Financial Markets and Economy
European Stocks Are Little Changed as Investors Assess Earnings (Bloomberg)
European stocks were little changed as investors assessed earnings releases for signs of growth against the backdrop of an expected tightening of U.S. monetary policy.
Hong Kong Stocks Extend Slump as Banks, Property Shares Retreat (Bloomberg)
Hong Kong stocks dropped for a third day, led by financial companies, amid concern that a flood of inflows from the mainland will dry up, the yuan will weaken further and higher U.S. interest rates will weigh on the city’s property market.
To Fix The Global Economy, Fix The Dollar (Forbes)
For Americans who’ve been lucky enough to visit foreign soil this decade, the one unfortunate glitch involved learning just how little a dollar can buy overseas. With the dollar having declined against nearly every major foreign currency, travel outside the U.S. has been as expensive as it has been fulfilling.
Premier Foods Plunges as Warm September Curbs Gravy Sales (Bloomberg)
Premier Foods Plc shares plunged after the maker of Mr Kipling cakes said September’s warm U.K. weather quelled demand for products such as Bisto gravies and Ambrosia custard.
Deutsche Bank is the only major European bank that has to pay to borrow money (Business Insider)
Deutsche Bank is the only major European lender that has to pay to borrow money over a 9 or 12-month period.
The bank paid 0.06% interest for a one-year loan and 0.02% for a nine-month loan, according to data compiled by the European Money Market Institute and reported by Reuters.
BOJ Reflationist Harada Says More Easing May Be Unneeded for Now (Bloomberg)
Yutaka Harada, one of the most committed reflationists on the Bank of Japan board, said there may be no need to ease monetary policy further at the moment.
Texas, Once a Star, Becomes a Drag on the U.S. Economy (The Wall Street Journal)
HOUSTON—Texas helped lead the U.S. out of recession, thanks in part to the shale drilling revolution. But after more than two years of slumping oil prices, the state is now a sore spot for the national economy.
Australia Sells A$7.6 Billion of 30-Year Debt in Record Deal (Bloomberg)
Australia’s government sold its biggest-ever bond, raising A$7.6 billion ($5.8 billion) in a debut offering of 30-year securities. Yields on benchmark 10-year debt jumped to the highest since June.
Are Post-Bankruptcy Oil And Gas Stocks Huge Buys? (Forbes)
Yesterday we talked about the bullish breakout in natural gas, and the emerging fundamental and technical support for higher oil prices.
Today, oil traded lower on a comment from the head of Russia’s biggest state-owned energy producing company.
Deutsche Bank’s potential $14bn penalty in 10 simple charts (Bloomberg)
The US Department of Justice has started the negotiations at $14bn. That would make it one of the biggest settlements for mis-selling mortgage bonds, a scandal that erupted in the wake of the banking crisis when it emerged that banks had packaged up mortgages and sold them on to investors as residential mortgage backed securities.
BOFA: Stocks are almost as expensive as they were during the tech bubble (Business Insider)
Bank of America Merrill Lynch is joining the chorus of strategists on Wall Street who are warning that the stock market is expensive.
The 11 richest countries where people have the least trust in their politicians (Business Insider)
The World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Survey looks at the financial health of and risks facing countries around the world.
One of these is how much the public trusts its politicians.
Estate Planning For Angel Investors: How To Maximize Investment Returns For Your Family And Future (Forbes)
Many angels think about building great returns from our investments, but how many have thought through the strategies and techniques to ensure most of those returns actually get to our children, grandchildren and preferred charities?
Oil-patch Texas, once a star, becomes a drag on U.S. economy (Market Watch)
HOUSTON—Texas helped lead the U.S. out of recession, thanks in part to the shale drilling revolution. But after more than two years of slumping oil prices, the state is now a sore spot for the national economy.
British Bond Bloodbath Despite 'Softening' Brexit Sterling Bounce (Zero Hedge)
It appears Theresa May's mild concession to the opposition to debate Brexit has done nothing to stop the selling in bonds as Gilt yields spike to Brexit levels despite a bounce in the pound.
OPEC points to larger 2017 oil surplus despite deal to cut output (Reuters)
OPEC reported a increase in its oil production in September to the highest in at least eight years and raised its forecast for 2017 non-OPEC supply growth, pointing to a larger surplus next year despite the group’s deal to cut output.
Global Stocks Pressured By Weak Earnings, Rate Hike Concerns; Pound Jumps (Zero Hedge)
Global stocks are pressured this morning after a plunge in the Thai stock market and currency on concerns about the king's health and Fed hikes coupled with some more bad news out of Samsung which cut profit estimates by a third, while European stocks are suffering after Swedish telecom giant Ericsson issued a profit warning, sending its shares plunging 17%.
Companies
Samsung Cuts Profit by $2.3 Billion After Killing Note 7 (Bloomberg)
Samsung Electronics Co. cut its third-quarter operating profit by $2.3 billion after ending production of its fire-prone Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, the first official indication of how much the crisis will cost South Korea’s largest company.
After Divorcing VW, Suzuki Joins Toyota in Partnership Talks (Bloomberg)
Suzuki Motor Corp. said it’s exploring collaboration with Toyota Motor Corp. amid unprecedented costs to make cars safer and cleaner, one year after the smaller Japanese automaker extricated itself from a failed partnership with Volkswagen AG.
Here’s Where Apple Plans to Set Up a New R&D Center (Fortune)
Apple will set up a research and development center in China’s manufacturing metropolis Shenzhen, the U.S. tech giant said on Wednesday, as the firm looks to spur growth in the world’s second largest economy amid growing competition.
Ericsson Shares Plunge on Profit Warning (The Wall Street Journal)
STOCKHOLM—Ericsson AB, one of the world’s largest makers of telecom equipment and Sweden’s flagship tech company, Wednesday capped a series of management shake-up and job-cut announcements with a profit warning that sent its share price tumbling and laid bare how the rise of Asian rivals has wounded Western suppliers.
Politics
Donald Trump Is Closing the Election With the Combative Approach of His Primary Campaign (Associated Press, TIME)
(WASHINGTON)—Here comes Donald Trump, unfiltered. Again.
The Republican presidential candidate is vowing to win the election his own way, as party leaders step away from him.
Donald Trump Tells Florida Supporters The Wrong Date For Election Day (The Huffington Post)
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump told supporters in Florida on Tuesday evening that the election is on Nov. 28 ? 20 days after Election Day.
“Go register,” Trump implored. “Make sure you go out and vote Nov. 28.”
Duterte Job-Approval Rating Hits 86% Despite Drug War Criticism (Bloomberg)
Philippine voters have given President Rodrigo Duterte a job-approval rating of 86 percent after three months in office, despite international criticism of a deadly drug war that has seen more than 3,000 people killed.
Obama aims to train 'next generation' of activists post-presidency (Politico)
President Barack Obama may be plotting a return to his community organizing roots.
When he leaves the White House, Obama wants to create a “platform” to train the next generation of leaders and activists, he said during a town-hall event broadcast on ESPN Tuesday evening.
Technology
In 100 Years, BMW Thinks Motorcycles Will Look Like This Self-Balancing Concept (Digital Trends)
The BMW Vision Next 100 model wants to make you a better driver, the Rolls-Royce 103EX wants to make you a more comfortable passenger, the Mini Vision Next 100 concept wants to facilitate effortless urban mobility, and now Motorrad’s Vision Next 100 creation wants to help you escape.
BMW Sees Electric Cars Pushing Into Mainstream in Tesla Race (Bloomberg)
BMW AG expects sales of its electrified cars to surge in the next decade as the technology hits the mainstream, putting it in a race against Tesla and Mercedes-Benz.
Plug-in hybrids and all-electric cars across the BMW and Mini brands could account for between 15 percent and 25 percent of sales in about 10 years, BMW Chief Executive Harald Krueger said in a Bloomberg Television interview.
Amazon's new music service is a direct shot at Apple and Spotify (Business Insider)
Amazon is barging into the crowded music streaming market with a trio of new services designed to one-up heavyweights like Spotify and Apple.
Microsoft HoloLens brings mixed reality to Australia and UK (CNet)
Microsoft is already looking at the next step with the HoloLens. Rather than bate you into an entirely virtual space like VR, the HoloLens is aiming for mixed reality, merging those virtual worlds with the real world.
HP refreshes 13-inch Spectre x360 with 7th-gen Intel chips and smaller bezel, starts at $1,050 (Venture Beat)
HP today is announcing the launch of a 2016 version of its 13.3-inch Spectre x360 touch-friendly convertible laptop. The new version is thinner and lighter than last year’s model, carries a smaller bezel, and offers longer battery life. It starts at $1,050, which is $150 more than the base price of the 2015 version.
Software That Identifies Any Passing Face Is Ready For Market (Popular Science)
Is it worth the convenience for a machine to recognize your face? Submit a selfie, and you don’t need to carry a ticket into a concert, promises Moscow’s NTechLab, which used face-scanning technology to let people into a electronic music festival this summer.
Health and Biotech
Britain has decided that one powerful marijuana compound can now be sold as medicine (Business Insider)
British government regulators on Tuesday ruled that products containing the cannabis-based ingredient cannabidiol (CBD) are medicines.
Scientists just developed a video that induces the same visual hallucinations in healthy people (Science Alert)
Researchers have discovered a way to consistently induce the same visual hallucination in healthy people – without drugs.
Young ovaries rejuvenate older mice and extend their lifespan (New Scientist)
Ovaries may hold the secret for holding back ageing in females. Swapping an older mouse’s ovaries for young ones seems to reverse the effects of ageing on the immune system and metabolism of female mice, making them live longer. Could people reap the same benefits?
Life on the Home Planet
How should the UK respond to the crisis in Syria? (The Guardian)
What the Syrian regime and their Russian allies are doing in Syria is the greatest crime of our century. Faced with the horror they are unleashing, it is no longer possible to pretend that the international community can stand by. Inaction has consequences and the UK does have the capacity to make a difference in Syria if we show the will to act.
Weird binary system spotted with three rings around two stars (New Scientist)
Astronomers have never seen anything like it: two stars, each swaddled in planet-forming discs – and then a third, larger disc around the entire lot. Named IRS 43, the system is 400 light years away from Earth.
NIgeria Car Bomb 'Kills 8' In Boko Haram Birthplace: Emergency Agency (Newsweek)
A car bomb has reportedly killed at least eight people in Maiduguri in northeast Nigeria, where Boko Haram is waging an insurgency, according to the country’s emergency management agency.
Turkey arresting 215 more police officers in post-coup investigation: NTV (Reuters)
Turkish authorities on Wednesday issued arrest warrants for 215 police officers, including 147 police chiefs, broadcaster NTV reported, in an operation linked to July's attempted coup.
Chinese Police Reportedly Bust Underground Banks that Handled $35 Billion (Reuters)
Police in China’s southern province of Guangdong have busted underground banks that handled 230 billion yuan ($35 billion) in illegal money transfers this year, state news agency Xinhua reported, underscoring the challenges Beijing faces in blocking illicit outflows.
