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By Juveria Tabassum and Jessica DiNapoli (Reuters) -PepsiCo topped Wall Street expectations for third-quarter revenue and profit on Thursday, helped by steady demand for its snacks and sodas in key international markets and strength in its healthier drinks category in the United States. The company also named Steve Schmitt, who is currently U.S. finance head at its biggest customer Walmart , as its new CFO, effective November. He succeeds Jamie Caulfield, who was in the CFO role for about two years and will retire after more than three decades with PepsiCo. The company is under pressure from activist investor Elliott Management for lagging behind main rival Coca-Cola, while also facing consumer pushback on price hikes over the years and scrutiny on synthetic flavors from the Trump administration. CEO Ramon Laguarta, however, said the company's interactions with Elliott have been collaborative, and that he agrees with the activist investor about its undervaluation. He said many of the investor's ideas were included in PepsiCo's current strategy. Pepsico shares rose 2% as the company maintained its annual organic revenue growth and adjusted profit in constant currency targets. The company's 12-month forward earnings multiple, a common benchmark for valuing stocks, was 16.54, trailing Coca-Cola's 20.90. Laguarta, however, did not give a clear answer to the activist investor's boldest idea to grow PepsiCo's margins by spinning off the company's large North American bottling network. PepsiCo's net revenue of $23.94 billion beat analysts' average expectations of $23.83 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG, while its adjusted earnings per share also topped estimates by 3 cents. "The company provided more detail than in the past on how they'll drive organic growth," said Dave Wagner, portfolio manager at PepsiCo shareholder Aptus Capital Advisors. "The pipeline is robust. There is a lot of work to do but it was pretty positive in my mind." BETS BIG ON NEW LAUNCHES PepsiCo is betting on more consumers preferring healthier options in the long run, a trend that is accelerating as appetite-suppressing drugs become popular and with the Trump administration backing the Make America Healthy Again movement. The company is planning to re-launch energy drink Gatorade following a similar rebranding of Lay's and Tostitos, and introduce a new product with electrolytes, fiber and protein from water brand Propel, Laguarta said. PepsiCo, which in recent months bought prebiotic soda brand Poppi and raised its stake in energy drink maker Celsius, also said it was evaluating acquisitions in fast-growing segments in the packaged food industry. "We'll see how consumers react," Laguarta said, adding that the prices on the new products would be higher, helping margins as PepsiCo continues to cut costs in its supply chain. COST CUTS A FOCUS PepsiCo would "aggressively reduce costs" in the snacks category in the U.S., with a plan that includes closing two plants and cutting nearly 15% of its product lines during the fourth quarter, the CEO said. The company is also offering smaller pack sizes as consumers look for affordable options, a move that helped drive volume growth in some Asian markets this year. The company's international business accounts for about 40% of its revenue. A crackdown on immigration under the Trump administration is denting demand among its Hispanic customers, executives said. While tariffs were a roughly three-percentage point headwind to its core earnings in the third quarter, the company plans to return to margin growth in the North America beverages category later this year. (Reporting by Prerna Bedi and Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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BEIJING (Reuters) -EV-maker Tesla has registered plans for a longer-range variant of its Model Y in China, according to filing information that appeared on China's industry ministry website on Thursday. The variant is named "Model Y+", according to images published on the website. (Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Editing by Joe Bavier)

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PARIS (Reuters) -Airbus is predicting 3.6% average growth in aircraft services over the next 20 years, creating jobs for 2.35 million pilots, mechanics and other workers to meet air travel growth. The European planemaker is one of several aerospace companies that have made a push into services alongside their traditional manufacturing roles in recent years to compete with independent providers for higher-margin aftermarket work. Airbus said it expected the total value of the services market to reach $311 billion a year by 2044. Demand for so-called off-wing maintenance or repair shop visits will more than double in value to $218 billion over the period, with on-wing or light inspections and other routine maintenance rising to $34 billion from $21 billion. Airbus executives said global supply chains, which feed repair networks as well as factories for new planes, are still in recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic but are improving. The core Airbus planemaking business made 10% of its revenues from services in 2024. In June, Boeing forecast a total demand for $4.7 trillion worth of commercial services spread over the next 20 years based on an annual average growth of 3.8%. (Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Alphabet-owned Google said dozens of companies have been affected by an ambitious hacking campaign that targeted Oracle's suite of business products. The company said in a blog post Thursday that 'mass amounts of customer data' were stolen in the process. (Reporting by Raphael Satter)

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By Alessandro Parodi (Reuters) -China said on Thursday it planned to add five more rare earth elements and related materials to its export controls list, tightening its grip on the sector ahead of talks between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. China produces over 90% of the world's processed rare earths and rare earth magnets. The 17 rare earth elements are vital materials in products ranging from electric vehicles to aircraft engines and military radars. Exports of 12 of them are now restricted after the Ministry of Commerce added five – holmium, erbium, thulium, europium and ytterbium – along with related materials. The latest five are silvery in colour and can be used in various applications including for the nuclear, defence, medicine and fiber-optics sectors. HOLMIUM Holmium can be used in magnets, semiconductors, laser surgery devices and control rods for nuclear reactors. ERBIUM Erbium is mostly used in fibre-optic telecommunications and infrared technology. Pink-coloured erbium oxide is used to make infrared-absorbing glass. THULIUM Thulium is used in X-ray equipment, laser technology and ceramic materials in microwaves. It is fluorescent when exposed to ultraviolet light, making it useful to combat counterfeiting. EUROPIUM Europium, the most reactive rare earth element and also fluorescent, is used in control rods for nuclear reactors and glowing materials including for medical imaging. It is also used in magnetism research, alongside ytterbium. YTTERBIUM Ytterbium, the most volatile rare earth element, can be used as a radiation source in X-ray machines and has applications in nuclear medicine. It is also used as a catalyst and in quantum computers. (Reporting by Alessandro Parodi, Editing by Joe Bavier)

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By Aida Pelaez-Fernandez MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Mexico's annual inflation rate quickened in September at a pace slightly below expectations, official data showed on Thursday, but remained within the central bank's target range of 3% plus or minus a percentage point. Consumer prices in Latin America's second-largest economy rose 3.76% in the year through September, according to national statistics agency INEGI, below the 3.79% increase forecast by economists in a Reuters poll. Consumer prices rose 3.57% in the previous month. The inflation rate remained within the central bank's target range for the third month in a row, bolstering expectations that policymakers would continue to cut interest rates. "Current conditions support our expectation of a Banxico benchmark rate of 7.00% at year-end and 6.50% in 2026," analysts at the brokerage of local bank Banorte said in a note. Mexico's central bank, also known as Banxico, lowered borrowing costs last month for the 10th consecutive time, with its key interest rate reaching its lowest level since 2022 at 7.5%. Consumer prices rose 0.23% in September on a monthly basis, according to non-seasonally adjusted figures, slightly below market forecasts. "The monthly increase was mainly due to the sharp seasonal rise in education prices, which recorded the largest monthly increase since 2008," Citi's Banamex said in a note. Meanwhile, the closely watched core index, which strips out some volatile food and energy prices, increased 0.33%, compared with expectations of a 0.32% increase.     Sticky core inflation continues to be a concern that could shape future Banxico decisions, according to analysts, while policymakers also closely monitor ongoing global trade tensions and sluggish economic growth in the Latin American country. (Reporting by Aida Pelaez-Fernandez and Ricardo Fieguroa; Editing by Paul Simao and Mark Porter)

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By Juveria Tabassum and Jessica DiNapoli (Reuters) -PepsiCo topped Wall Street expectations for third-quarter revenue and profit on Thursday, helped by steady demand for its snacks and sodas in key international markets and strength in its healthier drinks category in the United States. The company also named Steve Schmitt, who is currently U.S. finance head at its biggest customer Walmart , as its new CFO, effective November. He succeeds Jamie Caulfield, who was in the CFO role for about two years and will retire after more than three decades with PepsiCo. The company is under pressure from activist investor Elliott Management for lagging behind main rival Coca-Cola, while also facing consumer pushback on price hikes over the years and scrutiny on synthetic flavors from the Trump administration. CEO Ramon Laguarta said the company's interactions with Elliott have been collaborative and he agrees with the activist investor that the company is undervalued. He said many of the investor's ideas were included in PepsiCo's current strategy. Laguarta, however, did not give a clear answer to the activist investor's boldest idea to grow PepsiCo's margins by spinning off the company's large North American bottling network. PepsiCo, which in recent months bought prebiotic soda brand Poppi and raised its stake in energy drink maker Celsius, said it was evaluating acquisitions in segments that are showing faster growth in the packaged food industry. "We'll see how consumers react," Laguarta said, adding that the prices on the new products would be higher, helping margins as PepsiCo continues to cut costs in its supply chain. PepsiCo's net revenue of $23.94 billion beat analysts' average expectations of $23.83 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG, while its adjusted earnings per share also topped estimates by 3 cents. "I would characterize it (the results beat) as mildly encouraging. Certainly they're being shaken up by Elliott Management… that's probably got their attention," said Greg Halter, director of research at Carnegie Investment Counsel, which holds shares in PepsiCo. Its shares opened up 1% as the company maintained its annual organic revenue growth and adjusted profit in constant currency targets. The company's 12-month forward earnings multiple, a common benchmark for valuing stocks, was 16.54, lagging Coca-Cola's 20.90. Laguarta said PepsiCo would "aggressively reduce costs" in the snacks category in the U.S., with a plan that includes closing two plants and cutting nearly 15% of its product lines during the fourth quarter. The company is also offering smaller pack sizes as consumers look for affordable options, a move that helped drive volume growth in some Asian markets this year. The company's international business accounts for about 40% of its revenue. Overall consumer sentiment remained weak despite spurts of growth in India and Middle East markets, Laguarta said on the call, adding that immigration crackdown under the Trump administration was denting demand among its Hispanic customers. While tariffs were a roughly three-percentage point headwind to its core earnings in the third quarter, the company plans to return to margin growth in the North America beverages category later this year, executives said. (Reporting by Prerna Bedi and Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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By Marc Jones LONDON (Reuters) -Below are five charts showing the volatile response of global financial markets to the war between Israel and Hamas over the last two years. 1/TAKING STOCK Israeli stocks and those of the world's big weapons makers have surged since the October 7, 2023 attacks.  Defence stocks were already on the rise due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and rising risks elsewhere, but they accelerated sharply as the conflict in Gaza grew and are now more than 120% higher than they were when Hamas attacked Israel. MSCI's Israel stocks index is up more than 80% too – roughly 30 percentage points more than the main global stocks benchmarks – the shekel is up against the dollar following the greenback's slump this year, while some of Israel's banks have kept up with the defence rally.  2/CREDIT RATING CUTS The cost of the war meant Israel suffered its first ever credit rating downgrades in 2024, starting with Moody's four months after the Hamas attacks, followed by S&P in April and Fitch in August that year. At the depths of conflict, credit default swap markets – where investors go to hedge risk – even priced the possibility that Israel could lose its investment grade status and get downgraded to the 'junk' category of sovereign debt. Those worries have receded this year, though, and CDS prices currently point to no further downgrades.  3/ECONOMIC DAMAGE Israel's $580 billion economy was also slowed drastically by the war. Last October the country's finance ministry estimated it had already cost it around 14 billion shekels ($3.75 billion), although that will be far higher now. Economic growth ground to a near standstill last year but it is expected to be a more robust 2.5% this year according to the country's central bank, and could be more than 5% next year if a "peace dividend" materialises.     4/OIL AND GAS Oil rose above $90 a barrel and European natural gas prices saw their biggest jump in six months in the immediate aftermath of the 2023 Hamas attacks, but the market quickly shrugged it off and Brent dropped back to $75 by the end of that year. Escalating tensions with Iran then pushed oil higher again in early 2024. That reversed too when it turned into little more than a skirmish although there was a more significant, albeit also brief, spike this year when U.S. forces struck Iran’s three main nuclear sites.           5/GOLD RUSH Safe-haven gold rose nearly 3% after the Hamas attacks. It was its biggest weekly jump in six months, and gold hasn't looked back since.  Though there are plenty of additional reasons driving it now too, the fact is that move marked the start of a remarkable 120% rally that has just pushed bullion past $4,000 a troy ounce for the first time.     (Reporting by Marc Jones; additional graphics by Sumanta Sen and Pasit Kongkunakornkul; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

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(Reuters) -New York Federal Reserve President John Williams backs more interest rate cuts this year given the risk of a further slowdown in the labor market, according to an interview published by the New York Times on Thursday. Williams, the Fed vice chair and a permanent voting member of the U.S. central bank's rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee, added, however, that the current labor market slowdown did not point to an imminent recession. "My own view is that, yes, we would have lower rates this year, but we'll have to see exactly what that means," Williams told the newspaper.  When asked if he anticipated two more 25-basis-point cuts to the Fed's policy rate, currently set in the 4.00%-4.25% range, Williams said, "when I approach future meetings, if we get information that is broadly consistent with my outlook – which is for inflation to move up a bit to around 3% and for the unemployment rate to gradually move up a little bit – then I think the path for policy should evolve the way we expect." Williams noted that the Fed is trying to balance policy to lower inflation, which remains above the central bank's 2% target, while at the same time offering support for a job market that's exhibiting signs of weakness. With the current stance of monetary policy, "I do feel like we are well-positioned in terms of having policy that's modestly restrictive and that is helping us get to 2% inflation on a sustained basis." Williams, however, added that it would be very damaging to the economy and the Fed's credibility if inflation were allowed to go well above the 2% level without the central bank taking steps to lower it. "But we need to do it in a way that does our best to minimize the risk of the labor market cooling more sharply." The U.S. central bank cut its policy rate by a quarter of a percentage point at its September 16-17 meeting, a move Fed Chair Jerome Powell and others characterized as a way to leave policy tight enough to still restrain the economy and put downward pressure on inflation, while offering some support for the job market. TARIFFS' IMPACT ON INFLATION LESS THAN EXPECTED Williams' comments are in line with the minutes of the September 16-17 meeting that were published on Wednesday. According to the minutes, Fed officials last month agreed that risks to the U.S. job market had increased enough to warrant a rate cut, but they remained wary of high inflation amid a debate within the central bank over how much borrowing costs were weighing on the economy. The Fed's next policy meeting is slated for October 28-29, with another quarter-percentage-point rate cut anticipated by financial markets. In his interview with the New York Times, Williams said President Donald Trump's trade tariffs were not putting as much upward pressure on inflation as many observers had expected. "Tariffs have boosted inflation by maybe a quarter of a percentage point, up to a half point, in terms of the price level," he said, adding that "underlying inflation seems to be moving gradually lower toward 2%." "I don't see any signs of second-round effects or factors that could be amplifying the effects of tariffs on inflation," Williams added. He also noted that a changing economy is taking some pressure off of inflation. "I think there's more downside risks to the labor market and employment, and that is something that takes some of the upside risk off of inflation."  Williams also said he cared deeply about the independence of the Fed, which has come under intense pressure from the White House this year to deliver deep rate cuts. President Donald Trump also has attempted to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook from her position. (Reporting by Michael S. Derby in New York and Shubham Kalia and Nilutpal Timsina in Bengaluru; editing by Sharon Singleton, Hugh Lawson, Mark Heinrich and Paul Simao)

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By Rajesh Kumar Singh CHICAGO (Reuters) -Delta Air Lines delivered an upbeat outlook for the current quarter on Thursday, after posting stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings, buoyed by a recovery in corporate travel demand and improved pricing power. The Atlanta-based airline said its sales have accelerated over the past six weeks across all geographies, and also reported a rebound in corporate bookings with improvement across all sectors. Delta's shares rose more than 5% in early trading. Shares of United Airlines, American Airlines, JetBlue and Alaska Air also gained between 2% and 5%. A sharp reduction in airline seat capacity in the domestic market has driven up ticket prices. This contributed to Delta's higher unit revenue, a key indicator for pricing power, in the September quarter, following a decline in the previous quarter. With bankrupt Spirit Airlines shrinking its operations and most carriers moderating their growth plans to prevent discounting pressure, Delta expects its unit revenue to remain positive in the December quarter. Third Bridge analyst Peter McNally said he expects Delta's revenue growth to extend into 2026 and sees the carrier and peer United benefiting from their premium offerings. The airline expects an adjusted profit in the range of $1.60 to $1.90 a share for the quarter through December. The midpoint of the forecast is $1.75, compared with analysts' average estimate of $1.66, according to data compiled by LSEG. Delta's quarterly revenue is projected to rise about 2% to 4% from year-ago levels. It reported an adjusted profit of $1.71 a share in the September quarter, compared with analysts' average estimate of $1.53 per share. CEO Ed Bastian said Delta is also "well-positioned" to deliver revenue growth as well as margin expansion next year. The airline's bullish tone contrasts with a rocky first half of the year when economic jitters clouded the outlook for travel spending, prompting Delta and other U.S. carriers to pull their financial forecasts. Its outlook, however, does not factor in any fallout from the U.S. government shutdown. More than 13,000 flights have been delayed this week amid staffing shortages at air-traffic control facilities. With the federal employees working without pay, the staffing situation could worsen. Some travelers have started canceling trips and avoiding airports until U.S. lawmakers find a way to reopen the government. A prolonged shutdown also runs the risk of taking a toll on broader economic activity and hitting consumer spending. In 2019, during a 35-day government shutdown, Delta suffered a $25 million financial hit. Despite lingering economic uncertainty, analysts say the company's diversified revenue streams have made it better equipped than some of its rivals to shield its earnings. The company has been consistently generating more than half of its total revenue from credit card loyalty program, premium cabin sales, and cargo and maintenance business. It generated $2 billion in remuneration from American Express in the September quarter, supported by a double-digit increase in consumer spending on its co-branded credit card. Delta's premium revenue was up 9% from a year ago and accounted for about 43% of its passenger revenue. In contrast, its revenue from price-sensitive main cabin declined 4% year-on-year. Encouraged by the strong returns, the airline plans to significantly expand its premium seat offerings while scaling back main cabin capacity. (Reporting by Rajesh Kumar Singh and Nathan Gomes; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)

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