PRE-MARKET JAPANESE AND SOUTH KOREAN STOCKS NEWS: Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) unveiled its next-generation high-bandwidth memory HBM4E during an annual technology conference hosted by NVIDIA (NVDA)

JAPANDaifuku (6383 JT) - Co. plans to start testing humanoid robots for logistics in as little as three years as it seeks to extend its market share in factory and warehouse systems with labor-saving and fully automated solutions. (Nikkei)Fast Retailing (9983 JT) - Co. unit Uniqlo is negotiating a partnership agreement with the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team in a bid to increase name recognition. (Nikkei)Idemitsu Kosan (5019 JT) - Co. has begun reducing ethylene production at two domestic plants due to a shortage of the oil-derived raw material naphtha as the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz continues to spread across industries amid the Iran war. (Nikkei)J. Front Retailing (3086 JT) - Co.’s total consolidated revenue fell over 13% Y/Y in February, according to a filing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. (Newswires)NEC Corp (6701 JT) - Co. is to invest JPY 100bln in undersea cable over 5 years. (Nikkei)Nissan (7201 JT) - Nissan Kyushu is to cut output due to lower demand from the Middle East. (Nishinippon Shimbun)Sanko Sangyo (5697 JT) - Steel Partners Holdings has made a counteroffer to buy the Co., which supplies industrial-use printed products, in a move that is not a traditional activist play, Executive Chairman Warren Lichtenstein told Nikkei. (Nikkei)Shin-Etsu Chemical (4063 JT) - Co. will raise PVC resin prices by JPY 30 per kg from April 1. (Newswires)Other NewsJapan and the US have discussed a USD 100mln shipbuilding investment in the US. (Newswires)Japan’s FSA is reportedly planning to increase penalties related to crypto infringements. (Newswires)SOUTH KOREACelltrion (068270 KS) - Co. said it signed a KRW 294.9bln contract manufacturing agreement with a global pharmaceutical company for biopharmaceutical drug substance production, with the deal potentially expanding to KRW 375.4bln through future discussions. (ChosunBiz)POSCO Future M (003670 KS) - Co. said it secured a KRW 1tln contract to supply battery materials to a global automaker. (Yonhap)Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) - Co. unveiled its next-generation high-bandwidth memory HBM4E during an annual technology conference hosted by NVIDIA (NVDA). (Yonhap)