Fiat: Marchionne marches on

Italian carmaker Fiat beat forecasts for its second-quarter results and said it had reached agreement with banks for €4bn in financing related to its plans to separate its automaking business from its other activities at the start of 2011. Fiat sold fewer cars in the second quarter but generated higher revenues on the back of rigorous cost-containing measures as its market share fell in Italy and Europe. Vincent Boland analyses the performance of the Italian carmaker.