25Feb2020 Pre-Market Commentary: Wall Street To Open Higher, DOW Up 140 Points, WTI Steady At 51.51, Gold Climbing Again At 1652

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

European markets are lower today with shares in London off the most. The FTSE 100 is down 0.58% while France’s CAC 40 is off 0.22% and Germany’s DAX is lower by 0.22%.

For Wells Fargo and former executives, $3 billion-deal with U.S. may not be the end

Although Wells Fargo & Co settled major probes with federal agencies over abusive sales practices last week, the bank and its former executives are not out of the woods yet, legal and regulatory experts said.

Global stocks sink further as virus fears weigh

Global stocks sank to their lowest levels in over two months on Tuesday, as relief from a sharp selloff the previous day on fears about the spreading coronavirus proved temporary.

Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga to step down, insider Miebach tapped

Mastercard said on Tuesday Chief Executive Officer Ajay Banga will step down at the start of the next year and will be replaced by Chief Product Officer Michael Miebach.

Macy’s holiday-quarter comparable sales beats forecasts, shares jump

Department store chain Macy’s Inc on Tuesday reported quarterly comparable sales that beat Wall Street estimates with the help of a smaller-than-feared decline in holiday sales.   Macy’s shares rose 7% in pre-market trade.   Comparable sales at Macy’s owned and licensed stores fell 0.7% in the fourth quarter ended Feb. 1, compared with the 0.93% drop estimated by analysts, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.  Net income attributable to the company fell to $340 mil

IEA says virus-hit oil growth outlook lowest in a decade, could go lower

The International Energy Agency’s (IEA) outlook on global oil demand growth has fallen to its lowest level in a decade, IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Tuesday, adding it could be reduced further due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak.

Thomson Reuters names new CEO, earnings top estimates

Thomson Reuters Corp said on Tuesday it had appointed former Nielsen Holdings Plc president Steve Hasker as its new chief executive officer, succeeding Jim Smith.

Chinese consumers snap up yoga mats, video games, condoms as coronavirus keeps them at home

As the coronavirus epidemic keeps hundreds of millions of Chinese stuck at home, they’re shopping online to stave off boredom with games for Nintendo’s Switch console, yoga mats, books and condoms all showing big jumps in orders.

EU extends EssilorLuxottica, GrandVision antitrust investigation to July 6

EU antitrust regulators on Tuesday extended their investigation into Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica’s 7.2 billion-euro ($7.8 billion) bid for Dutch opticians group GrandVision by two weeks to July 6, according to an EU filing.

Oil steadies above $56 as supply constraints counter virus fears

Oil steadied above $56 a barrel on Tuesday after two days of declines as OPEC output cuts and Libyan supply losses balanced concerns about the spread of the coronavirus and its impact on oil demand.

South Korean Crisis-Response Coordinator Commits Suicide As Cases Near 1,000; 11 Deaths: Live Updates

South Korean Crisis-Response Coordinator Commits Suicide As Cases Near 1,000; 11 Deaths: Live Updates

Update (0800ET): With his reputation under fire and his popularity slipping, PM Giuseppe Conte said Tuesday that he’s confident that the measures his government has put in place will contain the contagion in the coming days.

This comes after the PM admitted that a hospital in Lombardy inadvertently helped spread the virus by not adhering to certain health-care protocols. The PM has blamed the hospital for the outbreak in the north, raising questions about whether “the European nation is capable of containing the outbreak,” according to CNN. To put things in perspective, Italy now has 3x the number of cases in Hong Kong.

“That certainly contributed to the spread,” Conte said, without naming the institution concerned. The infection has been centered around the town of Codogno, around 35 miles south of Milan.

“Obviously we cannot predict the progress of the virus. It is clear that there has been an outbreak and it has spread from there,” Conte told reporters, referring to the hospital.

A team of health experts from the World Health Organization and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control arrived in Italy on Monday to assist local authorities while some 100,000 remain under an effective quarantine.

Over in India, Trump added to his earlier comments by saying a vaccine is “very close”, even though the most genero …

Markets Scramble To Stage “Turnaround Tuesday” But Bad News Keeps Coming

Markets Scramble To Stage “Turnaround Tuesday” But Bad News Keeps Coming

After the Monday Market Mayhem which saw the Dow drop more than 1,000 points, the VIX surge more than 8 points to close above 25 – its biggest jump since the February 2018 VIXtermination event – and prompted a panicked respond from both Trump and Kudlow urging Americans to ‘buy the dip’, S&P futures jumped in early trading, rising as much as 40 points to 3,260 higher even after Shanghai Composite fell as much as 1.7% and China’s Nasdaq ChiNext tumbled as much as 4.1%.

Some dealers cited a WSJ report on a possible vaccine as helping sentiment, though human tests of the drug are not due until the end of April and results not until July or August. Whatever the cause, E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 bounced 0.7% to pare some of the steep 3.35% loss the cash index suffered overnight. However the initial dip buying euphoria did not last as even more cases were repoted, now in Spain and Austria, and futures faded most gains as fresh concerns about an out of control pandemic hit risk assets.

Sanders Supporters Get “#EatTheRich” Trending On Twitter In Epic Bloomberg Troll

Sanders Supporters Get “#EatTheRich” Trending On Twitter In Epic Bloomberg Troll

It’s official: A gang of terminally online Bernie Sanders supporters has succeeded in making the hashtag “#EatTheRich” the most popular political hashtag in the US as part of a campaign to mock Michael Bloomberg’s decision to ‘buy the presidency’ by pouring his immense wealth into self-financing his campaign.

It all started when one user pointed out that Bloomberg once supported Michigan’s former Republican Gov. Rich Snyder, the public official who has been blamed for Flint’s Water Crisis, before arguing that Bloomberg could single-handedly “fix” Flint’s water crisis (federal officials actually certified that Flint’s water was safe to drink back in 2017) with just a fraction of the money – a mere $50 million – that he had spent on his campaign.

Bloomberg Burning $5.6 Million Per Day On Campaign Advertising

Bloomberg Burning $5.6 Million Per Day On Campaign Advertising

Two weeks ago we noted that Mike Bloomberg has been using his vast fortune to “fundamentally alter and manipulate US politics,” showering everyone within arm’s reach with enough money to buy a personality – and more staff than all of his Democratic opponents combined.

Trump on Kashmir, Delhi clashes & tariffs problem with India

Trump on Kashmir, Delhi clashes & tariffs problem with India”If anything I can do to mediate, I will do,” Trump said while talking about Kashmir.

The real risk that lurks around coronavirus

The real risk that lurks around coronavirusThe China virus now threatens to become a pandemic that could touch virtually every part of the globe.

On Day 2 of Trump, a mega $3 bn defence deal

On Day 2 of Trump, a mega $3 bn defence dealIndia will purchase advanced military equipment from the US, including Apache and MH-60 Romeo helicopters.

Bond Report: Treasury market takes a breather from relentless rally, stopping short of record

U.S. Treasury yields around break-even levels on Tuesday a day after the benchmark maturity came perilously near breaching its all-time low amid heightened concerns around the COVID-19 outbreak.

BookWatch: We are nearing ‘longevity escape velocity’ ” where science can extend your life for more than a year for every year you are alive

Technological convergence in 8 areas is taking direct aim at the limits of human lifespan.

Prepare now for the post-coronavirus bond market, this investor says

Look past the current coronavirus concerns, counsels WisdomTree’s Kevin Flanagan, and invest to be ready for the recovery.