’s Metro Bank said its underlying pretax profit for the first half of 2024 rose 34% year on year to £60.6 million. The bank attributed the increase to strong loan growth across its core segments, including corporate, commercial, specialist mortgage and SME lending. The shift reflects Metro Bank’s move away from lower-margin retail lending in a higher-rate environment, Reuters reported.

Continental reported Q2 2023 adjusted EBIT of €570 million, beating a company-provided analyst consensus of €539.4 million and rising from €422 million a year earlier. The German supplier is shedding non-core businesses, including Contitech, as it pivots toward becoming a pure-play tyre maker. While it lowered its full-year sales outlook to €13.2 billion–€14.2 billion, it raised its adjusted operating margin target to 12%–13.5%.

AB InBev reported second-quarter results that beat expectations, with organic operating profit up 5.8% year on year versus a 4.6% analyst forecast. Volumes rose 0.9%, marking a second straight quarter of growth. Revenue outside home markets for Corona, Stella Artois and Michelob Ultra increased 17%, 19% and 21%, helped by stronger demand in the Americas and a boost from the World Cup, the company said.

Swedish private equity firm EQT has raised its takeover offer for Australia’s Perpetual for a third time, proposing A$22.50 per share and valuing the group at A$2.55 billion ($1.78 billion). The price implies a nearly 19% premium to Perpetual’s last closing price. The proposal is subject to conditions, including Perpetual completing the sale of its wealth management unit to Bain Capital, according to Reuters.

Asian equities rose as mediation efforts in the Middle East pushed oil prices off recent highs, with Iran saying it had received a 10-day ceasefire proposal. Brent crude futures slipped 0.38% to $88.88 a barrel after earlier touching $91.42, while Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis threatened a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia. Japan’s Nikkei rose more than 1% and South Korea’s KOSPI gained nearly 3% as investors looked ahead to earnings from Alphabet and Intel to gauge how the conflict may affect AI-related hardware profits.

Yemen’s Houthi movement has threatened a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia, adding to risks for Middle East shipping and energy supplies. At the same time, the United States and Iran signaled talks on a 10-day ceasefire despite ongoing military exchanges. Brent fell 0.4% to $88.87 a barrel while WTI held at $82.47, as near-term geopolitical risk premium eased alongside expectations for declines in U.S. crude and gasoline inventories.