WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11 , 2018
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COMING UP IN U.S.
• The Federal Reserve releases minutes of its Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, held in mid-March, at which it voted to raise interest rates. Fed officials also appeared more bullish overall, with an increasing number upping their estimate of rate hikes required this year, even though the median remained at three in total. The minutes will also show the view within the Fed on the possible impact of the Trump administration’s trade policies. Since the meeting, a trade spat between the United States and China has escalated, increasing stock market volatility and causing fears of its impact on the wider economy.
• The Labor Department is expected to say that its seasonally adjusted Consumer Price Index will remain unchanged in March, after a 0.2 percent gain the month before. Seasonally adjusted Core CPI is forecast to gaining 0.2 percent in February. The CPI is expected to have advanced 2.4 percent year-on-year after rising 2.2 percent in February. The core CPI is seen increasing 2.1 percent year-on-year, up from 1.8 percent in the previous month. Real weekly earnings likely rose 0.2 percent in March.
• Facebook Inc CEO Mark Zuckerberg is scheduled to testify to a joint hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee about privacy, U.S. elections and possibly regulation of social networks.
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U.S. TOP NEWS
• CEO Zuckerberg says Facebook going through ‘philosophical shift’
Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told U.S. senators that the company was attempting to change in light of recent criticism, as he attempted to forestall any strict legislation aimed at the world’s largest social network.
• Icahn to sell Federal-Mogul to Tenneco for $5.4 billion
Activist investor Carl Icahn said he was selling auto parts maker Federal-Mogul to Tennecoin a $5.4 billion deal, unloading an investment he has held for nearly two decades and picking up a new stake in Tenneco.
• T-Mobile restarts talks to acquire Sprint -source
T-Mobile US is engaged in a new round of talks to acquire Sprint, a person familiar with the matter said, the third major effort to combine the third- and fourth-largest U.S. wireless carriers in the last four years.
• Ford to launch five new, redesigned car models in China in 2018
Ford Motor, struggling to revive sales in China, unveiled five new models for the world’s biggest auto market, part of a business revitalization effort centred around a plan to launch over 50 new or redesigned vehicles by 2025.
• Boeing beats Airbus on Q1 jetliner data, rejigs backlog
Boeing outsold European rival Airbus almost four to one in the first quarter and increased deliveries by a stronger-than-expected 9 percent compared with the same period last year, company data showed.
MARKET RECAP AT 4 pm ET
Stocks closed higher and oil prices surged as the Chinese President’s remarks calmed markets. Higher risk appetite pushed the greenback up against the Japanese yen, but it remained weak against a basket of major currencies. Treasury yields rose after producer price data showed that inflation had ticked up last month. Meanwhile, gold prices rose.
COMING UP IN CANADA
No major events are scheduled
CANADA TOP NEWS
• Canada housing starts and permits dip in Feb; overall activity robust
Canadian housing starts slowed slightly in March and building permits dipped in February, but overall residential construction activity remained strong despite a housing correction in some areas, separate reports showed.
• Scotiabank CEO optimistic NAFTA deal will be reached
Bank of Nova Scotia Chief Executive Officer Brian Porter said the bank was optimistic a deal will be reached to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement.
• Canada weed stocks bummed out by legalization delays, govt controls
Canadian marijuana stocks fell to their lowest level in more than four months, hit by lingering concerns about possible delays to legalization of recreational use, disappointment over proposed distribution rules and profit-taking following a strong run-up to a January peak.
INSIGHT AND ANALYSIS
• COLUMN-U.S./China trade threats likely to slow global growth: Kemp
Trade tensions between the United States and China are likely to have an adverse impact on global growth even if the threatened tariffs are never imposed. Conflict between the world’s two largest economies is creating significant uncertainty for businesses that threatens their global supply chains and future investment plans.
• Travel industry eyes blockchain potential for fees, delays, lost bags
Blockchain technology has the potential to shake up the travel industry by giving airlines and hotels a way to bypass controlling intermediaries like Expedia or Amadeus and gain better access to customer data.
• High U.S. natgas storage draws raise alarm for coming seasons
U.S. natural gas prices could rise in 2018 after utilities pulled the second biggest amount of gas from storage on record over the winter, even though the season was slightly warmer than normal.
WEALTH NEWS
• China’s Xi renews vow to open economy, cut tariffs as U.S. trade row deepens
Chinese President Xi Jinping promised to open the country’s economy further and lower import tariffs on products including cars, in a speech seen as an attempt to defuse an escalating trade dispute with the United States.
• Healthcare, food boost U.S. producer prices in March
U.S. producer prices increased more than expected in March, boosted by rising healthcare and food costs, pointing to a steady buildup of inflation pressures.
• Federal Reserve proposes new capital rules for Wall Street
The Federal Reserve proposed new rules that could allow some large banks to reduce the amount of capital they must hold as a cushion against a future economic shock.
• Doubts over U.S. bank capital payouts may cloud strong earnings
Quirks in the new U.S. tax code are sowing doubts over how much big banks can boost dividends and stock buybacks this year, threatening to take the shine off what are likely to be strong quarterly profits.
• Dallas Fed’s Kaplan is hopeful rhetoric in U.S.-China trade dispute will de-escalate
Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan said on Tuesday he is quite hopeful that despite the recent trade skirmish between the United States and China, the rhetoric will de-escalate.
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