VIDEO SHOWS: ISRAEL TEAM TRAINING ONE DAY BEFORE MATCH / ISRAEL HEAD COACH, RAN BEN-SHIMON, AND ISRAEL MIDFIELDER, MANOR SOLOMON, SPEAKING DURING PRESS CONFERENCE TEMPLATE ONLY, COMPLETE SCRIPT TO FOLLOW
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By Miho Uranaka and Echo Wang TOKYO/NEW YORK (Reuters) -Investors expect the valuation of PayPay could exceed 3 trillion yen ($20 billion) as SoftBank prepares for an initial public offering of the Japanese payments app operator in the United States as early as December, according to two sources. SoftBank has been meeting with institutional investors since mid-September to discuss potential valuations in the IPO, the sources, who are familiar with the matter, said. Investors see 2 trillion yen as a baseline but expect the valuation could top 3 trillion yen, according to the sources. The potential valuation and the views of investors are being reported by Reuters for the first time. PayPay declined to comment. The sources declined to be named as the information is not public, and cautioned that deliberations are continuing and factors including valuation remain subject to market conditions. The deliberations come as the U.S. IPO market enjoyed its busiest quarter since the fourth quarter of 2021, with companies raising $24 billion through first-time share sales in the third quarter, according to Dealogic. The baseline valuation is based on expansion of PayPay's Japanese business but there is a range of views among investors about its prospects for growing its overseas footprint, which could support a higher valuation, one of the sources said. PayPay announced last month that users would be able to make payments abroad, beginning with South Korea, which is a popular foreign destination for Japanese travellers. "The key focus going forward will be to what extent overseas expansion can be realistically pictured as a growth story, given the lack of business foundations not only in the U.S. but also in Asia," said the source. PayPay has played a role in encouraging Japanese consumers to move away from a long-standing preference for cash by offering rebates on payments through its mobile app. It is the market leader in QR code payments and also offers services including banking and credit cards. Reuters reported in August SoftBank has selected investment banks for the potential IPO. Japan's cashless payments ratio exceeded 40% last year, compared to more than 80% in South Korea and China. The industry ministry aims to lift that further, as part of efforts to cut costs and address labour shortages. SoftBank's telecoms arm reported that operating profit at its financial segment, which includes PayPay, more than doubled to 18.1 billion yen in the April-June quarter. "Structural profit improvement is progressing, and future growth can be anticipated," said SBI Securities analyst Yukari Housui. PayPay is taking steps to bolster its cryptocurrency business. Last week PayPay said it has acquired a 40% stake in the Japanese business of Binance and plans to launch new crypto services. PayPay's ownership is split between a number of SoftBank entities: wireless carrier SoftBank Corp, the Vision Fund investment arm, and internet business LY Corp, which is a joint venture between SoftBank and Naver Corp. Companies around the world are looking to list in the U.S. as they seek higher valuations. Around 20 Japanese companies have listed there in the last five years although in some cases they have underperformed and later delisted. Round One, an operator of amusement attractions, is considering overseas listings for two subsidiaries as it expands in the U.S. and looks to boost its brand recognition. ($1 = 153.0800 yen) (Reporting by Miho Uranaka and Echo Wang; Writing by Sam Nussey;Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
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VIDEO SHOWS: HIGHLIGHTS FROM GAME ONE OF THE MLB NATIONAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES BETWEEN THE MILWAUKEE BREWERS AND THE LOS ANGELES DODGERS AT AMERICAN FAMILY FIELD COMPLETE SCRIPT TO FOLLOW SHOWS: MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, UNITED STATES (OCTOBER 13, 2025) (MLB – See script for restrictions) SHOTLIST TO FOLLOW STORY: Blake Snell allowed just one hit over eight scoreless innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers held on for a 2-1 victory when the Milwaukee Brewers left the bases loaded in the ninth inning of the National League Championship Series opener on Monday (October 13). Freddie Freeman hit a solo homer in the sixth inning and Los Angeles increased the lead to 2-0 in the top of the ninth when Mookie Betts drew a bases-loaded walk. Roki Sasaki replaced Snell to open the bottom of the ninth and issued a one-out walk to Isaac Collins. Jake Bauers followed with a pinch-hit ground-rule double to center, forcing Collins to halt at third. Jackson Chourio followed with a sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 2-1. Christian Yelich walked before Blake Treinen took over on the mound and walked William Contreras to load the bases. Treinen then fanned Brice Turang swinging on a 2-2 fastball for the save. Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is scheduled for Tuesday in Milwaukee. Snell (3-0) allowed only a leadoff single in the third to Caleb Durbin, and then, one out later, picked him off first. Snell struck out 10 and did not walk a batter in a 103-pitch outing. Freeman snapped a scoreless tie in the sixth with his first homer of the postseason, a one-out solo shot to right on a 3-2 pitch from Chad Patrick (0-1). The Brewers escaped a bases-loaded situation in the fourth with a bizarre inning-ending double play. Bulk reliever Quinn Priester walked Teoscar Hernandez to open the frame, and Will Smith and Tommy Edman delivered consecutive one-out singles. Max Muncy then sent a deep fly that center fielder Sal Frelick deflected high off the wall and back into his glove, forcing the runners to delay. Shortstop Joey Ortiz fired the relay home for a forceout. Catcher Contreras then ran to third and tagged the bag for another forceout. The Brewers escaped again in the fifth when Enrique Hernandez hit a leadoff double and Shohei Ohtani was walked intentionally with one out. Betts then bounced into another inning-ending double play. The Dodgers' ninth-inning run came off Abner Uribe, who gave up one hit and walked three in his lone frame. Six pitchers worked for the Brewers, including Priester, who threw four shutout innings. Milwaukee went 6-0 in the regular season against the Dodgers, sweeping home-and-away three-game series. (Production: Bhagya Ayyavoo) More MLB content is available on Reuters Connect here: https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?sources=mlbimagen
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A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Gregor Stuart Hunter: Container ports are the new economic battlegrounds. As negotiations between the U.S. and China intensify, the two nations will from today begin charging port fees on ocean shipping firms that move everything from toys to crude oil. S&P 500 futures erased earlier gains to fall as much as 0.4% after China's commerce ministry fired off another broadside, saying the U.S. cannot seek talks while also making threats. That came after President Donald Trump on Friday announced additional tariffs on Chinese goods from November 1. The trade worries snuffed out a rebound for stocks that began on Wall Street on Monday after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Trump remains on track to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea in late October. A rally in Asia's tech sector briefly kept regional equities above water after OpenAI said it partnered with Broadcom to produce its first in-house artificial intelligence processors. That pushed Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company shares to a record, while South Korea's Kospi gained 0.9% after Samsung Electronics projected a 32% rise in third-quarter profit, beating estimates. China's No. 1 automaker BYD rose 1% after tipping Spain as its top candidate for a third car factory to serve the European market, sources told Reuters. The yen firmed a tad against the dollar after Japan's finance minister warned the country needs a new economic strategy that deals with inflation, rather than deflation, which was yesterday's villain. Gold gained 1.3% to $4,164.90 per ounce, showing little sign of pausing for breath as precious metals continue to set records. The same could not be said for digital gold, with bitcoin last down 1.8% at $113,719.84, while ether slipped 3% to $4,161.86. In early European trade, pan-region futures were last up 0.2%, German DAX futures rose 0.1% and FTSE futures were down 0.1%. Key developments that could influence markets on Tuesday: Economic data: Germany: CPI and HICP for September, ZEW Economic Sentiment and Current Conditions for October United Kingdom: Unemployment Claimant Count Change and HMRC Payrolls Change for September, ILO Unemployment Rate and Average Weekly Earnings for August Debt auctions Germany: 2-year government debt auction (Reporting by Gregor Stuart Hunter; Editing by Sam Holmes)
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By Heekyong Yang and Hyunjoo Jin SEOUL (Reuters) -Samsung Electronics on Tuesday said it expects its biggest quarterly profit in over three years, as the global race to boost production of AI chips has tightened supply and driven up prices of conventional memory chips, the tech giant's mainstay. Strong demand for conventional memory chips used in data centre servers helped offset weaker sales of advanced artificial intelligence chips of Samsung, which has been lagging rivals in the race to supply to Nvidia, analysts said. The world's leading memory chipmaker estimated an operating profit of 12.1 trillion won ($8.5 billion) for the July-September period, up 32% from a year earlier and well above a 10.1 trillion won LSEG SmartEstimate. That would mark its best quarterly profit in 13 quarters. Samsung shares slipped 0.5% as of 0302 GMT after rising as much as 2.9% earlier to their highest level since January 2021. Analysts attributed the decline to profit-taking following the rally. The stock has risen about 75% this year. "The third-quarter earnings surprise came from the chip business," said Ryu Young-ho, a senior analyst at NH Investment & Securities. Strong demand for conventional memory to support general-purpose servers, combined with robust HBM demand for AI servers, have together fuelled overall memory demand, he said. Although progress in supplying advanced high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips to major clients such as Nvidia was slower than expected, gains in commodity memory, supported by tight supplies, helped cushion the impact, analysts said. "Samsung is a big beneficiary of growing demand for commodity chips," said Sohn In-joon, an analyst at Heungkuk Securities. Sohn attributed the earnings beat to stronger-than-expected prices of commodity DRAM and NAND chips, stemming from demand for data centre servers, and lower chip inventory by chipmakers that gave them bargaining power in pricing. Analysts said Samsung also benefited from narrower losses at its foundry unit, which makes logic chips, as utilisation rates helped ease fixed-cost pressures. The company said revenue would likely rise 8.7% to a record high of 86 trillion won from a year earlier, also helped by the weaker South Korean currency. Samsung is expected to release detailed results including a breakdown of earnings for each of its businesses on October 30. Expanding on its stock incentives for senior executives, the company has decided to launch a performance-linked stock compensation plan for all employees in South Korea over the next three years, according to an internal memo dated October 14, seen by Reuters. Samsung declined to comment on the plan. SHORTAGE STOKES CONVENTIONAL CHIP PRICES Analysts said memory makers' focus on investing in advanced chips in recent years may have limited the production of conventional chips, which extended a supply shortage and spurred price increases for conventional chips. Prices of some DRAM chips, widely used in servers, smartphones and PCs, jumped 171.8% in the third quarter from a year earlier, according to TrendForce data. Analysts expect the commodity memory supply shortage to continue into 2026, with big tech companies expanding their spending on AI-related investments, including data centres and servers capable of handling the growing workloads from AI services. While recent chip supply deals with major tech companies, such as Tesla and OpenAI, eased investor concerns about Samsung, analysts cautioned that uncertainties remain that could hurt Samsung's consumer products, including potential U.S. tariffs, an intensifying trade war between the U.S. and China, as well as China's tightened export controls on rare earth materials used in advanced chips and manufacturing equipment. Samsung has been the world's biggest memory chipmaker for three decades but it is facing increasing competition in advanced AI chips after losing its No. 1 DRAM market share to SK Hynix in the first quarter of this year. Analysts expect Samsung’s HBM sales to gradually improve after the company made meaningful progress in supplying its latest 12-layer HBM3E chips to Nvidia, though some said shipment volumes remain limited. Samsung is betting on next-generation HBM4 products to narrow the gap with SK Hynix. Morgan Stanley said in a report that Samsung is on track with next-generation HBM4 development, working closely with major U.S. customers. Commercial shipments and sales contributions are expected to begin in 2026. ($1 = 1,427.1000 won) (Reporting by Heekyong Yang, Hyunjoo Jin and Joyce Lee; Editing by Chris Reese and Sonali Paul)
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VIDEO SHOWS: ISRAEL TEAM TRAINING ONE DAY BEFORE MATCH / ISRAEL HEAD COACH, RAN BEN-SHIMON, AND ISRAEL MIDFIELDER, MANOR SOLOMON, SPEAKING DURING PRESS CONFERENCE TEMPLATE ONLY, COMPLETE SCRIPT TO FOLLOW
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By Anjana Anil and Emily Chow SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Oil prices rose on Tuesday as early signs of a thaw in U.S.-China trade tensions bolstered market sentiment, alleviating concerns over global fuel demand. U.S. President Donald Trump remains committed to meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea this month, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday, as both countries try to defuse tension over tariff threats and export controls. There were substantial communications between the two sides over the weekend and more meetings were expected, he added. Brent crude futures rose 22 cents, or 0.4%, to $63.54 a barrel by 0405 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $59.71 a barrel, up 22 cents, or 0.4%. In the previous session, Brent settled 0.9% higher, and U.S. WTI closed up 1%. "Oil steadied as investors weighed U.S.–China tensions against demand," Saxo Bank analysts said in a note, adding that Trump had softened his tone and signalled openness to a deal. The prospect of improved trade ties between the world's two largest economies has historically buoyed oil markets, as investors anticipate stronger global growth and increased fuel demand. However, recent developments, such as Beijing's expanded export controls on rare earths and Trump's threats of 100% tariffs and software export curbs from November 1, have weighed on sentiment. Last week, oil prices posted weekly losses and touched their lowest levels since May. Trump had also cast doubt on prospects for a meeting with Xi during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea set for October 30 and November 1, saying on Truth Social, "Now there seems to be no reason to do so." While the selloff in markets seems to be limited by the more conciliatory tone between Washington and Beijing, their relations are expected to stay in the spotlight. "The oil industry continues to navigate geopolitical issues," said ANZ analyst Daniel Hynes. "China announced that it would levy U.S.-owned ships arriving at its shores, including oil tankers. That sparked several last-minute cancellations and a jump in shipping rates." Limiting the market's upside, Trump declared the end on Monday of the two-year-long Gaza war that has disrupted the wider Middle East. In its monthly report on Monday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, and allies including Russia, said the oil market's supply shortfall would shrink in 2026, as the wider OPEC+ alliance proceeds with planned output increases. (Reporting by Anjana Anil in Bengaluru and Emily Chow in Singapore; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Clarence Fernandez)
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VIDEO SHOWS: PORTUGAL NATIONAL SOCCER SQUAD TRAINING, REMARKS BY COACH ROBERTO MARTINEZ AND XXX AHEAD OF THEIR WORLD CUP QUALIFIER AGAINST HUNGARY COMPLETE SCRIPT TO FOLLOW SHOWS: OEIRAS, PORTUGAL (OCTOBER 13, 2025) (REUTERS – Access-all) 1. RUBEN NEVES' TATTOO OF DIOGO JOTA ON HIS LEFT LEG 2. PORTUGAL PLAYERS PASSING BALL IN GROUP 3. CRISTIANO RONALDO CHATTING WITH DIOGO DALOT DURING WARM-UPS 4. PORTUGAL HEAD COACH, ROBERTO MARTINEZ, TALKING WITH ASSISTANT, RICARDO CARVALHO 5. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL COACH, ROBERTO MARTINEZ, SAYING: "We want to keep getting better. There are things we can improve, our flow, our speed on the ball, and how we occupy space with the ball, no doubt. But we've also seen that Hungary are a very well-organiSed team, very well-prepared to launch counterattacks. So tomorrow we need to keep doing everything we did well without the ball and keep working on the things we want to improve." 6. RONALDO WARMING UP 7. PLAYERS WARMING UP 8. VITINHA WARMING UP 9. PLAYERS WARMING UP 10. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL COACH, ROBERTO MARTINEZ, SAYING: "We need to enjoy this. We have a national team that plays a lot of football, and plays it well. Our players have incredible commitment, let's enjoy that. Saying that winning 5–0 is only because the opponent is weak, and that not winning 5–0 means we didn't play well, is a narrative that isn't correct." 11. NUNO MENDES WARMING UP 12. RUBEN DIAS STRETCHING 13. JOAO FELIX STRETCHING 14. BRUNO FERNANDES STRETCHING 15. PLAYERS STRETCHING 16. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL MIDFIELDER, VITINHA, SAYING: "We're well aware of what Hungary can do. We've already analysed them and we'll certainly analyse a bit more, but we know what problems they can cause us and what we need to do to prevent that, and the best dynamics we need to create as many chances as possible and score goals." 17. DIAS AND BERNARDO SILVA PASSING THE BALL 18. PLAYERS PASSING BALL IN PAIRS 19. (SOUNDBITE) (Portuguese) PORTUGAL MIDFIELDER, VITINHA, SAYING: "We really have to admit, and be able to say that we have great, great players, a national team packed with top stars who play all across Europe and around the world at big clubs. So we must always set our sights on big goals, we must always aim high, because that's what we have to do. The responsibility demands it." 20. PLAYERS PASSING BALL IN PAIRS 21. DALOT PASSING BALL 22. PLAYERS PASSING BALL IN PAIRS STORY: TO FOLLOW (Production: Miguel Pereira, Conal Quinn)
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SINGAPORE (Reuters) -The implementation of a U.S. tariff on Singapore's pharmaceutical exports has been delayed to allow companies to negotiate possible exemptions with the U.S. administration, the Straits Times newspaper cited a junior minister as saying on Tuesday. The U.S. announced a 100% tariff on branded drugs last month and it was originally meant to take effect from October 1. The Straits Times did not say if the minister of state for trade, Gan Siow Huang, gave a fresh date for the tariff's introduction. But she said Singapore-based pharmaceutical companies are now waiting to hear from the U.S. administration to determine if their plans to build and expand manufacturing capacity would qualify them for an exemption, the paper reported. Singapore's exports to the United States are subject to a 10% baseline tariff. That is lower than the tariffs imposed on its Southeast Asian neighbours, but sectoral levies – including the 100% tariff on branded drugs – remain a significant concern. Singapore exports about S$4 billion ($3.1 billion) of pharmaceutical products to the United States, most of which are branded drugs, and pharmaceuticals form around 13% of all Singapore's exports to the country. Broader sectoral tariffs could hurt demand for Singaporean products, including semiconductors and consumer electronics as well as pharmaceutical goods. The three sectors account for about 40% of exports to the United States, the central bank said in July. The effective U.S. tariff rate on Singapore's exports rose to 7.8% in July from 6.8% in April on the back of steel and aluminium tariff hikes. Trade talks between both countries are ongoing, including on a preferential tariff arrangement for Singapore's pharmaceutical exports, the Straits Times cited Gan as saying. (Reporting by Xinghui Kok; Editing by David Stanway)
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By Nathan Vifflin and Toby Sterling (Reuters) -Multi-billion dollar deals between AI firms and computer chipmakers are expected to strengthen top semiconductor equipment maker ASML's outlook when it reports third-quarter earnings on Wednesday. Investors and analysts expect to see evidence that customers of the Dutch firm, such as TSMC and SK Hynix, are stepping up plans to expand capacity in 2026 and beyond. Expectations are high following a 32% run-up in ASML shares since September 2, against a 15% rise in the benchmark Philadelphia Semiconductor Index in the same period. HOPES FOR AI DATACENTER EXPANSION FUEL CHIP MARKET RALLY In July, ASML management said it was not sure revenue would grow in 2026, amid weakness at customers Samsung and Intel. Since then, AI megadeals have sparked a chip market rally on hopes for massive datacenter expansion. New bookings, the industry's most closely watched figure at ASML, are forecast at 5.36 billion euros ($6.21 billion) in the third quarter, say analysts polled by researcher Visible Alpha. In the first half, new bookings totalled 9.48 billion euros. The company is also expected to report a 1.4% increase in third-quarter net income to 2.11 billion euros from a year earlier, according to LSEG IBES data. Firms, including Meta and Oracle, announced deals with chip suppliers including NVIDIA, AMD, Intel and Samsung. All of these spell impending demand for ASML tools, essential for creating the circuitry of chips. "It's clear that the sentiment has changed, management will need to give some indication of what they are seeing in the market," said Morningstar analyst Javier Correonero. CAN CUSTOMERS INFLUENCE SPEED OF BUILDING PLANTS? But building chipmaking plants takes years, and analysts want ASML to explain to what extent customers are able to accelerate plans. "Every memory chipmaker is likely to increase production capacity for AI – Micron, SK Hynix, Samsung, even Chinese players," said Degroof Petercam analyst Michael Roeg. At $300 million or more apiece, ASML's tools are the priciest equipment in a chip factory, but they have a lengthy delivery lead time of 8-12 months. Chipmakers must balance the cost of ordering them too early or being unable to produce chips if they arrive too late. During the COVID pandemic, ASML's order backlog soared as it was unable to meet demand. It has since been working to expand capacity. Top customer TSMC, which manufactures almost all advanced AI chips, is expected to increase purchases, and Intel's outlook has also improved, analysts said. ($1 = 0.8633 euros) (Reporting by Nathan Vifflin in Gdansk, Toby Sterling in Amsterdam; Editing by Matt Scuffham and Bernadette Baum)
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