Daimler and Geely team up; Brexit deadlock; Bayer damages

Under the agreement announced Thursday, the next generation of Smart cars will be assembled at a plant in China with sales starting in 2022.

Prior to that, Daimler will continue to produce Smart cars at plants in France and Slovenia.

"Our smallest vehicle still has huge potential — in China and beyond. Geely is the right partner to take advantage of these opportunities," Daimle (DDAIF)CEO Dieter Zetsche wrote in a blog post.

Geely (GELYF) and Daimler will each own 50% of the global joint venture. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Daimler said no jobs would be lost as a result of the agreement.

2. Brexit deadlock: The United Kingdom continues to march towards Brexit without a viable exit plan.

UK lawmakers considered eight alternatives to the government's Brexit plan on Wednesday and rejected each of them. Attempts to reach a consensus in parliament will continue Monday.

The only plan that came close to a majority was a proposal that Britain would remain within a permanent customs union with the European Union. It was rejected by eight votes — 272 votes to 264.

Prime Minister Theresa May is continuing to push for her plan, which lawmakers have already rejected twice. She's now offered to resign in exchange for support for the deal.

3. Bayer damages: A federal jury has awarded $80 million to a California man after determining that the popular Monsanto weedkiller, Roundup, was a substantial factor in causing his cancer.

Bayer, which acquired Monsanto last year, said it would appeal the verdict. The case is the first to be tried in federal court. About 11,000 similar cases are pending at the federal or state level.

Shares in Bayer (BAYRY), which dropped 10% after the initial verdict last week, dipped a further 1.6% Thursday in Frankfurt.

4. Lyft going public: Ride-hailing firm Lyft is driving towards its debut listing on the Nasdaq on Friday.

The company raised its pricing target to $70 to $72 per share on Wednesday, valuing the company at more than $23 billion. Lyft initially predicted a range of between $62 and $68 a share.

Lyft's debut on the stock exchange is the first of a number of big tech IPOs expected this year. The company expects to raise as much as $2.4 billion through the sale of stock.

5. Global market overview: US stock futures were flat.

European markets opened mostly higher. Stocks in Asia finished the session mixed.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed 0.1% lower on Wednesday. The S&P 500 dropped 0.5% and the Nasdaq shed 0.6%.

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6. Companies and economics: Shares in Swedbank dropped 3.7% after the Swedish bank fired its CEO amid a widening money-laundering probe.

The final estimate of US fourth quarter GDP will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET.

7. Coming this week:
Thursday — US final estimate Q4 GDP
Friday — Huawei earnings; Carmax (KMX) earnings

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