02Nov2017 Pre-Market Commentary: Wall Street Flat Ahead Of Tax Reform Bill And Fed Chair Decision

Written by Gary

US stock market index futures are flat this morning (SPY -0.03%) as investors are holding off from making big bets ahead of Trump’s decision on the Fed chair and the unveiling of a tax reform bill.

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money
	European markets are mixed. The FTSE 100 is higher by 0.60%, while the CAC 40 is leading the DAX lower. They are down 0.16% and 0.16% respectively.

What Is Moving the Markets

Here are the headlines moving the markets.
	BoE set for hike, Fed to get new head, trillion-dollar Apple? LONDON (Reuters) – Traders were bracing on Thursday for landmark events including the Bank of England’s first rate hike since 2007 and the unveiling of a new Fed chief as well as results from Apple as it looks to become the world’s first $1 trillion company.
	Apple market value: We may need a bigger chart SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc Chief Executive Tim Cook quashed concerns recently about muted demand for the iPhone X, saying pre-orders for the 10th anniversary smartphone were “off the charts,” but it might be the company’s market capitalization that needs a bigger graph.
	Bombardier scales back CSeries jet deliveries, improves earnings (Reuters) – Bombardier Inc scaled back CSeries jet deliveries by around a third because of engine delays, but reported improved earnings and a quarterly loss in line with analyst estimates.
	Chesapeake Energy profit beats on higher oil prices, lower costs (Reuters) – Oil and gas producer Chesapeake Energy Corp reported on Thursday a quarterly adjusted profit that beat analysts’ estimates on tight cost controls and higher oil prices.
	Alibaba delivers ‘outstanding quarter’ on e-commerce growth BEIJING (Reuters) – Alibaba Group Holding Ltd hailed an “outstanding quarter” on Thursday as the Chinese firm beat forecasts with a 61 percent revenue rise driven by continuing e-commerce growth.
	Pizza Hut same-restaurant sales growth help Yum Brands beat Street (Reuters) – Pizza Hut broke a five-quarter streak of declining sales, helping owner Yum Brands Inc report profit and revenue for the third quarter above Wall Street expectations on Thursday.
	Futures flat with Fed chair pick, tax bill in focus (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures were flat on Thursday as investors held off from making big bets ahead of President Donald Trump’s decision on the next Federal Reserve chair and the unveiling of a long-awaited tax reform bill.
	Bank of England hikes rates for first time in a decade, sees only gentle rises ahead LONDON (Reuters) – The Bank of England raised interest rates for the first time in more than 10 years on Thursday and said it expected only “very gradual” further increases over the next three years.
	Ralph Lauren’s quarterly revenue slips past estimates (Reuters) – Ralph Lauren Corp’s quarterly revenue on Thursday edged past Wall Street estimates, as it sold more full-price apparel and saw higher demand in the United Kingdom.
	Bitcoin Explodes Above $7000.. Then Crashes $600 If you like your volatile cryptocurrency, you can keep your cryptocurrency… image courtesy of CoinTelegraph Following a seemingly endless stream of ‘good news’ – Bitcoin futures, Amazon rumors, Fork dividends, multiple nations moving towards adoption – Bitcoin exploded this mornng to a new record high $7354… up 29% for the week. Then it crashed $650 to $6700… Once again it seems Ether is being sold to fund the Bitcoin buys.. As CoinTelegraph notes, with Bitcoin’s increasing acceptance by Wall Street financiers and traders, the sky is quite literally the limit for the digital currency. While Bitcoin’s $116 bln market capitalization is large by the cryptocurrency world’s standards, it’s minuscule in comparison to the
	Bank Of England Hikes Rates By 25bps In 7-2 Vote; First Increase In A Decade; Pound Plunges Over ten years since the last rate hike by the Bank of England in July 2007 (when incidentally, cable was trading above $2.00), and following years of market expectations of an imminent rate hike that failed to materialize… …. moments ago the BOE – which had telegraphed the move extensively in recent months despite some dovish misgivings – finally pulled the trigger, and raised rates by 25bps to 0.5% in order to curb the effect of high inflation brought about by the post-Brexit plunge in the pound, squeezing local households and pressuring the UK economy. However, while cable initially spiked higher on the news, it subsequently slumped on the news that the vote was not a unanimous 9-0 decision as some had expected, as would telegraph a normal rate hike cycle, and instead had a decidedly dovish tilt with a far more contested 7-2 vote, with Cunliffe and Ramsden dissenting based on insufficient evidence that domestic costs, particularly wage growth, would pick up in line with central projections. Here is the BOE assessment: The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) sets monetary policy to meet the 2% inflation target, and in a way that helps to sustain growth and employment. At its meeting ending on 1 November 2017, the MPC voted by a majority of 7-2 to increase Bank Rate by 0.25 pe …
	Trump Demands “Death Penalty” For NYC Truck Terrorist, Calls US Justice System “Laughingstock” After an angry overnight tweet… NYC terrorist was happy as he asked to hang ISIS flag in his hospital room. He killed 8 people, badly injured 12. SHOULD GET DEATH PENALTY! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 2, 2017 The portion of Trump’s tweet about the Islamic State in Iraq & Syria (ISIS) flag is a reference to the complaint filed against Saipov that claims the suspect asked to place the terror group’s flag in his hospital room. President Trump earlier in the day on Wednesday said he would “certainly consider” sending the suspect, Sayfullo Saipov, to the U.S. military prison in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. “I would certainly consider that, yes,” Trump said when asked by a reporter at the White House. “Send him to Gitmo.” But President Trump has modestly toned down his rhetoric towards the NYC truck attack terrorist this morning – though still demanding the death penalty, he has backed away from sending him to Gitmo… Would love to send the NYC terrorist to Guantanamo but statistically that process takes much longer than going through the Federal system… — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 2, 2017 …
	“A Shocking Truth”: Donna Brazille Accuses Clinton Campaign Of “Rigging” Primary Authored by Donna Brazille, former interim chair of the Democratic National Committee, originally published in Politico. * * * “When I was asked to run the Democratic Party after the Russians hacked our emails, I stumbled onto a shocking truth about the Clinton campaign.” Inside Hillary Clinton’s Secret Takeover of the DNC Before I called Bernie Sanders, I lit a candle in my living room and put on some gospel music. I wanted to center myself for what I knew would be an emotional phone call. I had promised Bernie when I took the helm of the Democratic National Committee after the convention that I would get to the bottom of whether Hillary Clinton’s team had rigged the nomination process, as a cache of emails stolen by Russian hackers and posted online had suggested. I’d had my suspicions from the moment I walked in the door of the DNC a month or so earlier, based on the leaked emails. But who knew if some of them might have been forged? I needed to have solid proof, and so did Bernie. So I followed the money. My predecessor, Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, had not been the most active chair in fundraising at a time when President Barack Obama’s neglect had left the party in significant debt. As Hillary’s campaign gained momentum, she resolved the party’s debt and put it on a starva …
	World Record $5 Billion Skyscraper Sale a Tall Order A consortium led by a Chinese Communist Party-backed oil company has bought a landmark building in the world’s biggest commercial property deal.
	Shell’s Caution May Prove Better Part of BP’s Valor Brent oil has rallied above $60 a barrel for the first time since 2015, and oil majors such as BP, left for dead just a few years ago, are busy buying back shares. Is it game on again for energy shares?
	Tesla Drives Farther Off Course Tesla moved the goal posts again for its Model 3 and revealed a slowdown in its older luxury models, making Chief Executive Elon Musk’s goals appear even less realistic.
	Economic Report: Hard at work: U.S. productivity hits three-year high The productivity of American firms and workers rose 3% in the third quarter to mark the fastest gain in three years.
	Economic Report: Layoffs in U.S. back to nearly 45-year low, jobless claims show Initial U.S. jobless claims fell 5,000 to 229,000 at the end of October. Claims are back near 45-year low despite a surge in Puerto Rico tied to Hurricane Maria.
	Earnings Outlook: Starbucks earnings: Investors should prepare for an earnings reset Analysts are still bullish about Starbucks, but expect near-term earnings moderation due to a number of variables, including a tough restaurant landscape.