23Oct2017 Market Update: Wall Street Pares New Highs As GE, Tech Stocks Drag, WTI Crude And The US Dollar Remain Near Their Morning Highs, The Dow Is Up About 4% For The Month

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

North and South American markets are lower today with shares in Brazil off the most. The Bovespa is down 0.72% while Mexico’s IPC is off 0.49% and U.S.’s S&P 500 is lower by 0.07%.

Wall Street pares gains as GE, tech stocks drag

(Reuters) – U.S. stocks gave up early gains in late morning trading on Monday, with losses in GE and technology shares weighing on the Wall Street indexes.

Halliburton posts international revenue growth, unlike Schlumberger

(Reuters) – Worldwide revenues rose for U.S. oilfield services provider Halliburton Co in the third quarter, the company said on Monday, contrasting with the slide in international markets reported by larger rival Schlumberger last week.

Apple sees its mobile devices as platform for artificial intelligence

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Apple Inc sees its mobile devices as a major platform for artificial intelligence in the future, Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams said on Monday.

Cisco buys BroadSoft for $1.71 bln in software push

(Reuters) – Cisco Systems Inc will buy software company BroadSoft Inc for $1.71 billion, it said on Monday, in a deal that boosts Cisco’s collaboration tools and helps the company diversify its offerings away from switching and routing.

Kaspersky Lab to open software to review, says nothing to hide

(Reuters) – Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab will ask independent parties to review the security of its anti-virus software, which the U.S. government has said could jeopardize national security, citing concerns over Kremlin influence and hijacking by Russian spies.

U.S. regulators approve fix for VW 3.0-liter diesel SUVs: letter

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. and California regulators have approved a fix for about 38,000 Volkswagen AG 3.0-liter diesel sport utility vehicles with potential excess emissions, a decision that could save the automaker more than $1 billion, according to a letter reviewed by Reuters.

EU raids Daimler and VW in widening cartel inquiry

HAMBURG/BERLIN (Reuters) – European Union and German antitrust officials searched the offices of Daimler and Volkswagen on Monday, widening an inquiry into alleged collusion.

Fiat emissions probe centers on several models: letter

PARIS (Reuters) – A French judicial inquiry into Fiat Chrysler (FCA) over suspected emissions-test cheating centers on whether the carmaker misled buyers of Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep and Lancia cars about emissions levels, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

Fidelity Chairman’s video to employees: no tolerance for harassment

BOSTON (Reuters) – Fidelity Investments Chairman Abigail Johnson on Monday delivered a direct message to more than 40,000 employees at the asset management company: There’s no tolerance for harassment.

Amazon Has Received 238 Proposals For The Company’s Second Headquarters

Just days after we reported that in the mad dash by virtually every American city to become Amazon’s second headquarters, in which some such as New Jersey offered as much as $7 billion in state and city tax credits, today Amazon announced that that it has received 238 proposals from “cities and regions in 54 states, provinces, districts and territories around North America” who want to host the company’s second headquarters, also known as HQ2.

As CNBC reports, bids for the new headquarters were due to Amazon on Thursday, Oct. 19. Cities big and small from across over America, from Newark to Boston and hundreds inbetween are trying to impress Amazon and the more than $5 billion it plans to spend on its second headquarters. One Georgia town’s mayor went so far as promising he would rename the town “Amazon” if the company agreed to build there.

As noted previously, Amazon had very specific requirements for cities that are interested in placing a bid: it wants a city with an established mass transit system, easy access to international airports, universities and a population of at least 1 million people. Recently Bloomberg laid out some of the cities that have a good shot at hosting HQ2:

Atlanta: The southern U.S. city, home of Amazon delivery partner United Parcel Service Inc., is a major flight hub, and the greater metro area houses a dynamic population of al …

Dow 500,000?

Authored by Lance Roberts via RealInvestmentAdvice.com,

I genuinely admire Morgan Housel. I think he is a brilliant and talented writer. However, he sent out a tweet on Friday that really struck a chord with me.

If you’re less than 50 years old and the market returns at least 5% a year on average the Dow will hit 100,000 in most of your lifetimes. Less than age 30, it’ll hit 500,000 for most of you. Enjoy the weekend.

— Morgan Housel (@morganhousel) October 20, 2017

It’s an innocuous tweet, meant with the best of intentions to leave you with a sense of optimism as you headed into your weekend.

I get it. Really.

As Bob Farrell once quipped:

“Bull markets are more fun than bear markets.”

Bull markets also “sell” financial products, services, and offerings. Wall Street makes money selling products and services to “Main Street” who makes money with higher prices. Financial media makes money as advertisers market their “wares.” Being bullish also gets views, likes, comments, and shares. Bull markets thrive when “greed” erases the memories of previous “bear market” losses.

As Gordon Gecko said:

Mueller Probe Targets Democrat Lobbying Firm Podesta Group

Authored by ZeroPointNow, originally published on iBankCoin

Tony Podesta and his lobbying firm the Podesta Group are under federal investigation by FBI Special Counsel Robert Mueller in connection with the Russia investigation, three sources told NBC News.

The firm, co-founded by Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager John Podesta, was subpoenaed in late August along with three other public relations firms who worked with former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort during a 2012-2014 lobbying effort for a pro-Ukraine think tank – the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine (ECMU) – tied to former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.

Yanukovych fled from Ukraine to Russia after he was unseated in a 2014 coup.

Two of the subpoenaed firms include Paul Manafort’s Mercury, LLC and the Podesta Group, founded by John and Tony Podesta and operated by the latter.

Manafort’s firm earned $17 million between 2012 – 2014 consulting for Yanukovych’s centris …

Bill Ackman: “I’m Only Second To Donald Trump In Terms Of Clicks On The Internet”

There are several delightful tidbits in this weekend’s FT interview with ADP CEO Carlos Rodriguez, who has been engaged in a bitter proxy fight with activist investor Bill ackman. For those who are familiar with the Pershing Square head, it will come as no surprise that he has long harbored megalomaniac tendencies. For everyone else, the following segment should be quite eye-opening.

As ADP chief executive Carlos Rodriguez recalls it, activist investor Bill Ackman told him he should step down the first time he spoke to him. The second time, he warned him there would be a public fight.

“He said: I know you don’t like the media, but I do and I’m really good at it,” Mr Rodriguez said. “And if this gets into a public battle, it’s going to be bad for you personally, it’s going to be bad for the company, but I’m fine with it because — and he said this — I’m told that I’m only second to Donald Trump in terms of number of clicks on the internet, and hence you will lose if there’s a public relations battle.”

It’s not clear what “clicks” Ackman was referring to: his official twitter account has 13.9K followers, and Ackman has tweeted a total of 9 times since joining Twitter this June. Perhaps Ackman has an inside look into google searches but we doubt that this is the smoking gun.

//

Feeding Babies in China Is a Booming Business Again

The world’s largest infant-formula market is surprisingly volatile. Investors shouldn’t expect the good news for Western consumer groups to last.

Allergan: That $15 Billion Sure Went Fast

Last year Allergan PLC did one of the best deals in drug industry history. The drug company has been busily squandering the benefits ever since.

Natural Gas Prices May Surprise This Winter

After nine years of booming production of natural gas, this winter could be one of the rare instances supply and demand conspire to drive up prices.

The big mistake up to one-third of credit card holders are making

By not redeeming credit card rewards, they’re leaving money on the table.

AMD’s new notebook processor will put Intel on notice

HP will be a flagship partner at launch, creating a big splash, says Ryan Shrout.

Earnings Outlook: GM earnings: Will driverless-car, ride-sharing investments pay off?

GM is having a moment, but could it last?