24Mar2016 Pre-Market Commentary: Global Markets Flashing Red - A Good Day To Stay In Bed

Written by Gary

Commodities and markets are down with USA futures signaling a down start. Europe have declined this entire week.The dollar continues to strengthen.

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money
	European markets are sharply lower today with shares in France off the most. The CAC 40 is down 1.90% while Germany’s DAX is off 1.48% and London’s FTSE 100 is lower by 1.35%.

What Is Moving the Markets

Here are the headlines moving the markets.
	Accenture revenue rises on strong consulting growth (Reuters) – Accenture Plc reported a 6 percent rise in quarterly revenue, helped by strong growth in its consulting business, especially in North America.
	Trump’s tariff plan could boomerang, spark trade wars with China, Mexico WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Donald Trump’s threats to slap steep tariffs on Chinese and Mexican imports may have won him votes in Republican primaries but they would likely backfire, severely disrupting U.S. manufacturers that increasingly depend on global supply chains.
	Dollar rise hits commodities as Fed talks of tightening LONDON (Reuters) – The dollar was on its best run in almost a year on Thursday, pressuring commodities and shares after yet another Federal Reserve official talked up the chance of more than one hike in U.S interest rates this year.
	Homeownership increasingly difficult for average Americans: report NEW YORK (Reuters) – Home prices are rising faster than wages in most of the United States, making homeownership increasingly difficult for average Americans in some of the most populous areas of the country, according to a report released on Thursday.
	Yum in talks with KKR, Hopu, to sell stake in China unit: sources SINGAPORE/HONG KONG (Reuters) – Yum Brands Inc , owner of KFC and Pizza Hut, is in talks with private equity firms including KKR & Co LP and Hopu Investments to sell a minority stake in its China operations as it prepares to spin off the once booming unit, two sources familiar with the plans said on Thursday.
	Credit Suisse to axe 2,000 more investment banking jobs ZURICH (Reuters) – A slump in investment banking revenues pushed Credit Suisse to accelerate its cost-cutting plan as Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam admitted he had been unaware of trading positions that triggered more big writedowns in the first quarter.
	Exxon Mobil must allow climate change vote: SEC (Reuters) – The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has ruled Exxon Mobil Corp must include a climate change resolution on its annual shareholder proxy, a defeat for the world’s largest publicly traded oil producer, which had argued it already provides adequate carbon disclosures.
	Starboard to launch proxy fight to remove Yahoo’s entire board: WSJ (Reuters) – Activist hedge fund Starboard Value LP, which is leading an investor revolt against Yahoo Inc’s management team, is seeking to remove the entire board of the struggling Internet company, the Wall Street Journal reported.
	World’s biggest startup? Samsung Electronics to reform corporate culture SEOUL (Reuters) – Samsung Electronics Co Ltd , the world’s biggest maker of smartphones and memory chips, announced on Thursday that it plans to adopt a corporate culture akin to a startup, seeking to become more nimble as growth slows.
	U.S. Futures Slide, Crude Under $39 As Dollar Rallies For Fifth Day Following yesterday’s dollar spike which topped the longest rally in the greenback in one month, the prevailing trade overnight has been more of the same, and in the last session of this holiday shortened week we have seen the USD rise for the fifth consecutive day on concerns the suddenly hawkish Fed (at least as long as the S&P is above 2000) may hike sooner than expected, which in turn has pressured WTI below $39 earlier in the session, and leading to weakness across virtually all global risk assets. And since a stronger dollar means a weaker Yuan, more potential devaluation, greater capital outflows but most importantly lower commodity prices and key among them cheaper oil, now flirting with sliding below $39 to the downside, which would lead to its first weekly decline, as lower oil means lower risk prices in general as per the very well-known correlation shown below… … traders walking in today are greeted by something they have barely seen in the past month’s bear market rally: a sea of red: not only are S&P500 futures down nearly 0.5% in today’s illiquid session, but European shares have retreated for a fourth day, while raw-materials producers led declines among Asian equities as the Bloomberg Commodity Index slumped for a second day. Industrial commodities like iron ore fell for a third day, while gold has continued to drift lower. Government bonds advanced in Australia and the euro area.
	Chang and Eng – The US and Canada Written and submitted by Jeff Thomas (CLICK FOR ORIGINAL) Chang and Eng were the first internationally known Siamese twins, as a result of their having been exhibited worldwide. Although each had a complete body, they were joined together at the sternum.
	CRuZ APPoiNTS SuBPRiMe DouCHe BaG To Be CHieF ECoNoMiC ADViSoR… Connect the Shiti dots… . . . .
	ISIS Sends 400 Specially Trained Fighters To Unleash “Wave Of Bloodshed” In Europe Earlier today, we brought you the official statement in which ISIS claims responsibility for the attacks that left 34 people dead in Brussels on Tuesday. The group promises black days for all crusader nationsand an attack more devastating and bitter than those that have come before Allah permitting,of course). Paris fugitive Salah Abdeslam has been variously characterized as the ringleader of the cell that was behind this week’s attack on Brussels. That’s probably because he’s now a household name in Europe and officials want the public to think a kind of field general has been captured. In reality, Abdeslam aborted his martyrdom mission in Paris and got himself arrested instead of dying for the cause.That’s not exactly behavior consistent with that seen in confirmed commanders like Abdelhamid Abaaoud and Omar al-Shishani. Rather, it would appear that Abdeslam effectively inherited Abaaoud’s cell upon returning to Belgium after backing out of the Paris attacks. ISIS likely saw some utility in keeping him around and Tuesday’s bombings suggest retaining him as a kind of organizer was a prudent decision. Or perhaps he was never meant to die in Paris. Who knows. (Abaaoud – left – and friends, in “better” times) Whatever the case, the important takeaway from Tuesday would appear to be that Abaaoud’s cell continued to operate and expand five months after his death and indeed, the group appears to have been using at least one of the very same bomb makers, Najim Laachraoui (who, incidentally, authorities now claim died in the Brussels airport).
	Weaker Commodity Prices Drag Down Stocks Global stocks extended losses ahead of the Easter holiday weekend, as a resurgent dollar and weaker commodities prices cut into a recent rally.
	Leader of Valeant Investor Sequoia Resigns The leader of a giant mutual fund that suffered large losses from its position in Valeant Pharmaceuticals has stepped down.
	How Credit Suisse’s New CEO Stumbled at the First Hurdle Mistakes and bad markets force Swiss bank to revise a strategy launched just five months ago.
	Untangling The Threads Of Terrorism In Turkey from STRATFOR — this post authored by Scott Stewart Three strands of terrorism currently have Turkey wrapped in a deadly embrace. One strand made its presence felt March 19, when a suicide bomber detonated his device among a group of tourists on Istiklal Street, one of Istanbul’s main pedestrian shopping areas, killing at least four people and wounding dozens, including 24 foreigners.
	Infographic Of The Day: How Will Internet Of Things Change The World As We Know It? Ever wondered how the internet will change the world?
	Market Snapshot: U.S. stocks set to break five-week winning streak, as Dow futures fall 150 points Wall Street looks headed for another day of losses on Thursday, as a stronger dollar and slumping oil prices zap the investment mood ahead of the long Easter weekend.
	The Wall Street Journal: Debris most likely from missing Malaysian flight MH370, says Australia Plane debris recently found washed ashore in East Africa is almost certainly from missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370,
	Europe Markets: European stocks slump as dollar strength cuts oil, mining shares European stocks are under pressure Thursday, looking at a fourth consecutive decline, with commodity shares dropping as the U.S. dollar continues to march higher