FULL MOON FEVER is NOT to BLAME!! If you think the craziness going on around the world over the past two days is due to the Full Moon, you are a few days off. The Full Moon was on the 13th. But, people were sure acting whacko over the past two days...
No, it's not April Fools, either. We have a BREXIT DEAL. EU President Juncker and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson have announced they have reached a "Fair and Balanced Deal for both the EU and UK". Here is the Problem...There are not many details, but it sounds a lot like the one Theresa May could not get Parliament to agree to.. and early signs are that they won't agree to this one.. So, we'll see if Boris Johnson has better luck ... and.... in Paris, it wasn't the Firemen and the Police trying to put down protests.. the Firemen WERE the Protesters!!! Firemen protesting pay and work conditions were protesting and blocking streets. The clashes with police ended in Tear gas, water canons, fires and fighting.... and ....
Over in Syria, the US bombed a base..a US BASE!!! They bombed it because they left so quickly they did not have time to take everything so they wanted to destroy it before "things fell into the wrong hands" . Hmm.. What THINGS? ... also ... President Trump sent a very "Un-Presidential" letter to Turkish leader Erdogan telling him not to be a "tough guy" and that if he doesn't stop the aggression that Trump will destroy Turkey's economy with sanctions. I am not saying a strongly worded letter is a BAD idea.. but Trump made it Public. Politicians around Washington DC are still condemning Trump's decision to pull some troops out of Northern Syria. Trump is "Sticking to his guns" saying American lives should no longer be sacrificed in border wars that have been going on for two centuries. ... and....
Back in THIS side of the Pond... we have ELECTION MEDDLING!!! The "NO ONE from a Foreign Entity Should be interfering in Elections" mantra has been ALL OVER Washington for three years!! .. The RUSSIANS!!!.. PUTIN!!!!... the UKRAINE!!! .. CHINESE HACKING!!! .. well.. there are no allegations of "Hacking" this time. This time it was in Public.. on TV.. in Papers.. former President Obama endorsed Justin Trudeau for PM in Canada !!! Less than a WEEK before the elections. Is it NOT Meddling if its US? The USA? WE can meddle but no one else can? ... and.. In Chicago, (No, Im not going to go on about the murders.. 2225 shot and 420 total homicides in 2019 so far).. this time its a TEACHERS STRIKE. The Third Largest school district in the country has got themselves a teachers strike. Pay, benefits, work conditions, class size and teacher prep time are the "Issues". 25,000 teachers will be picketing. Over 300,000 students will be partying because there is NO SCHOOL!!! .. and.. the USA TODAY will scale back printing paper newspapers in many areas. The publisher denied reports that all print newspaper production will stop (have we heard that one before???) .. and...
In the SWAMP: You can only call it PANDEMONIUM. The Impeachment Vote will not happen "at this time" but the Investigation and Interviews continue.. and at a meeting about the US Presence in Syria, sparks flew. Speaker Pelosi, Senator Chuck Schumer, and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer stormed out and held a mini-press conference. Pelosi claimed Trump had a "meltdown" and Hoyer said that he has, "worked with six Presidents and NEVER seen that level of disrespect for a co-equal Branch of Government" . Wow, Really Steny? REALLY?? Enormous Disrespect toward another Branch of Government? You mean EXACTLY the disrespect you've been showing President Trump for three years? ..and Do you see that your statement puts the finger on the REAL PROBLEM? You have been in Congress for SIX PRESIDENTS? GO HOME!!! ...Congress is NOT supposed to be a Lifetime Job for egomaniacs. Serve a few terms then GO HOME !!!!! ... Photos from the Syrian conference show it was Pelosi standing and wagging her finger at President Trump. Trump's version is that Pelosi is unhinged and unstable and stormed out while the rest of the people stayed to work on American Policy... Trump called her a "Third Rate Politician" and said he would "See her at the Polls". Many Dems called that "insulting".. I call it a COMPLIMENT. Third Rate Politician? It means you're not as big a dirt bag as Level 1 or Level 2 Politicians.. and...
It would be GREAT if one of you could forward the RANT to Speaker Pelosi. She crapped on President Trump for his Policy in Syria. She didn't want him to pull out. She stormed out of the meeting about the Syrian policy. She held a vote to CONDEMN Trump's Syrian policy BEFORE she went to the meeting to HEAR Trump's Syrian Policy. (That is a FACT.. It HAPPENED). Now, Nancy, let me give you some INFO.. about YOUR Job. You got 300 votes to CONDEMN Trump for leaving Syria.. you only need 218 to declare a War in Syria. (That is TRUE, TOO.. Go look it up). So, where's the VOTE, Nancy? If you want troops in Syria, VOTE to declare a War there. You are a CO-EQUAL Branch of Government, Right? Steny just SAID SO!!! . The President is not supposed to keep Troops there over 60 days without a vote from Congress. Well? We're Waiting!!! .. If not that, how about a Vote on USMCA? .. Or a Prescription Drug Plan.. or.. and Infrastructure Bill .. or.. well.. ANYTHING that America needs???? ... and...
One person that will NOT be voting on ANYTHING anymore is controversial Rep. Elijah Cummings. Cummings died last night at 68 after battling major health issues for quite a while. Some saw him as a "Champion of the People" of Baltimore. Some want to know what happen to the Billions in aid Congress approved for Baltimore as the city continues to spiral into a lawless mess of crime.. Decide for yourself .. But, RIP Eiljah...
SPORTS: MLB: Astros at Yankees tonight at 8:08 EDT. A little Colder.. but less rainy.. Who ya Got??? ... and.. NBA: I am putting the Hong Kong Protests here in the Sports Section because King Lebron James has decided to "No Comment" the Hong Kong/China mess after commenting and causing a HUGE stir. Hong Kong Parliament was shutdown yesterday as hecklers were removed and chaos ensued. Protesters outside BURNED LeBron James Jerseys.. in other NBA news, Vince Carter came to Madison Square Garden and dropped 14 points in the second quarter finishing with 17 on the night as the Hawks beat the Knicks 100-96. But, Raj. Why is THAT news? The Knicks losing and someone scoring 14 in a quarter against them is kinda NORMAL. Well, Rookie Phenom Zion Williamson of the Pelicans is 19 Years old. He was NEGATIVE THREE when Vince Carter entered the League. Carter is 42 years old and in his 22nd year in the NBA...and he still KILLS IT!!! ... and... GOLF: George Coetzee leads the French Open (no, no water canons or tear gas in THIS part of Paris..) and PGA: Ben An leads by one in Japan after one round. The PGA is in Japan this week and next..then on to China... .and a RIP to boxer Patrick Day. Day died at the age of 27. Day was fighting Charles Conwell for the USBA super-welterweight title this past weekend. The fight was close, but Day was knocked down in the 10th. His head hit the canvas. He went into a coma and died four days later.
CELEBRIDIOTS: Jennifer Lawrence is getting married this weekend and it seems like every aspect of her planning has been in the papers. The MENU has "Leaked" and they have awesome deserts.. including S'Mores!! ..Is it gonna be THAT great? I dunno, I didn't get my invitation, yet... and.. Get Well Helen Hunt. The actress was a passenger in a black SUV when someone clipped the side of the car and flipped it over. She was hospitalized and her "reps" say she was shaken but sustained no major injuries.. ..and...
Cuba Gooding Jr will NOT be charged in a "BUTT GRABBING" incident in LA. The woman alleged that Cuba grabbed her but at a club last year. Prosecutors will not pursue the case due to "lack of evidence" (Cuba is not so lucky in a similar NY case. There was Video in THAT club). Gooding's lawyers said that "Cuba is out almost every night of his life he grabs so many butts.. I mean.. goes to so many clubs... he cannot possibly remember them all .. " ... and.. some Quack Doctor in London has "named" Bella Hadid the most beautiful woman in the world. Good God is he off base!! She isn't even in the top 5,000.. unless you're making a Dracula Horror Flick. The "Doctor" used some "metric face ratio" baloonneeyyy.. If she didn't have rich parents you NEVER would have heard of her. She'd be working at Haunted Houses for minimum wage. I mean, look at this HERE ..and that is AFTER a few rounds of plastic surgery!!! I guess we can expect this kind of error in judgement from and ENGLISH doctor. What do they know about perfect women? They keep throwing Elizabeth Hurley at us..and..she's like 106 years old.. I will give you Kate Beckinsale.. she is smokin' at 46. HERE (shhhh.. I'd let her in the Raj tub even though she is too old) .. and I guess the Alice Eve made the Star Trekkies drool . HERE .. ..But.. please.. stop putting Aliens from outer space on your "Best List" Mr. English Doctor Person!!!
*** Due to scheduling issues beyond my control the RANT might be late tomorrow.. ***
From SeekingAlpha.com
Efforts to hammer out a Brexit agreement suffered a serious blow overnight after the Democratic Unionist Party said it could not support the deal as it stands. DUP support is seen as crucial if Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to win Parliament's approval for the deal in time for his Oct. 31 deadline. The news comes as Johnson heads to a European Union summit seeking approval of a tentative withdrawal agreement. In fact, U.K. and EU negotiators just agreed to a deal, sending the pound soaring to seven month highs against the dollar. But the key is whether the new Brexit can pass Britain's fractious Parliament.
A new tentative deal between General Motors (NYSE:GM) and the UAW covering more than 46,000 workers includes key union wins along with a pledge to invest $7.7B into U.S. factories, according to the Wall Street Journal. That move would create or preserve 9,000 jobs, and an additional plan to invest $1.3B near its Lordstown, Ohio, plant would create another 1,000. The deal also includes wage hikes, bonuses and other worker demands, along with plans to shutter idle plants. The UAW strike at GM will continue until union leaders vote. Go deeper: Strike has cost GM $2B, BofA says.
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) jumped double digits in post-market trade after its Q3 earnings showed a rebound from poor subscriber results in Q2, even while it hinted toward hotter competition in coming quarters. The company added 6.77M net subscribers vs. last quarter's 2.7M, and said forward guidance accounted for pressure from upcoming services such as Disney Plus (NYSE:DIS), Apple TV Plus (NASDAQ:AAPL), AT&T's HBO Max (NYSE:T) and NBC's Peacock (NASDAQ:CMCSA). But the potential market is large, Netflix said, and "we are all small compared to linear TV". Go deeper: Netflix +10% as profits jump amid solid growth.
Nestle (OTCPK:NSRGY) said it will start a new stock buyback program in January and may complement it with special dividends, seeking to return as much as $20B to shareholders by 2022. The news comes as the company also reported YTD sales rose 3.7%, in line with analyst estimates, helped by Starbucks-branded (NASDAQ:SBUX) coffee for Nespresso machines and Purina pet food. Nestle also signals it is ramping up its M&A focus as it unveils a new management group to seek out growth opportunities, and says it is restructuring its bottled water unit - where YTD sales have slipped - to focus on faster growing brands such as Perrier and S. Pellegrino.
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has been approved by China's industry ministry to begin production at the $2B Gigafactory the company is building in Shanghai, the first fully-foreign-owned car plant in China. Tesla plans to produce at least 1,000 of its Model 3s per week from the Chinese factory, which reportedly could be up and running within weeks. The new factory will give Tesla access to China - the world's biggest car market - and help the company avoid higher import tariffs that are imposed on cars made in the U.S. Go deeper: Chinese auto sales stay in reverse.
Apple (AAPL) said 55% of iPhones introduced in the past four years are running iOS13 -- an important metric because users typically upgrade to new iPhones after four years. The company shared the data on its website for third-party developers, also reporting that 50% of all iPhones are on iOS 13, while 33% of iPads are on iOS 13. Go deeper: Credit Suisse more confident on iPhone demand.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) reportedly has offered to pay $4B to settle all claims accusing the company of contributing to the opioid epidemic, a deal that likely would please J&J investors since analysts had estimated opioid litigation could cost the company $5B-$10B to settle. If completed, the deal would resolve more than 2,000 lawsuits by state and local governments alleging that J&J's marketing of pain drugs including Duragesic and Nucynta fueled the opioid crisis. Go deeper: Drug wholesalers perk up on talks to settle opioid suits for $18B.
Luxury chain Barneys New York has a deal to sell its assets to Authentic Brands and B. Riley Financial (NASDAQ:RILY) in a stalking-horse bid amounting to $271M. All Barneys stores are designated for closing, but the deal could lead to Barneys shops appearing in Saks Fifth Avenue stores. Blackrock (NYSE:BLK) is the largest shareholder in Authentic Brands, which controls more than 50 brands including Nautica, Aéropostale, Elvis Presley and Nine West.
The European Union has issued an "interim measures" order on Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO), giving the company a 30-day ultimatum to stop suspect sales tactics. The company is ordered to stop applying certain exclusivity provisions contained in agreements with six of its main customers, based on preliminary findings from an ongoing investigation. Broadcom is seen as a test case for a policy that could have serious implications for companies such as Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Apple (AAPL), Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) and Google (GOOG, GOOGL) that have been targeted in Europe over anti-competitive practices.
The head of Facebook's (FB) Libra project said he still expects to get 100 banks and financial firms on board once regulatory concerns are addressed. Libra chief David Marcus told a panel at the International Monetary Fund conference in Washington yesterday that 1,600 entities globally had initially expressed an interest in joining the project, so Libra should have "no problem" reaching its goal of launching with 100 members. Facebook's attempt to establish a global digital currency has suffered severe setbacks in recent days, abandoned by the likes of Visa (NYSE:V), Mastercard (NYSE:MA), PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL), Stripe, eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) and Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG). Go deeper: Facebook's Libra sets membership after payment-firm exits.
WeWork owner We Co. (WE) is setting a special panel of two directors to consider competing proposals for a $5B rescue, Reuters reports. The purpose is to ring-fence the deliberations from the influence of SoftBank (OTCPK:SFTBY), its biggest shareholder and proposer of one of the rescues, a debt-and-equity investment that could end up giving it control of WeWork. SoftBank's plan is competing against one from banks led by JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM). In either case, the $5B is sorely needed, as WeWork could run out of cash by the end of next month.
What else is happening...
Alcoa (NYSE:AA) reports Q3 loss but investors like portfolio review plan.
Cronos (NASDAQ:CRON) flies high after-hours following block trades.
Air Canada (OTCQX:ACDVF) yanks 737 MAX (NYSE:BA) from schedule until February 14.
Wednesday's Key Earnings
IBM (NYSE:IBM) -4.3% PM after revenue miss. Netflix (NFLX) +7.6% PM on solid growth. Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) reported Q3 earnings and revenue miss, reaffirmed EBITDA outlook. Alcoa (AA) +2% AH as investors cheer drive to lower costs. CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) +4.1% AH on earnings beat, record operating ratio. Crown Castle International (NYSE:CCI) +1% PM on Q3 beat. United Rentals (NYSE:URI) -1% AH on narrowing FY outlook. Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) -2% AH on Q3 revenue miss. Limelight Networks (NASDAQ:LLNW) +20.5% PM on record revenue. SL Green Realty (NYSE:SLG) reported FFO, same-store sales and NOI growth.
Today's Markets
In Asia, Japan -0.09%. Hong Kong +0.69%. China -0.05%. India +1.07%. In Europe, at midday, London +0.55%. Paris +0.53%. Frankfurt +0.76%. Futures at 6:20, Dow +0.49%. S&P +0.47%. Nasdaq +0.52%. Crude -0.32% to $53.19. Gold -0.37% to $1,488.50 Ten-year Treasury Yield +4.2 bps to 1.787%.
Today's Economic Calendar
8:30 Initial Jobless Claims 8:30 Philly Fed Business Outlook 8:30 Housing Starts 9:15 Industrial Production 10:30 EIA Natural Gas Inventory 11:00 EIA Petroleum Inventories 2:00 PM Fed's Evans: “Fed Listens: Monetary Policy's Impact on Workers and Their Communities” 2:00 PM Fed's Bowman: “Fed Listens: Monetary Policy's Impact on Workers and Their Communities” 4:20 PM Fed's Williams Speech 4:30 PM Money Supply 4:30 PM Fed Balance Sheet
Regards,
Roger “Raj” Searing rajsearing@gmail.com
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