09Jul2020 Pre-Market Commentary: DOW Futures Point To Lackluster Stock-market Open As Jobless Claims Decline, DOW Up 7 Points, WTI Crude Steady At 40.83, Gold At 1811

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

European markets are mixed today. The DAX is up 1.54% while the CAC 40 gains 0.23%. The FTSE 100 is off 0.45%.

Grocers urgently need to fix broken online business model, as pandemic shifts more to web, report says

The pandemic has laid bare the broken business model for online grocery shopping and created new urgency for grocers to fix it, a Bain report said.

U.S. may need another 1 billion square feet of warehouse space by 2025 as e-commerce booms

With online sales proliferating during the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. is going to need more warehouses to store hoards of boxes and handle those orders.

Walgreens swings to a quarterly loss as coronavirus drives up costs, lowers doctor visits

Walgreens Boots Alliance said its profits were squeezed by a shift in sales to low-margin items, increased supply-chain costs and higher expenses for labor and store cleaning.

‘Glee’ star Naya Rivera missing after son found alone in boat on California lake

Authorities are searching a Southern California lake for “Glee” actress Naya Rivera, after her 4 year-old son was found alone in a boat she had rented Wednesday.

Coronavirus live updates: Africa CDC stresses testing; Hong Kong grapples with new cluster

The coronavirus has infected more than 12.06 million people around the world as of Thursday, killing at least 549,900 people.

In race to bring vaccine to market, big pharma struggles to protect its intellectual property rights

The World Health Organization this week said 21 candidate vaccines are in clinical trials at the moment, meaning they are being tested on human volunteers.

The two ‘key dangers’ facing almost all retailers

Rising coronavirus cases and partisan bickering in Washington could threaten the outlook for most retailers, says trader Boris Schlossberg.

Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Walgreens, Square, Carnival, Six Flags, Alibaba & more

Square gets hit with an analyst downgrade and Walgreens falls on disappointing earnings.

5 things to know before the stock market opens Thursday

Dow futures were lower and Nasdaq futures were higher Thursday, one day after a tech-led rally on Wall Street.

Bed Bath & Beyond to close 200 stores over 2 years as sales fall almost 50% during pandemic

Bed Bath & Beyond said Wednesday that it plans to permanently close roughly 200 of its namesake stores over the next two years, starting later this year, as it works toward getting back to profitability amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Illinois Gov. Pritzker says states were forced to compete in ‘sick Hunger Games’ competition for PPE without national coronavirus plan

Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker said states were forced to compete in a “Hunger Games”-like competition for personal protective equipment when the pandemic began because of a lackluster national response.

Lawsuit alleges Wendy’s franchisee spent $1 million of PPP funding to finance home

A former employee of Starboard Group, a large Wendy’s operator, alleges that the franchisee’s chief executive diverted $1 million in Paycheck Protection Program loans to finance his home in Montana.

CDC director says there’s no data children drive coronavirus spread ” but the U.S. isn’t testing many kids

The question of whether kids might be a driver of transmission is key, especially as local officials decide whether and how to reopen schools in the fall.

Almost 50 Million Americans Have Now Filed For First-Time Jobless Benefits Since Lockdowns Began

Almost 50 Million Americans Have Now Filed For First-Time Jobless Benefits Since Lockdowns Began Tyler Durden Thu, 07/09/2020 – 08:34

Despite the hope-restoring nonfarm payrolls “recovery” and the over-hyped bounce in retail sales (ignoring the lack of ‘V’ in industrial production) and ‘soft’ sentiment surveys (which are biased by their nature as diffusion indices to bounce back hard), for the sixteenth week in a row, over 1 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits for the first time (1.314mm was slightly better than the 1.375mm expected).

Barr Should Transfer Ghislaine Maxwell To Rikers For Her Safety: Former Prison Official

Barr Should Transfer Ghislaine Maxwell To Rikers For Her Safety: Former Prison Official Tyler Durden Thu, 07/09/2020 – 08:20

Attorney General Bill Barr should transfer Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged ‘madam’ to Rikers Island while her case plays out, as the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn is ill-equipped to handle the high-profile inmate.

S&P Futures Flat As China’s Bubblemania Storms Higher For 8th Day

S&P Futures Flat As China’s Bubblemania Storms Higher For 8th Day Tyler Durden Thu, 07/09/2020 – 08:04

S&P futures were flat on Thursday, rebounded from an earlier dip in a low-volume session ahead of the closely watched weekly jobless claims report, with investors weighing the risk of another business shutdown amid soaring U.S. COVID-19 cases.

Walgreens Drags Down Dow As Q2 Sales Slump; Company Cuts 4,000 Jobs

Walgreens Drags Down Dow As Q2 Sales Slump; Company Cuts 4,000 Jobs Tyler Durden Thu, 07/09/2020 – 07:53

Offering an early glimpse of what the Q2 earnings season might be like, Walgreens Boots Alliance kicked things off – though the season doesn’t ‘unofficially’ start until next week, to be sure – with a disappointing batch of numbers driven by a drop in same-store sales that was far larger than Wall Street expected.

Adjusted earnings for Walgreens third fiscal quarter (comprising the three months ending in May) came in at 83 cents per share, down 43.5% YoY. That was well shy of the Wall Street consensus estimate of $1.18 per share. Group revenues rose 0.1% to $34.6 billion, just below analysts’ projections for $34.35 billion.

The company’s biggest quarterly hit came from the United Kingdom, where it operates under the Boots brand. The company counted charges of ~$2 billion, with the company unveiling plans to cut some 4,000 jobs as a result. It also announced the suspension of its share buyback program – which didn’t exactly help bolster investor confidence.

Looking ahead, Walgreens sees adj. earnings of $4.65 per share to $4.75 per share, which factors in between $1.03 and $1.14 per share of covid impact.

To be sure, Walgreens is already reworking its busines …

John Lewis and Boots to cut 5,300 jobs and shut shops

A day after the chancellor unveils a plan to save jobs, two of the UK’s biggest retailers announce cuts.

Coronavirus: Taxes will rise to pay for virus, IFS think tank warns

The chancellor’s huge economic support schemes will have to be paid for via higher taxes, the IFS says.

Energy firms hit back at Ofgem plan to cut bills

Households could see their energy bills cut by £20 a year under proposals from the regulator.

The hot mess behind India’s surging coronavirus numbers

The hot mess behind India’s surging coronavirus numbersThis week India surpassed Russia to become third worst-hit country with over 740,000 infections.

Motown may put brakes on Chinese imports

Motown may put brakes on Chinese importsGovt officials will soon meet executives of auto firms to prepare a road map aimed at localising production.

What’s a hit on Netflix? This startup knows

What’s a hit on Netflix? This startup knowsParrot Analytics says it has come up with a metric that can measure what a program means to a streamer.

Market Snapshot: Dow futures point to lackluster stock-market open as jobless claims decline

U.S. stock-index futures Thursday morning see muted action as investors await a report on weekly jobless claims that is likely to show that more than one million Americans submitted claims for unemployment benefits amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Greyhound owner says Trump rhetoric caused less immigration, forcing $156 million write-down

President Trump’s comments on immigration, including about building a wall between Mexico and the U.S., contributed to a £124 million write-off at intercity coach operator Greyhound.

Key Words: Japanese amusement parks urge silence on roller coasters: ‘Please scream inside your heart’

Fuji-Q Highland and other amusement parks in Japan, including Tokyo Disneyland, have banned screaming on rides.