Market Snapshot
Asia: Japan -0.1% to 20520. Hong Kong flat at 24406. China +3.7% to 3757. India -0.4% to 28072.
Europe: London -0.3%. Paris -0.6%. Frankfurt -0.2%.
Futures: Dow -0.2%. S&P -0.2%. Nasdaq -0.2%. Crude +1.7% to $45.94. Gold +0.3% to $1092.30.
Ten-year Treasury Yield +1 bps to 2.16%
Economic News
8:30 Gallup US ECI
8:55 Redbook Chain Store Sales
10:00 Factory Orders
Key earnings before the open
ABMD, ADM, AET, AFSI, ALE, ALLT, ALR, AME, ANIP, ARCC, BLMN, BPI, BZH, CAS, CBT, CHD, CHTR, CIE, COH, CRCM, CRTO, CVS, DWRE, EIGI, ELOS, EMR, ETR, EXH, EXLP, EXPD, FRM, FUN, GEO, GLDD, GLT, H, HAR, HCN, HCP, HEP, HNT, HW, HYH, IIVI, INCY, K, KLIC, LPX, LRN, LXP, MDC, MGM, MLM, MNK, MNTA, MOS, MPW, NAO, NCLH, NGLS, NRG, NTI, NWN, NYLD, ODP, OZM, PH, REGN, RHP, RRD, SABR, SCOR, SGNT, SMG, SNI, SRE, STE, STWD, TDG, TGH, TICC, TIME, UNT, USAK, VMC, VSH, VTG, WLK, WNR, WPC, WRES, ZTS
Key earnings after the close
ACHC, ACLS, AFG, AHS, AMSG, ARC, ATVI, AWAY, AWR, BKH, BW, CDE, CENT, CERN, CHUY, CSU, CVG, CWEI, CZR, DIS, DVA, DVN, DWA, ECOM, ECYT, ENPH, ENSG, EOX, EPAM, EPR, ETSY, EXAR, FSLR, FWM, G, GDOT, GHDX, GLUU, GNW, HCI, HIW, HRZN, INAP, INVN, JCOM, JIVE, LBTYA, LC, LF, LGND, MASI, MATX, MBI, MDRX, MHLD, MPO, MRCY, MTDR, NBR, NEWP, NFX, NSTG, NYMT, OAS, OCLR, OFIX, OKE, OKS, PAA, PAGP, PAYC, PBPB, PKD, PQ, PRMW, PTLA, PXD, PZZA, QNST, QUAD, REGI, REXX, RIGL, RLOC, RMTI, RPAI, RXN, SBRA, SKT, SMCI, SUPN, SYNC, THOR, TMH, TRMB, TROX, TTGT, TWO, TX, UNTD, UNXL, USNA, WR, WTR, XEC, XXIA, Y, Z, ZAGG, ZEN
Markets
China has unveiled more rules that make it harder for speculators to profit from hourly changes in stock prices. Under the new guidelines, short sellers must wait at least one day to cover their positions and repay loans used to buy shares. Chinese markets are up on the news, but will the maneuver have a lasting impact? Shanghai +3.7%; Shenzhen +4.5%; Chinext +6.1%.
Oil futures have regained some strength, as investors returned to the market to seek cheap valuations after prices plunged in the previous session. Weighed down by a continuing worldwide glut and uncertainty over economic growth, WTI prices sank 4% to five-month lows on Monday, while Brent crude finished below $50/bbl. Both Brent crude and WTI are now trading up 1.7% at $50.22/bbl and $45.94/bbl, respectively.
After three cuts already this year, Indian central bank Governor Raghuram Rajan kept interest rates on hold at 7.25% today, rebuffing pressure from the Finance Ministry to reduce borrowing costs that are among the highest in Asia. Earlier in the day, the Reserve Bank of Australia kept rates steady at 2.0%, leaving out a reference to the need for the local dollar to fall further.
Greek stocks opened deep in the red again this morning, dragged down by another near 30% plunge in banking stocks, as investors react to continuing questions about a new bailout from the EU and the country’s worsening economy. The ASE Stock Index plunged 16.2% on Monday, the worst fall on record, after the Athens Stock Exchange reopened following a five-week shutdown.
Puerto Rico has confirmed that it failed to make a debt payment over the weekend, placing the U.S. commonwealth into default for the first time in its history. What’s next? Congress may help the territory through the passage of a bankruptcy bill, although that effort has faced opposition. The island has also floated the idea that the Treasury Department could guarantee its debt when it seeks to borrow in the market again – helping to lower the cost significantly.
Stocks
The U.K. government has sold a £2.1B ($3.3B) stake in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), kicking off the disposal of its holding seven years after bailing out the bank. 630M shares, representing 5.4% of the bank, were sold in a quick-fire sale to institutional investors after the market closed on Monday at 330 pence per share. “Now is the time for RBS to rebuild itself…serving the working people of Britain,” Finance Minister George Osborne declared.
Just two months into the job, Credit Agricole’s (CRARY) new chief executive has made his mark with a management reshuffle, as the bank nears a settlement over possible sanctions breaches. Several business lines have now been reorganized to report directly to CEO Philippe Brassac and top management. The bank also announced it would book an additional €350M in litigation provisions, bringing the total to €1.6B.
A Pimco ETF that once tracked the performance of a much larger fund formerly managed by Bill Gross, may have violated federal securities laws. Pimco (AZSEY) has disclosed that the SEC is considering filing an enforcement action over potential trading infractions that took place during the early days of the Total Return Fund (BOND). The fund may have improperly valued small stakes in non-agency MBSs, leading to inaccurate disclosures about performance.
There’s also a new headache at Deutsche Bank (DB). The DOJ is investigating billions of dollars worth of mirror trades the bank may have made on behalf of its Russian clients to move funds quietly out of the country. The new inquiry adds to the wave of legal woes challenging the institution, which has been battered by multiple criminal investigations and resignations of top executives.
Sprint has announced a senior management reshuffle, as CEO Marcelo Claure tries to turn around the struggling wireless provider. CFO Joseph Eutenauer is stepping down, to be replaced by FlexiGroup (FLXGF) CEO Tarek Robbiati, and Günther Ottendorfer will become chief operating officer of technology. The management moves come just hours before Sprint (S) reports its quarterly results, which may show the company slipping to fourth place in the U.S. wireless industry.
Apple is in talks to launch a mobile virtual network operator service in the U.S. and Europe, Business Insider reports, but cautions that there’s no guarantee the services will go beyond the test phase. The move follows Google’s (GOOG, GOOGL) recently launched Project Fi, an aggressively-priced MVNO service with partners Sprint (S) and T-Mobile (TMUS). Apple (AAPL) is also reportedly prepping a voicemail function that will use Siri to answer calls and transcribe messages (expected to launch in 2016).
Although it was recently surpassed as the biggest automaker by global vehicle sales, Toyota (TM) is still showing some record earnings. The automaker’s quarterly profit jumped 10% to ¥646.39B vs. analyst estimates of ¥607.5B, while revenue came in at ¥6.99T, up 9.4% from last year. “Favorable exchange rates and cost reductions were main positive factors, while decreasing vehicle sales and increased expenses…were negative factors,” Toyota’s Tetsuya Otake said.
Delta Air Lines has banned shipments of hunting trophies on its aircraft amid international outrage over the killing of Cecil, a popular protected lion in Zimbabwe, by American dentist Walter Palmer. Besides Delta (DAL), several foreign airlines announced similar bans last week.