30Apr2019 Midday Update: Wall Street Opens Lower, Pares Losses In Early Afternoon Trading, DOW Down 24 Points, SP 500 Moves Back Up To Opening Losses, Down -0.2%

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

North and South American markets are lower today with shares in Mexico off the most. The IPC is down 0.86% while Brazil’s Bovespa is off 0.20% and U.S.’s S&P 500 is lower by 0.18%.

Escalating fight, Trump sues Deutsche Bank, Capital One over Democratic subpoenas

President Donald Trump, his three oldest children and the Trump Organization have sued Deutsche Bank AG and Capital One Financial Corp to try to block them from responding to U.S. congressional subpoenas issued by Democrats seeking financial records.

GE cautious as profit rises, cash burn slows; shares, bonds rise

General Electric Co said on Tuesday it generated more profit and lost less cash than expected in the first quarter, suggesting an improving outlook under its new leader that sent its shares and bonds higher.

Stronger spending powers Mastercard profit, revenue beat; shares hit record high

Mastercard Inc on Tuesday beat quarterly profit and revenue estimates, as a strong U.S. job market, rising wages and surge in online shopping boosted transaction volumes, sending shares of the world’s second largest payments processor to an all-time high.

Eli Lilly misses estimates for top-selling diabetes drug Trulicity, shares slip

Eli Lilly and Co on Tuesday reported lower-than-expected first-quarter sales for its top-selling diabetes drug Trulicity, saying they were partly hurt by programs that allow patients to try newer drugs at little or no cost to them as insurance companies weigh coverage decisions.

U.S. inflation tame; economic outlook strengthening

U.S. labor costs increased steadily in the first quarter as a jump in transportation and manufacturing wages was offset by small gains elsewhere, pointing to moderate inflation pressures even as the labor market tightens.

Wall Street stumbles after record run as Alphabet slides

Wall Street’s main indexes on Tuesday slipped from all-time highs set in the previous session, after a slump in the shares of Google-parent Alphabet following a revenue miss and a drop in Apple ahead of its results.

HSBC reshuffles management of global banking division: memo

HSBC has reshuffled the management of its global banking division, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Tuesday, as former JPMorgan banker Greg Guyett puts his stamp on the business he took over in February this year.

How Russia contaminated $2.7 billion of oil exports to Europe

It was a quiet Easter holiday at the offices of major European oil companies and refiners when an email in Russian landed. “What the hell does it say?” one manager recalled thinking as he sent it to his Moscow office for translation.

HealthEquity confirms offer to buy WageWorks for $50.50 per share in cash

HealthEquity Inc on Tuesday confirmed its offer to acquire WageWorks Inc in a deal valuing the administrator of employee benefits at about $2.01 billion.

Democrats, Trump Agree On $2 Trillion ‘Bipartisan’ Infrastructure Plan

Not long after Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney told Maria Bartiromo that he believed USMCA (the Nafta 2.0 trade deal that the Dems have promised to obstruct) had a better chance of passing than a long-hoped for bipartisan infrastructure plan, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer emerged from a lengthy meeting with President Trump with some interesting news.

The leaders said the talks had gone well, and that the two sides had agreed on a $2 trillion figure for a forthcoming plan to rebuild American bridges, roads railways and other vital infrastructure. Schumer told reporters that another meeting about financing will be held in three weeks.

Amusingly, Republican leaders in the House have told reporters in recent days that there’s no appetite for such a large plan among Republicans in Congress.

The World Is Sadder & Angrier Than Ever

Authored by Mac Slavo via SHTFplan.com,

In this day and age when most people have everything they could possibly need and then some, the world is sadder and angrier than ever before. The standard of living around the globe has never been higher, but neither has the discontentment.

Watch: First Ever Video Filmed Inside B-2 Stealth Bomber Cockpit

New video, uploaded onto Youtube on Monday, offers a rare glimpse inside the cockpit of the Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit stealth bomber for the first time in the thirty-year history of the Air Force’s most secretive stealth program.

Chinese Court Sentences Second Canadian To Death On Drug Trafficking Charges

The simmering feud between Ottawa and Beijing that erupted after Canadian authorities arrested Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou may have disappeared from the headlines…but it’s far from over. To wit, on Tuesday, the Jiangmen Intermediate People’s Court sentenced another Canadian to death on drug trafficking charges, making him the second Canadian national to receive a death sentenced in the past year.

According to the Globe and Mail, the Chinese court, in Guangdong province, accused Fan of leading what it called the “extraordinarily serious transnational trafficking and manufacturing of narcotics.” The case dates back to 2012.

May 2019 Economic Forecast Index Downward Trend Continues

Written by Steven Hansen

For the previous four months, Econintersect’s Economic Index’s long term decline began in July 2018 – and continued this month after last month’s marginal improvement. This forecast flies in the face of the continuing improvement trend of Real GDP.

The Technical Indicator: S&P 500’s grinding-higher bull trend approaches seasonal headwind

Technically speaking, the U.S. benchmarks are approaching the worst six months seasonally — May through October — against a still comfortably bullish backdrop, writes Michael Ashbaugh.

FA Center: This one investment move can give you lifetime yearly income in retirement

A simple annuity is a good way to keep from running out of money, writes Michael Edesess.

The Margin: Why ‘the crappiest generation of spoiled idiots’ has every right to be unhappy

It may not feel like it lately, and you certainly won’t read about it much in the media, but there’s a plenty to appreciate out there. So, how come everybody seems to be so miserable?