Financial Markets and Economy
Swedish Growth Slows at Start of 2017 as Exporters Struggle (Bloomberg)
Sweden’s economy slowed at the start of the year as exports struggled to maintain momentum, dulling a housing-fueled investment and consumption boom in the largest Nordic economy.
Europe Risks Weigh on Stocks; Crude, Gold Retreat: Markets Wrap (Bloomberg)
European stocks fell and the euro struggled against the dollar as investors were reminded of a few of the challenges still faced by the world’s biggest single market. Oil joined a wider selloff in commodities.
A Little Bit of Sunshine Sends European Gas Prices Tumbling (Bloomberg)
Mean temperatures in northwest Europe are set to be more than 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit) this weekend, 5 degrees above the 10-year average. Same-day gas in the U.K., a European benchmark market, has fallen for eight sessions, its longest declining streak in almost a decade.
French Growth Revised Up on Strong Investment; Confidence Jumps (Bloomberg)
France’s economy grew more than originally estimated at the start of the year as corporate investment surged, the latest signs that President Emmanuel Macron has taken power at a time of recovery.
France is upping the stakes in the battle for London's €930 billion a day clearing business (Business Insider)
One of the most senior officials in European central banking has staked France's claim to attract the lucrative euro clearing business after Brexit, saying he can't see how operations can be allowed to stay in the UK once it has left the EU.
Starting a Bank Is This British Town’s Solution to Funding Cuts (Bloomberg)
You smell Warrington before you see it — thanks to the huge Unilever NV plant that cranks out scented laundry detergent by the ton. And if you blink, you may not even see it at all.
Market Pessimism on OPEC Deal Lingers (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg's Tracy Alloway discusses the price, production and inventories of oil.
Deutsche Bank is making a big bet on the future of finance (Business Insider)
Deutsche Bank is making a big bet on financial technology.
The German bank is investing in fintech startups. It just opened a fourth innovation lab, this time in the financial district in New York. A chunk of its website is dedicated to digital banking.
This money manager sees no end in sight for bull market (Market Watch)
Hank Smith of Haverton Trust believes the stock market will be helped if President Trump gets the tax-reform bill he wants, or an infrastructure spending bill and additional regulatory relief.
European stocks head for 4th straight loss as banks suffer from Italian jitters (Market Watch)
European stocks dropped almost across the board on Tuesday, with banks leading the charge lower after a broker downgrade and concerns over a potential early election in Italy.
A crackdown on China’s £7.3 trillion 'shadow banking' industry is rattling markets (Business Insider)
Shadow banking is broadly defined as financial activities such as lending which are conducted in unregulated conditions, and it's a massive deal in China: Business expanded to around £7.33 trillion ($9.4 trillion) a year in China last year, according to ratings agency Moody's.
Airlines in focus; Euro takes a hit; U.S. futures flat (CNN)
A tale of two airlines: British Airways owner IAG (BABWF) shed 4% on Tuesday after a major IT failure forced the airline to cancel thousands of flights over the holiday weekend.
Japan needs more workers and it can't find them (CNN)
Japan now has 1.48 jobs for every applicant. That's the highest number since 1974, when rapid growth pushed the ratio to 1.53. It also exceeds the labor shortage peak Japan hit during its economic bubble years in the early 1990s.
Dollar slips as euro, pound rebound from political-driven losses (Market Watch)
The ICE Dollar Index DXY, -0.09% fell 0.1% to 97.460, erasing gains from earlier in the session. The reversal came as the pound GBPUSD, +0.2103% started to move higher, buying $1.2867 compared with $1.2840 late Monday in New York.
U.S. stock futures hold steady, amid buzz that the bull market is back (Market Watch)
U.S. stock futures on Tuesday pointed to little change at the open, but some analysts said last week’s record-setting advance means the market’s bull run is back.
Short oil as its fundamentals and chart both look terrible, newsletter says (Market Watch)
West Texas Intermediate crude CLN7, -0.74% was recently down on Tuesday by about 0.4% to $49.62 a barrel, extending last week’s drop that came as OPEC stopped short of taking more aggressive steps to cut production.
U.S. Consumer Spending Rose 0.4% in April (The Wall Street Journal)
Americans stepped up their spending in April at the fastest pace in four months, a sign the U.S. economy is rebounding after a lackluster winter.
Fed Officials Likely to Raise Rates in June, Finalize Plans to Reduce Portfolio (The Wall Street Journal)
Federal Reserve officials are likely to raise short-term interest rates at their meeting in two weeks and announce their framework for shrinking a $4.5 trillion portfolio of bonds and other assets later this year.
Injunction Request Aims to Stop German Role in ECB’s Bond Buying (The Wall Street Journal)
A Berlin-based law professor has filed a cease-and-desist request aimed at quickly ending Germany’s involvement in bond purchases by the European Central Bank, a surprise legal move that underlines mounting German anger over the ECB’s easy-money policies.
Consumer spending jumps; monthly inflation rebounds (Reuters)
U.S. consumer spending recorded its biggest increase in four months in April and monthly inflation rebounded, pointing to firming domestic demand that could allow the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates next month.
Kicking the Tires on the Rundown Retail Sector (The Wall Street Journal)
Retail clothing sales are falling, forcing a deepening retrenchment at major retailers that is hammering their results and their shares.
Companies
Exxon Squares Off With Shareholders in Annual Climate Showdown (Bloomberg)
Presiding over his first annual meeting since predecessor Rex Tillerson left to become U.S. secretary of state, Woods will be tested Wednesday on everything from climate change to his own paycheck.
Shares in British Airways’ Parent Company Tumble (Associated Press)
Shares in British Airways' parent company have tumbled after a catastrophic IT failure stranded thousands of passengers during a holiday weekend.
This Is What Noble Group Has Left to Lure a Strategic Investor (Bloomberg)
Noble Group Ltd. is seeking a strategic investor to drag the beleaguered commodities trader out of what it calls an “incredibly difficult environment.”
Technology
Apple is stepping up its war to steal Android customers (Business Insider)
Apple is trying to steal away Google's customers.
The tech company has launched a new campaign aimed at trying to persuade people using an Android phone to give it up and buy an iPhone.
Essential's Home assistant is slick, circular and not ready (Engadget)
When Essential Inc., the stealth startup headed by Android co-founder Andy Rubin, teased that May 30th would be a big day, it wasn't lying. We've already taken our first look at the Essential Phone — a slick, powerful and durable Android-powered handset — but that isn't the only product the company is showing off today.
Intel claims 8th-gen chips will be 30 percent faster than 7th-gen (Engadget)
Intel's upcoming 8th generation processors could be more interesting than we initially thought. While the company previously said they would be a mere 15 percent improvement over 7th-gen chips — a performance gain it's been achieving steadily over the years — Intel revealed today at Computex that the new processors actually perform around 30 percent better.
Dell's New Inspiron Gaming Desktop Is The Most Affordable In The Company's History (Digital Trends)
Dell dipped a toe in the affordable gaming market with the Inspiron 7500 and Inspiron 15 Gaming, two capable laptops that undercut the competition without compromising on performance.
Android creator Andy Rubin’s Essential Phone looks stunning and will cost $699 (Tech Crunch)
There’s been much speculation around the new project from Andy Rubin, the man responsible for developing Android, and now we have the answer. Well, part of the answer, at least.
Politics
Canada-EU Trade Deal Is a Model in Automation Era, Trudeau Says (Bloomberg)
The Canada-EU trade agreement is "a blueprint for future ambitious trade deals’’ in an age of automation where job security is threatened, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says.
UK General Election 2017: Fintech And The Party Manifestos (Forbes)
In 10 days, the United Kingdom will vote in the snap general election which may result in a party other than the Conservatives, perhaps Labour or the Liberal Democrats, take power.
GOP’s Proposed Tax Changes Are No Match for Status Quo (The Wall Street Journal)
The boldest ideas for changing the nation’s tax code are either dead or on political life support, as the Republican effort in Congress to reshape the tax system moves much more slowly than lawmakers and their allies in business had hoped.
General election debate: May says she's willing to leave the EU without a deal as Corbyn is accused of supporting the IRA (Business Insider)
There was no clear "winner" in last night's leaders debate but given that May went into it with a poll lead of somewhere around 10 points and didn't implode, then she will probably emerge from this ahead.
Michael Dubke, Trump's communications director, quits (The Guardian)
The White House communications director Michael Dubke has resigned, in the first sign that a long-expected staff shakeup by the president has begun.
Life on the Home Planet
Bomb Kills 13, Hurts 24 in Baghdad; IS Claims Responsibility (Associated Press)
A car bomb exploded outside a popular ice cream shop in central Baghdad just after midnight on Monday, killing 13 people and wounding 24, hospital and police officials said.
U.S. Bombers Fly Near North Korean Border After Missile Launch (The Wall Street Journal)
The U.S. and South Korea conducted a joint drill involving U.S. B-1B bombers on Monday, the second such exercise this month and a move North Korea called “a grave military provocation,” after the North test-launched a short-range ballistic missile the same day.
Look Up: Jupiter And Saturn Will Light Up The Night Skies in June (Washington Post)
Summer soon arrives, and the big planets Jupiter and Saturn will entertain evening onlookers, Venus will distract morning dog walkers and Mars starts a season-long hiatus.
Ravenous Supermassive Black Holes May Sterilize Nearby Planets (Scientific American)
The center of any galaxy is a hazardous home. There, supernovae explosions shower nearby planets with x-rays, gamma rays and ultraviolet photons that obliterate any ozone layer present.
Philippines urges Islamist rebels to surrender as battle enters eighth day (Reuters)
The Philippine military urged Islamist militants occupying a southern city to turn themselves in on Tuesday, the eighth day of a push by security forces using armored vehicles and firing rockets from helicopters to eliminate the gunmen.
Car bombs kill 23 in central Baghdad, hit Ramadan crowds (Reuters)
Two car bombs killed at least 20 people in Baghdad and wounded about 80 others early on Tuesday, security sources said, one targeting the late-night crowds typical of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan who shop and eat ahead of the next day's fast.
