05Aug2019 Pre-Market Commentary: Wall Street Headed Lower As Yuan Slide Deepens Trade Fears, DOW Futures Down 360 Points, WTI Crude Steady At 54.86, Gold Index Higher At 1461

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

European markets are sharply lower today with shares in London off the most. The FTSE 100 is down 2.09% while France’s CAC 40 is off 1.86% and Germany’s DAX is lower by 1.41%.

Bombardier consortium wins $4.5 billion monorail contract

A consortium of Bombardier’s rail division , Orascom Construction and Arab Contractors said on Monday it had won a contract to supply and operate two monorail lines in Egypt for $4.5 billion.

IBM and other companies launch new blockchain network for supply management

International Business Machines Corp announced on Monday a new blockchain network aimed at improving manual and cumbersome supply chain management.

Walmart’s Flipkart to add free movies, videos streaming to its app

Walmart Inc’s Indian unit Flipkart is set to roll out a free video service for all of its 160 million customers this month as the ecommerce company looks for new ways to increase its user base in smaller towns and cities, it said on Monday.

HSBC axes CEO Flint in shock shift to speed up strategy

HSBC ousted John Flint as chief executive after just 18 months in a shock move the chairman of Europe’s biggest bank said was needed to speed up progress on priority areas such as the turnaround of its U.S. business.

Trade row slams stocks, yuan slumps to lowest in over a decade

Global stocks fell for a sixth day on Monday as an escalation of a trade war between the United States and China spooked markets and the yuan fell to its lowest levels in over a decade.

Wall Street headed lower as yuan slide deepens trade fears

U.S. stock index futures pointed to more losses on Monday as China’s yuan hit its lowest in a decade, spurring a continuation of a sell-off on trade concerns on Friday that generated the S&P 500’s worst weekly performance of 2019.

Drug industry urges Canada to act early on U.S. import plan

Canada’s main pharmaceutical lobby group has urged the government not to wait for drug shortages before responding to U.S. plans to import Canadian drugs, according to documents seen by Reuters.

Oil prices fall as trade war concerns hit demand outlook

Oil prices fell on Monday on global growth concerns after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened China with more tariffs, which could limit crude demand from the world’s two biggest buyers.

Elliott calls for break-up and bigger buyback at Germany’s Scout24

U.S. activist investor Elliott [ECAL.UL] has urged German classifieds group Scout24 to sell its car listings business and ramp up a share buyback program to boost returns to investors.

Here Comes The “Extreme Negative Gamma” Selling Avalanche

Last Friday, when describing the period which he called “the most manic 36 hours of trading in my 18 year career”, Nomura’s Charlie McElligott hit the nail on the head as to the two main reasons why risk assets are tumbling today alongside the dramatic spike in the VIX:

1. Dealers were clearly “Short Gamma” in Index / ETF at the start of the month, and

   Dealers are clearly “Short Vol” in-bulk, thanks to the “50 Cent” VIX upside flows which have been trading in SIZE over the past few weeks.

In addition to dealers being off side, McElligott cautioned that systematic VIX Roll-down players in recent weeks had also reapplied significant size to the “Short Vol” trade, as per VIX futures positioning—thus, with the curve again “inverted,” they will be forced / unemotional hedging of these front-end shorts in UX1 and UX2 (none of this is surprising to those who read our piece from last weekend which found that, contrary to conventional wisdom, stocks were actually massively overbought across the board, according to JPMorgan data).

Trump Slams China’s “Currency Manipulation” After PBOC Denies Competitive Devaluation

Following the collapse of the yuan overnight…

“We Can’t Let Them Die In Vain”: Trump Suggests Tying Background Checks To Immigration Reform After Deadly Shootings

Following this weekend’s series of mass shootings that left roughly 30 people dead, President Trump on Monday suggested passing new gun control legislation, which could be tied to immigration reform, in a reversal from his previous stance on gun control.

Global Stocks Crash, VIX Surges, Europe Tumbles As Currency War Begins

U.S. equity futures slumped, European stocks tumbled and Asian markets were in freefall on Monday, after China finally struck back in its trade dispute with America, letting its currency plunge below the key psychological level of 7 vs the USD.

The history behind the geography that India just altered forever

The history behind the geography that India just altered foreverThe genesis of the state’s uneasy ties with the Union of India lies in the turbulent post-partition months.

Who made and lost money in 2019 so far

Who made and lost money in 2019 so farWadia Group Chairman Nusli Wadia’s wealth dropped by about $1.44 billion to $5.86 billion.

Another Ambani vs Mittal clash brewing?

Another Ambani vs Mittal clash brewing?Private equity firms, AMCs, tower operators among 10-12 firms have submitted EoIs.

Paul Brandus: Gun industry’s woes are accelerating on Trump’s watch

Even as U.S. stocks trade near all-time highs, one industry has taken it on the chin in the Trump era: gun manufacturers.

Futures Movers: Oil resumes steep drop as U.S.-China trade row raises demand worries

Oil futures resumed their drop Monday, tracking losses ripping through broader financial markets as concern for a prolonged trade war and its risk to global oil demand has been rekindled in recent days.

July was hottest month on record

As an intense heat wave gripped Paris, London and Madrid, and as parts of Greenland melted, July 2019 marked the warmest month ever recorded, according to data released Monday.