Written by Gary
US stock market index futures are pointing towards a fractional lower opening (SPY -0.4%) after GE Power revenue falls less than expected.
Here is the current market situation from CNN Money | |
 | European markets are mixed today. The FTSE 100 is up 0.29% while the CAC 40 gains 0.28%. The DAX is off 0.30%. |
Oil falls after Trump goes after OPEC in a tweet
Trump blasts OPEC, says cartel is keeping oil prices ‘artificially very high’ and that ‘will not be accepted’
Stock futures point to further declines after earnings disappointments
GE Power revenue falls less than expected, but ‘challenging’ conditions
What Is Moving the Markets
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 | GE’s adjusted profit tops estimates, shares rise(Reuters) – General Electric Co posted quarterly results that topped expectations on Friday, as earnings from aviation, healthcare and transportation offset weak power and oil-and-gas profits, sending shares sharply higher in premarket trading. |
| Asian oil demand to hit record, but industry can’t take eyes off Middle EastSINGAPORE (Reuters) – Asian oil demand will hit a record in April just as global crude values are lifted to levels not seen in three years by Middle East supply risks and top exporter Saudi Arabia withholding output and noisily pushing for prices at $80 to $100 per barrel. |
| Biogen boosts investment in neurology with $1 billion Ionis deal(Reuters) – U.S. drugmaker Biogen Inc rolled out part of its $37 billion investment warchest on Friday, signing a $1 billion deal that seeks to expand on the strength of an existing partnership with Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc. |
| Boeing, Brazil’s Embraer close to tie-up: reportSAO PAULO (Reuters) – Talks aimed at a tie-up between planemakers Boeing Co and Embraer SA that also involve Brazil’s government are at an advanced stage, O Estado de S. Paulo newspaper reported on Friday, citing unnamed sources. |
| China trade body urges tighter corporate compliance after ZTE woes: documentBEIJING (Reuters) – A state-backed Chinese trade body said compliance is now a core risk for Chinese firms and that the government must speed up the implementation of guidelines on corporate oversight following a U.S. ban on sales to ZTE Corp. |
| GM Korea fails to reach wage deal, edging closer to bankruptcy filingSEOUL (Reuters) – General Motors’ South Korean unit and its labor union failed to reach a wage deal by Friday, breaching a deadline set by the U.S. automaker to seek bankruptcy protection for the loss-making unit. |
| South Korea’s antitrust chief says expects change in Samsung governance ‘in near future’SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s antitrust chief on Friday said he expects Samsung Group to unravel its governance structure in the near future, as the government and investors call for reform of the country’s powerful family-controlled conglomerates, or chaebols. |
| Exclusive: Lockheed Martin to propose stealthy hybrid of F-22 and F-35 for Japan – sourcesTOKYO (Reuters) – U.S. defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corp plans to offer Japan a stealth fighter design based on its export-banned F-22 Raptor and advanced F-35 Lightning II aircraft, two sources said. |
| Cryptos Continue To Surge As Tax-Day PassesCrytpocurrencies are continuing their post-tax-day gains with Bitcoin above $8500, Ethereum at almost $600, and Ripple up over 30% on the week.
With Bitcoin back above $8,500…
And Ethererum is back above $550 – testing towards $600… |
| Trump Rages At “Shadey” James Comey: “Is This The Way Life In America Is Supposed To Work?”President Trump didn’t ease up on the tweeting during his summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe this week, and he was back again this morning with another missive slamming former FBI Director James Comey. Specifically, Trump questioned how Comey has been allowed to misrepresent himself and his work, leak classified information to the press, and occasionally tell outright lies, while former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn has had his life and career totally destroyed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. “So General Michael Flynn’s life can be totally destroyed while Shadey James Comey can Leak and Lie and make lots of money from a third rate book (that should never have been written). Is that really the way life in America is supposed to work? I don’t think so!”
Trump’s latest missive comes after a series of tweets last night where Trump slammed former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe (and celebrated the inspector general report that saw Comey throw McCabe under the bus, helping lead to him being referred for criminal charges) while cheering the fact that the leaked Comey memo clearly showed “NO COLLUSION”. |
| Trump Slams OPEC: “Oil Prices Are Artificially High, Will Not Be Accepted”, Oil TumblesUpdate: we didn’t have long to wait for the Saudi response, which came just 30 minutes after the Trump tweet: THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS ARTIFICIAL OIL PRICES: SAUDI MINISTER Which is ironic coming from the head of an oil cartel whose only purpose is to keep prices artificially high. It is even more ironic because just two years ago OPEC itself was slamming “evil speculators”, hedge funds and anyone else who it suspected of selling oil for creating an “artificial oil price.” * * * It was supposed to be OPEC’s day, as a joint technical panel of OPEC and non-OPEC nations (also known as OPEC+) met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and declared that the global oil glut that has weighted on oil prices since the infamous OPEC Thanksgiving Massacre of 2014 and prompted the historic Vienna OPEC production cut agreement, has been effectively eliminated.
Little did OPEC+ know they were all about to be upstaged by yet another Trump tweet. But first, back to Jeddah where OPEC and Russia congratulated themselves on “impressive results”, having wiped out 97% of the targeted inventory surplus. But, as Bloomberg notes, instead of celebrating victory, the world’s largest producers are finding reasons to continue cutting out … |
| Stocks Struggle As Surging Dollar Snaps Commodity RallyWorld stocks, as tracked by the MSCI All-Country Index, struggled on Friday, dipping in early trading but were set for a second week of gains after a solid start to the the global Q1 earnings season, even as a rally in commodity prices fizzled pressured by the recent dollar spike. U.S. equity index futures are modestly in the red, alongside Asian markets, where technology shares came under pressure after yesterday’s unexpected Taiwan Semi warning, which saw the world’s biggest semiconductor foundry cut its revenue target to the low end of forecasts and blamed softer demand for smartphones
European stocks initially inched lower as traders assessed earnings results from companies including Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc and Ericsson AB, pushing the Stoxx Europe 600 Index slides 0.2%. However, since then Euro stocks erased all earlier losses as the Euro slumped, boosting exporters while the telecom sector outperformed after gains by Telia. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.1% to session high with 11 of 19 industry groups advancing, telecom up 1.2% as Telia rallies following strong earnings. Reckitt Benckiser falls after the company posted like-for-like sales for the first quarter that missed estimates, while Ericsson soars after posting results that were stronger than analysts ha … |
| P&G Needs a Workout, Not VitaminsEuropean dietary supplements won’t cure what ails Procter & Gamble. The consumer products maker should focus on fixing its core business to resume growth. |
| Third Time Unlucky for Takeda and ShireShire has rejected Takeda’s three offers to buy it, and there may not be much more wiggle room to sweeten the bid. |
| Why Volatile Markets Are Good News for Careful InvestorsManaging money involves a balancing act that trades off risk against return. This year is proving more challenging, with stocks and bonds swinging about. But it also shows how a return to a more normal level of market volatility might be good news for careful investors. |
| The Wall Street Journal: Russia itself may be only buyer for Rusal’s aluminum stashAluminum from United Co. Rusal, the recently sanctioned Russian miner, is looking for a new home. But nobody knows where that home can be. |
| Nike executive departures throw growth plan into jeopardyA string of high-level exits at Nike pose a challenge to the company’s growth goals. |
| Futures Movers: Oil turns lower after Trump blames OPEC for ‘artificially high’ pricesOil gave up early gains after President Donald Trump took to Twitter to blast OPEC, saying it |
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