Hanwha Offers Up to $1.2 Billion for Austal US Business 
Berkshire Hathaway Cash Falls as Abel Boosts Stock Buybacks 
Anthropic Signs $9.1B AI Data Center Deal With Riot Platforms 
Treasury Wine Estates Shares Jump as U.S. Overhaul Lifts FY2026 Outlook 
UOB Q2 Net Profit Rises 10% as Wealth Management Growth Boosts Earnings 
AMP Shares Surge 13% After Strong Profit and A$150 Million Buyback 
Nintendo Shares Jump as Switch 2 Sales Boost Earnings 
Mercedes-Benz Stock Offers Deep-Value Potential as Citi Sees Recovery Catalysts 
Apple Tests China’s CXMT Memory Chips for iPhones and MacBooks Amid AI Supply Crunch 
JPMorgan Plans More Asia-Pacific Hiring in 2027 as Corporate Banking Revenue Surges 
ADNOC Gas Targets Up to $4B Profit in 2026 
Airbus Joins Air India A320 Altitude Drop Probe 
Nvidia to Invest Up to $3 Billion in Blackstone-Backed Lancium 
Hims & Hers Shares Fall as GLP-1 Costs Widen Q2 Loss 
Cloudflare Stock Jumps 15% as Earnings Beat Estimates, 2026 Outlook Raised 
Trump Media Says Truth API Draws 10+ Customers as Conflict Concerns Grow 
Goldman Sachs Sees US Stock Buybacks Outpacing Equity Issuance as AI Funding Rises 
Australian shipbuilder Austal (ASX: ASB) saw its shares jump more than 16% on Tuesday after South Korea’s Hanwha Group submitted an offer worth as much as $1.2 billion to acquire Austal’s U.S. shipbuilding operations.
Austal confirmed it received a preliminary and non-binding proposal from Hanwha Defense USA that values Austal USA at between $1.05 billion and $1.20 billion. Austal USA is a major defence shipbuilder that produces vessels for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.
The proposed acquisition is limited to Austal’s U.S. operations. The company’s businesses in Australia, the Philippines and Vietnam are excluded from the offer, as are Austal’s publicly listed shares.
Following the announcement, Austal shares climbed 16.2% to A$6.46 in Sydney trading, reflecting strong investor interest in the potential transaction.
Austal has given Hanwha four weeks to conduct due diligence and prepare a final proposal. The company stressed that the offer remains subject to due diligence and other conditions, meaning there is currently no certainty that a transaction will be completed.
Austal USA has historically been the group’s main earnings contributor, accounting for approximately 90% of Austal’s pretax profit in fiscal 2025. However, the U.S. division is expected to record an EBIT loss of around A$175 million in fiscal 2026 after the company revised its assessment of contract recoverability.
The potential Austal USA acquisition also fits Hanwha Group’s broader strategy of expanding its presence in the U.S. defence and shipbuilding industry. The South Korean conglomerate strengthened its American operations by acquiring Philadelphia-based Philly Shipyard in 2024 and has also accumulated a significant stake in Austal.
For Austal investors, attention will now turn to whether Hanwha converts its preliminary offer into a binding proposal following the four-week due diligence period. Austal said it will continue evaluating the proposal as the process progresses.
