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By Greta Rosen Fondahn and Helen Reid STOCKHOLM/LONDON (Reuters) -IKEA's annual sales fell for a second consecutive year, it reported on Thursday, as the budget furniture retailer stuck to a strategy of cutting prices to attract cash-strapped consumers and gain market share in a fiercely competitive market. Having hiked prices during the pandemic due to supply chain disruptions, the world's biggest furniture retailer has cut prices by 10% on average over the past two years as high inflation and weak housing markets worldwide dented consumers' demand for furniture and homeware.  Global IKEA retail sales in the 2025 financial year – which ended on August 31 – fell 1%, or 0.3% adjusted for currency effects, to 44.6 billion euros ($51.9 billion). The total number of products sold, however, was up 3%, with customer numbers and store visits also up. "One of the reasons we could take that decision was the fact that we are not on the stock exchange – we can be very long term together with our franchisees and decide that it's most important right now to have better prices," Jon Abrahamsson Ring, CEO of IKEA franchisor Inter IKEA, told Reuters.  "We do that because we see that people in all our 63 markets, their wallets are thinner right now and we see that consumer confidence for many years has gone down." NO US TARIFF PRICE HIKES YET IKEA has not yet raised prices in the U.S. despite higher tariffs on imports increasing its costs, Abrahamsson Ring said. IKEA is trying to absorb the extra cost, he added, though he left the door open to possible future price increases.     "We have not come to that point yet, but it will maybe eventually come," he said. IKEA competes in the U.S. with Wayfair and Walmart, but more of its furniture is made in factories in Europe, giving it a slight advantage over retailers relying on imports from China which face a higher tariff rate.  "The agreement that today exists between the European Union and the U.S. … that at least gives us good predictability and we want that to stay consistent," said Abrahamsson Ring.   BIGGEST IKEA RETAILER 'CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC' Ingka Group, the biggest IKEA franchisee which owns stores in 31 markets, also reported on Thursday its lowest annual sales since 2021, down 1.6% at 39 billion euros due to price cuts, but said quantities sold were up 1.6%. Ingka CEO Jesper Brodin told Reuters he was cautiously optimistic about consumer spending picking up again. "The impact of falling inflation and falling interest rates … it usually takes a while before people open their wallets. We are starting to see the tendencies towards that," he said, adding that uncertainty over trade and conflict around the world made it difficult to predict.   ($1 = 0.8596 euros) (Reporting by Greta Rosen Fondahn in Stockholm and Helen Reid in London; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

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By Stefano Rebaudo (Reuters) -The U.S. dollar headed for a third straight daily loss against the euro while edging up versus the yen on Thursday, as concerns over U.S.-China tensions and dovish remarks from Federal Reserve officials continued to weigh on sentiment. Analysts say political headwinds have weighed on the yen but expect support to come from looming Fed rate cuts, the end of U.S. quantitative tightening, and a potential rise in market volatility, which usually supports safe-haven assets. The Fed’s Beige Book released on Thursday 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. Fed Governor Stephen Miran said on Wednesday cutting rates was now more important. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six other currencies, was down 0.05% at 98.64, and was on track for a weekly decline of around 0.3%. U.S. Treasury yields hovered near multi-week lows, with the benchmark 10-year just above 4%, pressuring the dollar as investors also weighed a prolonged U.S. government shutdown. However, analysts are cautious about forecasting a further drop in U.S. rates. "As the 10-year (U.S. Treasury) closed in on 4%, we took profit and returned to a neutral stance," said Nicolas Jullien, global head of fixed income at Candriam. "We are now close to turning positive again and looking to enter long positions on any weakness," he added. RARE EARTHS IN FOCUS Investors were scrutinising China’s latest expansion of rare earth export controls, a move sharply criticised by senior U.S. officials on Wednesday, who warned that it could disrupt global supply chains.  "The question for financial markets is whether China's proposed export controls on rare earths are merely part of a bargaining ploy to achieve greater concessions from the U.S.," said Chris Turner, global head of markets at ING. Amid the tit-for-tat action, U.S. President Donald Trump still expects to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea this month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said. "Escalation of tensions in Sino-U.S. trade relations is generating a reaction amongst European governments, underscoring the impact on the global supply chain of recent developments, which can have a potential knock-on effect on European output," said Geoff Yu, macro strategist at BNY. FRENCH POLITICAL DRAMA IN BACKGROUND The euro touched a one-week high and was up 0.09% at $1.1651 after French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu survived the first of two no-confidence votes in parliament. France's political crisis has barely affected euro zone sovereign bond markets as investors see no room for a selloff in French bonds without snap elections. However, by shelving pension reform until after 2027, France’s prime minister has defused a sharp escalation in the crisis, though at the cost of complicating efforts to rein in public finances, analysts said. The yen briefly firmed to a one-week high of 150.51 per dollar but was up 0.10% at 151.22. Japan's weakened Liberal Democratic Party is set to begin policy talks with the right-leaning Innovation Party on Thursday that could help Sanae Takaichi clinch a prime ministerial vote expected next week. "Regardless of the outcome of the prime ministerial election, it is highly likely that the market will price in some expansionary fiscal policies," said Shinichiro Kadota, head of Japan forex and rates strategy at Barclays Tokyo. "We remain long on the U.S. dollar versus the yen given the risk of a further rally but with eyes on an eventual intervention risk or Bank of Japan hike if the move extends." The Australian dollar was roughly unchanged at $0.6506 after data showed unemployment hit a near four-year high in September, adding to the case for interest rate cuts. [AUD/] The Aussie, often considered a proxy for risk appetite, remains hostage to China-related news and its good fundamentals could crumble in a major trade war.  China's yuan firmed to a two-week high against the U.S. dollar on Thursday after the central bank set its strongest daily midpoint in a year. [CNY/] (Reporting by Stefano Rebaudo; Editing by Lincoln Feast, Mark Heinrich and Ed Osmond)

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(Reuters) -A breach at U.S.-based cybersecurity company F5 has been blamed on state-backed hackers from China, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters could not immediately verify the report. Earlier in the day, U.S. government officials said federal networks are being targeted by an unidentified "nation-state cyber threat actor" that's trying to exploit vulnerabilities in products made by F5. F5 and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), when contacted by Reuters, did not confirm whether the breach was carried out by Chinese state-backed hackers. "These same risks extend to any organization using this technology, potentially leading to a catastrophic compromise of critical information systems," CISA Acting Director Madhu Gottumukkala said in a statement, without specifying who was behind the hack. F5, which provides cybersecurity and multi-cloud application services, said on Wednesday it had detected unauthorized access to certain company systems by a threat actor, but the breach did not affect its operations. Representatives for F5 told customers the hackers were in its network for at least 12 months, according to the Bloomberg News report. F5 also sent customers a threat-hunting guide for malware called Brickstorm, which Bloomberg attributed to a Chinese state-backed hacking group, the report said. The report added F5 chief executive officer Francois Locoh-Donou is personally briefing customers about the timeline and the alleged China-linked hackers. British authorities issued an alert urging F5 users to update software. (Reporting by Devika Nair, Gnaneshwar Rajan in Bengaluru; Additonal reporting by Nilutpal Timsina; Editing by Sumana Nandy and Rashmi Aich)

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By Greta Rosen Fondahn and Helen Reid STOCKHOLM/LONDON (Reuters) -IKEA's annual sales fell for a second consecutive year, it reported on Thursday, as the budget furniture retailer stuck to a strategy of cutting prices to attract cash-strapped consumers and gain market share in a fiercely competitive market. Having hiked prices during the pandemic due to supply chain disruptions, the world's biggest furniture retailer has cut prices by 10% on average over the past two years as high inflation and weak housing markets worldwide dented consumers' demand for furniture and homeware.  Global IKEA retail sales in the 2025 financial year – which ended on August 31 – fell 1%, or 0.3% adjusted for currency effects, to 44.6 billion euros ($51.9 billion). The total number of products sold, however, was up 3%, with customer numbers and store visits also up. "One of the reasons we could take that decision was the fact that we are not on the stock exchange – we can be very long term together with our franchisees and decide that it's most important right now to have better prices," Jon Abrahamsson Ring, CEO of IKEA franchisor Inter IKEA, told Reuters.  "We do that because we see that people in all our 63 markets, their wallets are thinner right now and we see that consumer confidence for many years has gone down." NO US TARIFF PRICE HIKES YET IKEA has not yet raised prices in the U.S. despite higher tariffs on imports increasing its costs, Abrahamsson Ring said. IKEA is trying to absorb the extra cost, he added, though he left the door open to possible future price increases.     "We have not come to that point yet, but it will maybe eventually come," he said. IKEA competes in the U.S. with Wayfair and Walmart, but more of its furniture is made in factories in Europe, giving it a slight advantage over retailers relying on imports from China which face a higher tariff rate.  "The agreement that today exists between the European Union and the U.S. … that at least gives us good predictability and we want that to stay consistent," said Abrahamsson Ring.   BIGGEST IKEA RETAILER 'CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC' Ingka Group, the biggest IKEA franchisee which owns stores in 31 markets, also reported on Thursday its lowest annual sales since 2021, down 1.6% at 39 billion euros due to price cuts, but said quantities sold were up 1.6%. Ingka CEO Jesper Brodin told Reuters he was cautiously optimistic about consumer spending picking up again. "The impact of falling inflation and falling interest rates … it usually takes a while before people open their wallets. We are starting to see the tendencies towards that," he said, adding that uncertainty over trade and conflict around the world made it difficult to predict.   ($1 = 0.8596 euros) (Reporting by Greta Rosen Fondahn in Stockholm and Helen Reid in London; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

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(Reuters) -Insurance bellwether Travelers Companies reported a profit surge in the third quarter on Thursday, helped by lower catastrophe losses, stronger underwriting fees and higher investment returns. Resilient consumer spending, despite higher borrowing costs, has helped sustain insurance demand, as businesses and households continue to prioritize protection against financial risks, accidents, property damage and natural disasters. Travelers' results often serve as a bellwether for the property and casualty insurance sector, reflecting broader industry trends in underwriting, pricing and catastrophe losses. The New York-based company's core income climbed to $1.87 billion, or $8.14 per share, in the three months ended September 30. That compares with $1.22 billion, or $5.24 per share, a year earlier. Net written premiums, the total value of policies sold after accounting for reinsurance, rose 1% in the quarter to $11.47 billion, led by growth in business insurance. Catastrophe losses came in at $402 million on a pre-tax basis, compared with $939 million a year earlier. The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season marks the first time in a decade when no hurricanes had made landfall in the United States through the end of September, according to AccuWeather. The absence of major catastrophes can offer a tailwind to insurers, as losses from hurricanes, wildfires and severe storms – a key swing factor for the industry – often sharply affect quarterly earnings despite their efforts to price in risks and share them through reinsurance. Travelers' underlying combined ratio came in at 83.9% in the quarter. A ratio below 100 indicates that the insurer collected more in premiums than it paid out in claims and expenses. The company posted an underwriting income of $1.38 billion on a pre-tax basis, which more than doubled from a year earlier. Net investment income, which comes from bonds, stocks and other low-risk financial assets, rose 14.3% to $1.03 billion. (Reporting by Prakhar Srivastava in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

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(Reuters) -BNY reported a 21% jump in third-quarter profit on Thursday, as it earned higher interest and fees, while soaring equity markets boosted the value of its client assets. U.S. stock markets hit record levels in the latest quarter as AI exuberance and hopes of interest rate cuts prompted investors to look past labor market weakness and inflation worries. BNY's assets under custody and administration rose 11% in the quarter ended Sept. 30 to $57.8 trillion from a year earlier. The Wall Street bank said the rise reflected higher market values and client inflows. Its total revenue jumped 9% to a record $5.08 billion in the quarter. Net interest income (NII) – the spread between earnings from assets and costs on liabilities – also rose 18%, smashing analysts expectations of 12.6% growth, according to estimates compiled by LSEG. The quarter saw BNY's NII grow at the highest pace since the second quarter of 2023, underscoring borrower resilience observed across the biggest U.S. banks' results this week. Profit applicable to BNY shareholders came in at $1.34 billion, or $1.88 per share, compared with $1.11 billion, or $1.50 per share, a year earlier. Assets under management remained flat over the same period as higher market values were offset by net outflows. (Reporting by Ateev Bhandari in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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(Reuters) -BNY reported a 21% jump in third-quarter profit on Thursday, as soaring equity markets boosted the value of its client assets, helping the world's largest custodian bank earn more in fees. BNY's assets under custody and administration rose 11% in the quarter ended Sept. 30 to $57.8 trillion from a year earlier. The Wall Street bank said the rise reflected higher market values and client inflows. Its total revenue jumped 9% to a record $5.08 billion in the quarter. Net interest income (NII) – the spread between earnings from assets and costs on liabilities – also rose 18%, smashing analysts expectations of 12.6% growth, according to estimates compiled by LSEG. (Reporting by Ateev Bhandari in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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(Corrects tariffs number to 100% from 00% in paragraph 10) (Reuters) -U.S. stock index futures rose on Thursday, boosted by strong quarterly update from TSMC that reinforced investor optimism around AI, extending a rally in chip stocks in the previous sessions. TSMC, the world's biggest producer of advanced chips, raised its full-year revenue forecast on a bullish outlook for spending on artificial intelligence. U.S.-listed shares of the company, which also posted a better-than-expected record quarterly profit, rose 2.2% premarket. Shares of some major U.S. chipmakers also advanced, building on gains from Wednesday when ASML's solid quarterly results and a $40 billion data center deal by BlackRock and a Nvidia-backed group fueled optimism around AI. Nvidia rose 1.1%, Micron Technology added 2.9% and Broadcom gained 1.8%. The AI-driven momentum and optimism around U.S. rate cuts have helped markets in recent months. AI-related tech stocks were among the biggest boosts to markets this week. Robust earnings from major U.S. banks also grabbed attention this week, offering fresh signs of economic resilience at a time when official macroeconomic reports remain delayed due to the government shutdown. At 05:27 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 112 points, or 0.24%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 18 points, or 0.27%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 110.25 points, or 0.44%. Meanwhile, investors remained focused on the recent escalation of China-U.S. trade tensions. Top U.S. officials on Wednesday blasted China's major expansion of rare earth export controls as a threat to global supply chains, but said Beijing could still change course, stressing that Washington did not want to escalate the conflict. President Donald Trump's threat to cancel the U.S.-China meet and impose an additional 100% tariffs on Chinese goods capped investors' risk appetite last week. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized that Trump is ready to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea later this month. A slate of Fed officials including governors Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller, Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman and Richmond President Thomas Barkin are set to speak later in the day. Among other moves, Salesforce rose 4.9% after the company said it expects revenue of more than $60 billion in 2030, above Wall Street estimates. Hewlett Packard Enterprise slumped 8.9% after it forecast annual profit and revenue below Wall Street expectations. United Airlines declined 1.7% after reporting mixed quarterly results. (Reporting by Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)

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By Marianna Parraga and Arathy Somasekhar HOUSTON (Reuters) -An affiliate of Elliott Investment Management wants to cut costs at Venezuela-owned Citgo Petroleum while a unit of Gold Reserve would largely focus on maintaining the status quo, five sources told Reuters, as a lengthy auction that will determine the refiner's future nears an end. Details of the two competing visions for Citgo emerged ahead of a U.S. court selecting the winner for an auction of shares in Citgo's parent company, PDV Holding. Fifteen creditors are lining up to cash proceeds from the auction of shares, ordered by the Delaware court as part of a complex, eight-year case to compensate them for debt defaults and expropriations in Venezuela. A hearing next week would help the judge decide who should prevail and move the auction – which has lasted nearly two years – to the takeover phase of the seventh-largest U.S. refiner. After three rounds and a last-minute bidding war, a court officer overseeing the auction in August recommended a $5.9 billion offer from Elliott's Amber Energy as winner, reversing his previous support for a $7.4 billion bid from Gold Reserve's Dalinar Energy. The main difference between the bids is Amber's pact to pay $2.1 billion to the holders of a defaulted Venezuelan bond, a key step in removing an obstacle to the takeover. If its bid is confirmed, Amber would advance a streamlining plan while Dalinar, which is still fighting in court for a shot, wants to leverage the refiner's strengths to largely keep assets and operations the same, five sources with knowledge of the plans said. Details of both companies' strategies have not been publicly disclosed. Gold Reserve declined to comment. Citgo and Amber did not reply to requests for comment. EXTREME MAKEOVER Amber's team would be led by refining experts Greg Goff as chief executive and Jeff Stevens as president. The Elliott affiliate seems to have more appetite for radical changes at Citgo, which could start with the removal of its board of directors and top managers, three of the sources said.  Following its purchase of a $2.5 billion stake at Phillips 66, hedge fund Elliott this year elbowed itself into two seats at the rival refiner's board and is supporting a divestiture plan, cost cuts and operational changes to address perceived underperformance.  "Elliott will surely find where to cut in Citgo," said a source close to the refiner, citing audits that showed inefficiencies grandfathered in from its historic status as a wholly-owned subsidiary of a formerly wealthy state company. Goff and Stevens are expected to run the business for several years, said independent refining expert Garfield Miller. But "if it winds up as a restructuring, Elliott knows as much about restructurings as anyone," he added.  Citgo is among the most complex U.S. refiners, with a 807,000 barrel-per-day network across Texas, Louisiana and Illinois, 42 terminals, eight pipelines and three lubricant plants. It employs 3,300 people and supplies some 4,000 independent retail outlets.  The plans could help monetize Amber's investment, especially after it pays billions of dollars in cash to the Venezuela bondholders as planned, the sources said.  "If Elliott's affiliate is confirmed as the auction's winner, the takeover will be as aggressive as its cost-cut plan," another source said. A hostile removal of board members would trigger protective clauses in place to indemnify them, the person added.  Streamlining would precede any asset sales, the sources said. But the auction has already helped identify potential buyers for certain assets – including rival refiners – as well as possible trading pacts that could help Citgo source oil more economically.  GOING WITH THE FLOW  Gold Reserve envisions a more collaborative approach. The Toronto-listed miner, which has knowledge of Venezuela and its state companies from previous ventures in the country, hopes to leverage Citgo's existing management, infrastructure, and financial strength to launch its U.S. subsidiary Dalinar into the refining sector, the five sources said. Gold Reserve has praised Citgo's leadership and recently aligned with lawyers representing Venezuela and Citgo in court to counter Amber's bid and ensure auction proceeds benefit the creditors in Delaware. "They've done an extremely good job under the circumstances," Paul Rivett, executive vice-chair of Gold Reserve's board, told investors in July, referring to Citgo's current management. Tony Sementelli, who was executive vice president and chief financial officer of Koch-backed refiner Flint Hills Resources, was named as Dalinar's chairperson. At least two other board members previously worked at Flint Hills.   Because of the complexity of its offer's financing, Dalinar's plan hinges on keeping Citgo almost intact. Rival bidders, some creditors and court officer Robert Pincus have argued the bid depends too heavily on Citgo's future performance, a motivation for preserving assets. Whatever the court ends up deciding, the sale process could still face roadblocks delaying a takeover. The U.S. Treasury Department needs to greenlight any winner. (Reporting by Marianna Parraga; Editing by Nathan Crooks and Nia Williams)

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(Reuters) -Crypto heavyweight Kraken said on Thursday it has acquired futures exchange Small Exchange from IG Group for $100 million, paving the way to launch a fully U.S.-based derivatives suite. Small Exchange is a U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission-licensed designated contract market, giving Kraken a regulated venue to offer futures and options to both retail and institutional clients. "Under CFTC oversight, Kraken can now integrate clearing, risk and matching into one environment that meets the same standards as the largest exchanges in the world," Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Kraken said in a statement. Once the preserve of banks and brokers, the derivatives market is drawing digital asset firms looking for liquidity and risk management. The trillion-dollar crypto market has moved beyond spot trading, with exchanges and investors seeking institutional-grade tools such as futures, options and tokenized assets. Crypto-linked futures and options have been among the fastest-growing segments as investors seek to manage risk. "By securing the necessary licensing and infrastructure today, Kraken is laying the groundwork for institutional-grade markets as crypto matures," the company said. The deal comes as a more crypto-friendly regulatory tone under U.S. President Donald Trump encourages digital asset firms to expand in the United States with promises of clearer rules. Earlier this year, Kraken agreed to buy retail futures trading platform NinjaTrader for $1.5 billion. (Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)

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