Here is what you need to know on Friday, December 16:
We made it to the end of the week and it was certainly a lively one. We had five major central bank decisions with 4 opting for 50bps hikes and only the Norges Bank (Norway) standing out with its 25bps hike. All central banks were hawkish, with the European Central Bank (ECB) notably so. That has not provided much for risk bulls to grab onto, and the penny finally dropped on Thursday with equity indices collapsing. Falls of 3% was the average for the major indices, and Friday looks no better.
Oil continues back on its likely path to sub-$70 as central banks hike and hike again. Oil is back to $74 now or 3% lower on the day. Gold is a bit calmer at $1,786, but all this hiking will not help it. The US Dollar is flat at 104.54 for DXY.
European markets are lower: Eurostoxx -1%, FTSE -1.5% and Dax -0.6%.
US futures are also lower: S&P and Dow both -1%, while the Nasdaq is -0.6%.
Wall Street top news
Massive options expiry, quadruple witching.
Accenture (ACN) falls on weak guidance despite an earnings beat.
US Steel (X) issues strong guidance.
Adobe (ADBE) up on strong earnings.
Darden Restaurants (DRI) reports strong earnings.
Reuters headlines
Maxar Technologies Inc (MAXR): Advent International has agreed to buy Maxar in a deal that values the satellite owner and operator at about $4 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing executives at the private-equity firm.
Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC): The finance chief of the company, which plans to merge with former U.S. President Donald Trump’s social media firm, has resigned, the blank-check firm said.
Amazon.com Inc (AMZN): The company is seeking to bring popular fantasy game “Warhammer 40,000” to life after agreeing in principle to produce film and television content with British developer Games Workshop.
Faraday Future Intelligent Electric Inc (FFIE): The EV startup said on Thursday it was in discussions with investors for additional capital of up to $170 million as it sets a target to deliver its FF 91 Futurist vehicle to customers in April 2023.
General Electric Co (GE): Prosecutors searched U.S. conglomerate General Electric’s industrial site in eastern France on Thursday as part of an inquiry into claims it avoided millions of euros in taxes by transferring profits abroad, AFP reported.
General Motors Co (GM): U.S. auto safety regulators said they have opened a formal safety probe into the autonomous driving system in vehicles produced by General Motors’ robotaxi unit Cruise.
Rio Tinto Ltd Plc (RIO) & Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd (TRQ): Rio said it had completed its long drawn-out acquisition of remaining 49% stake in Turquoise Hill Resources, giving the Anglo-Australian firm a 66% stake in Mongolia’s Oyu Tolgoi, the world’s largest known copper and gold deposit.
Southwest Airlines Co (LUV): The company’s customer service employees overwhelmingly ratified a new five-year collective bargaining agreement that includes an immediate 13.1% wage increase, the IAM union said on Thursday.
Upgrades and downgrades
Source: Benzinga.com
Economic releases
