BMW, Freenet, Deutsche Bank, MAN, RWE: German Equity Preview

By Simone Meier

July 7 (Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies whose shares may have unusual price changes in Germany. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names, and prices are from the most recent close.

DAX Index futures expiring in September fell 1.3 percent to 6,327.50. The DAX fell 81.53, or 1.3 percent, to 6,272.21.

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW GY): The world's largest maker of luxury vehicles expects U.S. demand for its top-end 7- series sedan to recover ``in the long term,'' management board member Ian Robertson told Euro am Sonntag newspaper. The shares shed 23 cents, or 0.8 percent, to 29.63 euros.

Commerzbank AG (CBK GY): Germany's second-largest bank plans to cut jobs and abolish the brand name of Allianz SE's Dresdner Bank unit in a possible combination, Euro am Sonntag reported, citing an unidentified executive. The shares fell 85 cents, or 4.3 percent, to 18.74 euros.

Deutsche Bank AG (DBK GY): Josef Ackermann, chief executive officer of Germany's largest bank, said he doesn't want to speculate on full-year earnings, according to an interview with Die Welt. The Frankfurt-based company expects a profit in the current quarter, he said, reiterating a statement the bank made July 2. The shares dropped 1.58 euros, or 2.8 percent, to 54.23 euros.

Deutsche Post AG (DPW GY): Europe's largest mail service may struggle to sell its Deutsche Postbank banking division as bidders are unwilling to match price expectations, WirtschaftsWoche reported, citing unidentified Finance Ministry officials. The shares fell 28 cents, or 1.7 percent, to 16.40 euros.

Freenet AG (FNT GY): The German mobile-phone provider said it completed the acquisition of rival Debitel AG to form the country's third-largest operator. The shares fell 26 cents, or 2.2 percent, to 11.79 euros.

MAN AG (MAN GY): Europe's third-largest truckmaker plans to turn itself into a European corporation by changing its legal form to a Societas Europaea, or SE, Euro am Sonntag reported, without saying from where it obtained the information. The shares fell 56 cents, or 0.8 percent, to 70.14 euros.

Merck KGaA (MRK GY): The maker of the Erbitux cancer medicine is ``intensively'' thinking about possible purchases for its pharmaceuticals and chemicals divisions, Chief Executive Officer Karl-Ludwig Kley told Germany's Handelsblatt newspaper. The shares fell 1.56 euros, or 1.9 percent, to 80.63 euros.

RWE AG (RWE GY): Germany's second-largest utility plans to double cost cuts in the next four years to shore up earnings hurt by rising commodity costs. RWE aims to cut costs by 1.2 billion euros ($1.9 billion) through 2012, instead of a previously announced 600 million, spokeswoman Annett Urbaczka said. The shares fell 1.28 euros, or 1.6 percent, to 79.71 euros.

To contact the reporter on this story: Simone Meier in Frankfurt at smeier@bloomberg.net.