PRE-MARKET TAIWAN AND SINGAPORE STOCKS NEWS: Hon Hai (2317 TT) agreed to acquire a 50% stake in Mitsubishi Electric's (6503 JT) automotive equipment unit for c. JPY 115bln

US Tech Performance US stocks closed sharply lower on Friday as AI-financing worries and high oil prices weighed; chipmakers led the tech selloff, with Micron (MU) and Intel (INTC) among the decliners, and the Nasdaq suffered its biggest daily drop since 23rd July, while CoreWeave (CRWV) fell 12% to extend its weekly loss to 25%. On the week, the S&P 500 (-1.95%) and Nasdaq (-4.48%) posted their steepest weekly losses since June, while the Dow (+0.67%) notched a second straight weekly gain. TAIWAN Formosa Petrochemical (6505 TT) - Co. kept fuel prices unchanged for a fifth straight week, in line with state-run CPC. (Taipei Times) Hon Hai Precision Industry (2317 TT) - Co. agreed to acquire a 50% stake in Mitsubishi Electric (6503 JT) unit Mitsubishi Electric Mobility for c. JPY 115bln via its investment subsidiary Lin Yin International Investment, with the two to jointly operate the automotive equipment business; completion is expected by 1st October 2027, subject to regulatory approvals. (Focus Taiwan) TSMC (2330 TT) - Samsung Electronics (005930 KS) will reportedly use Co.'s 3nm process for the base die of NVIDIA's (NVDA) custom HBM after NVIDIA asked its three HBM suppliers to do so, marking the first HBM manufacturing tie-up between Samsung and Co. (Seoul Economic Daily) SINGAPORE Bukit Sembawang Estates (BS SP) - Co. entered a conditional option agreement to buy a c. 51,000 sqm site at Kallang Distripark for SGD 196.04mln for a residential development, with total land cost expected at c. SGD 1.01bln; the deal is an interested person transaction requiring shareholder approval. (SGX filing) Bumitama Agri (BAL SP) - Co. said no evidence has been established linking its operations with the start of the fires in Indonesia, adding that fires in or adjoining its concessions started outside areas it directly manages; trading in Co.'s shares is set to resume at 08:30 SGT on 19th October following a halt. (SGX filing) DFI Retail Group (DFI SP) - Co.'s 7-Eleven is introducing hot-food counters at 16 Singapore stores as the group expands its food offerings. (Straits Times) First Resources (FR SP) - Co. said fires and haze caused some operational disruptions at its plantations but it does not expect a material operational or financial impact, adding that many hotspots near its West Kalimantan concessions originated outside its boundaries. (SGX filing) Golden Agri-Resources (GGR SP) - Co. said the fires have not materially affected its operations and it is not aware of information indicating its operations caused or contributed to the haze; Co. has received no formal notice of investigation. (Straits Times) Indofood Agri Resources (IFAR SP) - Co. said the fires have had no material impact on its business so far, and it has received no allegations or notices from authorities beyond Indonesia Stock Exchange queries to its subsidiary SIMP. (SGX filing) Japan Foods Holding (JFH SP) - Co. expects to return to profit in H1 FY27 vs. a loss a year earlier, after cutting its restaurant outlets to 46 from 68. (SGX filing) Kencana Agri (KAGR SP) - Indonesian authorities opened a preliminary inquiry into suspected land clearing by burning at a Co. subsidiary's North Kalimantan concession; Co. said fires affected c. 62ha and spread from adjacent areas, and it does not expect a material impact. (SGX filing) Keppel (KEP SP) - Co.'s unit suspended arbitration against its partners in a Ho Chi Minh City JV, with claims to be deemed settled on completion of the sale of a 40% stake in the project company. (SGX filing) Wee Hur Holdings (WHUR SP) - Co. received a Letter of Award from NTU to design, build, finance and operate a c. 1,398-bed student accommodation at its Yunnan campus, with construction targeted to start in Q3 2027. (SGX filing) Wilmar International (WIL SP) - Co. said fires detected in small areas of some Indonesian concessions originated outside its boundaries or on community-farmed land, adding it has not undertaken new oil palm planting in Indonesia since 2013. (Straits Times) Other News Taiwan is to curb AI chip exports to China as part of the US trade deal, with servers and high-end chips to be added to the controlled items list. (Bloomberg) Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs said it plans to develop US industrial parks funded by private businesses with government assistance, starting with a complex in Texas; each park would cost USD 2-4bln. (Focus Taiwan) Taiwan President Lai said Taiwan should not rule out any energy source and called for a professional assessment of whether nuclear power should return to the energy mix. (Taipei Times) Taiwan's navy and coast guard plan to buy 292 MQ-35A V-BAT drones from Shield AI for c. TWD 37.2bln, with Aerospace Industrial Development (2634 TT) to handle logistics, maintenance and training. (Taipei Times) Singapore's National Environment Agency said it issued preventive measure notices to seven Indonesian companies, predominantly in timber and pulpwood rather than oil palm. (Straits Times) The US and China remained divided on Taiwan despite plans for more Trump-Xi meetings. (Nikkei)