Category: 3. Business

Linklaters is advising the joint financial advisers to the offeror on the proposed privatisation of Hang Seng Bank, one of Hong Kong SAR’s largest domestic banks, by way of a scheme of arrangement under section 673 of the Companies Ordinance. The transaction, which involves the proposed withdrawal of listing of Hang Seng Bank shares from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, has a deal value of approximately HK$106bn (approximately US$13.6bn).

The Linklaters team was led by corporate partner Roger Cheng and solicitor Inez Wong, with support from associate Zoe Cheung. 

Corporate partner Roger Cheng commented: 

“We are delighted to have supported our clients on this landmark transaction. Effectively leveraging our team’s knowledge and experience in public M&A and complex privatisations has been pivotal to supporting our clients in delivering this significant transaction.”

 

Toulouse, France, 10 October 2025 – Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS), member of the Lufthansa Group, has taken delivery of its first of ten A350-900. Supporting the airline’s fleet modernisation programme, the latest-generation widebody is set to become SWISS’s flagship aircraft. The A350 will be operated on long-haul routes from its home base in Zurich to destinations like Boston, strengthening the airline’s global network.

The Airbus A350-900 is the first aircraft in the SWISS long-haul fleet to be equipped with the new SWISS Senses cabin. Designed to provide a more personal and comfortable air travel experience for passengers in all seating classes. The aircraft cabin is configured with a four-class layout, offering three suites up to four seats in First Class, 45 seats in Business, 38 in Premium Economy, and 156 in Economy.

The A350 is the world’s most modern widebody aircraft and has set new standards for intercontinental travel. The A350’s all-new design includes state-of-the-art technologies and aerodynamics delivering unmatched standards of efficiency and comfort. Its new generation engines and use of lightweight materials bring a 25 per cent advantage in fuel burn, operating costs and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions, compared to previous generation competitor aircraft. The A350-900 is equipped with a comfortable and spacious Airspace cabin, wide seats, high ceilings and alluring ambient lighting. 

As with all Airbus aircraft, the A350 aircraft is already able to operate with up to 50% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). Airbus is targeting to have its aircraft up to 100% SAF capable by 2030. 

At the end of September 2025, the A350 had won over 1,400 orders from 63 customers worldwide.

@SWISS @Airbus #A350 #LongRangeLeader

Fujitsu Limited and Nutanix (NASDAQ: NTNX), a leader in hybrid multicloud computing, today announced that Fujitsu has completed the migration of its mission-critical enterprise service operation platform from its existing virtualization infrastructure to PRIMEFLEX for Nutanix, which comes standard with the Nutanix Cloud Platform (NCP) solution. This migration enabled Fujitsu to achieve reductions of approximately 30% in implementation costs, and 90% in labor hours for post-migration updates to the service platform. The migration was achieved in two months.

Based on the success, expertise, and know-how gained from the migration of its enterprise service platform to NCP, Fujitsu is leveraging NCP to expand its Mission Critical Transformation Service to provide end-to-end migration support for its customers—from platform assessment to migration and operations. The service will be offered in Japan from October 10, 2025.

In renewing the infrastructure of mission-critical systems—which have a very high impact on business and require consistently high availability and stable operation—it is essential to optimize maintenance and operational costs, adopt new technologies, and address business growth and transformation needs, while minimizing the impact on ongoing operations.

The migration process involves a wide range of challenges, including possible system downtime, ensuring compatibility with existing infrastructure, and managing complex data transitions. In addition, many organizations face skills and resource constraints that hinder their ability to migrate from current systems to optimal infrastructure and adopt new technologies.

Under this service, migration plans are developed to ensure the reliable transfer of numerous business systems while carefully minimizing system downtime for mission-critical systems, including thorough execution of post-migration tasks such as safe system restarts and service verification.

When the migrating systems are running in different virtual environments, Fujitsu will leverage its advanced expertise and practical migration know-how to configuration estimation and sizing, and Nutanix will apply its best practices in workload optimization, compatibility assessment, and performance tuning, ensuring that the system is designed to maximize the performance and availability of the NCP. Furthermore, during migration, customers can achieve a seamless transition from their existing environments by using Nutanix Move, enabling the fastest and simplest migration.

This service will enable efficient and secure migration while delivering business continuity for customers, by supporting reliable, high-quality transitions of on-premises virtualization platforms and minimizing the risks associated with migration.

Fujitsu aims to achieve cumulative sales of approximately 15 billion yen over the next 5 years through this new service. Additionally, Fujitsu will gradually expand its support for migrations to the other Fujitsu cloud platforms.

“By leveraging Nutanix’s migration tools, which successfully supported the renewal of our mission-critical enterprise service infrastructure, we were able to complete the migration in just two months, achieving significant reductions in both implementation costs and labor,” said Kazushi Koga, Corporate Executive Officer, Fujitsu Limited. “Building on this expertise, we are now offering a new migration support service, the ‘Mission Critical Transformation Service.’ This proven collaboration between our two companies will strongly drive the transformation of on-premises virtualized infrastructures.”

“Organizations across industries are seeking faster, more secure ways to migrate and modernize their infrastructure while maintaining business continuity,” said Jay Tuseth, Vice President & General Manager, Asia Pacific Japan, Nutanix. “Our collaboration with Fujitsu will deliver exactly that—an enterprise-grade migration service built on the Nutanix Cloud Platform, backed by deep regional expertise and a shared commitment to customer success. Together, we’re enabling smooth transitions from existing virtual environments and helping customers unlock the full potential of hybrid multicloud.”

This study was conducted with the objective of comparing image quality and radiation dose between 100 and 120 kVp CT coronary angiography. It is important to reduce the tube potential to minimize the dose administered to the patient because increasing the dose may cause several biological effects [9, 10]. However, low tube voltage increases image noise; thus, in the present study, participants with low and normal BMIs were scanned at 100 kVp and those with higher BMIs at 120 kVp to reduce image noise. Therefore, by conducting a thorough analysis and comparing our findings with other studies, we aimed to optimize the CT protocols to get optimum image quality with a reduced radiation dosage.

MDCTA has a high diagnostic accuracy, although radiation dose remains an important concern, so it is necessary to optimize the dose [9, 10]. In the current study, the effective dose, DLP, and CTDI_vol were evaluated, and a significant variation was found in the comparative evaluation of radiation dosage with different tube voltage settings. When the tube potential was reduced from 120 to 100 kVp, 39% decrease in the radiation dosage was observed while maintaining the optimal image quality. Various studies have reported a reduction of radiation dose up to 52%, maintaining good image quality when kVp was reduced from 120 to 100 kVp [10]. The variation in the dose reduction in the previous studies and the present study might be because of the type of cardiac gating and the scan length [2, 9, 10]. Since most of the studies were performed using prospective gating, however, in the current study, retrospective gating was used. Typically, retrospective gating results in a higher radiation dose because of continuous exposure compared to prospective gating. Therefore, the type of ECG gating is one of the factors influencing dose reduction [13]. The present study was conducted by reducing the kVp based on BMI. This study demonstrates that even with retrospective ECG gating, which generally associated with higher radiation exposure, substantial dose reduction can be achieved through voltage optimization, making it valuable in settings where prospective gating is not feasible.

Image quality was assessed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Quantitative assessment revealed significant variations in image quality metrics across different voltage settings. Changes in the CNR and SNR were detected, indicating a substantial impact of voltage modulation on image acquisition. These findings align with those of previous studies, which reported slight reductions in the CNR with alterations in voltage settings and by adjusting the amount of mAs to different R-R intervals [2, 10]. Most of the coronary angiography requires 70–75% and 40–45% R-R intervals to get motion-free images. Low mAs can be used for 0–30 and 80–100 cycles, which will help to reduce the dose further. The present study showed a substantial decrease in the CNR and SNR at 120 kVp compared to previous studies. While previous studies suggested reductions of approximately 10–12% in CNR, our findings indicated a reduction of approximately 30%, which could be attributed to reconstruction techniques. The findings suggest that the tube voltage selection can improve specific image quality metrics [2, 9, 10]. Comparing the Hounsfield Unit (HU) readings at 100 kVp and 120 kVp settings provides intriguing information on the density properties of various tissues. We found that after switching from 100 to 120 kVp, HU values decreased consistently across the ROIs placed on various arteries (Ao, LM, LAD, LCX, and RCA). These findings suggest that higher tissue attenuation at lower tube potentials leads to higher HU values, resulting in improved image contrast. [9]

The increase in tissue density can impact the analysis of coronary plaques. Higher Hounsfield Unit (HU) values enhance the differentiation between the lumen of the coronary vessels and nearby structures, improving the visibility of both calcified and non-calcified plaques [16, 17]. When using lower kilovolt peak (kVp) settings, the HU values of intravascular contrast and surrounding plaques can rise, which may lead to an overestimation of calcified plaques and an underestimation of low-attenuation, lipid-rich plaques [18]. Studies by Takagi et al. [19] and Maffei et al. [20] indicate that higher vessel attenuation can change plaque classification, highlighting the necessity of adjusting interpretation thresholds in low-kVp imaging methods.

In addition to the CNR and SNR, noise levels are important in determining CT image quality. Our analysis indicated consistent decreases in noise across various ROIs when a higher tube voltage of 120 kVp was used [9, 10]. The observed percentage decreases in noise ranged from approximately 14.17% to 25.53%, suggesting a reduction in background noise with higher voltage settings. Our findings align with the observations of Ripsweiden et al. and Wang et al., who stated that there is an increase in image noise with decreasing tube potential to 100 kVp [2, 10]. Even though the noise levels were higher at 100kVp, the increase in HU improved vessel delineation; SNR and CNR remained significantly better ensuring that diagnostic confidence was not compromised.

Lower tube voltage protocols can increase image noise, but this can be mitigated using iterative reconstruction (IR) algorithms such as adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction (ASIR), model-based iterative reconstruction (MBIR), and sinogram-affirmed iterative reconstruction (SAFIRE) [21, 22]. These algorithms enhance the image acquisition process by reducing noise while preserving edge detail, improving CNR and SNR at lower kilovolt peak (kVp) settings. Research shows that IR can maintain diagnostic quality at 80–100 kVp while cutting radiation dose by up to 50% [23]. Although our study used standard reconstruction methods, incorporating IR or precise imaging in future protocols could further reduce noise in 100 kVp imaging, particularly for patients with slightly elevated body mass index (BMI).

Various studies have reported an increase in HU values with low tube voltage, and the noise can be reduced by using various reconstruction algorithms [9].

Alongside quantitative metrics, qualitative image assessment played a vital role in our study, as radiologists depend on qualitative assessment of images while reporting. Image quality was assessed for both 100 kVp and 120 kVp. Interreader agreement analysis demonstrated substantial concordance between observers, displaying the reliability of our qualitative interpretation. Radiologists used specific parameters, such as the delineation of the main coronary arteries as a sharp interface between the luminal contrast and wall, which helps them to identify several focal plaques and wall thickening, too. Many a time, distal contrast opacification and contrast delineation are challenging in the evaluation of pathology. Good agreement was found between the two readers, which states that the overall image quality was maintained, even though when the kVp was reduced, the optimum diagnostic image quality was maintained throughout. This robust agreement highlights the consistency and reproducibility of our qualitative assessments, which are essential for clinical decision-making. The findings of the present study can be used to tailor the protocol for coronary angiography based on BMI and reduce the exposure factor while maintaining good image quality, which will enhance patient care. Although the study was conducted in a single center, the protocol can be adapted broadly as BMI-based voltage adjustment is vendor-neutral and widely applicable.

Limitation

The study has several limitations. First, data were collected from a single center with a relatively small sample size, which may affect the generalizability of the findings. Second, retrospective ECG gating was employed, typically resulting in higher radiation exposure compared to prospective gating. As a result, our findings may not be directly comparable to studies that exclusively use prospective gating techniques. Additionally, while the selection of tube voltage based on BMI shows promise, the sizes of the subgroups were limited. Therefore, larger multicenter studies are needed to confirm the applicability of these findings across diverse patient populations. Future studies can be performed to explore the effect of tube voltage on specific patient subgroups, such as those with different body mass index or cardiac conditions, with further reduction of exposure factors.

MANILA, Philippines — MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Asian shares mostly fell on Friday, after a respite from Wall Street’s recent feverish rally. The price of gold also pulled back from record highs following recent torrid runs.

U.S. futures and oil prices were higher.

Nealy all Asian indexes were down, with the exception of South Korea’s Kospi, which climbed 1.3% to 3,596.36 as trading reopened after a holiday.

The surge was fueled by a rally of tech shares including SK Hynix, which was up nearly 7%. Samsung Electronics rose 5.4%, boosted by news that Nvidia-backed Reflection AI had raised $2 billion, raising its market value to $8 billion.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1% to 48,087.75, pulling back from big gains the previous day after data showed producer prices rose more than expected in September.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index shed 0.8% to 26,534.65, while the Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.5% to 3,913.98.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slid 0.1% to 8,959.80. Taiwan’s stock market was closed for a holiday.

On Thursday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.3% from its latest all-time high for just its second loss in the last 10 days, closing at 6,735.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.5% to 46,358.42, and the Nasdaq composite edged down by 0.1% to 23,024.63.

Gold also fell following its stellar rally this year, losing 2.4% to drop back below $4,000 per ounce, while Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. They’re taking a moment following big runs driven in large part by expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates to support the economy.

Financial markets have been climbing so relentlessly, including a 35% leap for the S&P 500 from a low in April, that worries are mounting that prices may have shot too high. Concerns are particularly strong about the frenzy lifting stocks related to artificial-intelligence technology.

Dell Technologies sank 5.2% for the biggest loss in the S&P 500, but that only trimmed its surge since talking up its AI growth opportunities at an investment conference earlier in the week. The stock was still up nearly 11% for the week so far.

Tesla also weighed on the market after falling 0.7%. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a preliminary evaluation of its “Full Self-Driving” system due to safety concerns.

Those losses helped offset a 4.3% ascent for Delta Air Lines, which reported a stronger profit for the summer than analysts expected.

Delta also forecasted a range for profit during the year’s final three months whose midpoint topped analysts’ estimates. Its president, Glen Hauenstein, highlighted a broad-based acceleration in sales trends over the last six weeks, including for domestic business travel.

Such corporate reports have gained importance since they offer insights into the strength of the U.S. economy after U.S. government shutdown is delayed reports that usually serve that purpose. This is the second week where the U.S. government has not published its update on unemployment claims, for example, a report that usually helps guide Wall Street’s trading each Thursday.

In other dealings early Friday, U.S. benchmark crude oil added 10 cents to $61.61 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, edged up 5 cents to $65.27 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar fell to 152.74 Japanese yen from 153.05 yen. The euro rose to $1.1572 from $1.1569.

___

AP Business Writers Stan Choe and Matt Ott contributed.

It is prospective study conducted over a two-year period (February 2022 to January 2024) at the Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology Department of our institution. The study was approved by the research ethics committee of the Radiology Department of the Faculty of Medicine Mansoura University (Reference number of approval: MD.22.03.626) and was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. All participants provided written informed consent to participate in this study. Clinical trial number: not applicable. Throughout the study, strict polices were taken to ensure the confidentiality and privacy of patient data.

Thirty-four patients with histologically confirmed EC were enrolled in this study. Participants were included in the study if they were 18 years of age or older and provided written informed consent. All participants had a histologically confirmed diagnosis of endometrial carcinoma. Participants were excluded if they presented with contraindications to MRI (including cochlear implants, cardiac pacemakers, metallic stents, claustrophobia, or morbid obesity), a diagnosis of endometrial stromal sarcoma, or a history of neoadjuvant chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

All participants underwent non-contrast MRI, encompassing DWI and IVIM sequences. Histopathological diagnosis of the neoplastic lesions served as the reference standard for the study’s findings.

Two radiologists with 7 and 14 years of experience, respectively, interpreted the images using a consensus reading approach.

All patients were subject to MRI examinations using a 1.5 Tesla Siemens Symphony scanner with an abdominal coil positioned around the pelvis. Prior to the examination, patients were instructed to Abstain from food and drink for 4–6 h and maintain a comfortably full bladder.

Conventional MRI

MRI imaging T2 Fast-Spin Echo (FSE) Weighted Imaging (TR/TE, 4000–6000/100–110 ms) in two planes: Sagittal and Axial (short axis upon the endometrial cavity), Axial STIR and T1 WI sequences were acquired using a TR of 400–600 ms (ms) and an TE of 10–14 ms. The field of view (FOV) was 38 × 26 cm², with 5 mm slice thickness, 1 mm interslice gap, and 24 slices acquired.

Diffusion weighted imaging and ADC value

DWI was carried out through a multi-section single-shot spin-echo sequence with b-values of 0, 400 and 800 s/mm². Diffusion gradients were applied in three orthogonal directions. The imaging parameters were: TR/TE = 7000/77 ms, matrix size = 128 × 128 with same slice thickness, interslice gap, and field of view.

Initial DWI evaluation consisted of interpretation of signal intensity within the endometrial mass. Restricted diffusion was identified by a hyperintense signal on the b-800 image and a corresponding low signal on the ADC map.

ADC maps were automatically produced, followed by manual segmentation of regions of interest (ROIs) on areas of maximum restriction of tumoral tissue with careful exclusion of areas showing necrosis, cystic changes, or hemorrhage. Necrotic areas were avoided during ROI placement by using the anatomical images as a guide. ROI sizes ranged from 1 to 2.5 cm². The final parametric values were derived from the mean measurements across all ROIs. The inter-reader agreement between the two radiologists was substantial (Cohen’s κ = 0.82, p < 0.001).

Intravoxel incoherent motion

Ten-b-value DWI sequence was acquired including (0, 30, 70, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1000, 1500, and 2000 mm²/s).

Regions of interest (ROIs) were consistently delineated on ADC maps and then applied to the equivalent IVIM maps. A biexponential model was used to calculate D, D*, and f. Color maps were generated from the IVIM model and were overlaid on anatomical reference images, with a continuous color scale ranging from low values (blue) to high values (red). D represents the true diffusivity of water molecules within the extracellular space, reflecting tissue microstructure; the color bar on the side indicates the D values, where blue represents lower diffusivity and red represents higher diffusivity. D* reflects the motion of blood water within the capillary network. The perfusion fraction (f) quantifies the proportion of tissue occupied by perfused blood Color maps of the perfusion fraction (f, %) were generated from the IVIM biexponential fitting model. These maps display the fractional volume of microvascular blood flow within each voxel. A continuous color scale was applied, with blue representing low f values and red representing high f values, as indicated by the accompanying scale bar. ROIs were drawn over the solid portion of the tumor on the f maps, referencing anatomical images to avoid necrotic or cystic regions, and mean values were recorded for statistical analysis.”

Histopathological analysis

Twenty-seven cases were candidates for total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophrectomy underwent full post-surgical histopathological analysis to determine tumor type, However the other seven cases were shifted to chemoradiotherapy following D and C only for the extensive spread of the disease beyond the pelvic cavity (four case) or due to the age and general condition of the patient (three cases).

Statistical analysis

Data were analyzed using SPSS version 15 for Windows®. Frequencies and percentages described categorical variables, with group comparisons performed using Chi-square tests. Quantitative data normality was assessed via the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test. Normally distributed data are reported as means ± standard deviations, while non-normally distributed data are presented as medians and ranges (minimum–maximum). The Mann–Whitney U test was employed for non-parametric group comparisons. A p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.