Financial Markets and Economy
Just as it's been announced, US oil producers may readying to thwart OPEC's plan (Business Insider Australia)
While the specifics over how it will be achieved are as yet unknown, and there are already signs that some members are uncomfortable with the decision, it appears that OPEC will reduce oil output for the first time in eight years when the group next meets on November 30 in Vienna.
Asian Stocks Gain With Oil on OPEC Deal, Energy Shares Advance (Bloomberg)
Asian stocks rose as oil prices soared, boosting energy shares, after OPEC agreed to a preliminary deal that will cut production for first time in eight years.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.7 percent to 141.82 as of 10:31 a.m. in Tokyo, set for its best quarter since the first three months of 2012.
One of China’s richest men is warning about the 'biggest bubble in history' (Business Insider)
The tycoon who made his fortune in the real estate market and owns China's largest real estate developer, Dalian Wanda Group, appeared on CNNMoney Wednesday to warn that China's overheated real estate market is the "biggest bubble in history."
China Fund Exodus Accelerates as Further Yuan Weakness Expected (Bloomberg)
China’s capital outflow through cross-border sales of funds is accelerating amid expectations the yuan will weaken further.
Why OPEC Cut Should Mean Higher Oil, Higher Stock Market (Forbes)
Oil popped more than $3 from the lows of the day (as much as 7%) on news OPEC has agreed to a production cut.
We’ve talked a lot throughout the year about the price of oil. When it collapsed to the $20s, it put the entire energy
Asia Stocks Rise With Ringgit as OPEC Deal Boosts Oil; Yen Falls (Bloomberg)
Asian stocks rose with Malaysia’s ringgit and oil climbed to a three-week high after OPEC agreed to a preliminary deal that will cut crude production for the first time in eight years.
Tin Eyes $20,000 as Best Performing Metal This Quarter: Chart (Bloomberg)
Tin is trading just shy of $20,000 a metric ton, a level last seen in early 2015. The metal used for solder in electronics has jumped 16 percent this quarter and is the best performer on the London Metal Exchange, as warehouse stockpiles shrink to the smallest since 2008.
Not All Diamonds Enjoy Recovery as Budget Stones Get Left Behind (Bloomberg)
The recovery in diamond prices is leaving out the smallest and lowest-quality gems.
For the smallest diamonds, prices are down 15 percent this year, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Saudi stocks tanked after the kingdom slashed worker pay (Business Insider)
Saudi Arabia announced several fiscal consolidation measures on Tuesday in an effort to help reduce the kingdom's record budget deficit as it contends with lower-for-longer oil prices and costly regional conflicts.
Sucker Punch On Main Street – Disturbing Facts About The Fed's Phony Housing "Recovery" (David Stockman's Contra Corner)
Whether you think there has been a housing “recovery” or not is a matter of perspective. Sales are indeed up 117% since the 2010 low, but that low was literally the worst level in the history of this data (since 1963) as a percentage of population growth.
For the first time since 2008, OPEC has agreed to slash oil production (Quartz)
In a surprising decision, OPEC got past its sometimes-bitter internal rivalries and agreed to cut oil production for the first time in eight years. The move, decided among OPEC ministers in Algiers, Algeria, was driven by an enormous fiscal threat that has reached an existential scale to some, such Venezuela and Nigeria.
How did Australia end up way ahead of the U.S. in banking? (Mashable Asia)
The U.S. is objectively behind countries like Australia in digital banking "by whatever metric you choose," according to Stripe cofounder John Collison, but that head start may not last forever.
The Relationship Between Stocks and Bonds Remains in a Range (Andrew Thrasher)
We are close to finishing out the historically bearish period of seasonality for equities and while we didn’t see any kind of crash that many traders were hoping for expecting, the S&P is up nearly 4% and saw just a 5% drop back in June. Overall, not a terrible summer when all things considered.
How Interest Rates Affect Stock Market Returns (A Wealth of Common Sense)
The equity risk premium is the academic definition of the idea that stocks should outperform the risk free rate over the long-term. The risk free rate to be used is up for debate, but using the 10 year treasury bond as a proxy gives us a historical equity risk premium of about 4.5% per year since the late-1920s.
Yen Slumps to One-Week Low as Oil Rally Seen Helping Kuroda (Bloomberg)
The yen fell to a one-week low against the dollar as investors favored higher-yielding assets after OPEC reached a preliminary deal that will cut production.
Stocks-Bonds Correlation Spikes (Price Action Lab Blog)
The 60-day stock-bonds correlation spiked this month from about -0.50 to +0.20. A similar spike occurred mid 2007 and just a few months before the stock market top.
Trading Success and Calculated Risk Taking (Trader Feed)
There are risk-averse traders who never make significant money. There are risk-seeking traders who blow up. Then there are smart traders who take calculated risks. They make selective bets.
Goldman Sees OPEC Buying Time With Deal That May Lift Oil $7-$10 (Bloomberg)
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said OPEC’s deal to cut output could add as much as $10 a barrel to oil prices, though it remains skeptical along with other banks on how the accord will be implemented.
Companies
California Sanctions Wells Fargo – Suspends Up To $2 Trillion Banking Relationship For Next 12 Months (Zero Hedge)
Treasurer John Chiang says in letter to Wells Fargo’s John Stumpf, board that he’s ordered suspension of WFC’s participation in “its most highly profitable business relationships” with California.
Musk Urges Tesla to Adhere to ‘No Discount Policy’ for Sales (Bloomberg)
Elon Musk, responding to concerns that Tesla Motors Inc. was straying from a long-held policy against discounting its cars, urged in an e-mail to employees that they adhere to a sales approach he called “fundamental to our integrity.”
Duke CEO Sees Coal Entirely Disappearing From Its Power Mix (Bloomberg)
Duke Energy Corp.’s $4.9 billion purchase of Piedmont Natural Gas Co., set to close by the end of the year, will accelerate the utility owner’s shift away from coal, Chief Executive Officer Lynn Good said.
Some Hanjin Sailors Denied Shore Leave in U.S. Ports (The Wall Street Journal)
Crews aboard Hanjin Shipping Co. vessels docked at American ports are being barred by U.S. immigration officials from coming ashore, a decision labor groups say goes against international seafarers’ conventions.
Politics
Hillary Clinton Struggles to Win Back Young Voters From Third Parties (NY Times)
More than a third of voters ages 18 to 29 say they will vote for a third-party candidate, and when asked to choose a major-party nominee, 10 percent said they would not vote.
Trump calls out Clinton's 'unserious' campaign (Politico)
Donald Trump’s campaign is focused on “big changes and bold solutions” while Hillary Clinton’s is concentrated on “small and petty distractions,” the Republican presidential nominee said Wednesday.
Clinton enlists former foe Sanders in appeal for youth votes in U.S. presidential race (Reuters)
U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton shared a stage with former rival Senator Bernie Sanders on Wednesday to appeal for youth votes in the Nov. 8 election as opinion polls show a close race with Republican Donald Trump.
Stop Trump! Stop Clinton!! Stop the Madness (and Let Me Get Off)! (Counter Punch)
That’s the real issue this time,” he said. “Beating Nixon. It’s hard to even guess how much damage those bastards will do if they get in for another four years.”
Hillary’s Debate Win (and Trump’s Stumbles) Haven’t Changed the Race (The Huffington Post)
The good news is I may not need to get onto Elon Musk’s Mars expedition after all. The first Trump-Clinton debate had loomed as a potential hinge in history. Do some fairly obvious things, and the billionaire bully boy not only extends his momentum, he quite possible takes himself to the White House entryway.
Trump-Hitler comparison seen in New York Times book review (CNN Money)
An "egomaniac" who "rose to power through demagoguery, showmanship and nativist appeals to the masses." A man whose "manic speeches and penchant for taking all-or-nothing risks raised questions about his capacity for self-control." A nation where millions naively embraced "his doctrine of hatred."
Democrats in the House and Senate had threatened to shut down the federal government without federal funding to deal with the lead poisoning crisis in Flint, Michigan. They wanted emergency money for Flint relief included in the federal budget, and they didn’t think the government should be funded without it.
Technology
Facebook, Google, Amazon create group to ease AI concerns (CNN Money)
Facebook (FB, Tech30), Amazon (AMZN, Tech30), Google (GOOGL, Tech30), Microsoft (MSFT,Tech30) and IBM (IBM, Tech30) have formed a new nonprofit to establish best practices for the development of AI technology in partnership with academics and ethics experts.
Apple CEO Tim Cook was blunt when discussing the end of BlackBerry phones (Business Insider)
On the same day that BlackBerry, once the leader in the smartphone market, announced it would stop making its own phones, Apple announced a new program to move onto its former turf.
Apple is targeting big-business smartphone deployments, which used to be one of BlackBerry's main sources of revenue.
Samsung Looking Into Complaints About Replacement Galaxy Note 7s (The Wall Street Journal)
SEOUL—Samsung Electronics Co., grappling with a massive recall of its premium Galaxy Note 7 smartphone, said it is looking into consumer complaints in the U.S. and its home market that some of its replacement phones are overheating.
Microsoft Is Now Part Of The Privacy Shield Platform Protecting Personal Data (Digital Trends)
This week during the Ignite 2016 conference in Atlanta, Microsoft said that it is the first global cloud service provider to appear on the Privacy Shield list. That means the personal data Microsoft transfers across the Atlantic must abide by the European Union (EU) data protection requirements.
Apple Tracks Your iMessage Contacts, May Share Them With Law Enforcement (Life Hacker)
What you say in your iMessages may be somewhat private and safe from the prying eyes of law enforcement, but the people you have in your contacts list isn’t. In fact, Apple logs your iMessage contacts almost every time you enter a new number to start a message.
Health and Biotech
FDA Approves 'Artificial Pancreas' To Manage Diabetes (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal regulators have approved a first-of-a-kind "artificial pancreas," a device that can help some diabetes patients manage their disease by constantly monitoring their blood sugar and delivering insulin as needed.
What’s in Your Herbal Pills? Firm Promises DNA Testing for Proof (NY Times)
NBTY, one of the nation’s largest makers of popular supplements like ginkgo biloba and ginseng, has agreed to conduct advanced genetic testing to help ensure that its herbal products actually contain the ingredients promised on the label.
Common painkillers linked to increased risk of heart failure, BMJ finds (The Guardian)
Common painkillers such as ibuprofen used by millions of people in the UK are linked to an increased risk of heart failure, experts have said.
US doctor accused of making children's vaccines from cat saliva and vodka (The Guardian)
The Illinois department of financial and professional regulation ordered the emergency action in the interest of public safety, according to paperwork signed by acting director Jessica Baer.
Life on the Home Planet
U.S. to Send 600 More Troops to Iraq to Help Retake Mosul From ISIS (NY Times)
WASHINGTON — President Obama has authorized sending an additional 600 American troops to Iraq to assist Iraqi forces in the looming battle to take back the city of Mosul from the Islamic State, United States officials said on Wednesday.
Ancient bee fossil reveals secrets of human ancestor’s habitat (New Scientist)
The skull of an ape-like Australopithecus found in 1924 and nicknamed the Taung Child revolutionised our view of human origins. It suggested humans evolved in Africa, not Eurasia as previously thought.
Typhoon Megi: dozens missing after landslides hit two Chinese villages (The Guardian)
Two landslides have ploughed into villages in China’s eastern Zhejiang province, swallowing up dozens of houses and leaving 36 people missing.
