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By Rocky Swift TOKYO (Reuters) -The yen edged lower on Friday, trimming its sharpest weekly gain in more than four months, as traders considered the impact of potential rate increases by the Bank of Japan and a leadership election this weekend. BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda reiterated that the central bank would continue raising interest rates if the economy and prices move in line with its forecast. Markets are also focused on a Liberal Democratic Party election on Saturday that will determine Japan's next prime minister. The dollar rebounded overnight despite a closure of the U.S. government that has halted the publication of key economic data, including the closely watched monthly jobs report for September that was due to be released on Friday. Canada's currency held near a four-month low on a slide in oil prices. "The government shutdown has not had a major short-term impact, but if anything, underlying pressure remains toward a weaker dollar," said Hirofumi Suzuki, the chief currency strategist at SMBC. "That said, with yen-depreciation pressure likely to linger ahead of this weekend's LDP leadership election, the pair is likely to hover around current levels," he added. The yen slid 0.2% to 147.52 per dollar, still on track for a 1.3% advance this week that would be the biggest since mid-May. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of key currencies, tacked on 0.1% to 97.895. The euro was little changed at $1.1721. Markets were keeping a close eye on speeches by BOJ officials this week after the central bank's tankan survey on Wednesday showed confidence among big manufacturers improved for the second straight quarter. Governor Ueda said the central bank expects the global economy to resume a moderate recovery path but much will depend on the U.S. economic outlook. Deputy governor Shinichi Uchida said on Thursday that the business mood is improving and corporate profits remain high even as U.S. tariffs weigh on exports.  Ueda's comments "could be used to guide the market further towards a rate hike at the BOJ's next meeting on October 30th," IG Markets analyst Tony Sycamore wrote in a note. In the U.S. overnight, a Chicago Fed report that combines private and available public data estimated the September jobless rate was 4.3%, the same as in August and evidence that a feared rapid rise in unemployment had not yet begun. But details of the report, along with other data, pointed to sluggishness in the labor market. The ADP National Employment report on Wednesday showed private payrolls decreased by 32,000 in September, boosting expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates two more times this year. Traders see a 25-basis-point cut at the Fed's October meeting as almost certain and are pricing in a 90% probability of an additional cut in December, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool. Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan on Thursday said the central bank appropriately cut rates last month to guard against the risk of a sharp deterioration in the job market, but said that so far the cooling has been gradual and signalled she is not eager to cut rates further. The Canadian dollar weakened to a four-month low against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday as the price of oil fell more than 2% and investors worried about negotiations to renew a U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement. The Canadian currency traded little changed at 1.3962 per U.S. dollar after touching 1.3986 on Thursday, its weakest intraday level since May 16. (Reporting by Rocky SwiftEditing by Shri Navaratnam)

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By Ankur Banerjee SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Asian stocks were poised for solid weekly gains on Friday as rising odds of the Federal Reserve cutting rates in the near-term helped cushion jitters around a U.S. government shutdown that have pushed gold to record highs and weighed on the dollar. Investors have mostly shrugged off the government shutdown, the 15th since 1981, even as it resulted in suspension of scientific research, financial oversight and delayed crucial economic data, including the jobs report on Friday. Part of the reason for the lack of market reaction is because historically shutdowns have had limited impact on economic growth and market performance. Weiheng Chen, global investment strategist at J.P. Morgan Private Bank, said investors appear willing to give Washington time to resolve its disagreements, though a prolonged shutdown may start to move markets. "For now, investors remain more focused on the potential impacts of the Fed’s rate-cutting cycle, trade and immigration policy, economic data, and corporate earnings," Chen said. MSCI's index of Asia-Pacific shares was up 0.14%, just shy of the record high it touched on Thursday. The index was set for an over 2% gain for the week and has risen 23% so far this year. With China and parts of Asia closed for a long holiday, volumes are likely to be thin in the region. Japan's Nikkei was up 0.75% in early trading, not far from the record high it touched last month ahead of the crucial weekend vote that will determine the next prime minister and set the tone for fiscal and monetary policy outlook. Asian markets were taking cues from Wall Street, where all three major indexes closed at record highs buoyed by technology stocks as investor enthusiasm for all things AI remains unchallenged. NO OFFICIAL DATA With no government reports on the labour market to take cues from, investors have turned to alternative data from public and private sources and so far they point to a sluggish U.S. labour market. Blerina Uruci, chief U.S. economist at T. Rowe Price, said the potential delay of critical economic data is a problem for a data-dependent Fed, leaving the central bank reliant on less comprehensive indicators like ADP and jobless claims. "The lack of clarity could fuel short-term volatility and make it harder for markets to position with confidence," Uruci said, noting some investors are already looking to reduce risk as the outlook becomes harder to navigate. Still, markets are becoming more confident of the Fed sticking to its rate cutting path and are almost fully pricing in a 25 basis point rate cut in October. Traders are pricing in 114 bps of easing by the end of 2026. That has left the U.S. dollar under pressure. The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six other units, was steady on the day but on course for a 0.35% weekly decline, the biggest drop since early August. The Japanese yen has been the biggest beneficiary of the dollar weakness this week and is set to clock a 1.5% gain, its biggest weekly gain since mid-May. It was last little changed at 147.34 per U.S. dollar. In commodities, gold was steady at $3,857 a ounce, stuck near the record high it touched on Thursday. The yellow metal is on course for a 2.6% weekly gain, its seventh straight week of gains. Gold, viewed as a safe-haven asset during times of uncertainty, thrives in a low-interest-rate environment. It has risen 47% so far this year.[GOL/] Oil prices, on the other hand, were on track for their steepest weekly decline since late June due to market expectations that the OPEC+ group could hike output further despite oversupply concerns. [O/R] (Reporting by Ankur Banerjee in Singapore; Editing by Sam Holmes)

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(Reuters) -A multibillion-dollar deal to send Nvidia's artificial-intelligence chips to the United Arab Emirates is stuck in neutral nearly five months after it was signed, frustrating CEO Jensen Huang and some senior administration officials, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. (Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)

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By Lucia Mutikani and Ann Saphir (Reuters) -Alternate data from public and private sources, a substitute for official statistics delayed by a government shutdown, showed the U.S. job market likely remained stalled in September with sluggish hiring but no change in an unemployment rate economists see as influenced by falling numbers of foreign-born workers. The federal government's 15th shutdown since 1981, with some 750,000 workers furloughed, has delayed publication of key reports including the September unemployment and jobs data due on Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a key reference point for Federal Reserve policymakers who meet in a little under four weeks to decide whether to cut interest rates again.  Also delayed so far are the weekly jobless claims report and factory orders and construction spending data for August. While the data could still be available for the Fed's October 28-29 meeting depending on the length of the shutdown, alternative data, such as a new "real-time" estimate of the unemployment rate issued on Thursday by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, is likely to attract more attention from Fed officials, economists and analysts trying to understand the economy while the government is idle. The Chicago Fed report, which combines private and available public data, estimated the September jobless rate was 4.3%, the same as in August and evidence that a feared rapid rise in unemployment had not yet begun. But details of the report, along with other data, pointed to ongoing sluggishness in the labor market that is likely to keep the Fed poised to cut the benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point. The Fed's rate cut discussion now leans heavily on policymakers' views of whether the labor market is holding up, with the 4.3% jobless rate considered around full employment, or is at risk of a sharp rupture. The Fed last month cut its policy rate by a quarter of a percentage point to a range of 4% to 4.25% after job gains slowed sharply and the unemployment rate ticked up in August.  "We're going to go off of the data we have," Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said on Fox News' America Reports on Thursday, adding that to him the bank's new unemployment number "indicates some steadiness in the labor market." The Chicago Fed's new data series, updated twice monthly, showed the hiring rate for unemployed workers dipping slightly and the rate of layoffs and other job separations up a bit.  That put "limited upward pressure" on the unemployment rate, the bank said.  LABOR MARKET IS STAGNATING Earlier this week, data from payroll processor ADP indicated private payrolls fell 32,000 in September. The ADP data may also take on added weight in the absence of Bureau of Labor Statistics updates, and was cited by Fed Governor Christopher Waller in August as helping ground internal Fed staff estimates that showed "continued deterioration" in the job market beginning in May. New data issued Thursday by technology firm Intuit, based on a sample of roughly 400,000 of small businesses from its QuickBooks platform, showed firms with from one to nine employees shed more than 48,000 jobs in September, a decline of around 0.37%. Firms of that size have seen a steady drop in employment since early 2024, with average monthly employment for the latest quarter down about 400,000 from a peak of 13.1 million. U.S. employers meanwhile announced fewer layoffs in September, but hiring plans this year were the lowest since 2009, according to the latest report from global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas that provided further signs of a labor market at a standstill as the demand and supply of workers fall because of tougher immigration policy and technological advances. The firm said planned job cuts dropped 37% month-on-month to 54,064 in September. Employers have so far this year announced 946,426 job cuts, the highest year-to-date total since 2020.  Hiring plans so far this year have totaled 204,939, the lowest year-to-date since 2009 when the economy was just emerging from the Great Recession.  "Right now, we're dealing with a stagnating labor market, cost increases and a transformative new technology," said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president at Challenger, Gray & Christmas. "With rate cuts on the way, we may see some stabilizing in the fourth quarter, but other factors could keep employers planning layoffs or holding off hiring." But there are conflicting signals, and a puzzle over whether weak job growth is due to a slowing economy or a lack of workers, or both. Nonfarm payroll gains averaged only 29,000 jobs per month in the three months to August compared to 82,000 during the same period last year, yet the jobless rate has been fairly stable. Economists say lingering uncertainty from President Donald Trump's trade policy and the rise of artificial intelligence have reduced demand for workers. But the administration's immigration crackdown may also be limiting the availability of labor. In its latest survey, the National Federation of Independent Business reported that 58% of independent business owners planned to hire, more than in August, but that nearly 90% of that group "reported few or no qualified applicants for the positions they were trying to fill," up seven percentage points from the month before.  Should the shutdown persist into next week, reports due later this month, including consumer price, retail sales, housing starts and producer inflation data for September, will probably not be published, impacting decision-making by households, investors and policymakers.   (Reporting by Ann Saphir; Additional reporting by Howard Schneider and Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Jamie Freed and Andrea Ricci)

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By Andre Romani SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Brazilian planemaker Embraer said on Thursday it delivered 62 aircraft in the third quarter of 2025, about 5% higher than the 59 deliveries in the same period last year. The world's third-largest planemaker delivered 20 commercial aircraft in the quarter, a 25% increase year-on-year, and 41 executive jets, in line with a year earlier, Embraer said in a securities filing. The Phenom 300 represented nearly half of all the executive jets delivered by Embraer in the quarter through the end of September, according to the company. Embraer also delivered one defense aircraft in the period, a KC-390 Millennium, compared with two deliveries in the defense segment a year ago. "Deliveries are on track to reach bottom end of guidance," Citi analysts including Andre Mazini wrote in a note to clients, adding the figures are "likely to be taken as lukewarm by the market." Embraer forecasts deliveries in 2025 of between 77 and 85 commercial, and 145 to 155 executive jets. In the year through the third quarter, Embraer delivered 46 commercial jets and 102 executive jets. Sao Paulo-traded shares of Embraer declined 5.8% on Thursday ahead of the data, one of the largest losers in the Brazilian equities benchmark index Bovespa, which fell 1.1%. The company is set to release its third-quarter financial results on November 4, according to its website. (Reporting by Andre Romani; Editing by Kylie Madry and Cynthia Osterman)

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By Blake Brittain (Reuters) -OpenAI asked a federal judge on Thursday to dismiss a lawsuit alleging it lured employees away from Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI to steal its trade secrets, calling the case part of Musk's "ongoing harassment" of the company. OpenAI denied xAI's allegations and said its claims were false and unsubstantiated. "Under Musk’s leadership, talented xAI employees are leaving in droves, and some are coming to OpenAI to help advance OpenAI’s mission," the filing said. "Those employees have every right to go where they choose, and OpenAI has the right to hire them." Spokespeople and an attorney for xAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the filings. A spokesperson for OpenAI declined to comment.  xAI's lawsuit, filed last week in federal court in San Francisco, alleged that OpenAI engaged in a "deeply troubling pattern" of hiring away former xAI employees to gain access to trade secrets related to its AI chatbot Grok, which it said was more advanced than OpenAI's ChatGPT. The lawsuit is part of a broader legal battle between Musk and OpenAI, which he co-founded alongside OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, amid a high-stakes race in Silicon Valley for talent and to gain market share in the burgeoning AI industry.  xAI has separately sued Apple for allegedly conspiring with OpenAI to suppress rival platforms. Apple and OpenAI denied the allegations and asked the court to dismiss that case on Tuesday. Musk is also suing OpenAI over its conversion to a for-profit company, while OpenAI has countersued Musk for harassment. OpenAI on Thursday called xAI's trade-secret lawsuit an attempt to intimidate OpenAI and "distract from the failures of [Musk's] own competitive AI effort." "The truth is that xAI is hemorrhaging talent to other competitors, including OpenAI," OpenAI said. (Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

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By Blake Brittain (Reuters) -OpenAI asked a federal judge on Thursday to dismiss a lawsuit alleging it lured employees away from Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI to steal its trade secrets, calling the case part of Musk's "ongoing harassment" of the company. OpenAI denied xAI's allegations and said its claims were false and unsubstantiated. "Under Musk’s leadership, talented xAI employees are leaving in droves, and some are coming to OpenAI to help advance OpenAI’s mission," the filing said. "Those employees have every right to go where they choose, and OpenAI has the right to hire them." Spokespeople and an attorney for xAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the filings. A spokesperson for OpenAI declined to comment.  xAI's lawsuit, filed last week in federal court in San Francisco, alleged that OpenAI engaged in a "deeply troubling pattern" of hiring away former xAI employees to gain access to trade secrets related to its AI chatbot Grok, which it said was more advanced than OpenAI's ChatGPT. The lawsuit is part of a broader legal battle between Musk and OpenAI, which he co-founded alongside OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, amid a high-stakes race in Silicon Valley for talent and to gain market share in the burgeoning AI industry.  xAI has separately sued Apple for allegedly conspiring with OpenAI to suppress rival platforms. Apple and OpenAI denied the allegations and asked the court to dismiss that case on Tuesday. Musk is also suing OpenAI over its conversion to a for-profit company, while OpenAI has countersued Musk for harassment. OpenAI on Thursday called xAI's trade-secret lawsuit an attempt to intimidate OpenAI and "distract from the failures of [Musk's] own competitive AI effort." "The truth is that xAI is hemorrhaging talent to other competitors, including OpenAI," OpenAI said. (Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

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(Reuters) -Chip equipment maker Applied Materials forecast a $600 million hit to fiscal 2026 revenue after the U.S. expanded its restricted export list in a blow to sectors such as semiconductors, aircraft and medical equipment. Shares of Applied Materials fell about 3% in extended trading on Thursday after the company said in a filing the new rule would make it more difficult to export some products and supply specific parts and services to select China-based customers without a license. The U.S. Department of Commerce on Monday widened the export blacklist to include majority-owned subsidiaries of listed companies, cracking down on companies in China and other countries that use units and affiliates to circumvent certain U.S. export curbs. Applied Materials also expects an impact of about $110 million on fourth-quarter revenue. The company and rivals such as ASML Holding were already under pressure from weakness in China and U.S. tariffs. In August, Applied Materials provided dour sales and profit forecasts for the fourth quarter. The new rule is likely to disrupt supply chains even more and will greatly increase the number of companies that need licenses to receive American goods and services. To boost domestic production of the chips and reduce reliance on Taiwan, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told NewsNation that Washington's pitch to the Asian chip powerhouse would be a 50-50 manufacturing split. Applied Materials reported third-quarter revenue rose 8% to $7.30 billion from a year ago, beating estimates of $7.22 billion, per data compiled by LSEG. The Santa Clara, California-based company's revenue rose 2.5% to $27.18 billion for fiscal 2024. (Reporting by Anuja Bharat Mistry in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

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(Reuters) -Defense giant General Dynamics' information and technology unit had secured a $1.25 billion task order to support the U.S. Army in Europe and Africa, it said on Thursday, a week after announcing another $1.5 billion U.S. defense contract. The contract, awarded in September, covers a five-month base period for transition and seven option years, General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) said. Through the Enterprise Mission Information Technology Services 2 (EMITS 2) task order, GDIT will deliver enterprise IT, communications and mission command support services to U.S. Army's Europe and Africa's headquarters, subordinate organizations, NATO and other partners. The disclosure comes a week after GDIT said it secured an enterprise modernization contract worth $1.5 billion to help support the U.S. Strategic Command, or STRATCOM, to cut costs and increase efficiency — including by integrating artificial intelligence technologies. (Reporting by Aatreyee Dasgupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)

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(Reuters) -Alphabet's Google and Comcast-owned NBCUniversal have reached a multi-year agreement to keep NBC shows such as "Sunday Night Football" and "America's Got Talent" on YouTube TV, wrapping up a difficult negotiation. YouTube TV, one of the biggest pay-TV distributors in the U.S., will carry NBCUniversal's full portfolio of networks such as NBC and CNBC under the deal, according to a statement from the companies on Thursday. YouTube, which is also a unit of Alphabet, will also offer NBCUniversal's Peacock streaming service through its Primetime Channels, a marketplace where users can subscribe to third-party streaming services through the YouTube app. “This deal builds on our longstanding partnership with NBCU while addressing the evolving media landscape and recognizing the importance of making content available where and how viewers want to watch it,” said Justin Connolly, global head of media and sports at YouTube. The agreement includes a multi-year extension of Peacock's availability across Google's Android platforms, including Google Play and Google TV. YouTube now accounts for the largest share of TV viewing in the U.S., ahead of streaming rival Netflix and traditional media companies such as Disney, according to analytics firm Nielsen. Talks with NBCUniversal had stalled earlier over the rates that YouTube TV will pay to carry its shows. The two companies agreed to a short-term contract extension on Wednesday, averting a blackout and ensuring YouTube TV subscribers retained access to NBCUniversal programming while negotiations continued. YouTube TV ranks among the four largest U.S. pay-TV distributors, and Alphabet's deep pockets have recently given the video platform leverage over Paramount Skydance and Fox Corp in carriage talks, according to media firms and analysts. (Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City and Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Alan Barona, Devika Syamnath and Bill Berkrot)

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