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(Reuters) -Occidental Petroleum said on Thursday it would sell its petrochemical division to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway for $9.7 billion, as the U.S. oil and gas producer looks to pare debt. The sale of the OxyChem unit, which produces chemicals used for treating swimming pools and vinyl products used for water supply piping and medical supplies, adds to a series of divestitures planned by the Houston, Texas-based company in recent years to raise cash. Its shares rose 2.3% in premarket trading. If the all-cash deal closes, it would be the biggest for Berkshire, Occidental's largest shareholder, since its $11.6 billion purchase of insurance firm Alleghany Corporation in 2022 and expand its chemical holdings beyond Lubrizol. Occidental, one of the top producers of basic chemicals and polyvinyl chloride in the U.S., has been struggling with a massive debt load, a legacy of its $55 billion acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum in 2019, when it outbid rival Chevron to secure some of the richest shale oilfields in Texas. The company sunk deeper into debt after it closed its $12 billion acquisition of privately held U.S. shale oil producer CrownRock last year, which strengthened its position in the Permian Basin. Its debt stood at $23.34 billion by the end of June. The company in August disclosed $950 million of additional divestitures since the start of the second quarter, of which $370 million already closed and it had repaid $3 billion of debt year-to-date. Occidental said on Thursday it would use $6.5 billion of the proceeds from the deal to reduce debt, bringing its total principal debt below the $15 billion target set after the CrownRock deal. The deal, expected to close in the fourth-quarter, also indicates that the company is refocusing on its oil and gas business, which formed 75% of its total earnings last year. In the first two quarters of this year, the OxyChem unit generated a combined revenue of $2.42 billion. Berkshire, which holds about 27% of Occidental's outstanding shares, began acquiring stake in the company in February 2022, around when Russia invaded Ukraine. (Reporting by Pooja Menon in Bengaluru and Sheila Dang in Houston; Editing by Nathan Crooks, Nia Williams and Shilpi Majumdar)

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By Joice Alves LONDON (Reuters) -The dollar fell to near a one-week low on Thursday as traders weighed the impact of a U.S. government shutdown, while poor jobs data boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates two more times this year. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.14% to 97.59. It saw the sharpest decline against the safe-haven yen, down 0.3% to 146.69. After four straight days of losses for the dollar index, traders were weighing how long the U.S. government shutdown might last, its effect on economic data releases, and how that will play into the Fed's decision-making. WEAKER JOBS DATA PRESSURES DOLLAR The ADP National Employment Report showed on Wednesday that U.S. private employment shrank by 32,000 jobs last month after a downwardly revised 3,000 decline in August. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast private employment to increase by 50,000. "U.S. ADP employment data triggered dollar weakness," said Kit Juckes, Societe Generale's chief currency strategist. The jobs report came amid a U.S. government shutdown, which has put the brakes on the flow of federal economic data at a moment of uncertainty and division among policymakers. "The sense is that the market was happy to react to yesterday’s figures but will not be comfortable taking the dollar too far on less reliable data," Juckes said. The Trump administration on Wednesday froze $26 billion for Democratic-leaning states, following through on a threat to use the shutdown to target Democratic priorities. "With many major U.S. data releases withheld due to the government shutdown, alternative measures (yesterday’s ADP, today’s Challenger data) are set to have a longer-lasting impact on markets than usual," said Francesco Pesole, FX strategist at ING. Data also showed on Wednesday that U.S. manufacturing activity edged up in September, though new orders and employment were subdued as factories grappled with the fallout from President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs. In the meantime, the U.S. Supreme Court said it would hear arguments in January over Trump's attempt to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook. Money markets are expecting two further Fed interest rate cuts this year. Elsewhere, the euro rose 0.18% to $1.1751 after data showed on Wednesday that euro zone inflation accelerated last month on higher services prices and a smaller decline in energy costs, likely reinforcing bets on the European Central Bank keeping interest rates on hold for some time. "Data is vindicating the ECB’s cautious stance, and could keep dovish voices in the governing council quiet," Pesole said. Data also showed on Thursday that unemployment in the euro area ticked up in August. (Reporting by Joice Alves. Additional reporting by Gregor Stuart Hunter. Editing by Mark Potter and Gareth Jones)

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By Krystal Hu (Reuters) -OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has reached a valuation of $500 billion, following a deal in which current and former employees sold roughly $6.6 billion worth of shares, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday. This represents a bump-up from its current valuation of $300 billion, underscoring OpenAI's rapid gains in both users and revenue. Reuters reported details of the stock sale earlier in August. As part of the deal, OpenAI employees sold shares to a consortium of investors including Thrive Capital, SoftBank, Dragoneer Investment Group, Abu Dhabi's MGX and T. Rowe Price, according to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media. The company had authorized sales of $10-billion-plus worth of stock on the secondary market, the source added. Thrive Capital, SoftBank, Dragoneer, MGX and T. Rowe Price did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. The share sale adds to SoftBank's earlier investment in OpenAI's $40 billion primary funding round. The company generated around $4.3 billion in revenue in the first half of 2025, about 16% more than it generated all of last year, the Information reported earlier this week. The sale comes at a time when tech giants are competing aggressively for AI talent with lucrative compensation packages. Meta is notably investing billions in Scale AI and poached its 28-year-old CEO, Alexandr Wang, to lead its new super intelligence unit. (Reporting by Krystal Hu in San Francisco and Anusha Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair and Janane Venkatraman)

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SANTIAGO (Reuters) -Chile's wine exports to its top market of Brazil are booming, helping to offset a decline in sales to United States partly due to tariffs, according to export data and industry experts.  Data from Wines of Chile, an association of wine producers, shows purchases from the U.S., Chile's second-biggest market by volume, have fallen 13% in the first seven months of the year as President Donald Trump's administration imposed tariffs.  "We went from zero tariffs to 10%," said Angelica Valenzuela, Wines of Chile’s commercial director. "Every time you have a tariff, or some roadblock, there's some kind of freeze, or slowdown." Valenzuela said initially, wine producers and importers absorbed the cost of tariffs, but "since it's something that's remained longer, the cost started transferring to the consumer." "What we see now is an American market that's less dynamic and is declining," she added. Chile's exports to China have dropped by nearly 23% over the same period, but she attributed that to lower wine consumption, which has affected most countries that sell to China. In contrast, Brazil is booming, consolidating its position as Chile's top export destination, with shipments jumping nearly 10% over the period. Chile accounts for nearly half of Brazil's import market, Valenzuela said, adding there was "enormous expansion potential." The number of regular wine consumers in Brazil is growing, especially among women and consumers with more disposable income, Valenzuela said. She said Chile's marketing strategy will now focus on strengthening the country's image as a source of premium and sustainable wines. Overall, Chile's wine exports have remained steady in 2025. Canada, Japan, Ireland and South Korea all registered growth while Mexico, the Netherlands and Britain declined. (Reporting by Nicolas Cortes and Reuters TV; Writing by Alexander Villegas; Editing by Jamie Freed)

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FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky is selling his 20% stake in Thyssenkrupp's steel unit and also scrapped plans for a 50:50 joint venture for the business, both parties said in a joint statement, paving the way for a possible deal with Jindal Steel. The stake sale ends lengthy talks over what could have become a German-Czech steel and energy giant, discussions that have not made any measurable progress since Kretinsky bought a fifth of Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe (TKSE) last year. It now creates momentum for Thyssenkrupp to intensify talks with India's Jindal Steel International, which last month presented an indicative bid for all of TKSE, a volatile business its parent has sought to divest for years. The statement said that Kretinsky's EP Group "respects Thyssenkrupp AG's preference to concentrate on discussions with Jindal Steel International". The news comes as uncertainty over the prospect of steelmaking in Europe grows, suffering from cheap Chinese imports, high energy costs and a delay to hydrogen-based decarbonisation of what is one of the most polluting industries. Kretinsky's EP Group and Thyssenkrupp had the aim of eventually forming 50:50 joint venture for TKSE, but talks have been fraught with difficulties as powerful unions have accused the Czech businessman of refusing to engage. (Reporting by Christoph Steitz; editing by Matthias Williams)

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By Anna Hirtenstein LONDON (Reuters) -Oil prices edged lower on Thursday, extending a run of declines into a fourth day due to concerns about oversupply in the market. Brent crude futures fell 52 cents, or 0.8%, to $64.83 a barrel at 0953 GMT, hitting its lowest level since June. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude retreated by 52 cents, or 0.8%, to $61.26 a barrel. A U.S. government shutdown increased uncertainty about global economic outlook, while expectations of higher output by OPEC+, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allied producers, weighed on sentiment, said Hiroyuki Kikukawa, chief strategist at Nissan Securities Investment. OPEC+ could agree to raise oil production by up to 500,000 barrels per day in November, triple the increase made for October, as Saudi Arabia seeks to reclaim market share, three sources familiar with the talks said. Jorge Montepeque, managing director at Onyx Capital Group, said some banks, such as Macquarie, have put out predictions of a super glut in oil markets, which have weighed on sentiment. The Group of Seven nations' finance ministers said on Wednesday they will take steps to increase pressure on Russia by targeting those who are continuing to boost purchases of Russian oil and those that are facilitating circumvention. The U.S. will provide Ukraine with intelligence for long-range missile strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, two officials told Reuters on Wednesday, confirming an earlier Wall Street Journal report. This will make it easier for Ukraine to hit refineries, pipelines and other infrastructure with the aim of depriving the Kremlin of revenue and oil, the WSJ said. "There is some concern in the market again that Russian oil could get disrupted," said Giovanni Staunovo, commodity analyst at UBS. But as long as there aren't disruptions yet, the impact on prices will likely be minor, he said. Stockpiling demand from China, the world's largest crude oil importer, also underpinned oil prices, limiting the downside, traders said. The Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday that U.S. crude oil, gasoline and distillate inventories rose last week as refining activity and demand softened. Crude inventories rose by 1.8 million barrels to 416.5 million barrels in the week ended on September 26, compared with expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1-million-barrel rise. (Reporting by Anna Hirtenstein in London. Additioanl reporting by Yuka Obayashi in Tokyo and Siyi Liu in Singapore; Editing by Tom Hogue, Jamie Freed and Jane Merriman)

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(Reuters) -Shares of major credit reporting companies tumbled on Thursday after U.S. data analytics company Fair Isaac Corp unveiled a program that allows mortgage resellers to calculate and distribute its creditworthiness score directly to consumers. This could pressure earnings and margins of three main U.S. credit bureaus Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, analysts said as they have been providing credit data and FICO scores to produce reports for mortgage underwriting. FICO score, created by Fair Isaac, is the most widely adopted credit scoring system in the U.S., with top lenders using it to evaluate a borrower's creditworthiness. The higher the number, the lower the risk of default. "It implies that this would cut out the margin that the likes of Experian and Equifax make on the FICO credit score," analysts at Citigroup wrote in a note. "Our initial reaction is that this is negative for Experian and Equifax." Experian shares were down 5% in London. U.S.-listed Equifax fell 11% in premarket trading, while TransUnion was down 9%. The change would bring price transparency and immediate cost savings to mortgage lenders, brokers and other industry participants, Fair Isaac said, noting that firms preferring to work through the credit bureaus can continue to do so. The change, however, could intensify competition in the credit scoring business as it gives lenders more direct access to FICO scores. "By introducing a licensing program for tri-merge resellers, FICO is effectively taking away the ability of the credit bureaus to mark up the FICO score," analysts at Jefferies said in a note. The brokerage said the new models could hit credit bureau earnings by an average of 10% to 15%. "For the bureaus to take price, they will now have to directly negotiate with the lenders, as well as compete with each other." (Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru and Samuel Indyk in London; Editing by Arun Koyyur)

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By Joice Alves LONDON (Reuters) -The dollar fell to near a one-week low on Thursday as traders weighed the impact of a U.S. government shutdown, while poor jobs data boosted expectations the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates two more times this year. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.2% to 97.52. After four straight days of losses for the dollar, traders were weighing how long the U.S. government shutdown might last, its effect on economic data releases, and how that will play into the Fed's decision making. The ADP National Employment Report showed on Wednesday that U.S. private employment shrank by 32,000 jobs last month after a downwardly revised 3,000 decline in August. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast private employment to increase by 50,000. "U.S. ADP employment data triggered dollar weakness," said Kit Juckes, Societe Generale's chief currency strategist. "The sense is that the market was happy to react to yesterday’s figures but will not be comfortable taking the dollar too far on less reliable data," he said. The jobs report came amid a U.S. government shutdown, which has put the brakes on the flow of federal economic data at a moment of uncertainty and division among policymakers. The Trump administration on Wednesday froze $26 billion for Democratic-leaning states, following through on a threat to use the shutdown to target Democratic priorities. "With many major U.S. data releases withheld due to the government shutdown, alternative measures (yesterday’s ADP, today’s Challenger data) are set to have a longer-lasting impact on markets than usual," said Francesco Pesole, FX strategist at ING. Data also showed on Wednesday that U.S. manufacturing activity edged up in September, though new orders and employment were subdued as factories grappled with the fallout from President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs. In the meantime, the U.S. Supreme Court said it would hear arguments in January over Trump's attempt to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook. Money markets are expecting two further Fed interest rate cuts this year. Elsewhere, the euro rose 0.2% to $1.1756 after data showed on Wednesday that euro zone inflation accelerated last month on higher services prices and a smaller decline in energy costs, likely reinforcing bets on the European Central Bank keeping interest rates on hold for some time. "Data is vindicating the ECB’s cautious stance, and could keep dovish voices in the governing council quiet," Pesole said. The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. will provide Ukraine with intelligence for long-range missile strikes on Russia’s energy infrastructure. (Reporting by Joice Alves. Additional reporting by Gregor Stuart Hunter. Editing by Mark Potter)

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SEOUL (Reuters) -Shares of South Korea's Samsung Electronics jumped 4.7% and SK Hynix soared 12% on Thursday, bolstered by a deal with OpenAI to support the ChatGPT maker's expansive Stargate artificial intelligence data centre project. The partnership, announced late on Wednesday, sent Samsung shares to their highest in more than four years and SK Hynix to an all-time high, adding $37 billion to their combined market capitalisation. Their rally also propelled the benchmark KOSPI index more than 3% to a record. "There have been worries about high bandwidth memory (HBM) chip prices falling next year on intensifying competition, but such worries will be easily resolved by the strategic partnership," Jeff Kim, an analyst at KB Securities, said in a note, expecting a surge in demand from the project. "Since Stargate is a key project led by President Trump, there also is a possibility the partnership will have a positive impact on South Korea's trade negotiations with the U.S.," Kim said. OpenAI, participating in President Donald Trump's $500 billion Stargate private-sector initiative to build AI infrastructure in the U.S., agreed on Wednesday to join forces with the two chipmakers in semiconductor procurement and work on building two data centres in South Korea, a Korean-style Stargate. With the new data centres, which will have an initial capacity of 20 megawatts, Seoul is hoping to become an AI hub in Asia, while OpenAI is looking to cement its position in the country which has the second-largest number of paying ChatGPT users after the United States. Samsung Electronics' affiliates Samsung SDI, Samsung C&T and Samsung SDS also rose sharply on partnerships with the U.S. firm. The global AI boom has been driving strong demand for semiconductors, helping South Korea's exports rise in September at the fastest pace in 14 months despite a hit from U.S. tariffs, blowing past market expectations. South Korea hopes to formalise by late October a preliminary trade deal reached with Trump in July, lowering U.S. tariffs on South Korean imports in return for a $350 billion investment in the U.S. However, follow-up negotiations have stalled due to Seoul's concerns over the foreign exchange implications and structure of the investment package. (Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Jacqueline Wong)

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By Krystal Hu (Reuters) -OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has reached a valuation of $500 billion, following a deal in which current and former employees sold roughly $6.6 billion worth of shares, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday. This represents a bump-up from its current valuation of $300 billion, underscoring OpenAI's rapid gains in both users and revenue. Reuters reported details of the stock sale earlier in August. As part of the deal, OpenAI employees sold shares to a consortium of investors including Thrive Capital, SoftBank, Dragoneer Investment Group, Abu Dhabi's MGX and T. Rowe Price, according to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media. The company had authorized sales of $10-billion-plus worth of stock on the secondary market, the source added. Thrive Capital, SoftBank, Dragoneer, MGX and T. Rowe Price did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. The share sale adds to SoftBank's earlier investment in OpenAI's $40 billion primary funding round. The company generated around $4.3 billion in revenue in the first half of 2025, about 16% more than it generated all of last year, the Information reported earlier this week. The sale comes at a time when tech giants are competing aggressively for AI talent with lucrative compensation packages. Meta is notably investing billions in Scale AI and poached its 28-year-old CEO, Alexandr Wang, to lead its new super intelligence unit. (Reporting by Krystal Hu in San Francisco and Anusha Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair and Janane Venkatraman)

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