PRE-MARKET AUSTRALIAN, JAPANESE & SOUTH KOREAN STOCK NEWS: SoftBank (9984 JT) is reportedly nearing a deal to acquire Blackstone (BX)'s Japanese payments unit

AUSTRALIABellevue Gold (BGL AT) - Co. posted record FY26 gold production of 143,539 oz, above the midpoint of guidance, with strong free cash flow and cash reserves; average all-in sustaining cost was AUD 2,827/oz, meeting guidance, while non-sustaining capex was AUD 113.3mln, and FY27 guidance is for production of 150k-170k oz, all-in sustaining cost of AUD 2,800-3,100/oz and non-sustaining capex of AUD 90mln-100mln, with costs expected to decline in H2 FY27. (Dow Jones Newsplus; Motley Fool)IGO (IGO AT) - Co. Q4 (AUD) Greenbushes spodumene production was 387k tonnes, sales were 391k tonnes, the average realised price was USD 2,286/tonne and EBITDA margin was 80% (prev. 75% Q/Q); sales revenue was AUD 141.4mln (prev. AUD 119.7mln Q/Q), underlying EBITDA was AUD 117.8mln (prev. AUD 118.9mln Q/Q), underlying free cash flow was AUD 69.5mln (prev. AUD 35.8mln Q/Q) and net cash was AUD 386.5mln at June 30 (prev. AUD 327.0mln at March 31), while FY27 guidance is for spodumene production of 1.55mln-1.75mln tonnes, lithium hydroxide output of 9k-11k tonnes and conversion costs of AUD 16k-18k/tonne. (Dow Jones Newsplus)Iluka Resources (ILU AT) - Co. Q2 zircon, rutile and synthetic rutile output was 58k tonnes, sales were 157.4k tonnes, the average realised zircon sand price was USD 1,546/tonne and mineral sands revenue was AUD 286mln; H1 operating cash flow was AUD 247mln and underlying mineral sands EBITDA is expected at around AUD 40mln, while total Eneabba capex reached AUD 1.10bln and mineral sands net debt was AUD 273mln at June 30. (Dow Jones Newsplus)Rio Tinto (RIO AT) - Co. agreed to sell its AUD 1.1bln Pilbara desalination plant to a consortium majority-owned by Yindjibarndi traditional owners. (The Australian)Whitehaven Coal (WHC AT) - Co. Q4 managed run-of-mine coal output rose 13% Q/Q to 10.7mln tonnes, managed sales of produced coal fell 9% Q/Q to 7.8mln tonnes and equity sales of produced coal fell 7% Q/Q to 6.3mln tonnes; FY26 unit costs were around AUD 132/tonne, capex was around AUD 350mln and the revenue mix was 57% metallurgical coal and 43% thermal coal, while net debt was AUD 1.3bln at June 30. (Dow Jones Newsplus)JAPANHulic (3003 JT) - Co. plans to acquire a 20% stake in major produce distributor Farmind as it seeks to build a nationwide refrigerated logistics network and diversify beyond real estate. (Nikkei)Nippon Yusen (9101 JT) - Co. plans to launch a new luxury cruise ship to replace the ageing Asuka II, with the investment potentially exceeding JPY 100bln. (Nikkei)SoftBank (9984 JT) - Co. is reportedly nearing a deal to acquire Blackstone (BX)'s Japanese payments unit. (Bloomberg)Other NewsJapanese Prime Minister Takaichi said Japan had not yet met the conditions required for the government to declare an end to deflation. Takaichi also commented that Japan must exit excessively tight fiscal policy, boost domestic investment, and put the economy on a growth path. Furthermore, she said they are breaking away from years of excessive austerity and will seek to increase tax revenue by expanding GDP, while they won't resort to reckless fiscal spending and will submit a bill for lowering the 8% sales tax on food once a meeting among lawmakers to debate the issue reaches an agreement. (Newswires)Japan Securities Dealers Association plans to expand disclosures to cover nearly 90% of corporate bond transactions, up from 62%, to improve market transparency. (Nikkei)SOUTH KOREADoosan (000150 KS) - Co. Q2 (KRW) net rose 129.7% Y/Y to 535.6bln, operating profit rose 37.8% Y/Y to 488.4bln and rev. rose 5.0% Y/Y to 5.58tln. (Yonhap)Hanwha Ocean (042660 KS) - Co. Q2 (KRW) net rose 366.4% Y/Y to 692.6bln, operating profit rose 98.0% Y/Y to 736.1bln and rev. rose 65.0% Y/Y to 5.44tln. (Yonhap)iM Financial Group (139130 KS) - Co. Q2 (KRW) net fell 9.1% Y/Y to 144.8bln, operating profit fell 8.0% Y/Y to 182.7bln and rev. rose 83.6% Y/Y to 4.17tln. (Yonhap)Industrial Bank of Korea (024110 KS) - Co. Q2 (KRW) net fell 0.7% Y/Y to 689.5bln, operating profit fell 1.3% Y/Y to 915.1bln and rev. fell 5.7% Y/Y to 9.66tln. (Yonhap)Other NewsSouth Korean President Lee and Brazilian President Lula agreed that a trade agreement between South Korea and the Mercosur trade bloc should not be delayed any further. (Yonhap)