PRE-MARKET AUSTRALIAN, JAPANESE & SOUTH KOREAN STOCKS NEWS: Earnings from Alcoa & Zip; Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) filed for a court injunction in connection with potential collective action by its labour union

AUSTRALIA

Alcoa (AAI AT) - Co. Q1 (USD) adj. EPS 1.40 (exp. 1.53), rev. 3.19bln (exp. 3.28bln). (Newswires)

ANZ Group Holdings (ANZ AT) - Co. is offering AUD 2k to mortgage customers at risk of switching lenders. (AFR)

Paladin Energy (PDN AT) - Co. raised FY26 production guidance to 4.5mln-4.8mln pounds U3O8 (prev. 4.0mln-4.4mln) and reaffirmed FY26 sales and production cost guidance. (Dow Jones Newsplus)

Viva Energy (VEA AT) - Australian PM Albanese said 80% of diesel production and 80% of aviation fuel production is continuing, while 60% of petrol output continues at Viva Energy's (VEA AT) Geelong refinery after a fire. (Newswires)

Zip Co. (ZIP AT) - Co. Q3 (AUD) cash earnings rose 41.5% Y/Y to 65.1mln, total income rose 20% Y/Y to 335.2mln, total transaction volume rose 22% Y/Y to 4.0bln, while it raised FY26 cash earnings guidance to at least 260mln. (Dow Jones Newsplus)

Broker Ratings/Price Target

• AMP (AMP AT) Price target raised 17% to AUD 1.75/shr by Jefferies
• Viva Energy (VEA AT) Price target cut 2.3% to AUD 2.15/shr by Jefferies

JAPAN

Astellas Pharma (4503 JT) - Co. provides USD 240mln upfront and a USD 75mln equity investment to Vir Biotechnology (VIR US) following the closing of their global collaboration and licensing agreement announced on February 23, 2026 after expiration of the waiting period. (Newswires)

Marubeni (8002 JT) - Co. subsidiary has acquired an 85% stake in Spain’s Factor Energia for around EUR 200mln to expand its electricity and natural gas retail footprint in Europe and Latin America amid rising data centre power demand. (Nikkei)

Seven & i Holdings (3382 JT) - Co. will seek shareholder approval to cut JPY 350bln from additional paid-in capital and amend its articles to allow virtual-only shareholder meetings. (Newswires)

Shin-Etsu Chemical (4063 JT) - Co.’s polyvinyl chloride business is proving more resilient to supply shocks than peers due to its robust US-based supply chain, even as rivals raise prices or cut output amid Iran war-related disruptions. (Nikkei)

SoftBank Group (9984 JT) - Co. finalised terms for USD 3.6bln in foreign-currency bond issuance, its first such offering since October, with proceeds to repay bridge financing tied to its investment in OpenAI and to redeem existing foreign-currency bonds. (Nikkei)

Tokyo Electric Power Co. Holdings (9501 JT) - Co. has started commercial operations at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant in Niigata prefecture, 14 years after its final reactor was halted following the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown. (Nikkei)

LCD Makers - Panel prices are rising ahead of the FIFA World Cup in June as TV manufacturers accelerate purchases in anticipation of stronger television demand. (Nikkei)

SOUTH KOREA

LG Chem (051910 KS) and Samsung Bioepis (207940 KS) - Co.s are developing new anticancer drugs with a 'success rate in the 1% range' as part of group efforts to expand pharmaceutical and biotech growth engines. (ChosunBiz)

Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) - Co. has filed for a court injunction in connection with potential collective action by its labour union that could disrupt production, according to industry sources. (Yonhap)

Other News

Korea AeroSpace Administration signed a memorandum of understanding with its Canadian counterpart to expand bilateral cooperation in the space sector. (Yonhap)