PRE-MARKET AUSTRALIAN, JAPANESE & SOUTH KOREAN STOCKS NEWS: Westpac (WBC AT) expects higher loan losses with a credit impairment charge of around 10bps of average gross loans in H1 results

AUSTRALIA

Cleanaway Waste Management (CWY AT) - Co. cut FY EBIT guidance due to higher fuel and third-party logistics costs linked to the Iran conflict and weaker Middle East contract resources activity, now expects EBIT of AUD 460mln-AUD 480mln and sees a AUD 20mln impact, while noting it will recover a substantial portion of fuel cost increases over time. (Dow Jones Newsplus)

Qantas Airways (QAN AT) - Co. said jet fuel prices have more than doubled since February and it remains largely exposed to jet refining margin movements, while now expects 2H fuel costs of AUD 3.1bln-AUD 3.3bln, is cutting June quarter domestic capacity by around 5 percentage points and continues to see strong demand for European travel. (Dow Jones Newsplus)

Westpac Banking Corp (WBC AT) - Co. expects higher loan losses with a credit impairment charge of around 10bps of average gross loans in H1 results due to a slowing Australian economy linked to the Iran conflict, while H1 lending growth seen at 4% and deposit growth at 3%. (Dow Jones Newsplus)

JAPAN

Fujitsu Ltd. (6702 JT) - Co. is working to reinvent itself as an artificial intelligence business, leveraging its electronics manufacturing expertise to combine hardware with AI services. (Nikkei)

Hitachi Ltd. (6501 JT) - Co. subsidiary Hitachi Energy signed a multi-year agreement with Seco for the Clea framework to support secure data and device management. (Newswires)

Japan Post (6178 JT) - Co. will resume accepting all US-bound mail from Tuesday after a 7-month suspension due to the end of the ‘de minimis’ exemption, according to a statement. (Newswires)

MinebeaMitsumi Inc. (6479 JT) - Co. plans to make Cambodia a strategic base, using its second plant to export autonomous driving components to US customers, according to its CEO. (Nikkei)

Orix Corp. (8591 JT) - Co. said it will implement an absorption-type company split to transfer the business of subsidiary Tsukuba Lease to itself and Orix Auto, followed by the unit’s dissolution and liquidation. (Newswires)

SBI Holdings Inc. (8473 JT) - Co. is partnering with Across Ventures to establish a roughly USD 100mln fund to back early-stage venture capital firms focused on the US technology sector. (Nikkei)

Toto Ltd. (5332 JT) - Co. has stopped taking orders for prefabricated bath units due to a shortage of organic solvents linked to the Strait of Hormuz closure. (Nikkei)

Toyota Motor Corp. (7203 JT) - Co. was named by Shanghai authorities as part of efforts to boost support for foreign investment and business activity. (Nikkei)

Shipbuilding - Japanese new export vessel contracts fell for a fourth consecutive year in FY2025 amid a severe labour shortage, hindering government plans to double shipbuilding capacity by 2035. (Nikkei)

Other News

Japanese PM Takaichi targets spring 2027 for advancing constitutional revisions. (Nikkei)

SOUTH KOREA

Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) - Samsung Foundry reportedly raised the price of HBM4 logic dies supplied to its memory division by 40–50% this year, reflecting a normalisation of internal transfer pricing as HBM4 volumes begin to ramp after previously supplying them at a discount. (Newswires)

Other News

US President Trump nominated former Rep. Michelle Park Steel as US Ambassador to South Korea. (Yonhap)