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By Che Pan and Wen-Yee Lee BEIJING/TAIPEI (Reuters) -Dutch chipmaker Nexperia's Chinese unit has resumed supplying semiconductors to local distributors, according to two people briefed on the matter, having previously halted all shipments when Beijing banned exports following an ownership dispute. But as part of the resumption, which is confined to domestic trade, all sales to distributors must now be settled in Chinese yuan, the people said, whereas transactions had previously only used foreign currencies such as the U.S. dollar. The Chinese unit also instructed distributors to transact with their customers only in yuan, in an apparent bid to stabilise supply in China and operate more independently from its Dutch parent, one of the people said. Nexperia, now under Dutch government control, produces large volumes of chips in the Netherlands widely used in the automotive industry and consumer electronics. The majority are packaged in China and sold mostly to distributors. Nexperia is now seeking alternative packaging partners outside China as the dispute with its Chinese subsidiary shows little sign of a quick resolution, the people said. Nexperia has also warned customers in China that it does not guarantee the quality of products sourced from its Chinese subsidiary, the second person said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. The temporary sales halt and the resumption with settlements in yuan had not been reported previously. A Nexperia spokesperson declined to comment on the actions of its Chinese unit and said its efforts to seek packaging partners outside China predated the dispute and were not part of a move away from its Chinese factory. On quality, the spokesperson said it had to inform customers of potential risks, but it had stopped short of saying they should not buy from its Chinese unit. Nexperia's Chinese unit did not respond to a request for comment. DUTCH GOVERNMENT SEIZES CONTROL The Dutch government took control of Nexperia on September 30 and removed its Chinese CEO, Zhang Xuezheng, citing concerns its technology might be appropriated by Nexperia's Chinese parent, Wingtech Technology. Court filings showed that the seizure came after rising U.S. pressure on Nexperia after Wingtech was placed on a restricted export list, though Dutch authorities say governance shortcomings were the trigger. On October 4, China's commerce ministry blocked Nexperia from exporting chips from China. Following the order, Nexperia's Chinese unit suspended shipments from its main Dongguan factory to all distributors, the first person said. The dispute has fuelled concerns about supply chain disruptions across the global auto industry. Nexperia is one of the largest makers globally of basic chips that are not technically sophisticated but are needed in large volumes. On Wednesday, the German economy ministry said it would have a call with automakers and suppliers to discuss developments related to Nexperia. On Tuesday, the Dutch economy minister said he had spoken with his Chinese counterpart but failed to reach a solution. (Reporting by Che Pan in Beijing, Wen-Yee Lee in Taipei; Additional reporting by Toby Sterling in Amsterdam; Editing by Brenda Goh and Jamie Freed)

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By Alexandra Alper, Michael Martina, Jeffrey Dastin and Karen Freifeld (Reuters) -The Trump administration is considering a plan to curb a dizzying array of software-powered exports to China, from laptops to jet engines, to retaliate against Beijing's latest round of rare earth export restrictions, according to a U.S. official and three people briefed by U.S. authorities. While the plan is not the only one being deliberated, it would make good on President Donald Trump's threat earlier this month to bar "critical software" exports to China by restricting global shipments of items that contain U.S. software or were produced using U.S. software. On October 10, Trump said in a social media post that he would impose additional tariffs of 100% on China's U.S.-bound shipments, along with new export controls on "any and all critical software" by November 1 without further details. To be sure, the measure, details of which are being reported for the first time, may not move forward, the sources said.  But the fact that such controls are being considered shows the Trump administration is weighing a dramatic escalation of its showdown with China, even as some within the U.S. government favor a gentler approach, according to two of the sources. "I will confirm that everything is on the table," U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters at the White House Wednesday when asked about software curbs on China. "If these export controls – whether it's software, engines or other things – happen, it will likely be in coordination with our G7 allies." U.S. stock indexes dipped following the Reuters report, before paring losses. The S&P 500 closed down 0.5% while the Nasdaq was about 1% lower at the market's close. Emily Kilcrease, a former trade official now at the Center for a New American Security, said software was a natural point of leverage for the U.S. Still, such controls would be extraordinarily difficult to implement and would lead to blowback for U.S. industry, she said. "You would hope they are only putting threats on the table that they would carry out and stick with," Kilcrease said. The White House declined to comment. The Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy did not comment on the specific U.S. measures under consideration but said China opposed the U.S. "imposing unilateral long-arm jurisdiction measures" and vowed to "take resolute measures to protect its legitimate rights and interests" if the U.S. proceeds down what it views as a wrong path. MEASURE COULD BE USED TO PRESSURE CHINA Administration officials could announce the measure to put pressure on China but stop short of implementing it, one of the sources said. Narrower policy proposals are also being discussed, two of the people said. "Everything imaginable is made with U.S. software," one of the sources said, highlighting the broad scope of the proposed action. The sources declined to be named because the matter was not public. The move could disrupt global trade with China, especially for technology products, and could come at a cost to the U.S. economy if fully implemented. It echoes restrictions the Biden administration imposed on Moscow after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Those rules restricted exports to Russia of items made globally using U.S. technology or software. Trump's Truth Social post came just three weeks before a previously announced meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, and a day after China dramatically expanded its export controls on rare earth elements. China dominates the market for such elements, which are essential to tech manufacturing. In his post, Trump also accused China of considering "large scale Export Controls on virtually every product" it makes and on some foreign-made items, which he said would affect all countries, also starting November 1. Any such move would constitute "a moral disgrace," he added. But questions have swirled about what Trump meant in his response by "critical software" controls. While Trump has slapped a series of tariffs on China since taking office in January, he has wavered in his use of export restrictions against Beijing, first imposing strict new curbs on shipments of Nvidia's and AMD's AI chips before later removing them. Likewise, in late May, the U.S. imposed new restrictions on chip design software as well as on other items after China held up rare earth shipments needed by U.S. automakers and others, only to lift the restrictions in early July.     Meanwhile, China has expressed its opposition to a Trump administration rule last month that restricts U.S. companies from shipping goods and technology to companies at least 50% owned by sanctioned Chinese firms. Chinese imports currently face U.S. tariffs around 55%, which could shoot up to 155% if Trump follows through on his threatened tariff hike. But Trump appeared to soften his posture on Beijing following the threats, posting on October 12 that "The U.S.A. wants to help China, not hurt it!!!" U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent is expected to meet with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Malaysia this week, ahead of the meeting between Trump and Xi in South Korea later this month. (Reporting by Alexandra Alper and Michael Martina in Washington, Jeffrey Dastin in San Francisco and Karen Freifeld in New York; Additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and Jeff Mason; Editing by Chris Sanders and Edmund Klamann)

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By Renju Jose SYDNEY (Reuters) -A bill to restrict social media for children under 16 will be introduced in the New Zealand parliament, officials said on Thursday, building momentum for parliament's efforts to prevent young people from being harmed while online. The proposed legislation will require social media platforms to conduct an age verification process, similar to Australia's world-first teen social media ban law passed in 2024. A member's bill submitted in May by ruling National Party lawmaker Catherine Wedd to restrict children using social media was selected on Thursday to be introduced in the parliament. The bill has received support from National Party members but its coalition partners have not confirmed whether they will support the bill. Members' bills can be introduced by any lawmaker not in the cabinet and are selected after a ceremonial lottery. It is not immediately clear when the bill will be introduced in the parliament. A New Zealand parliamentary committee has been looking at the impact of social media harm on young people and the roles that government, business, and society should play in addressing those harms. A report is due in early 2026, according to a statement from the committee last week. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has been raising concerns about harms to mental health from the overuse of social media among young teens, including misinformation, bullying and harmful depictions of body image. Civil-liberties organisation PILLAR said the bill would not protect children online, and instead would create serious privacy risks and restrict online freedom for New Zealanders. "Aligning with international efforts may sound responsible, but it is lazy policymaking," PILLAR Executive Director Nathan Seiuli said in a statement. (Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

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By Tim Hepher and Giulia Segreti PARIS/ROME (Reuters) -Europe's aerospace giants kept investors waiting an extra day for details of a new space champion on Wednesday as lawyers and advisers pored over the smallprint, but merger plans remained intact, people familiar with the talks said. Reuters reported this week that Airbus, Thales and Leonardo had reached a framework deal to pool their satellite making activities to chip away at the dominance of Elon Musk's Starlink. Initial plans for a Wednesday announcement slipped but there was no major new obstacle and a deal appeared to have been pushed back by no more than 24 or 48 hours, barring an unforeseen and more substantive problem, the people said. "The announcement is ready; that doesn't mean you don't have some last-minute details. It is industrially, technically and financially complicated," one of the people said. Thales, Airbus and Leonardo all declined comment. The talks mark the latest attempt to tie together Europe's fragmented and struggling satellite industry. Europe's top players – Airbus and a pair of ventures controlled by Italy's Leonardo and France's Thales – have been dwarfed by rivals led by Musk's SpaceX. They plan to combine satellite assets into a new holding company with about one-third each after a series of balancing payments, but the new structure will take up to two years to put in place pending regulatory approvals, sources have said. A previous attempt to combine hit EU antitrust obstacles. SHIFT TO LOW EARTH ORBIT Insiders say the trio have realised they cannot prosper alone in a space market in the midst of dramatic transformation. The merger will create the largest manufacturer of commercial geostationary satellites, leapfrogging Maxar, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin with a third of the market, according to 2010-25 global data from specialist advisory firm Quilty Space. But that corner of the space market is in decline due to the spread of small satellites in low Earth orbit, such as Starlink. "Europe did have a commanding lead in a lot of geostationary satellite manufacturing, and arguably never lost it," said Caleb Henry, Quilty's research director. "It's just that this market has shrunk considerably in the face of these new titans of industry: the low-Earth-orbit broadband constellations." The companies are expected to set out the broad structure and objectives of the merger plan, code-named Projet Bromo, without dwelling on details of corporate governance that would be decided at a later stage, after a period of standalone operations. The balance of power and question of who appoints chairperson, CEO and CFO have caused friction in past European aerospace mergers, including at Airbus itself. But sources said there was a strong commitment between the parties to co-operate on satellites, in part driven by losses and falling market share. (Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by Alexander Smith, Aidan Lewis)

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By Greg Bensinger MILPITAS, California (Reuters) -In its relentless drive to bring everyday items to customers faster, Amazon has shifted expectations from two-day delivery to same-day and even within an hour. Now, with robots, artificial intelligence and even eyewear, it is working to pare seconds off each delivery. On Wednesday, Seattle-based Amazon showed off advanced eyeglasses for delivery workers for the first time publicly after Reuters exclusively reported the company was developing them last year. Known internally as Amelia, the glasses have a small screen that gives turn-by-turn directions, scans package codes and takes photos for proof of delivery. The glasses could replace the bulky handheld Global Positioning System devices drivers use today and give helpful navigation tips like which way to turn when leaving an apartment elevator or how to avoid an aggressive dog at a customer’s home. The glasses rely on a paired controller placed in a driver’s vest and Amazon solved the challenge of battery life by having swappable battery packs, the company said. The announcements made at Amazon’s annual “Delivering the Future” logistics event are part of the firm’s particular focus on the "last 100 yards," which contribute to the expensive final steps in a delivery’s journey to customers. Last year, it unveiled a delivery van scanner to direct drivers to packages for each stop by shining a green spotlight on them, shaving seconds off time usually spent reading labels. And in June, it showed reporters new digital maps that gave far more detail about neighborhoods, building shapes and obstacles, than, say, Google Maps. Beryl Tomay, Amazon transportation vice president, said hundreds of delivery drivers had already tested the glasses along their routes. "It reduces the need to manage a phone and a package," Tomay said at the event. "It helps them stay at attention, which enhances their safety." She said later that Amazon had seen time savings for some drivers of 30 minutes for a given shift. Tomay said it would be optional for drivers and their contracted companies to use the smartglasses and that they planned to distribute them for free to those that do. The glasses are experimental, she cautioned, and Amazon's plans for them were still in flux. Also on Wednesday, the online retailer showed off a robotic arm that it says can work in concert with warehouse employees picking items off shelves and sorting them for faster and more accurate order fulfillment. Amazon claimed the robot, dubbed Blue Jay, could reduce injury rates and work in a smaller space than equivalent robots that previously required three separate stations. The robot is in use already at a warehouse in South Carolina, Amazon said, and it plans to roll it out to more facilities in the coming months, particularly what are known as sub-same-day sites focused on delivery in a few hours or less. Additionally, Amazon said it plans to deploy an artificial intelligence system at warehouses, starting at one in Tennessee, that can help manage operations at a high level, to prevent gridlock and other challenges that can slow operations. It was not immediately clear how Amazon planned to institute the software or who would have access to it. "We now have a tool to analyze all the site data as it happens," said Tye Brady, chief technologist of Amazon robotics, at the event on Wednesday. "When it's fully implemented, we will be able to help operators with their daily planning." He said the company planned to offer the software across its warehouse network, but did not provide details on how it would be rolled out. The company's expansion of warehouse robots is expected to reduce its U.S. hiring by 160,000 workers over the next two years, the New York Times reported on Tuesday. Amazon said it planned to hire 250,000 temporary workers for the holiday season. Amazon shares declined 1.8% to $217.95 on Wednesday. It is the only one among the so-called Magnificent Seven technology stocks to record a year-to-date decline.  (Reporting by Greg Bensinger; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Nia Williams)

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(Reuters) -German software maker SAP on Wednesday reported third-quarter revenue below analysts' estimates and forecast full-year cloud revenue at the lower end of its outlook range, sending its U.S.-listed shares down 3% in extended trading. Walldorf, Germany-based SAP said revenue for the third quarter ended Sept. 30 rose 7% to 9.08 billion euros ($10.59 billion), missing analysts' expectations of 9.17 billion euros, according to LSEG IBES data. Revenue from SAP's lucrative cloud business rose 22%, its slowest pace of growth since the fourth quarter of 2023. "We've maintained forward momentum despite an uncertain macroeconomic backdrop," CFO Dominik Asam said. The company has focused on cloud operations for the last few years, adopting a subscription-based service model that generates predictable revenue over time rather than the lumpy up-front cash flows from software licences. Operating profit, on a non-IFRS basis, rose 14% to 2.57 billion euros, slightly above estimates of 2.55 billion euros, while free cash flow, used to determine dividends to investors, grew 5% to 1.27 billion euros. The company also said it was expecting cloud revenue for 2025 to be at the lower end of its forecast of 21.6 billion to 21.9 billion euros. However, operating profit was seen at the upper end of the its outlook range of 10.3 billion to 10.6 billion euros and free cash flow is expected at 8 billion to 8.2 billion euros, compared wth 8 billion euros earlier. ($1 = 0.8575 euros) (Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm and Preetika Parashuraman in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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(Reuters) -Wireless tower operator Crown Castle on Wednesday raised its annual site rental revenue forecast for the second time, helped by steady demand for wireless infrastructure services. Crown Castle derives majority of its revenue from leasing out tower infrastructure to U.S. wireless carriers such as AT&T, T-Mobile US, and Verizon Communications on a long-term basis. With about 40,000 cellular towers across the U.S., Crown Castle is looking to focus on growing its tower business, which is expected to benefit from the largest U.S. carriers upgrading their networks to 5G and increasing capacity to meet booming data demand. The real estate investment trust now sees annual site rental revenue in the range of $4.01 billion to $4.05 billion, compared with its earlier projection of between $4 billion and $4.04 billion. Analysts expect earnings growth of real estate investment trusts to improve going into 2026, as pressures from supply, tenant churn, and high development capex ease. Crown Castle posted site rental revenue of $1.01 billion for the third quarter ended September 30, compared with an average estimate of $1 billion. Its adjusted funds from operations came in at $1.12 per share, compared with $1.20 a year earlier. (Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Maju Samuel)

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(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is in talks with several quantum-computing companies to take equity stakes in exchange for federal funding, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Companies including IonQ, Rigetti Computing and D-Wave Quantum are discussing the government becoming a shareholder as part of the agreements, the report said, adding that the discussions include minimum funding awards from Washington of $10 million each. Other companies such as Quantum Computing and Atom Computing are considering similar arrangements, the Journal added. Reuters could not immediately verify the report. Earlier this year, Trump said the U.S. would take a 10% stake in Intel that converts government grants into an equity share, the latest extraordinary intervention by the White House in corporate America. Other deals include an agreement for the Pentagon to become the largest shareholder in a small mining company, MP Materials to boost output of rare earth magnets and the U.S. government's winning a "golden share" with certain veto rights as part of a deal to allow Japan's Nippon Steel to buy U.S. Steel. Ion declined to comment while the White House, U.S. Commerce Department, Rigetti Computing, D-Wave Quantum, Atom Computing and Quantum Computing did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. U.S. Deputy Commerce Secretary Paul Dabbar, a former quantum-computing executive and Energy Department official, is leading the funding discussions with companies in the industry, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter. In February, Microsoft unveiled a new chip that it said showed quantum computing is "years, not decades" away, joining Google and IBM in predicting that a fundamental change in computing technology is much closer than recently believed. (Reporting by Devika Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona and Lincoln Feast.)

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(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is in talks with several quantum-computing companies to take equity stakes in exchange for federal funding, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Companies including IonQ, Rigetti Computing and D-Wave Quantum are discussing the government becoming a shareholder as part of the agreements, the report said, adding that the discussions include minimum funding awards from Washington of $10 million each. Other companies such as Quantum Computing and Atom Computing are considering similar arrangements, the Journal added. Reuters could not immediately verify the report. Earlier this year, Trump said the U.S. would take a 10% stake in Intel that converts government grants into an equity share, the latest extraordinary intervention by the White House in corporate America. Other deals include an agreement for the Pentagon to become the largest shareholder in a small mining company, MP Materials to boost output of rare earth magnets and the U.S. government's winning a "golden share" with certain veto rights as part of a deal to allow Japan's Nippon Steel to buy U.S. Steel. Ion declined to comment while the White House, U.S. Commerce Department, Rigetti Computing, D-Wave Quantum, Atom Computing and Quantum Computing did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. U.S. Deputy Commerce Secretary Paul Dabbar, a former quantum-computing executive and Energy Department official, is leading the funding discussions with companies in the industry, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter. In February, Microsoft unveiled a new chip that it said showed quantum computing is "years, not decades" away, joining Google and IBM in predicting that a fundamental change in computing technology is much closer than recently believed. (Reporting by Devika Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona and Lincoln Feast.)

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