22Aug2018 Pre-Market Commentary: Wall Street’s Bull Run Fades, Dollar Steady Ahead Of Fed Minutes, DOW Down Double Digits, Gold Holds Above $1,200 As Dollar Adds To Weekly Decline

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

European markets are mixed today. The FTSE 100 is up 0.24% while the CAC 40 gains 0.15%. The DAX is off 0.24%.

Nike stores closed in South Africa amid outcry over racist web post

Some Nike stores were closed in South Africa on Wednesday after public outcry over a racist comment by a man that local media said had links to the sportswear company.

S&P 500 bull market now arguably the oldest ever

The S&P 500’s bull market turned 3,453 days old on Wednesday, making it the longest such streak in history, according to some investors’ definition.

Futures dip on Trump legal woes, caution ahead of trade talks

U.S. stock futures dipped slightly on Wednesday as President Donald Trump’s political position was threatened by the criminal convictions of two former advisers and on caution ahead of U.S.-China trade talks.

Target’s second-quarter sales jump, traffic grows most in a decade

Target Corp’s second-quarter sales and profit beat estimates on Wednesday, helped by strong online sales and higher customer visits that grew the most in a decade, sending its shares up 6 percent in premarket trade.

Lowe’s cuts forecasts on Orchard Supply shutdown

Home improvement chain Lowe’s Cos Inc trimmed its full-year profit and sales forecasts on Wednesday as it began winding down Orchard Supply Hardware stores and planned to cut down its own inventories in the face of weakening U.S. homebuilding.

Global luxury brands again chase China’s young, rich and spendthrift

Global luxury brands from Prada to LVMH are investing in China for the first time since a crackdown on conspicuous spending five years ago, focusing on smaller, less developed cities even as the world’s second-largest economy slows.

Caution prevails over Trump legal woes and U.S.-China trade talks

Stocks faltered and bonds rose on Wednesday as U.S. President Donald Trump’s political position was threatened by the criminal convictions of two former advisers, while the U.S. dollar reversed course and headed for its sixth straight day of losses.

Linde-Praxair try to save $83 billion merger after antitrust blow

Industrial gases giants Linde and Praxair are in talks to try to salvage their $83 billion merger after U.S. competition regulators demanded they sell assets that generate more than $4.3 billion in sales.

New Air France-KLM boss meets minister ahead of strike decision

Newly appointed Air France-KLM Chief Executive Ben Smith held talks with French Transport Minister Elisabeth Borne, a government spokesman said on Wednesday, as the airline group’s unions prepare to decide on further strike action over pay.

Cohen Lawyer Launches $500,000 GoFundMe Campaign “To Expose The Truth About Trump”

With all the ‘slam-dunk’ evidence that he is proclaiming to have, some might wonder why Michael Cohen’s lawyer, longtime Clinton friend and Bill Clinton’s special counsel, Lanny Davis is launching a GoFundMe page so he can get paid?

Davis announced the GoFundMe campaign in an interview on MSNBC’s Morning Joe this morning.

“Right now, Michael Cohen needs help from the American people to tell the truth, and we’ve set up a website.” Michael Cohen’s lawyer Lanny Davis to @savannahguthrie pic.twitter.com/ZVgnMV0mcc

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) August 22, 2018

He said:

“In order to get Michael to be able to help, we ne …

The Stock Market’s Latest Sell Signal Has Happened Only 5 Previous Times Since 1895

Authored by Mark Hulbert via MarketWatch.com,

Sound Advice Risk Indicator suggests stocks are overvalued relative to real estate

Would you be interested in an indicator with more 100 years of history, an excellent record at calling multi-generational tops in the U.S. stock market, and which has just flashed only its sixth sell signal since 1895?

Of course you would. That’s because most of the indicators with solid long-term records — such as the Cyclically-Adjusted Price Earnings Ratio, or CAPE, made famous by Yale University professor and Nobel laureate Robert Shiller — have been in “sell” mode for so long that many have stopped paying attention.

The “Sound Advice Risk Indicator” is a different story. This indicator, the brainchild of Gray Cardiff, editor of the Sound Advice newsletter, is derived from the ratio of the S&P 500 to the median price of a new U.S. house. For the first time sin …

Facebook Removes 652 Accounts Linked To “Inauthentic Behavior” Originating In Iran And Russia

Facebook said late on Tuesday that it had removed multiple pages, groups and accounts for “coordinated inauthentic behavior” on its site and on Instagram. The company said in a long blog post that it removed 652 pages, groups and accounts from activities that originated in Iran and “targeted people across multiple internet services in the Middle East, Latin America, UK and US.” Facebook noted that the activity appears to reflect increasing attempts by the Iranian regime to push its geopolitical agenda through online subterfuge.

Facebook said that they were acting based on a tip from a cybersecurity firm FireEye, known for its work in exposing “Russian hackers” and funding the controversial Center for European Policy Analysis. Some of the Iranian accounts and pages were created as far back as 2011, Facebook said.

Separately, Facebook also took down an unspecified number of accounts and pages that it said originated in Russia. While much of Russia’s alleged activity on Facebook in the past has centered on U.S. social issues, the bad actors identified in the latest purge were focused on politics in Syria and Ukraine.

“Finally, we’ve removed Pages, groups and accounts that can be linked to sources the US government has previously identified as Russian military intelligence services,” the social media giant wrote in bold text. It provided no number of removed accounts, when exactly they were blocked, or any details of their alleged wrongdoings. The company only said that some of these accounts are believed to be “associated with Inside Syria Media Center,” which, according to the Atlantic Council aka the academic wing of NATO, is “covertly spreading pro-Russian and pro-Assad content.”

Facebook said it found no evidence the campaigns by Russia and Iran were connected.

“We’ve been investigating some of these campaigns for months now, which highlights the tension we face in every i …

Smucker Needs to Fix Peanut Butter and Jelly

Food company Smucker has made smart moves to adjust its portfolio, but without boosting its core brands the stock will keep struggling.

This stock market can just keep hitting one home run after another

Expect more all-time highs from this bull run, writes Ed Yardeni.

Outside the Box: Gear up for a no-deal Brexit: 5 areas to watch

The British government will release the first of 84 papers detailing contingency plans for a no-deal Brexit on Thursday.

Currencies: Dollar slides for 6th day in a row amid Fed rhetoric, political turmoil

The U.S. dollar slipped versus many of its rivals for a sixth day in a row on Wednesday, weakened by rhetoric on Federal Reserve policy and also overshadowed by U.S. political developments.