18Jul2018 Market Close: Wall Street Trading Higher After Upbeat Economic Report But In Tight Range In Afternoon Session, Beige Book: Rate Of Economic Expansion Slowed

Trump says EU officials want to negotiate trade deal in Washington visit

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that European leaders were coming to Washington next week to try to hammer out a deal focused largely on car tariffs, while his top economic adviser accused Chinese President Xi Jinping of holding up a U.S.-China trade deal.

U.S. tariffs could raise vehicle prices by $83 billion: auto trade group

A group representing major automakers will tell the U.S. Commerce Department on Thursday that imposing tariffs of 25 percent on imported cars and parts would raise the price of U.S. vehicles by $83 billion annually and would cost hundreds of thousands of jobs.

United Airlines raises profit forecast, trims capacity expansion

United Airlines raised its profit forecast for 2018 on Tuesday, as average fares and traffic both rose and it trimmed capacity expansion in the face of soaring fuel costs.

Amazon.com’s stock market value hits $900 billion, threatens Apple

Amazon.com’s stock market value reached $900 billion on Wednesday for the first time, marking a major milestone in its 21-year trajectory as a publicly listed company and threatening to dislodge Apple as Wall Street’s most valuable jewel.

Farnborough rolls out stealth orders for commercial jets

The Farnborough Airshow is typically one of the world’s most publicity-focused business events, with plane giants and airline bosses battling to win headlines for deals signed under the roar of stealth fighter displays.

S&P 500 hits over five-month high on solid earnings

The S&P 500 hit a five-month high on Wednesday as solid earnings boosted financial and industrial stocks and reinforced expectations for a strong second-quarter reporting season.

Audit faults U.S. oversight of auto safety recalls, Takata inflators

A government audit released on Wednesday faulted the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) oversight of auto safety recalls and said its “delayed action” may have delayed the expansion of a record-setting callback of millions of vehicles for Takata air bag inflators.

U.S. housing starts hit nine-month low; permits drop

U.S. homebuilding fell to a nine-month low in June and permits for future construction declined for a third straight month, dealing a blow to the housing market as it struggles with a dearth of properties available for sale.

Airbus inks deal to sell passenger planes to Uganda

Airbus said on Wednesday it had signed an agreement to sell two commercial passenger planes to Uganda as part of the country’s plan to revive its national airline which has been defunct for years.

Outrage Grows As MGM Presses “Reprehensible”, “Stunt” Lawsuit Against Shooting Victims

Survivors of the deadliest mass shooting in US history are expressing their outrage with MGM Resorts International after the company sued the surviving victims of the shooting, claiming it has “no liability of any kind” in the Oct. 1 massacre, USA Today reports. An MGM spokeswoman said the company has been “focused on the recovery of those impacted by the shooting” while also claiming that the attack was “unforeseeable.”

“The unforeseeable events of October 1st affected thousands of people in Las Vegas and throughout North America,” MGM Resorts spokeswoman Debra DeShong said in a statement. “From the day of this tragedy, we have focused on the recovery of those impacted by the despicable act of one evil individual.”

Attorneys representing the victims said the lawsuit was “a stunt” that probably won’t survive a challenge in court and accused the company of “blaming the victims.” One lawyer said MGM’s challenge was the most “reprehensible” action taken by a corporation to avoid paying damages that he’s seen in his multi-decade career.

Brian Claypool, a survivor of the rampage who represents 75 survivors and victims’ family members, called MGM’s lawsuit “a stunt” that won’t survive a court challenge.

“I am still in therapy once a week, and this is their way of trying to solve the problem,” he said. “It’s shifting responsibility and minimizing their blatant negligence.”

Robert Eglet, whose firm represents hundreds of people in the case, dismissed MGM’s claim as “outrageous” and accused the company of trying to intimidate victims. Very few of his clients ha …

Papa John’s Shares Soar On Report Ousted Founder Held Merger Talks With Wendy’s

Papa John’s stock is sharply higher following a WSJ report that its founder and recently ousted chairman John Schnatter, held merger talk with Wendy’s. And while the talks between Wendy’s officials and the disgraced former Chairman and CO – who still sits on the board and owns 29% of Papa John’s – were preliminary and began before he stepped down as chairman last week, the talks, which Papa John’s board was aware of according to the WSJ, have cooled since the incident, one of the people said.

Schnatter resigned last week as chairman after it emerged that he had used a racial slur during media training to prepare him for a return as brand spokesman following his withdrawal from ads in the wake of a dust-up with the National Football League.

Schnatter blamed the chain’s sliding sales on declining TV football viewership amid the controversy over players’ national-anthem protests. He remains on the board which does not have the authority to remove him as a director and it will be up to shareholders whether to re-elect him at the next annual meeting in May.

While it is unclear if a deal will happen following the preliminary talks, and the recent scandal involving the pizza chain, PZZA shares rose as much as 7% on the news; WEN rose as much as 4.7%.

White House Denies Trump Said Russia “No Longer Targeting The US”

The White House has denied that President Trump said “Russia is no longer targeting US elections”, after video emerged from a Wednesday cabinet meeting in which Trump says “No” after being asked “Is Russia still targeting the US?”

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders denied the comments during a press Wednesday briefing, saying she spoke with Trump who said he was “saying ‘no’ to answering questions” and not to the reporter’s question itself. He does believe that they would target certainly U.S. election,” Sanders adding that “the threat still exists.”

“We believe that the threat still exists, which is why we are taking steps to prevent it,” Press Sec. Sanders tells @CeciliaVega of Russian targeting U.S. https://t.co/MujCvtizb0 pic.twitter.com/YkTshHrU84

— ABC News (@ABC) July 18, 2018

The Daily Mail’s David Martosko points out that it’s difficult to disc …

Citadel CEO Says Bitcoin Still A “Head Scratcher” But Billionaire Lasry Sees $40,000 Soon

Ken Griffin, the CEO and founder of the Citadel hedge fund, has reiterated his negative stance on Bitcoin (BTC) in an interview with CNBC this morning.

Speaking at the Delivering Alpha Conference in New York, CoinTelegraph’s Helen Partz reports that Griffin admitted that he “still scratch[es] [his] head” about Bitcoin, claiming that the younger generation should “do something more productive than invest in digital currencies.”

Big Tech’s Growth Comes With a Big Bill

Tech giants like Amazon, Apple and Google are delivering above-average growth, but the cost of staying competitive is rising more.

July 2018 Beige Book: Reading Between The Lines – Rate Of Economic Expansion Slowed

Written by Steven Hansen

The consolidated economic report from the 12 Federal Reserve Districts (Beige Book) stated “10 of the 12 Federal Reserve Districts reporting moderate or modest growth”. The previous report stated “Economic activity expanded moderately in late April and early May with few shifts in the pattern of growth”.

When wives earn more than their husbands, they both lie

It’s increasingly common for wives to make more than their spouses.

To make money on marijuana stocks, buy when the buzz is over

Valuations today are very high and sentiment is very positive — a bad combination, says Nigam Arora.

All those aerobic and meditation classes may not boost company profit—or morale

Health insurers and fitness gurus have long said that wellness programs can reduce medical spending.