Disney and YouTube TV Reach Deal, Ending 15-Day Standoff — WSJ

Net profit for the first nine months of 2025 rose 3.28% year-over-year to RMB222,323 million, with operating income up 1.87%. Asset quality improved as the NPL ratio fell to 1.27%, and capital adequacy remained strong at 17.78%.

Original document: Agricultural Bank of China Limited Class A [601288] Earnings Release — Oct. 30 2025

Net profit for the first nine months of 2025 rose 3.28% year-over-year, with strong fee and commission income growth offsetting a decline in net interest income. Asset quality improved, capital ratios remained robust, and significant capital market activities were completed.

Original document: Agricultural Bank of China Limited Class A [601288] Earnings Release — Oct. 30 2025

Margin pressure at China's largest state-owned banks could be easing, eToro market analyst Zavier Wong says in a note. Bank of China, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank and Agricultural Bank of China have indicated that funding costs could decline in 2H as deposit rates reset lower. "If that does happen, it could help stabilize net interest margins, which have been in decline for nearly two years", he adds. Fee-based income and trading activity have become more important profit drivers, reflecting a shift toward services from traditional spread-based lending for revenue, Wong notes. In 3Q, the focus will likely change to momentum from recovery at the beginning of the year, but profitability is unlikely to surge given selective credit demand, Wong says. (jason.chau@wsj.com)

By Joseph De Avila

Sinclair is putting Jimmy Kimmel back on the air.

The TV broadcaster, which owns dozens of ABC affiliates in markets including Washington, D.C., Seattle and St. Louis, said it will end its pre-emption of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and air the late-night show again beginning Friday.

ABC suspended the show earlier this month after remarks Kimmel made about the killing of conservative activist and podcast host Charlie Kirk. ABC brought the show back Tuesday, but Sinclair said it still wouldn't carry it at that time.

"Our decision to preempt this program was independent of any government interaction or influence," Sinclair said Friday. "Free speech provides broadcasters with the right to exercise judgment as to the content on their local stations."

Nexstar Media Group, another major broadcaster that pulled Kimmel from its local ABC affiliates, said earlier this week that it continues to evaluate the show and is speaking with Disney, "with a focus on ensuring the program reflects and respects the diverse interests of the communities we serve." Nexstar didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Last week, after Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr suggested the agency might come down on broadcasters that didn't take action against Kimmel, Sinclair and Nexstar said they would pull the show from their local affiliates. ABC then suspended it for four days.

Sinclair had initially called for Kimmel to apologize to the Kirk family and make a personal donation to the family and Kirk's organization, Turning Point USA.

Sinclair said it has received feedback from viewers, advertisers and others since pulling "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and "remains committed to serving our communities with programming that reflects their priorities, earns their trust, and promotes constructive dialogue."

Sinclair said it has had discussions with ABC, and proposed "measures to strengthen accountability, viewer feedback and community dialogue." Sinclair also proposed adding a network-wide independent ombudsman, it said.

Sinclair said it respects the right of ABC and its parent, Disney, to make such decisions.

ABC hasn't made any editorial or content concessions, people familiar with the matter said.

Write to Joseph De Avila at joseph.deavila@wsj.com

By Joe Flint, Suzanne Vranica and Isabella Simonetti

Soon after Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr blasted late-night host Jimmy Kimmel on Wednesday over remarks related to the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, executives at ABC and parent company Disney knew they had a big problem.

Kimmel, during his Monday show, had criticized how President Trump and some other Republicans were responding to the fatal shooting. Carr suggested during a podcast appearance two days later that the FCC could take action against the broadcast licenses of ABC-owned stations.

Advertisers and affiliates soon called the network expressing concern about Kimmel's show. Executives at Sinclair and Nexstar, owners of more than 60 local ABC stations, told network leaders after Carr's remarks that they would "indefinitely preempt" the show starting that night, moves that would hobble the program's reach.

Kimmel had planned to address Carr's comments on his show Wednesday night, according to people familiar with the matter. Before his on-air appearance, Dana Walden, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, spoke to the host about his plan, the people said.

After the conversation between Kimmel and Walden, she and other senior executives thought that the star's approach could make the situation worse, people familiar with their conversations said. Executives also discussed staff safety, including threatening emails staff on Kimmel's show had received after Carr's remarks and the posting of some of their personal information online, the people said.

Walden huddled with her team and Disney CEO Bob Iger before the two executives decided to temporarily take "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" off the air, the people said. She then informed Kimmel of the decision.

A person close to the show said that Kimmel was planning to say that his words were being purposefully twisted by some members of the Make America Great Again movement.

Media owners are facing complex political and commercial dynamics during the Trump administration. Trump has particular leverage over companies that are reliant on federal airwaves regulated by the FCC or in need of the agency's approval for deals.

"We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them," Kimmel told his audience Monday.

"In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving," he said. Kimmel was also critical of President Trump's grieving process for Kirk, which he said was akin to "how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish."

Some conservatives railed against the comments. Carr told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson that Kimmel appeared to "directly mislead the American public" and suggested the FCC could take action against broadcast licenses of ABC-owned stations.

After ABC pulled Kimmel's show, Carr said in a post on X on Wednesday night that "local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest" and praised Nexstar for "doing the right thing." He also praised Sinclair in a separate post.

President Trump said Thursday while speaking to reporters on Air Force One that broadcast networks that are "against" him might have their licenses taken away. "They give me only bad press, but they're getting a license," he said.

Nexstar, a suburban Dallas-based broadcaster that owns and operates more than 200 local television stations, needs the FCC's signoff on its $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna.

It also needs the agency to ease rules that currently limit the percentage a broadcaster can reach to 39% of the nation's television households.

"The decision to preempt 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' was made unilaterally by the senior executive team at Nexstar, and they had no communication with the FCC or any government agency prior to making that decision," a Nexstar spokesman said.

ABC, which was in the middle of planning a live show featuring Kimmel expected to be filmed in Brooklyn, N.Y., later this month, scrambled to satisfy advertisers who had paid for commercials to run on episodes that were canceled. Advertising buyers said they likely would shift ad dollars committed to Kimmel's show to other programs, with some considering asking for some money back.

"We live in very unnerving and surreal times which is all I'll say now on the matter," John Wolk, a member of the standards and practices team who works on Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show, said in a Facebook post to friends early Thursday.

Some in Hollywood's creative community have criticized Disney's decision to pull Kimmel. Unions for actors and producers issued statements critical of the decision.

Damon Lindelof, a co-creator of the classic ABC drama "Lost," on the social-media platform BlueSky defended Kimmel and said he wouldn't want to work for the company that has taken the host off the air.

"We all see where this is going, correct? It's managed media. And it's no good," David Letterman, the former late-night host, said at an Atlantic magazine event Thursday.

One Democratic senator accused the Trump administration of censorship and former President Barack Obama said it had embraced its own version of cancel culture.

Some media critics said Kimmel's benching, coupled with CBS's recent decision to cancel its late-night show hosted by frequent Trump critic Stephen Colbert when its season ends in May 2026, will lead shows to self-censor and create a chilling effect.

Trump, who applauded the move on Truth Social, appeared Wednesday to encourage NBC to cancel "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers." A NBCUniversal spokeswoman declined to comment.

"I think the degree of capitulation going forward will to some extent be a function of what kind of financial cudgel the administration has to wield," said Lee Levine, a retired media lawyer. "Whenever the cudgel has been pretty significant, sooner or later the network caved in the recent past."

ABC agreed late last year to pay $15 million to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by Trump against the network and George Stephanopoulos.

Paramount earlier this year agreed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit with Trump over the editing of a "60 Minutes" interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. At the time, the FCC was reviewing its proposed merger with Skydance Media. Shortly after the settlement, the FCC approved the merger. Carr, who secured concessions from Skydance including the addition of an ombudsman at CBS News, has said the settlement was unrelated to the approval.

Write to Joe Flint at Joe.Flint@wsj.com, Suzanne Vranica at Suzanne.Vranica@wsj.com and Isabella Simonetti at isabella.simonetti@wsj.com

By Joe Flint, Suzanne Vranica and Isabella Simonetti

Soon after Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr blasted late-night host Jimmy Kimmel on Wednesday over remarks related to the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, executives at ABC and parent company Disney knew they had a big problem.

Kimmel, during his Monday show, had criticized how President Trump and some other Republicans were responding to the fatal shooting. Carr suggested during a podcast appearance two days later that the FCC could take action against the broadcast licenses of ABC-owned stations.

Advertisers and affiliates soon called the network expressing concern about Kimmel's show. Executives at Sinclair and Nexstar, owners of more than 60 local ABC stations, told network leaders after Carr's remarks that they would "indefinitely preempt" the show starting that night, moves that would hobble the program's reach.

Kimmel had planned to address Carr's comments on his show Wednesday night, according to people familiar with the matter. Before his on-air appearance, Dana Walden, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, spoke to the host about his plan, the people said.

After the conversation between Kimmel and Walden, she and other senior executives thought that the star's approach could make the situation worse, people familiar with their conversations said. Executives also discussed staff safety, including threatening emails staff on Kimmel's show had received after Carr's remarks and the posting of some of their personal information online, the people said.

Walden huddled with her team and Disney CEO Bob Iger before the two executives decided to temporarily take "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" off the air, the people said. She then informed Kimmel of the decision.

A person close to the show said that Kimmel was planning to say that his words were being purposefully twisted by some members of the Make America Great Again movement.

Media owners are facing complex political and commercial dynamics during the Trump administration. Trump has particular leverage over companies that are reliant on federal airwaves regulated by the FCC or in need of the agency's approval for deals.

"We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them," Kimmel told his audience Monday.

"In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving," he said. Kimmel was also critical of President Trump's grieving process for Kirk, which he said was akin to "how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish."

Some conservatives railed against the comments. Carr told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson that Kimmel appeared to "directly mislead the American public" and suggested the FCC could take action against broadcast licenses of ABC-owned stations.

After ABC pulled Kimmel's show, Carr said in a post on X on Wednesday night that "local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest" and praised Nexstar for "doing the right thing." He also praised Sinclair in a separate post.

President Trump said Thursday while speaking to reporters on Air Force One that broadcast networks that are "against" him might have their licenses taken away. "They give me only bad press, but they're getting a license," he said.

Nexstar, a suburban Dallas-based broadcaster that owns and operates more than 200 local television stations, needs the FCC's signoff on its $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna.

It also needs the agency to ease rules that currently limit the percentage a broadcaster can reach to 39% of the nation's television households.

"The decision to preempt 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' was made unilaterally by the senior executive team at Nexstar, and they had no communication with the FCC or any government agency prior to making that decision," a Nexstar spokesman said.

ABC, which was in the middle of planning a live show featuring Kimmel expected to be filmed in Brooklyn, N.Y., later this month, scrambled to satisfy advertisers who had paid for commercials to run on episodes that were canceled. Advertising buyers said they likely would shift ad dollars committed to Kimmel's show to other programs, with some considering asking for some money back.

"We live in very unnerving and surreal times which is all I'll say now on the matter," John Wolk, a member of the standards and practices team who works on Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show, said in a Facebook post to friends early Thursday.

Some in Hollywood's creative community have criticized Disney's decision to pull Kimmel. Unions for actors and producers issued statements critical of the decision.

Damon Lindelof, a co-creator of the classic ABC drama "Lost," on the social-media platform BlueSky defended Kimmel and said he wouldn't want to work for the company that has taken the host off the air.

"We all see where this is going, correct? It's managed media. And it's no good," David Letterman, the former late-night host, said at an Atlantic magazine event Thursday.

One Democratic senator accused the Trump administration of censorship and former President Barack Obama said it had embraced its own version of cancel culture.

Some media critics said Kimmel's benching, coupled with CBS's recent decision to cancel its late-night show hosted by frequent Trump critic Stephen Colbert when its season ends in May 2026, will lead shows to self-censor and create a chilling effect.

Trump, who applauded the move on Truth Social, appeared Wednesday to encourage NBC to cancel "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers." A NBCUniversal spokeswoman declined to comment.

"I think the degree of capitulation going forward will to some extent be a function of what kind of financial cudgel the administration has to wield," said Lee Levine, a retired media lawyer. "Whenever the cudgel has been pretty significant, sooner or later the network caved in the recent past."

ABC agreed late last year to pay $15 million to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by Trump against the network and George Stephanopoulos.

Paramount earlier this year agreed to pay $16 million to settle a lawsuit with Trump over the editing of a "60 Minutes" interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. At the time, the FCC was reviewing its proposed merger with Skydance Media. Shortly after the settlement, the FCC approved the merger. Carr, who secured concessions from Skydance including the addition of an ombudsman at CBS News, has said the settlement was unrelated to the approval.

Write to Joe Flint at Joe.Flint@wsj.com, Suzanne Vranica at Suzanne.Vranica@wsj.com and Isabella Simonetti at isabella.simonetti@wsj.com