Dr. Ed's Blog

May 10 (Thursday)

YRI
Who Says This Market Is Overpriced? (BR)
Daily Markets Overview

Markets
Trump’s Iran Move May Kick Worst U.S. Gas Market While It’s Down (B)
Oil market awaits global reaction to Iran decision (FT)
In a Dollarized World, Rising Dollar Spells Pain (W)

US
U.S. Producer Prices Edge Up 0.1% (W)
Company Costs Are Rising, but Getting Shoppers to Pay More is Hard (W)

Europe
Antiestablishment Groups in Italy Near Deal on Governing Coalition (W)

China
China credit spreads near 2-year highs on default fears (FT)

Emerging
Mexican Inflation Hit the Brakes in April (W)
Mahathir seals victory in Malaysia polls (FT)

US politics
Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen called Novartis’ CEO promising access to the president — then they made a $1.2 million deal (BI)
Novartis admits $1.2m in payments to Trump lawyer (FT)
AT&T paying Trump’s lawyer up to $600,000 is a PR nightmare that raises big questions about what AT&T expected in return (BI)
Giuliani Says Trump Was ‘Unaware’ of Cohen’s Consulting Income (B)

Geopolitics
Release of Detainees Clears Key Hurdle Ahead of Korea Talks (W)

Technology
Bond trading: technology finally disrupts a $50tn market (FT)
Jetpacks and No Cash: The Future May Not Be Far Away (W)
US loosens regulations for drone testing programmes (FT)
U.S. Safety Investigators Examine Another Fatal Tesla Crash (W)

Offbeat
California Takes Big Step to Require Solar on New Homes (W)
Half of the biggest housing markets in the US are overvalued — and it could spell trouble for homebuyers (BI)
Silicon Valley’s housing market is so dire, a burned-out home just sold way over the asking price — for $938,000 (BI)

May 09 (Wednesday)

Markets
Dimon Says Prepare for 4% Yields, Potential Volatility Rise (B)
Cord-Cutting Pain Spreads to High-Yield Bond Market (W)
FANG Investors Appear Torn (B)
China’s Tech Comeback Outpaces the U.S. (B)

Central banks & BIS
Powell Warns Against Overstating Impact of Fed Policy on Global Financial Conditions (W)
The enduring link between demography and inflation (BIS)

US
Why It’s a Good Time to Look for a Job (W)
U.S. Job Openings at Record, Almost Matching Unemployed Workers (B)
Employment Trends Index Rose in April (W)

Japan
Japan Seeks Its Economic Mojo in the Stuff That Makes the Stuff (N)

Emerging
Argentina seeks IMF aid as peso sell-off resumes (FT)

Geopolitics & trade
Trump Withdraws U.S. From Iran Deal (W)
European Firms Plot Strategy Amid Trump Withdraw from Iran Deal (W)
China-U.S. Trade Gap Widens as Firms Run to Beat Looming Tariffs (W)
US-China tech wars threaten global sector disruption (FT)
Xi and Kim hold second meeting in China (FT)

Industries & companies
Autos: Tesla Gets a Vote of Confidence With Supplier Orders Accelerating (B)
Financials: Deutsche Bank Weighs Cutting U.S. Staff by About 20% (B)
Financials: Goldman, Wells Fargo Look to Credit Cards for Bigger Returns (B)
Industrials: Boeing may lose $20 billion in aircraft deals as Trump to pull US out of Iran nuclear pact (C)
Retail: Why beauty is beating the rest of the retail sector (FT)

Corporate finance
Vodafone to Buy Liberty Global’s European Assets (W)
Toshiba Pessimistic About Prospects for $18 Billion Chip Deal (W)
Comcast Sets Stage for Possible Fox Bid, With Eye on Thwarting Disney (W)
Comcast Bid Would Create ‘Huge Behemoth’ With $170 Billion Debt (B)
Xiaomi Cuts IPO Valuation Target to $70 Billion to $80 Billion (W)

May 08 (Tuesday)

Markets
U.S. Stocks Rise, Lifted by Energy Shares (W)
Oil Prices Hit 3-Year High as Deadline for Iran Deal Nears (W)
Dollar hits new 2018 peak as stocks rally (FT)

Central banks
ECB’s Chief Economist Sees No Reason to Worry About Euro-Area Slowdown Yet (B)
Smets: ECB Could Take Steps to Phase Out QE This Summer (W)
Departure of Fed’s Dudley Will Open the Door for a Hawk on FOMC (B)
U.S. Rate Hikes Hit Rest of World Just as Hard, Fed Paper Says (B)

US
Business Spending Is Poised to Surge in the U.S. (B)
U.S. Consumer Borrowing Cools on Slump in Revolving Credit (B)
How Texas, Once an Economic Drag, Became the Nation’s Fastest-Growing Economy (W)

Geopolitics
U.S. Pushes Mexico to Raise Wages for Its Auto Workers (W)

Industries & companies
FANGs: Opinion: Apple’s share buyback is a smarter use of its cash than these 4 other options (MW)
Financials: Big Banks Steal Smaller Brokers’ Thunder (W)
Industrials: What’s Spooking Boeing and Ford? Wild Aluminum Prices (W)
Media: Bigger Than Disney: Budget Doubles for Universal’s Beijing Park (W)
Restaurants: Starbucks Sells Nestlé the Rights to Offer Its Coffee in Stores (W)
Retail: Walmart Picks a Freewheeling Partner for Its $15 Billion Passage to India (W)
Retail: H&M Pivots to Big Data to Spot Next Big Fast-Fashion Trends (W)
Retail: Is the beauty industry ‘Amazon-proof’? (FT)
Utilities: Power Demand Is Doing Something Weird: It’s Rising in Some Places (B)

Corporate finance
Citigroup Targeted by ValueAct in Rare Activist Move on Major Bank (W)
Blackstone Buys Gramercy Property Trust for $4.42 Billion (W)

Technology
Intelligent Machines Will Teach Us—Not Replace Us (W)
Oracle Is Rolling Out Blockchain Products (B)

Offbeat
Hot U.S. Import: European Regulations (W)

May 07 (Monday)

YRI
For corporate profits, is this as good as it gets? (NN)
Daily Markets Overview

Markets
The Dow Takes Investors on a Wild Ride to Nowhere (BR)
Stocks and Bonds Are Going Nowhere Fast, Stranding Investors (W)
Nearly 6% Yields Available on Preferred Stock (BR)
Emerging market investors braced for turbulence (FT)
Emerging Market Currencies: Down, but Not Out (BR)

Europe
Solving the Riddle of the Eurozone’s Missing Inflation—in 11 Charts (W)

US politics
Giuliani Leans Against Trump Walking Into Mueller’s ‘Trap’ (B)
Giuliani: Trump May Invoke the Fifth Amendment in Mueller Probe (W)
State Budgets Get Lift From Economy, Tax Bill (W)
House Democrats Plan to Release 3,000 Russian-Linked Facebook Ads (W)

Geopolitics
U.S. Troops in South Korea Emerge as Potential Bargaining Chip (W)

Industries & companies
Autos: Tesla’s Numbers Are Even More Dramatic Than Its CEO (W)
FANGs: Apple Rakes In Profits As It Awaits the Next Big Leap (BR)
Pharma: Pharma and healthcare groups brace for Trump shake-up (FT)
Media: Disney’s ‘Avengers’ Tops Box Office After Passing $1 Billion (B)
Utilities: Utility Stocks With Plenty of Juice (BR)

Corporate finance
As Merger Boom Ages, Investors Should Beware (BR)
SoftBank cools on Swiss Re stake deal (FT)

Technology
5G Race Pits Ford, BMW Against GM, Toyota (W)

Offbeat
Many countries suffer from shrinking working-age populations (E)
The case for a five-hour working day (FT)

May 05 (Saturday)

Markets
Stocks Rise, Lifted by Tech Sector (W)
FAANG Stocks Swallow Up More of the Nasdaq Than Ever Before (B)
Yuan Weakness Revives Old Question: What Is China Doing With Its Currency? (W)
Emerging market currencies burnt by dollar rebound (FT)

Central banks
Falling Unemployment Could Pressure Fed to Move Faster (W)
Fed’s Williams, Dudley Stress Soft Ceiling on Inflation Goal (B)
Dudley Says Too Early to Declare Victory on Fed Inflation Goal (B)

US
Nine Days, One Signal: U.S. Economy Is Doing Fine If Not Great (B)
Jobless Rate Falls to 3.9%, Lowest Level in 17 Years (W)
Tepid Wages, Participation Mute Celebration on U.S. Jobless Rate (B)
Three Sectors Explain Most of Deceleration in U.S. Wage Growth (B)
Older Prime-Age Workers Are Leaving the U.S. Labor Force (B)
Freddie Mac Offers Cheap Loans to Affordable-Housing Landlords (W)

US politics
No, The U.S. Isn’t ‘Undertaxed’ (IBD) | Taxing Wages 2018 (OECD)
Opinion: Businesses are investing more, but it’s not the tax cut (MW)
New York Found a Fix for Some Hit by Tax Law. Employers Are Skeptical (W)
As Pelosi Campaigns, Some in Her Own Party Question Her Future as Leader (W)
Trump says he reimbursed lawyer for porn star ‘hush money’ (FT)

Geopolitics & trade
U.S. and China Make Scant Progress in Trade Talks (W)
US demands China cut trade deficit by $200bn (FT)
China denies using lasers on US planes in Djibouti (FT)
Tickling Trump: Leaders flatter to influence America (FT)

Industries & companies
FANGs: Apple’s Quiet Boost From Google May Slow (W)
Financials: HSBC shares slide despite $2bn stock buyback (FT)

Technology
Ticketmaster’s New Challenger: Your Face (W)

Offbeat
AllianceBernstein’s Nashville move threatens New York and London (FT)
Tesla CEO Defends ‘Bonehead’ Remark, Says He Should Have Answered Questions (W)

May 04 (Friday)

YRI
Stocks recover from rocky drop on jitters over interest rates, trade wars and geopolitics (WP)
Daily Markets Overview

Markets
Stocks unsettled by US-China trade uncertainty (FT)
Lower Tax Bills Fuel Best Earnings Quarter Since 2011 (W)
It Took a While, But the S&P 500 Bond ETF Is Now Here (B)
Bond investors pull money from emerging markets (FT)

Central banks
How the Fed’s removal of two words set off a firestorm of confusion (MW)

US
U.S. Nonmanufacturing Pace Slowed in April (W)
U.S. Workers’ Productivity Edged Up in First Quarter (W)
U.S. Foreign-Trade Deficit Narrowed in March (W)
With no let-up in home prices, the California exodus surges (MW)

Geopolitics & trade
U.S. and China Dive In for Prolonged Trade Talks (W)
China braced for surprises in US trade talks (FT)
Farmers may be worried about China’s canceled soybean orders, but other countries are filling the void right now (C)
Trump Tariff Plans Drive Wedge Between France and Germany (W)
Laser From Chinese Base Aimed at U.S. Military in Africa’s Skies (W)
Kim Jong Un Repeats Commitment to Denuclearization to China (W)

Industries & companies
Autos: Is Musk Unhinged, and Other Questions for Cash-Constrained Tesla (B)
Autos: The Analyst Musk Cut Off Says Investors Are Worried About Tesla (B)
Real Estate: Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Is Now America’s Second Largest Real-Estate Broker (W)
Retail: Retail Stocks Are Coming Out of Amazon’s Shadow (W)

Technology & cybersecurity
Twitter Finds Bug, Tells Users to Change Passwords (W)

Offbeat
Facebook’s Double Standard on Privacy: Employees vs. Everyone Else (W)

May 03 (Thursday)

Markets
US stocks fall in choppy trade after Fed statement (FT)
Why Central Banks’ Power Over Markets Is Here to Stay (W)

Central banks
Fed Calm Over 2% Inflation Underlines Gradual Rate-Hike Outlook (B)
Fed Holds Steady, Stays on Track for a June Rate Increase (W)

Europe
Eurozone Economy Wobbles in First Quarter (W)

Geopolitics & trade
Why Xi’s Hands Are Tied in Trade Talks With U.S. (W)
US groups warned of credit hit from US-China trade war (FT)
U.S. considering restrictions on China’s telecoms companies: sources (R)
Tariffs threat ‘already hurting US soyabean sales’ (FT)

Industries & companies
Autos: Musk Rejects ‘Boring’ Analysts After Tesla Burns $1 Billion More (B)
Autos: U.S. Car Buyers to Japan: We Don’t Want Your Sedans (W)
FANGs: Apple’s iPhone Still Gushes Cash (W)
FANGs: Amazon Offers Retailers Discounts to Adopt Payment System (B)
Tech: Square’s Profit Projections Miss Estimates, Expenses Climb (B)
Telecom: U.S. Weighs New Curbs on Chinese Telecom Companies (W)

Corporate finance
Amazon makes bid to spoil Walmart-Flipkart deal: report (R)

Technology
How Crypto Stacks Up Against Other Investments (B)

Offbeat
ECB designs cyber attack simulation for financial firms (R)

May 02 (Wednesday)

Markets
JPMorgan Says Unusual Market Could Mean ‘Buy in May’ (B)
New correlations concern bond and equity investors (FT)

US
U.S. Factory-Sector Activity Slowed in April (W)
U.S. Factories Having Trouble Keeping Up With Demand (B)
US inflation is not a cause for alarm just yet (FT)

Europe
Brussels seeks €1.25tn EU budget for 2021-27 (FT)

Emerging
India Can Relax. There’s a Bigger Belt and Road Bet Than Pakistan (B)

US politics
How Liberals Unite and Divide the Democrats (W)

Geopolitics & trade
U.S. Tariff Delay Leaves EU Relieved but Dissatisfied (W)
Trump plays a game of chicken with EU on trade (FT)
Delayed or Not, Tariffs Are Already Squeezing U.S. Companies (W)
Trump Trade Chief Wants Nafta Deal by Mid-May (W)

Industries & companies
FANGs: Apple Allays iPhone Worries, Boosts Buyback Plans (W)
FANGs: Mark Zuckerberg Says It Will Take Three Years to Fix Facebook (Wired)
FANGs: Everything Facebook Announced Today at F8 (Wired)
FANGs: Facebook’s New Dating Feature Could Crush Apps Like Tinder (Wired)
Industrials: Boeing Pays Up Now to Drive a Harder Bargain Later (B)
Tech: Snap Shares Tumble as Results Disappoint (W)
Wireless: T-Mobile Reports Strong Subscriber Growth (B)

Corporate finance
US groups spend tax cash on capex, not investors (FT)

Technology
AI arms race: China and US compete to dominate big data (FT)

Offbeat
California Sues Trump Administration Over Emissions (W)

May 01 (Tuesday)

Markets
Peak Earnings Are Rattling Equity Investors, But History Says Stay Calm (B)
These Assets Are in Firing Line If Treasury Yields Rise Further (B)
Growing Concern: Foreign Investors Lose Some Hunger for U.S. Debt (W)
Societe Generale Says Emerging Markets Can Survive U.S. Downturn (B)

Central banks
Inflation Hit Fed’s 2% Target in March (W)

US
U.S. Tax Revamp Weakens Case for Companies to Shift Profit Overseas (W)
How Bad Is the Labor Shortage? Cities Will Pay You to Move There (W)

US politics
Trump’s Approval Rating Rises to 42%, Highest Gallup Reading in 11 Months (B)

Geopolitics & trade
Trump Steel-Tariff Deadline Looms, With Allies on Edge (W)
EU resigns itself to tariffs as US seeks leverage (FT)
Trump deserves Nobel Peace prize, says S Korea president (FT)
Treasury Secretary Mnuchin: ‘No question’ Trump sanctions brought North Korea to negotiating table (C)

Industries & companies
FANGs: Amazon Is Taking Over the World? Not in Europe (W)
Financials: Morgan Stanley Plans to Boost Junior Banker Pay as Much as 25% (B)
Retail: Retail’s Other Problem: Too Few Clerks in the Store (W)

Corporate finance
Merger mania whips up $120bn of tie-ups in just one day (FT)
Next Hurdle for T-Mobile-Sprint: Trump Administration (W)
China’s Didi, Volkswagen Plan Ride-Hailing Venture (W)

Technology
Seven Jobs Robots Will Create—or Expand (W)
Maybe the Robots Will Give Everyone Free Stuff (B)

Offbeat
Computer engineers now make up a quarter of Goldman Sachs’ workforce (C)

Apr 30 (Monday)

Markets
Are Value Stocks Ready to Grow Again? (BR)
The meaning of 3% Treasury-bond yields (E)
Dollar Roars Back as U.S. Growth Story Wins Over World Markets (W)
Metal Buyers Race to Secure Supplies Ahead of Tariff Decision (W)

US
The Long Baby Boomer Reign Isn’t Ending Just Yet (B)
US housing: how Fannie and Freddie became rental powerhouses (FT)

Europe
The euro area’s economy loses momentum (E)
EU plan to cut funding to nations where rule of law is at risk (FT)
Germany pledges to work with France on limited eurozone reform (FT)

China
A Limit to China’s Economic Rise: Not Enough Babies (W)

Geopolitics & trade
A new NAFTA may be agreed on soon (E)
Trump’s trade war with Europe looks inevitable (FT)
Chips Loom as a Target If Trade Dispute Expands (BR)
Ross Says U.S. to Extend Duty Relief to Some Allies, Not All (B)

Industries & companies
FANGs: Netflix Could Soon Pass Disney in Market Value (BR)
FANGs: Big tech is growing, but so is investors’ caution (E)
Financials: The Biggest Banks Are Gobbling Up Deposits. Here’s Who’s Not (W)

Corporate finance
T-Mobile to Buy Sprint for $26.5 Billion in Bet on Networks (B)
Sprint, T-Mobile Merger Deal to Test Antitrust Regulators (W)
DocuSign Shows Strong Demand, Closes Up 30% (W)

Offbeat
‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Sets Domestic and Global Box-Office Records (W)