By Jan Christoph Schwartz The Volkswagen chairman, Ferdinand Piech, broke ranks with Porsche, a company controlled by his extended family, by tacitly backing VW employees in a boardroom showdown as thousands protested outside.

By Karin Matussek A German court has ruled that the appointment of the Volkswagen chairman, Ferdinand Piech, to the supervisory board of MAN was legal, and the judges dismissed a lawsuit that claimed the election constituted a conflict of interest.

Volkswagen's chief executive Bernd Pischetsrieder will step down at the end of the year and will be replaced by Martin Winterkorn, who is head of the automaker's Audi unit.