Financial Markets and Economy
Oil prices fall over doubts that non-OPEC producers will cut output (Reuters)
SINGAPORE – Oil prices fell more than 1 percent in early trading on Monday over doubts that an OPEC-led plan to cut output to rein in a global fuel supply overhang would be supported by other producers, including Russia.
Fed's Evans sees benefits to overshooting inflation target (Reuters)
The U.S. Federal Reserve should engineer monetary policy to spur inflation to rise above its two-percent target because the costs of doing so are less than in past decades, Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans said on Tuesday.
Putin Says Russia To Join OPEC Production Cut (Forbes)
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday at an energy conference in Istanbul that Russia is willing to join OPEC in an oil production cut. The announcement quickly influenced oil markets, with global benchmark Brent rallying, hitting a one year high, rising $1.21, or 2.3%, to $53.14 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.
As China's economy slows, migrant workers head home (Reuters)
Every summer in Bianqiang village in northwestern China, locals gather for three nights of Chinese opera. There are children's rides, popcorn and spit-roasted chickens. Grandparents watch over their grandchildren.
Goldman Sees Greater Chance of Oil Pact But Success in Doubt (Bloomberg)
There may be a higher probability of an agreement to cut oil production but the deal may prove self-defeating if resulting rise in prices boosts supply from other producers, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
These 4 Chinese tycoons are pouring money into NYC real estate (The Real Deal)
When Anbang Insurance Group agreed to pay $1.95 billion for the landmark Waldorf Astoria hotel in October 2014, it suggested the beginning of a new era in the scale — and audaciousness — of Chinese investment abroad.
US commercial bankruptcy filings have soared 38% from one year ago (Wolf Street)
Something funny happened on the way to the bank: In August, commercial and industrial loans outstanding at all banks in the US fell for the first time month-to-month since October 2010, which had marked the end of the collapse of credit during the Financial Crisis.
IEA says oil market may rebalance faster if OPEC sticks to target (Reuters)
Global oil supply could fall in line with demand more quickly if OPEC and Russia agree to a steep enough cut in production, but it is unclear how rapidly this might happen, the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday.
Whole Foods Makes Its Way to Low-Income Neighborhoods (Fortune)
Some are skeptical that a recently opened Chicago location will survive.
A pricy health food store is a rare sight to see in a low-income neighborhood, and Whole Foods WFM -0.31% is trying to change that.
Kuroda reiterates BOJ may push back inflation goal timetable: report (Reuters)
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda reiterated that the central bank may push back the forecast date for which it plans to achieve its 2 percent inflation target, Bloomberg reported on Monday.
Risks in China's banking system controllable even as bad loans rise: PBOC Zhou (Reuters)
Risks in China's banking system are controllable even as bad loans increase, said the governor of the country's central bank.
Lenders have adequate capital, People's Bank of China (PBOC) Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said. The PBOC published the comments, made at a G20 meeting in Washington earlier this week, on its website on Sunday
Cheap Luxury Goods in the U.K. Lure Shoppers (The Wall Street Journal)
LONDON—Attention luxury shoppers: Britain is now the cheapest place to buy that coveted Louis Vuitton handbag.
Singapore shuts Falcon bank unit, fines DBS and UBS over 1MDB (Reuters)
Singapore's central bank on Tuesday shut down a second Swiss bank in the city-state and fined banks DBS and UBS in its biggest crackdown on alleged money-laundering activities connected with Malaysia's scandal-tainted 1MDB fund.
Transocean: Friday Debt Deal Is More Evidence Of True Industry Assessment (Henrix Alex, Seeking Alpha)
Transocean issued $600 mln in new debt against its high-margin Deepwater Thalassa contract at very unfavorable conditions.
Saudi Arabia Sees Its Oil Reserves Lasting Another 70 Years (Bloomberg)
Saudi Arabia, the biggest oil exporter, sees its crude reserves of 266.5 billion barrels lasting 70 more years and hasn’t sought an independent consultant to review the figures, according to a bond prospectus seen by Bloomberg News.
IEA Head Sees $60 Oil Prompting Surge in North American Output (Bloomberg)
Crude prices of $60 a barrel would probably trigger a strong increase in North American oil production while trimming global demand growth, the head of the International Energy Agency said.
Companies
Takata tumbles after report company weighs U.S. bankruptcy filing (Reuters)
Shares of Takata Corp (7312.T) fell sharply on Tuesday after The Wall Street Journal reported late last week that the troubled Japanese air bag maker is weighing a U.S. bankruptcy filing as one option for clearing a path for an outside investor.
Former Employees Detail Wells Fargo’s “Boiler Room” Operation (Fortune)
On Friday’s episode of NPR’s Planet Money, former Wells Fargo employees offered details of young salespeople being subjected to intense pressure to sign customers up for multiple accounts, ultimately leading them to engage in fraud. The report also undermines CEO John Stumpf’s claims, including those made before congressional committees, that he and other Wells Fargo leaders were was unaware of the fraud until around the time the Los Angeles Times wrote about it in late 2013.
Note 7 fiasco could burn a $17 billion hole in Samsung accounts (Reuters)
Samsung Electronics' (005930.KS) worst-ever recall could cost the company as much as $17 billion after it halted sales of its flagship Galaxy Note 7 for a second time, spelling an almost certain end for the ill-fated premium model.
Here's how Disney and Viacom are fighing to rope in cord-cutters (The Motley Fool)
Pay-TV companies have been responding to cord-cutters the best they can.
While many customers are still ditching their video packages, others are simply opting for smaller and less expensive bundles of networks.
Hedge Fund Lawsuit Alleges Theranos 'Knowingly And Repeatedly Lied' (Forbes)
Until now, there has been one big reason to believe that Theranos, the controversial diagnostics startup, could survive despite widespread doubts about whether its technology, which the company once promised would revolutionize the blood testing business, even works: its investors, after putting $700 million into the startup, seemed solidly behind Theranos and its founder, Elizabeth Holmes.
Apple stock hits highest since December on Samsung Note 7 fire crisis (Reuters)
Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) stock on Monday jumped 2.3 percent, reaching a high not seen since December, after rival Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) suspended production of its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphones following reports of fires in replacement devices.
Politics
Clinton weighed reinstating Glass-Steagall, Wikileaks emails show (Reuters)
A longtime political adviser to Hillary Clinton last year urged her presidential campaign to support a new version of a law that separated commercial and investment banking to avoid antagonizing the Democratic Party's progressive wing, according to emails published by Wikileaks on Monday.
Hillary Clinton Is Pledging More Tax Relief for Families With Young Kids (Fortune)
Continuing her policy focus on children and families, Hillary Clinton is pledging more tax relief for families with young kids.
Trump, under attack, turns on House Speaker, media (Reuters)
Donald Trump stepped up his attacks against U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan on Tuesday, one day after the top Republican in Congress said he was not going to defend the party's presidential nominee or campaign for him.
Clinton Makes Some Sense on Energy Policy; Trump Makes None (Truth Out)
As the most Jerry Springer-esque presidential debate on record wound down, the conversation swerved from questions like "did Donald Trump sexually assault a TV journalist or just brag about it on his way to a soap opera shoot" to energy policy, a realm most moderators avoid.
Bill Clinton Celebrates The Day He Married His ‘Best Friend,’ Hillary Clinton (The Huffington Post)
Former President Bill Clinton tweeted a sweet message to his wife, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, on their 41st anniversary Tuesday.
Technology
Germany calls for a ban on combustion engine cars by 2030 (Engadget)
Germany isn't content with relying on financial incentives to usher in an era of pollution-free cars. The country's Bundesrat (federal council) has passed a resolution calling for a ban on new internal combustion engine cars by 2030. From then on, you'd have to buy a zero-emissions vehicle, whether it's electric or running on a hydrogen fuel cell.
These 3 Apple Patents Go Before the Supreme Court on Tuesday (Fortune)
Apple has been locked in bitter lawsuits with Samsung ever since late CEO Steve Jobs vowed to take revenge on its Korean rival for “slavishly copying” the iPhone.
Samsung Market Value Plummets $17 Billion on Note 7 Sales Halt (Bloomberg)
Samsung Electronics Co. halted sales of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones and asked consumers to stop using the ones they’ve already purchased, another blow to South Korea’s largest company as it struggles with a crisis over exploding batteries. Shares plunged, cutting $17 billion from its market value.
Apple Shares Are Red Hot Amid Samsung's Flaming Phone Issues (NBC News)
At least five reports have surfaced of Galaxy Note 7 phones overheating or catching fire, according to the AP, despite a global recall of the handsets last month. The continuing issues with the phones, which compete with Apple's iPhone 7, have led some to sound the death knell for the product.
Microsoft Says Its New Business Apps Are Smartest in the Land (Fortune)
Take that Salesforce!
Last week, Salesforce pitched its sales, marketing, e-commerce, and customer service software as a treasure trove of smarts because of the artificial intelligence it is layering across that portfolio.
Putting a GoPro on a Hot Wheels Track Is the Safest Way to Become a Stunt Driver (Sploid)
Think you can pull off burnouts, drifts, and breath-taking jumps in your sedan just because you’ve seen all the Fast and Furious films? Being a stunt driver takes years of practice and the right equipment—and you probably have neither. But it turns you can get a similar experience by just slapping a GoPro on a Hot Wheels car and send it hurdling down a track.
Samsung scraps Galaxy Note 7 over fire concerns (Reuters)
Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) scrapped its flagship Galaxy Note 7 smartphone on Tuesday less than two months after its launch, dealing a huge blow to its reputation and outlook after failing to resolve safety concerns.
Welcome your new robot overlords: humans (CNet)
We've seen many iterations of what roboticists call "telexistence" in sci-fi movies and TV shows — it's when a human inhabits a non-human entity that's existing elsewhere, whether it's a few feet away or halfway around the globe. Japanese airline All Nippon Airways (ANA) is partnering up with XPrize to create a competition it hopes will use this tech to jumpstart development on a real-life general purpose robot avatar.
Health and Biotech
Researchers Restored A Colony Of Microbes In The Gut (Popular Science)
Last month, Popular Science discussed the state of gut microbiome research and the often overgeneralized claims of many probiotics. As we concluded, the field is still in its infancy and one of the main challenges to creating effective prescription probiotics is that it’s extremely difficult to culture a lasting population of specific bacteria in the gut.
Pets on Pot: The Newest Customer Base for Medical Marijuana (NY Times)
When Lisa Mastramico needed relief for her ailing tabby, Little Kitty, she turned to an unlikely source: marijuana.
Physicists just witnessed quasiparticles forming for the first time ever (Science Alert)
For the first time, scientists have observed the formation of quasiparticles – a strange phenomenon observed in certain solids – in real time, something that physicists have been struggling to do for decades.
Life on the Home Planet
Escalation in Syria means EU less likely to soften stance on Russia (Reuters)
Outraged by Russia's intensified air strikes on rebels in Syria, the European Union is now less likely to ease sanctions on Moscow over Ukraine, diplomats say, and some in the bloc are raising the prospect of more punitive steps against the Kremlin.
The Next Zika (Scientific American)
Disease detectives are on the lookout for obscure viruses that can be spread among people by traveling insects, and quickly become a widespread problem. Scientific papers are filled with illnesses to watch. Four particular viruses now stand out to virologists and epidemiologists, although it is not certain any of the ailments will become the next Zika or West Nile virus.
Hurricane Matthew: 'There Is Nothing Left' Say The Haitian Families Who Survived It (Unicef UK, Newsweek)
Haiti is now facing the largest humanitarian emergency since 2010, after Hurricane Matthew tore through the country October 4. According to the latest media reports, over 900 people have lost their lives, and this figure may rise, as rescue teams gain access to southern areas cut off by the storm.
Thailand Heightens Security After Bangkok Bomb Threat (Newsweek)
Thai authorities have heightened security measures at landmarks in Bangkok and at the country’s airports after an intelligence report outlined possible plots in the capital and its surrounding areas at the end of the month.
