daimler sold 130,000 of its luxury mercedes benz brand this year. german car makers expect the performance to continue next year witholkswagen announcing plans to invest 6 billion euros in china by 2012. these optimistic forecasts are based on china's rapid car market expansion in recent years. >> the announcement to restrict driving in the inner city of beijing has a knock on effect in europe. automobile stocks were among today's leading decliners. our correspondent in frankfurt asore. >> investors were shocked at the news from china -- said that prospects for volkswagen, bmw and daimler seem to have darkened. what if other cities besides beijing take the same measures and curtail sales of new cars? the investors sold the shares and were the top losers this day, but they have a lot to offer. they have developed in value this year with volkswagen and bmw doubling in value so far. so there was some profit-taking as well. the daxm also suffer for another reason -- what is raising the elite of interest rates there and people fear this will further affe

daimler sold 130,000 of its luxury mercedes benz brand this year. german car makers expect the performance to continue next year with volkswagen announcing plans to invest 6 billion euros in china by 2012. these optimistic forecasts are based on china's rapid car market expansion in recent years. >> the announcement to restrict driving in the inner city of beijing has a knock on effect in europe. automobile stocks were among today's leading decliners. our correspondent in frankfurt as more. >> investors were shocked at the news from china -- said that prospects for volkswagen, bmw and daimler seem to have darkened. what if other cities besides beijing take the same measures and curtail sales of new cars? the investors sold the shares and were the top losers this day, but they have a lot to offer. they have developed in value this year with volkswagen and bmw doubling in value so far. so there was some profit-taking as well. the dax also suffer for another reason -- what is raising the elite of interest rates there and people fear this will further a

dimer in the- -- daimler in the negative. >> let us begin in frankfurt. we see the blue chip dax index to end up about 0.3%, just shy of 7000 points. eurostoxx 50 was up. investors in new york are shifting to riskier assets amid confidence the global economy is on the mend. the dow industrials are up 0.3%. the euro is trading for $1.3216. as the german economy recovers, inflation remains in check. consumer prices rose at a base of 1.1% this year. that compares with an average 1.9% annually since reunification 20 years ago. prices of gasoline and heating oil as well as fruits and vegetables rose sharply in value this year, but analysts warn that consumer prices are likely to rise in a faster pace in the coming year as germans receive significantly higher pay raises. a german construction group has moved to protect its credit with lenders as it prepares to lose its hostile takeover battle with spanish builder acs. they need to control at least 30% before they can buy more shares on the open market. this takeover offer is set to expire at midnight tonight. >

dimer in the- -- daimler in the negative. >> let us begin in frankfurt. we see the blue chip dax index to end up about 0.3%, just shy of 7000 points. eurostoxx 50 was up. investors in new york are shifting to riskier assets amid confidence the global economy is on the mend. the dow industrials are up 0.3%. the euro is trading for $1.3216. as the german economy recovers, inflation remains in check. consumer prices rose at a base of 1.1% this year. that compares with an average 1.9% annually since reunification 20 years ago. prices of gasoline and heating oil as well as fruits and vegetables rose sharply in value this year, but analysts warn that consumer prices are likely to rise in a faster pace in the coming year as germans receive significantly higher pay raises. a german construction group has moved to protect its credit with lenders as it prepares to lose its hostile takeover battle with spanish builder acs. they need to control at least 30% before they can buy more shares on the open market. this takeover offer is set to expire at midnight tonight. >

everybody knows that we're going to do it, because we created together with daimler- benz--with mercedes-benz a joint company here in switzerland to build this car, to continue the development and build it. and before i joined you for this meeting, i had a meeting with a mercedes partner of ours because we are now located the first site for the assembly of this car in europe, and maybe the next site will be in the united states or canada. so we're going ahead with it. we're very, very, very far in the development of these two types of cars that we're going to launch at the end of '96, beginning of '97. there's going to be a small revolution in the automobile industry. - and when, for instance in canada, the information highway and other such things get touted as the future, people think we're going to be in a paperless society, and never never land, no more blue collar jobs, no more manufacturing jobs--you refuse that for switzerland and probably for other countries. you don't like that and you think that there is a future in the secondary sector for all of us. we should have real jobs. - loo

daimler madrid if you have stopped exporting cars to iran. still we must address the impact of these in more detail in his own personal efforts with firms and governments around the world remain hugely important. the short answer is that the net result of all the measures we've applied in recent months is substantial. our more substantial than any previous set of steps. i'd also like to emphasize that we take very seriously cisada's provisions regarding human rights concerns in iran. earlier this fall redesignated a senior iranian officials for human rights abuses and we are working with treasury on other potential designations. one of the best ways in which we and others can support the cause of universal human rights in iran and the brave people who defend them is to hold accountable the people who deny them. i cannot honestly predict for you with any certainty how all these collective and individual measures will affect the choices that iran's leadership ranks. we will continue to sharpen those choices. we will show what is possible that i

daimler madrid if you have stopped exporting cars to iran. still we must address the impact of these in more detail in his own personal efforts with firms and governments around the world remain hugely important. the short answer is that the net result of all the measures we've applied in recent months is substantial. our more substantial than any previous set of steps. i'd also like to emphasize that we take very seriously cisada's provisions regarding human rights concerns in iran. earlier this fall redesignated a senior iranian officials for human rights abuses and we are working with treasury on other potential designations. one of the best ways in which we and others can support the cause of universal human rights in iran and the brave people who defend them is to hold accountable the people who deny them. i cannot honestly predict for you with any certainty how all these collective and individual measures will affect the choices that iran's leadership ranks. we will continue to sharpen those choices. we will show what is possible that i