REUTERS NEWS SCHEDULE AT 6:00 a.m. GMT/2:00 p.m. SGT

Here are the top stories and upcoming coverage plans for Reuters text service as of 6:00 a.m. GMT/2:00 p.m. SGT. For a full schedule of news and events, go to our editorial calendar on Reuters Connect.

TOP STORIES

GLOBAL

CHINA-CONGRESS/

Xi set to open party congress at challenging time for China

BEIJING, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping will take the stage on Sunday to kick off a historic congress of the ruling Communist Party, where he is poised to win a third term that solidifies his place as China's most powerful ruler since Mao Zedong.

BRITAIN-POLITICS/

UK's Kwarteng heads home early amid reports of fiscal policy U-turn

LONDON/WASHINGTON, Oct 13 (Reuters) - British finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng cut short his trip to Washington for this week's global finance minister meetings and has headed back to London amid reports Prime Minister Liz Truss is considering reversing more of her government's controversial "mini-budget".

U.S.

USA-CAPITOL/SECURITY

U.S. House Jan. 6 committee votes to subpoena Trump

WASHINGTON, Oct 13 (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives committee probing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump's supporters voted unanimously on Thursday to subpoena the former president, a move that could lead to criminal charges if he does not comply.

USA-SAUDI/OPEC

Saudi Arabia, United States clash over reason for OPEC+ oil cut

CAIRO, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia rejected as "not based on facts" criticism of an OPEC+ decision last week to cut its oil production target despite U.S. objections, and said on Thursday that Washington's request to delay the cut by a month would have had negative economic consequences.

BUSINESS

TWITTER-M&A/MUSK-INVESTIGATION

Elon Musk is under federal investigations, Twitter says in court filing

WILMINGTON, Del., Oct 13 (Reuters) - Elon Musk is being investigated by federal authorities over his conduct in his $44 billion takeover deal for Twitter Inc, the social media company said in a court filing released on Thursday.

ALBERTSONS-M&A/KROGER

U.S. grocer Kroger in talks to merge with rival Albertsons -sources

U.S. grocery company Kroger Co is in talks to merge with smaller rival Albertsons Companies Inc in a tie-up that would create a supermarket titan, people familiar with the matter said.

ENTERTAINMENT

PEOPLE-CUBA GOODING JR/

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. avoids criminal record in Manhattan sex abuse case

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. pleaded guilty on Thursday to a single count of harassment under an agreement with prosecutors sparing him any jail time while disposing of a criminal case that stemmed from allegations by several women of sexual misconduct.

AWARDS-AMERICAN MUSIC/NOMINATIONS

Bad Bunny dominates American Music Award nominations

LOS ANGELES, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Puerto Rican rapper and singer Bad Bunny landed the most nominations for this year's American Music Awards, leading fellow rapper Drake and pop superstars Beyonce and Taylor Swift on the list of contenders unveiled on Thursday.

SPORTS

SOCCER-SPAIN-FCB/NEYMAR

Neymar faces five-year jail-term request in corruption and fraud trial

BARCELONA, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Brazil forward Neymar will stand trial next week on fraud and corruption charges over his transfer to Barcelona from Santos in 2013 and the complainant, Brazilian investment firm DIS, said on Thursday it was demanding a five-year jail term.

TENNIS-USA/KING

Serena, Felix now part of an 'old girls network', says King

NEW YORK, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Some of the biggest names in women's sport bowed out of competition in 2022 but tennis icon Billie Jean King expects the likes of Serena Williams and Allyson Felix to continue making headlines as part of a flourishing "old girls network".

UPCOMING

SPORTS

SOCCER-ENGLAND-LIV-MCI/PREVIEW

Soccer-Haaland and Nunez were tipped to be rivals, but so far it has been no contest

Both Manchester City and Liverpool spent big to revamp their striker department in the close season, with Erling Haaland and Darwin Nunez tipped to be rivals atop the goalscoring charts, but so far it has been no contest.

14 Oct 09:00 ET / 09:00 GMT

POLITICS / INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

TURKEY-QATAR/

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu speaks at joint news conference with Qatari counterpart Al-Thani

Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Qatari counterpart Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani holds joint news conference following talks during strategic cooperation meeting.

14 Oct 09:00 ET / 09:00 GMT

POLAND-ABORTION/ (PIX) (TV)

Polish activist could face 3 years in prison for providing abortion pills

Polish abortion activist Justyna Wydrzynska could be sentenced during a Friday hearing for providing abortion pills to another Polish woman. Poland's Constitutional Tribunal restricted abortion rights in 2020, making it de facto almost impossible to get one. If found guilty, Wydrzynska faces up to 3 years in prison. Abocyjny Dream Team, the activist group she is part of to comment on the hearing on Friday and has organized a march outside of the Warsaw court in solidarity with her.

14 Oct 09:00 ET / 09:00 GMT

IMF-WORLDBANK/PAKISTAN (TV)

Reuters interview with Pakistani Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.

Reuters interview with Pakistani Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.

14 Oct 21:45 ET / 21:45 GMT

USA-ELECTION/GEORGIA-SENATE (TV)

Democratic U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock, Republican challenger Herschel Walker, to debate

Democratic U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock, Republican challenger, former football star Herschel Walker, debate in Georgia ahead of midterm elections.

14 Oct 23:00 ET / 23:00 GMT

BUSINESS / ECONOMICS

CANADA-POLITICS/BUDGET

Canada should take heed of UK turmoil in upcoming fiscal update, analysts say

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government should avoid new stimulus when it updates its fiscal plans this fall and focus instead on paying down debt as governments globally face greater scrutiny managing their finances, analysts said.

14 Oct 10:00 ET / 10:00 GMT

AFRICA-COTTON/

Parasite outbreak hits cotton crops in West & Central Africa

An outbreak of a plant parasite known as jasside has hit crops in several cotton-producing countries in the West & Central Africa region, threatening the yield of a major foreign exchange earner in some of the countries such as Senegal, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Benin

14 Oct 12:00 ET / 12:00 GMT

UNITEDHLTH GRP-RESULTS/

UnitedHealth Group to report quarterly results

UnitedHealth is expected to report third-quarter earnings on Friday. The industry bellwether's medical costs will be in focus, as investors seek to gauge if COVID-19 costs have stabilized for health insurers after several quarters of volatility.

14 Oct 12:30 ET / 12:30 GMT

USA-FED/GEORGE

Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President George speaks on the economy to virtual S&P Global Ratings event

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Esther George speaks on the economic outlook before virtual S&P Global Finance Chat Series hosted by S&P Global Ratings.

14 Oct 14:00 ET / 14:00 GMT

USA-FED/COOK

Federal Reserve Board Governor Cook speaks on economy to bankers' group

Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook participates in fireside chat on the U.S. economy before the National Bankers Association 95th Anniversary Conference: "Honoring the Past, Shaping the Future: MDIs and the Road to Wealth Creation," in Washington.

14 Oct 14:30 ET / 14:30 GMT

USA-FED/WALLER

Federal Reserve Board Governor Waller participates in panel on central bank digital currency

Federal Reserve Board Governor Christopher Waller participates in panel on "Central Bank Digital Currency" panel before the Harvard Law School Symposium Digital Currencies and National Security Tradeoffs, in Cambridge, Mass.

14 Oct 16:15 ET / 16:15 GMT

USA-RIGS/BAKERHUGHES (GRAPHIC)

U.S. weekly oil and gas rig count data released by Baker Hughes

Baker Hughes releases weekly data detailing the number of oil and gas rigs deployed in the United States & Canada.

14 Oct 17:00 ET / 17:00 GMT

UKRAINE-CRISIS/SCHLUMBERGER (PIX)

Schlumberger faces Russian employee backlash over response to military draft

Some.of oilfield service firm Schlumberger's more than 9,000 Russian employees face receiving military draft notices at work and will not be allowed to work remotely to escape mobilization, according to people familiar with the matter and internal documents.

14 Oct 17:30 ET / 17:30 GMT

ARGENTINA-INFLATION/

September CPI data due for release

Argentina due to release September consumer inflation data

14 Oct 18:30 ET / 18:30 GMT

CANADA-CENBANK/

Bank of Canada Governor to speak to media after IMF meetings

Canada's central bank governor, Tiff Macklem, will participate in a media roundtable after the IMF meetings in Washington.

14 Oct 20:00 ET / 20:00 GMT

CRIME / LAW / JUSTICE

ALEX JONES-DEFAMATION/TRIAL

Alex Jones: what's next for Infowars founder after Sandy Hook trial verdict?

A Connecticut jury decided on Wednesday that right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones must pay nearly $1 billion to more than a dozen relatives of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook mass shooting for falsely claiming they were actors who staged the tragedy.

Here are some of the legal challenges Jones and his company face going forward, including additional penalties in Connecticut, developments in an earlier case in Texas and the ongoing bankruptcy of Jones' company.

14 Oct 10:00 ET / 10:00 GMT

ALEX JONES-DEFAMATION/TRIAL

Alex Jones faces long odds shielding assets after $1 billion Sandy Hook verdict, experts say

Right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has vowed to fight a nearly $1 billion defamation verdict against him, but experts say neither bankruptcy nor appeal of a Connecticut jury’s findings Wednesday are likely to salvage his personal fortune and media empire.

14 Oct 10:00 ET / 10:00 GMT

SAFRICA-CRIME/CAPE TOWN (PIX) (TV)

Cape Town law enforcement embarks on the "biggest anti-crime operation in the city's history"

In what the Cape Town mayor’s office is describing as the “biggest anti-crime operation” in the city’s history, more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have deployed in the Marikana informal settlement and surrounds. According to them, the area is the only area where crime is increasing in Cape Town. We get unfettered access to some of the units deployed. All the stops are being pulled out. This is also interesting given the friction between Cape Town city and the National Police – The city say that they are being deliberately underfunded by the National SAPS because they are led by the opposition. Also looking out for community members who are unhappy and claim they are being harassed and that this is a political stunt.

14 Oct 13:00 ET / 13:00 GMT

CONFLICTS / WAR / PEACE

MALI-SECURITY/ (PIX)

Mali security vacuum spurs jihadist advance in eastern regions

Islamic State-linked militants have made gains eastern Mali along the tri-border region with Niger and Burkina Faso, seizing territory, killing hundreds and forcing thousands to flee, local officials and analysts say, taking advantage of a security vacuum in the increasingly isolated West African nation.

14 Oct 11:00 ET / 11:00 GMT