Daimler, BMW to combine ride-sharing businesses

FRANKFURT -- Daimler and BMW have joined forces to expand their businesses in new services such as car-sharing and electric vehicle charging, raising their full-year guidance to reflect the deal.

Mercedes-owner Daimler and BMW, Germany's two biggest luxury carmakers, are preparing for a new era in mobility services where self-driving cars could allow them to expand into a business segment currently dominated by Uber in the United States and Didi Chuxing in China.

Under the terms of the deal, announced Wednesday, which includes car-sharing units Car2Go and DriveNow as well as ride-hailing, parking and charging services, Daimler and BMW will each hold a 50 percent stake in a joint venture.

Assuming that regulators approve the transaction, both companies expect their key profit figures -- earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) for Daimler and pretax profit for BMW -- to rise slightly year-on-year, compared with previous guidance for flat profit.

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