COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF

SK Hynix report US$1.15 bln profit

SK Hynix, the world's No.2 memory chip maker, posted a 175% jump in quarterly operating profit as mobile chip demand rose thanks partly to a rush of orders from Huawei Technologies.

The South Korean company, which counts Apple Inc and Huawei among its customers, reported an operating profit of 1.3 trillion won (US$1.15 billion) in the July-September period, up from 473 billion won a year earlier.

Analysts had expected a 1.27 trillion won profit, according to Refinitiv SmartEstimate that is weighted towards more consistently accurate analysts. Third-quarter revenue rose 19% on-year to 8.1 trillion won.

SK Hynix saw a recovery in mobile DRAM demand and sales expansion in mobile NAND flash in the quarter, it said in a statement. The result was buoyed by Huawei's stockpiling of semiconductors before US restrictions barred it from buying chips made with US technology, analysts said.

Orders for mobile chips from Chinese smartphone makers have increased in the fourth quarter as they compete to grab Huawei's market share, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said last month. – Nampa/Reuters

Johnson & Johnson fails to overturn verdict

Missouri's highest court refused to consider Johnson & Johnson's appeal of a US$2.12 billion damages award to women who blamed their ovarian cancer on asbestos in its baby powder and other talc products.

The Missouri Supreme Court let stand a June 23 decision by a state appeals court, which upheld a jury's July 2018 finding of liability but reduced J&J's pay-out from US$4.69 billion after dismissing claims by some of the 22 plaintiffs.

It said the verdict was the product of a "fundamentally flawed trial, grounded in a faulty presentation of the facts," and was "at odds with decades of independent scientific evaluations confirming Johnson's Baby Powder is safe, does not contain asbestos and does not cause cancer."

The New Brunswick, New Jersey-based company also said it will set aside a US$2.1 billion reserve for the verdict, to be reflected in its year-end financial results.

Johnson & Johnson said in May it would stop selling its Baby Powder talc in the United States and Canada. The company said last month it faces more than 21 800 lawsuits claiming that its talc products cause cancer because of contamination from asbestos, a known carcinogen. - Nampa/Reuters

Ant Group's US$37 billion listing suspended

China suspended Ant Group's US$37 billion stock market listing on Tuesday, thwarting the world's largest IPO with just days to go, in a dramatic move that left investors and bankers scrambling for answers.

The Shanghai stock exchange first announced that it had suspended Ant's initial public offering on its STAR market, prompting Ant to also freeze the Hong Kong leg of the dual listing, which was due on Thursday.

Ant said that its listing had been suspended by the Shanghai stock exchange following a meeting that its billionaire founder Jack Ma and top executives held with Chinese financial regulators.

The Chinese financial technology giant said it may not meet listing qualifications or disclosure requirements, and also cited recent changes in the fintech regulatory environment.

Regulators had summoned Ma, Ant's executive chairman Eric Jing and chief executive Simon Hu to a meeting on Monday when they were told the company's lucrative online lending business would face tighter government scrutiny, sources told Reuters. – Nampa/Reuters

Humana Inc profit beats Q3 estimates

Health insurer Humana Inc beat third-quarter profit estimates on Tuesday, benefiting from lower medical costs as demand for optional healthcare services remained below pre-pandemic levels.

The company also raised the lower end of its full-year adjusted profit view, expecting strong growth in its Medicare Advantage business that offers health plans to people older than 65 or with disabilities.

US health insurers, including UnitedHealth and Anthem, saw low demand for healthcare services in the third quarter, even though there was some recovery in elective procedures, which partly offset costs related to Covid-19 testing and treatment.

This helped Humana's adjusted consolidated benefit expense ratio, the percentage of premiums spent on claims, which stood at 85.3% in the reported quarter, better than analysts' average estimate of 85.93%, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

Patients' use of healthcare services remained at 95% of normal levels in the third quarter, which reduces the risk of demand for the services snapping back faster than Humana assumes, Jefferies analyst David Windley said in a client note. – Nampa/Reuters

Volkswagen takes on Tesla electric models

Volkswagen AG launched two ID.4 electric sport-utility vehicle models in China on Tuesday, taking on Tesla Inc in the world's biggest auto market.

The ID.4 CROZZ model is being made by Volkswagen's joint venture with FAW Group, while the ID.4 X is produced by a separate venture with SAIC Motor.

The German group did not disclose the price of the two models. A presentation at the product launch said the starting price of the SUVs, which are larger than Tesla's China-made Model 3 sedans, would be less than 250 000 yuan (US$37,450) after electric vehicle subsidies from the Chinese government.

The starting price for Model 3 sedans in China is currently 249 900 yuan, after subsidies. The ID.4 models will have driving ranges of over 400 kilometres and offer over-the-air software updates, Volkswagen executives said at the event.

Sales of electric, plug-in hybrid and hydrogen-powered vehicles in China are forecast to rise to 20% of new car sales by 2025 from just 5% now, the State Council said on Monday. - Nampa/Reuters