Financial Markets and Economy
Saudi Pressure Points Shown in Four Charts After S&P Rating Cut (Bloomberg)
The pressure is building in Saudi Arabian markets.
U.S. productivity rises in the third quarter, manufacturing strong (Business Insider)
U.S. nonfarm productivity unexpectedly rose in the third quarter as a decline in self-employed workers contributed to overall hours worked falling for the first time in six years, restraining labor-related production costs.
The Labor Department said on Thursday that productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, increased at a 1.6 percent annual rate after increasing at an upwardly revised 3.5 percent rate in the second quarter.
The Logic Behind the Sky-High Candy Crush Deal (The Atlantic)
The fact that Activision Blizzard bought Candy Crush creator King Digital startled people less than the sheer size of the deal: $5.9 billion. As many noted, that’s almost $2 billion more than Disney paid for either Marvel or Lucasfilm. It’s more than twice the $2.5 billion Microsoft paid for Minecraft maker Mojang, a property that feels like it has more long-term staying power than Candy Crush. And it’s about nine times the $650 million Electronic Arts paid for PopCap, creators of Bejeweled, the game whose underlying behavior lies at the heart of Candy Crush.
Fitch Downgrades Standard Chartered on Earnings, Impairments (Bloomberg)
Fitch Ratings downgraded Standard Chartered Plc, citing “unfavorable profitability and asset quality trends,” two days after the lender unveiled plans to tap investors for $5.1 billion, eliminate thousands of jobs and cut risky assets across Asia.
Vietnam Deal on Trade Depends on Hanoi Follow-Up (NY Times)
A pact between Washington and Hanoi to strengthen labor unions in Vietnam could give workers greater bargaining power, but the impact will depend on how Vietnam carries out the agreement, longtime Vietnamese government advisers and other experts said on Thursday.
The side agreement to the Trans-Pacific Partnership calls for Vietnam to pass legislation that would legalize independent unions, allow them to go on strike and let them seek help from foreign labor organizations like the A.F.L.-C.I.O.
Initial jobless claims rise more than expected (Business Insider)
Initial jobless claims climbed to 276,000 last week.
Economists had forecast, according to Bloomberg, that the Department of Labor's data showed first-time claims for unemployment insurance totaled 262,000 last week, up 2,000 from the prior period. The total number of claims has not topped 300,000 since March.
The dollar headache is about to get worse for investors (Market Watch)
While you were sleeping, China’s stocks went charging back into bull-market territory.
It should be noted that yesterday’s 4.3% gain on a five-month-old reportabout a trading link between Shenzhen and Hong Kong contributed to the bull’s return. The market closed Thursday up some 20.3% from the summer Aug. 26 bottom. All good, right?
Bitcoin Basics (NY Times)
Bitcoin is both a virtual currency and an online payment system — one that some people believe will transform the global financial system. But the details of this new technology have remained a mystery to most.
Bitcoin is both a type of digital token, or virtual currency, and the network on which those tokens can be stored and moved around.
S&P 500 Futures Hold Steady as Rate Bets Mount; Facebook Climbs (Bloomberg)
U.S. stock-index futures advanced amid increasing speculation that the world’s biggest economy is strong enough to cope with a Federal Reserve rate increase in December.
Duke Energy profit drops 27 percent (Business Insider)
Duke Energy Corp <DUK.N>, the largest U.S. power company by generation capacity, reported a 27 percent drop in quarterly profit.
Net income attributable to Duke fell to $932 million, or $1.35 per share, in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, from $1.27 billion, or $1.80 per share, a year earlier.
White Collar Watch: Market Changes May Prompt New Definition of Insider Trading (NY Times)
The law of insider trading has not changed much since important Supreme Court rulings in the 1980s established a high bar for convictions.
It was not enough that someone used confidential information for personal gain, the court said then; prosecutors had to prove that the person had committed a breach of duty — in other words, had violated a legal responsibility — in benefiting from that information.
Behold, $15 trillion of world trade in one interactive chart (Market Watch)
World trade has never looked so cool. The Center for International Development at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of government has created a interactive chart of global trade. The visualization tool can be used to track the exports of some of the world’s biggest economies.
The Making of a Buyers Market in Natural Gas (Bloomberg)
Next year, on a remote island off Australia’s western coast, the world’s most expensive liquefied natural gas export terminal will start shipping cargoes into a market that has changed vastly since 2009, when the project was approved. Chevron’s $54 billion Gorgon LNG facility, initially budgeted at $31 billion, was supposed to have begun operations in 2014. Labor disputes have delayed it, and lower LNG prices have potentially reduced its profitability.
What IPO trends say about a biotechnology bubble and VC funding (Market Watch)
In the late 1990's, some technology companies with little more than a website to their names rushed to go public. Many were greeted by receptive investors before their stocks crashed when the bubble burst.
Activist Investors Get a Welcome Seat at the Table (NY Times)
For decades, corporate America rejected activist investors, accusing them of being corporate raiders out to make a quick buck. But these days, some of America’s biggest companies are trying to think more like them.
When United Technologies weighed the possibility of selling or spinning off its Sikorsky Aircraft helicopter business this year, its chief executive went on television to explain why.
MillerCoors net sales fall 3.4 percent (Business Insider)
MillerCoors LLC, the U.S. joint venture of brewers Molson Coors Brewing Co <TAP.N> and SABMiller Plc <SAB.L>, reported a 3.4 percent drop in net sales, hurt by lower demand for its Coors Light beer.
Net income attributable to MillerCoors fell to $316.5 million in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, from $376.5 million a year earlier.
Is Europe's Economy So Bad the ECB Will Run Out of Things to Buy? (Bloomberg)
Some argue that if the central bank needs to ramp up asset purchases to further spur the economy, there may not be enough assets out there to allow that to happen. Unless they change the rules.
Maybe the Fed needs a growth target like China’s (Market Watch)
When China’s government announces a new growth target for the upcoming year, as it did this week, analysts in the West tend to roll their eyes in disbelief.
Bad news, everyone—China just committed itself to growing 6.5% a year until 2020 (Quartz)
Chinese president Xi Jinping just declared that China will grow an average of 6.5% a year from 2016 until 2020. The announcement comes as part of China’s 13th Five-Year Plan—that throwback to hoary socialist planning that lays out the country’s blueprint for economic and social development—in which Xi vows to, by the end of the decade, double China’s 2010 per capita GDP (link in Chinese).
Here's what analysts are saying about Facebook's strong 3rd-quarter earnings (Business Insider)
Facebook's stock soared to an all-time high on Wednesday night after the company reported strong third-quarter earnings that beat analysts' expectations.
The company released series after series of huge numbers during the earnings call, including the fact that Facebook now generates 8 billion video views per day, up from 4 billion reported in April.
U.K. Stocks Fall for 1st Time This Week Before BOE Rate Decision (Bloomberg)
U.K. stocks snapped three days of gains, as slumping shares of Anglo American Plc and Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc weighed on the FTSE 100 Index before the Bank of England meets today.
Investors avoiding both stocks and bonds looks bearish for market (Market Watch)
What do fund flows tell us about investor behavior before, during and after the third-quarter dive in stocks and the direction of markets from here? Even though raw numbers on money moving in and out of funds should be reassuringly concrete, they leave a lot to interpretation.
Sweden is going through a bizarre industrial boom (Business Insider)
On Wednesday morning, investors got the news that German factory orders massively disappointed in September, coming in down 1.7% on the month, as opposed to the 1% increase that analysts expected.
A happy accident from the PBOC sent Chinese stocks soaring (Quartz)
Chinese stocks had a huge 4.3% rally Wednesday (Nov. 4) because of a slip-up by the People’s Bank of China.
Randgold Sees More Merger Deals as Industry Fights to Survive (Bloomberg)
The biggest gold miners, weighed down by record debt and prices near a five-year low, will have to merge with others to survive, according to Randgold Resources Ltd., the best-performing producer of the metal in the past decade.
U.S. stockpile climb keeps a lid on crude-oil gains (Market Watch)
Crude prices rebounded slightly in Asia trade Thursday but a wider-than-expected U.S. crude stockpile buildup amid slowing global demand means prices will likely hover in a narrow band.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in December CLZ5, -0.86% traded at $46.33 a barrel, up $0.01 in the Globex electronic session. December Brent crude LCOZ5, -0.49% on London’s ICE Futures exchange rose $0.06 to $48.64 a barrel.
Glencore shares could surge 60% (Business Insider)
A little over a month ago, troubled mining and commodities company Glencore was seenby a few as the next Lehman Brothers.
But with the company showing determination to tackle its enormous debt pile, investors are piling back in.
Analysts at Deutsche Bank told clients to buy Glencore stock, saying it could increase by 60% to 200p.
Premier's Exit Spells Relief for Bond Investors Eyeing Romania (Bloomberg)
The departure of Romanias Prime Minister Victor Ponta removes the biggest hurdle for bond investors looking for gains in eastern Europes second fastest-growing economy.
Pacific trading partners release trade pact details (Business Insider)
The long-awaited text of a landmark U.S.-backed Pacific trade deal was released on Thursday, revealing the details of a pact aimed at freeing up commerce in 40 percent of the world's economy but criticized for its opacity.
Media stocks suffer after downbeat Time Warner 2016 outlook (Market Watch)
Time Warner Inc. shares took a hit after executives provided disappointing guidance on the company’s 2016 financial status, sparking further uncertainty in the media sector.
Time Warner TWX, -0.37% Chief Executive Jeffery Bewkes told investors Wednesdaythat adjusted earnings were expected to be around $5.25 per share for 2016, below the FactSet consensus of $5.60.
Toyota Motor to Buy Back Shares as Quarterly Profit Rises 13% (Bloomberg)
Toyota Motor Corp. reported profit rose 13 percent in the second quarter and announced a share buyback, as a weaker yen added to earnings momentum ahead of an overhaul of its product lineup starting with the new Prius hybrid.
GM announces record China vehicle sales in October (Business Insider)
General Motors Co <GM.N> said vehicle sales in China rose 15 percent to a record monthly high in October, underpinned by the Chinese government's decision to cut taxes for smaller cars.
The company said retail sales in the first 10 months of 2015 climbed 2.9 percent from a year earlier to 2.8 million units, also a record.
Adidas Raises 2015 Forecasts as Profit Beats Analysts' Estimates (Bloomberg)
Adidas AG raised its full-year forecasts and said it’s cutting jobs at its languishing golf-gear division as the German sportswear maker tries to appease investors pushing for faster change.
Adidas is raising its full-year revenue, gross margin and net income targets, Herzogenaurach-based Adidas said in a statement Thursday. The company reported a 10 percent gain in third-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates, led by sales growth in western Europe and China. The shares rose as much as 4.3 percent to an eight-month high.
Tesla rallies as Wall Street reacts to earnings with relief (Market Watch)
Tesla Motors Inc. shares rallied Wednesday as Wall Street seemed to breathe a sigh of relief that the electric-car maker’s third-quarter results were in line with expectations and the company only slightly tweaked its outlook for deliveries.
Worst Earnings in Three Years Fail to Deter Mexico Investors (Bloomberg)
Mexico’s worst earnings in 13 quarters aren’t deterring investors betting that rising sales are a precursor to economic growth next year.
Politics
China Warns Japan Not to Complicate South China Sea Situation (Bloomberg)
Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan urged his Japanese counterpart not to take any actions that might complicate the situation in the South China Sea, saying the waters were not an issue between the two countries.
Who Won, Who Lost? (Wall Street Journal)
With no presidential election or congressional seats on the line, Tuesday’s election watchers were focused on some high-profile ballot initiatives, a governor race in Kentucky and a handful of other races. Here are some of the highlights, compiled from the Journal’s reports across the country.
Francisco voters rejected a ballot measure that would have limited short-term housing rentals to 75 nights a year, a victory for Airbnb Inc., which waged a sophisticated political campaign to defeat it…
Myanmar's Suu Kyi Says Election Shaping Up as Less Than Fair (Bloomberg)
Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi said she is very concerned by the election commission’s attitude towards next week’s vote, warning the poll is already shaping up to be less than free and fair.
"We have been very concerned by the lack of enthusiasm on the part of the UEC to hold free and fair elections," Suu Kyi said Thursday at a news conference in Yangon…
Canada's new prime minister just named the most diverse cabinet in history — here are some members (Business Insider)
Canada's new prime minister, Justin Trudeau, was sworn into office on Wednesday.
At the ceremony he revealed his 30 cabinet ministers — 15 of whom are women.
Technology
BofA Picks 10 Key Stocks to Watch as Robots Take Over the World (Bloomberg)
The global market for intelligent machines is set to boom by 2020, says Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch, which has pinpointed companies particularly poised to ride the robotics wave.
“Robots and AI are becoming an integral part of our daily lives as providers of labor, mobility, safety, convenience, and entertainment,” strategists in London led by Beijia Ma wrote in a note dated Nov. 3. “Demographics, energy efficiency, productivity, urbanization, and wage inflation suggest long-term sustained growth.”
Health and Life Sciences
Statins May Dampen Response to Flu Vaccine (NY Times)
Statins, the cholesterol lowering drugs, may weaken the effect of the flu vaccine, two new studies suggest.
One analysis, led by Dr. Steven Black of the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, used data from a larger study of the 2009-10 and 2010-11 flu seasons. Researchers measured blood concentrations of flu antibodies in 5,584 vaccinated people older than 65 who used statins and 1,377 who did not. In those taking statins, antibody concentrations, depending on the type of flu virus, were between 38 percent and 67 percent lower.
The horrible consequences of seeking “natural” immunity: Naturopathy and Whooping Cough (Science-Based Medicine)
This is what whooping cough looks like. It sounds even worse.
If there’s one area of “alternative” medicine that saddens (and angers) me, it’s the antivaccine movement. Most alternative medicine only risks harm to the user. But antivaccinationists threaten public health. Their actions can harm the most vulnerable in our society – often children, and others who depend on the herd immunity that vaccination provides…
New Guidelines Focus on Pulmonary Hypertension in Kids (Medicine Net)
The first guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary hypertension in children have been released by the American Heart Association and the American Thoracic Society.
Life on the Home Planet
Toxin Taints Crabs and Kills Sea Mammals, Scientists Warn (NY Times)
The authorities in California are advising people to avoid consumption of crabs contaminated by a natural toxin that has spread throughout the marine ecosystem off the West Coast, killing sea mammals and poisoning various other species.
