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By Casey Hall SHANGHAI (Reuters) -OTB Group, the parent of Italian denim specialist Diesel and owner of luxury brands including Maison Margiela, is positive on the Chinese market and is investing more in it, founder and chairman Renzo Rosso said. Rosso, in China to mark Diesel's 20 years in that market, said he is continuing to invest in China in a down market, rejigging OTB's retail footprint by closing some stores, but continuing to open in new and better locations. "I am positive. I think if the market is going like this, it can be an opportunity because we can have a better space available for a better price that wasn't available before," he said. "My vision right now is to invest in the country. I believe in the country; it is so big, so important." Rosso was speaking to Reuters on Thursday ahead of a dinner for around 100 people with a view of Shanghai's famous skyline. "This year, we are doing well compared with the market. Everybody is minus, we are a little plus, so we are quite happy," he added. China's consumer appetite has been in focus for global brands, especially in the high-end and luxury sectors which count on Chinese nationals for around one-third of global purchases. In recent years, consumer demand in the world's second-largest economy has been dampened by a prolonged property market crisis and concerns about job security and wage growth in an economy buffeted by factors including slowing growth and a trade war with the U.S. In an indication of how vital China is to luxury, reports from industry bellwether LVMH earlier this week that Chinese demand is improving sparked an $80 billion stock market rally for the sector. OTB, or Only the Brave, is also home to luxury brand Jil Sander, and as a group reported turnover of 1.8 billion euros ($2.11 billion) in 2024, a fall of 4.4%. In 2024, OTB postponed plans for a public listing originally slated for this year, saying it would probably delay it until 2026. Rosso remains in no hurry to go public. "First of all, I don't need the money, I am cash positive," he said. "There's no rush, it can be one year, two years, I don't care. If I feel good, then yes." ($1 = 0.8551 euros) (Reporting by Casey Hall; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

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(Reuters) -Banks including JPMorgan, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup are in talks with the U.S. Treasury to provide up to $20 billion in loans to Argentina, Semafor reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday had said that the department was working with banks and investment funds to create a $20 billion facility to invest in the South American country's sovereign debt. Bessent said that the facility would sit alongside a new $20 billion U.S. currency swap line for Argentina, providing a total of $40 billion in support for Latin America's third-largest economy. The banks are discussing an emergency loan backed by Argentine assets, Semafor said, adding that talks are ongoing and specific collateral is still being ironed out. BofA, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Citigroup declined to comment when contacted by Reuters. Argentina also had no comment. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the U.S. would not "waste our time" with Argentina if President Javier Milei's party loses in parliamentary elections on October 26. But Bessent clarified that the U.S. would continue to support Argentina financially as long as Milei's government pursues "good policies," regardless of the election outcome. (Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Alan Barona)

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By Ann Saphir (Reuters) -Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said Thursday he does not think that there is a big chance the labor market will weaken sharply or inflation will surge, though of the two, "there's more risk of a labor market negative surprise than a big uptick in inflation." "On the other hand, if I were to guess which mistake we're more likely making, I think we're more likely betting that the economy is really slowing more than it really is," Kashkari told a town hall in Rapid City, South Dakota. Kashkari supported the Fed's quarter-point interest-rate cut in September and feels two more such cuts will be warranted by the end of the year, he said last month. Like many of his colleagues, he sees the rate cuts as a form of insurance against dire outcomes that may not actually materialize. Last year, for instance, the Fed cut rates to shore up what many policymakers feared was a rapidly softening labor market, and the economy proved to be unexpectedly resilient, he said. As for inflation, Kashkari said Thursday that he thinks it is unlikely the inflation rate will rise to 4% or 5%, "because we can do the math of what tariff rates translate into what inflation. So I think the risk of inflation is more of one of persistence – that it's not so much of a one time event, but that it stays at 3% for an extended period of time." The Fed targets 2% inflation; in August it was 2.7% by the Fed's targeted measure. Some of Kashkari's policymaking colleagues say the Fed should be cautious about cutting rates when the inflation rate is too-high and rising Though the ongoing federal government shutdown is delaying the publication of economic data, Fed policymakers have enough unofficial data through private sources and their own community and business outreach efforts to have a pretty good idea of economic conditions, Kashkari said.  "We can make our way through while the shutdown is happening," Kashkari said. "But the longer it goes on, the less confidence I have that we are reading the economy appropriately, because there's no substitute for the gold standard government data that we rely on." (Reporting by Ann Saphir; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Christopher Cushing)

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By Nicole Jao (Reuters) -Oil prices edged lower in early trade on Friday, heading for a weekly loss, with uncertainty over global energy supplies after U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to meet in Hungary to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. Brent crude futures fell 8 cents, or 0.13%, lower at $60.98 a barrel at 0030 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were down 9 cents, or 0.16%, at $57.37.  On a weekly basis, both benchmarks were down nearly 3%, partly due to the International Energy Agency's outlook for a growing supply glut in 2026. Trump and Putin agreed on Thursday to another summit on the war in Ukraine, a surprise move that came as Moscow feared fresh U.S. military support for Kyiv. The meeting may be held within the next two weeks in Budapest. The development came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was headed to the White House on Friday to push for more military support, including U.S.-made long-range Tomahawk missiles, while Washington pressured India and China to stop buying Russian oil. "Concerns of tighter supplies were eased after it was announced that Trump would be meeting with Putin to discuss ending the war in Ukraine," Daniel Hynes, an analyst at ANZ, said in a note. Also weighing on prices, the Energy Information Administration said on Thursday U.S. crude inventories increased by 3.5 million barrels to 423.8 million barrels last week, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 288,000-barrel rise. The bigger-than-expected build in crude inventory was largely due to lower refining utilization as refineries go into fall turnarounds. [EIA/S] The data also showed a rise in U.S. production to 13.636 million barrels per day, the highest on record. In the previous session, Brent settled 1.37% lower and U.S. WTI closed down 1.39%, their lowest since May 5. (Reporting by Nicole Jao in New York; Editing by Sonali Paul)

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By Rocky Swift TOKYO (Reuters) -The dollar remained on the back foot on Friday as global trade frictions and signs of weakness in the U.S. economy supported the case for more rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. The dollar index is set for its biggest weekly drop in almost three months as an extended shutdown of the U.S. government blocked the publication of key economic data. The yen held on to gains after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda spoke about factors that could lead to a rate increase this month. Compounding concerns about trade, Fed independence and the U.S. shutdown are making the greenback vulnerable to the debasement trade, where investors seek assets that can't easily be devalued, said Pepperstone research strategist Dilin Wu. "It's really hard to find a bullish scenario for the dollar index," said Wu. "Instead of betting on any currency by a single sovereign credit, people are rushing into gold, cryptocurrency, and other assets as a risk hedge." The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, was little changed at 98.23 and remained on course for a 0.6% slide this week – the biggest five-day retreat since late July. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar weakened 0.2% to 150.12. BOJ Governor Ueda said in Washington on Thursday that the central bank remains ready to increase its key policy rate if the likelihood of its growth and price forecasts materializing increases. BOJ Deputy Governor Shinichi Uchida is due to speak later on Friday. The euro added 0.1% at $1.1701, while sterling also tacked on 0.1% to $1.3446. Fed Governor Christopher Waller said he is on board with another interest rate cut at the U.S. central bank's meeting later this month because of the mixed readings on the state of the job market. Stephen Miran, the Fed's newest governor and an economic advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump, reiterated support for more aggressive rate cuts at upcoming meetings than the one favored by some of his colleagues.  Miran's seat expires at the end of January, while Fed Governor Lisa Cook remains in place as the case over Trump's attempt to fire her winds through the courts. The Fed's Beige Book offered little support to U.S. rates, pointing to emerging signs of economic weakness, including rising layoffs and reduced spending among middle and lower-income households. Trade frictions between Beijing and Washington heated up overnight, with China accusing the U.S. of stoking panic over its rare earth controls, rejecting a White House call to roll back the curbs. In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin gained 0.6% to $108,534.66, and ether rose 1.8% to $3,919.71. (Reporting by Rocky SwiftEditing by Shri Navaratnam)

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By Nicole Jao (Reuters) -Oil prices edged lower in early trade on Friday, heading for a weekly loss, with uncertainty over global energy supplies after U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to meet in Hungary to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. Brent crude futures fell 8 cents, or 0.13%, lower at $60.98 a barrel at 0030 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were down 9 cents, or 0.16%, at $57.37.  On a weekly basis, both benchmarks were down nearly 3%, partly due to the International Energy Agency's outlook for a growing supply glut in 2026. Trump and Putin agreed on Thursday to another summit on the war in Ukraine, a surprise move that came as Moscow feared fresh U.S. military support for Kyiv. The meeting may be held within the next two weeks in Budapest. The development came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was headed to the White House on Friday to push for more military support, including U.S.-made long-range Tomahawk missiles, while Washington pressured India and China to stop buying Russian oil. "Concerns of tighter supplies were eased after it was announced that Trump would be meeting with Putin to discuss ending the war in Ukraine," Daniel Hynes, an analyst at ANZ, said in a note. Also weighing on prices, the Energy Information Administration said on Thursday U.S. crude inventories increased by 3.5 million barrels to 423.8 million barrels last week, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 288,000-barrel rise. The bigger-than-expected build in crude inventory was largely due to lower refining utilization as refineries go into fall turnarounds. [EIA/S] The data also showed a rise in U.S. production to 13.636 million barrels per day, the highest on record. In the previous session, Brent settled 1.37% lower and U.S. WTI closed down 1.39%, their lowest since May 5. (Reporting by Nicole Jao in New York; Editing by Sonali Paul)

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By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits fell last week, economists at JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs estimated on Thursday, but lackluster hiring has left many on unemployment rolls.    Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped to a seasonally adjusted 217,000 for the week ending October 11 from 235,000 the prior week, they calculated. A U.S. government shutdown, now in its third week due to a political standoff between Republicans and Democrats in Washington, has halted the collection, processing and publishing of official economic data. States have, however, continued to collect the claims data and submit it to the Labor Department's database, which remains accessible. Economists have been using the unadjusted claims data to make estimates using seasonal adjustment factors that the government published earlier this year. Claims data was unavailable for Arizona, Massachusetts, Nevada and Tennessee.  "Our estimates assume that initial claims for Tennessee, Massachusetts, Arizona and Nevada – which didn't appear in today's DOL data – were in line with the latest published numbers," Goldman Sachs said in a note. "We obtain a range between 211,000 and 225,000 using the lowest and highest levels for claims in these states this year." The Labor Department follows a similar practice to make estimates for states that are unable to provide data on time. "The latest jobless claims look quite decent, and suggest layoffs remain low with movement in the unemployment rate," said Abiel Reinhart, an economist at JPMorgan.  Claims data have become a key for Federal Reserve officials trying to assess the health of the labor market ahead of their October 28-29 policy meeting. BOTH LAYOFFS AND HIRING REMAIN LOW Fed Chair Jerome Powell said this week "available evidence suggests that both layoffs and hiring remain low, and that both households' perceptions of job availability and firms' perceptions of hiring difficulty continue their downward trajectories." Unemployment claims have remained within their pre-government shutdown range. They have not shown large spikes, despite the shutdown pushing thousands of federal contractors out of work.  Federal workers, hundreds of thousands of whom have been furloughed, file for claims under a separate program. Data for the program was not immediately available.  The labor market remains stuck in a "no hire" and "no fire" state, economists say. The U.S. central bank's Beige Book report on Wednesday described demand for labor as "generally muted" in recent weeks.     A Bank of America Institute survey on Thursday found signs of a slowdown in the small business labor market. Its alternative hiring indicator based on Bank of America small business payments data decreased in September. It also noted business applications with planned wages, viewed as a signal of real job creation, have dropped below pre-pandemic norms.   Small businesses have been the main driver of job growth. Economists say President Donald Trump's trade and immigration policies, and the growing popularity of artificial intelligence have cut demand for workers and labor supply. The number of people receiving unemployment benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, was unchanged at a seasonally adjusted 1.927 million during the week ending October 4, JPMorgan estimated. Goldman Sachs put its estimate of these so-called continuing claims at 1.917 million.  The unemployment rate increased to nearly a four-year high of 4.3% in August, and the elevated continuing claims suggest no improvement. (Reporting By Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Jamie Freed)

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A group representing major automakers warned late on Thursday that a chip disruption stemming from a dispute between China and the Dutch government could quickly impact U.S. auto production. Carmakers and their suppliers received notice from chipmaker Nexperia last week that it could no longer guarantee delivery of its chips, said ACEA, the European Union's auto association, which also said manufacturing could be significantly disrupted. In the United States, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents General Motors, Toyota, Ford, Volkswagen, Hyundai, and nearly all other major automakers, urged a quick resolution. "If the shipment of automotive chips doesn’t resume – quickly – it’s going to disrupt auto production in the U.S. and many other countries and have a spillover effect in other industries," said the group's CEO John Bozzella. "It’s that significant." Some automakers told Reuters that U.S. auto plants could be affected as soon as next month. They declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue. The chips made by Nexperia are crucial to production of U.S. parts and vehicles. The Dutch government announced on Sunday that it had as of September 30 taken control of Chinese-owned computer chipmaker Nexperia, citing worries about the possible transfer of technology to Nexperia's Chinese parent company, Wingtech. Court documents showed the Dutch government's move came after months of rising U.S. pressure on the company. Nexperia was at risk of being impacted by a new U.S. rule that extends export control restrictions to companies at least 50% owned by one or more entities on the U.S. entity list. Washington put Wingtech, which has 100% ownership of Nexperia, on the U.S. list in late December. The Chinese commerce ministry issued on October 4 an export control notice prohibiting Nexperia China and its subcontractors from exporting specific finished components and sub-assemblies manufactured in China, according to a statement Nexperia published on Tuesday. Volkswagen and BMW both said production in Europe had not yet been impacted by the issues but that they were working to identify potential supply risks. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Sonali Paul)

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A group representing major automakers warned late on Thursday that a chip disruption stemming from a dispute between China and the Dutch government could quickly impact U.S. auto production. Carmakers and their suppliers received notice from chipmaker Nexperia last week that it could no longer guarantee delivery of its chips, said ACEA, the European Union's auto association, which also said manufacturing could be significantly disrupted. In the United States, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents General Motors, Toyota, Ford, Volkswagen, Hyundai, and nearly all other major automakers, urged a quick resolution. "If the shipment of automotive chips doesn’t resume – quickly – it’s going to disrupt auto production in the U.S. and many other countries and have a spillover effect in other industries," said the group's CEO John Bozzella. "It’s that significant." Some automakers told Reuters that U.S. auto plants could be affected as soon as next month. They declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue. The chips made by Nexperia are crucial to production of U.S. parts and vehicles. The Dutch government announced on Sunday that it had as of September 30 taken control of Chinese-owned computer chipmaker Nexperia, citing worries about the possible transfer of technology to Nexperia's Chinese parent company, Wingtech. Court documents showed the Dutch government's move came after months of rising U.S. pressure on the company. Nexperia was at risk of being impacted by a new U.S. rule that extends export control restrictions to companies at least 50% owned by one or more entities on the U.S. entity list. Washington put Wingtech, which has 100% ownership of Nexperia, on the U.S. list in late December. The Chinese commerce ministry issued on October 4 an export control notice prohibiting Nexperia China and its subcontractors from exporting specific finished components and sub-assemblies manufactured in China, according to a statement Nexperia published on Tuesday. Volkswagen and BMW both said production in Europe had not yet been impacted by the issues but that they were working to identify potential supply risks. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Sonali Paul)

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By Patrick Wingrove (Reuters) -Roche on Thursday launched direct-to-consumer U.S. sales of its influenza antiviral pill Xofluza at a discounted cash price of $50, following similar moves by rivals as they scramble to address pressure from the Trump administration to lower prescription drug prices paid by Americans. The Xofluza cash price, offered by Roche's U.S. biotech unit Genentech at 70% below list price, will be available to insured and uninsured patients from Alto Pharmacy and Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company. Same-day delivery will be available via Alto Pharmacy. Major U.S. pharmacy chains like CVS will not be involved, Roche confirmed. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has said it plans to launch, likely early next year, a website called TrumpRx that aims to help consumers buy some medicines directly from the manufacturers. Roche said its new program will not be accessible through TrumpRx, but that it will continue to evaluate its options. Few people in the U.S. pay cash for prescription medications. Most have insurance – either commercial or federal plans like Medicare – that charge them a fixed co-pay or percentage of a drug cost. Insurers typically receive confidential discounts or rebates directly from drug manufacturers, bringing their costs well below list prices. The Swiss drugmaker already offers a coupon for Xofluza that brings the out-of-pocket cost down to $35 for some insured and uninsured patients. Xofluza is used to treat flu in patients aged 12 years and older who have had symptoms for no more than two days. Trump, in an effort to lower drug costs for U.S. patients who pay far more than in other wealthy nations, has so far struck deals with Pfizer and AstraZeneca to lower their prescription drug prices in the Medicaid program for lower-income Americans in exchange for tariff relief. Roche said its new program supports that goal and is similar to one from rival Amgen, which launched discounts for cash-paying patients this year. Analysts expect Xofluza to generate $340 million in sales this year. Roche, via Genentech, was one of 17 major drug companies to receive a letter from Trump in July demanding they charge U.S. patients the same price as people pay in other high-income countries, create direct-to-consumer channels and increase investment in the U.S. Trump threatened to impose 100% tariffs on branded drugs to those companies that failed to comply. (Reporting by Patrick Wingrove; Editing by Bill Berkrot)

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