10 Things You Need To Know Before The Opening Bell
Feb 10, 2014, 17:49 IST
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- European economies are still in big trouble. Italian industrial production fell 0.9% in December, and its service and retail sectors are said to be contracting. In France, industrial production fell 0.3%. Analysts including JPMorgan believe the European Central Bank's monetary stance remains too hawkish.
- The lone standout in Europe appears to be the UK. According to a new report, there are now 23 buyers for every high-end home in London, compared with 14 a year ago. The average time on market for a home in the city's costliest neighborhoods is now just two weeks.
- Japan's current account surplus shrunk to the smallest level on record, about $32 billion, as the country's measure of trade with other nations showed the largest one-month deficit on record in December. The FT says Japanese companies have refused to cut prices, which has hurt exports.
- Bitcoin prices are down big this morning after MtGox, a major exchange, said withdrawals remain suspended while it addresses a technical glitch. Some fear that when withdrawals are restarted there will be a mass exodus out of the Japan-based market, sending prices even lower. Gold, meanwhile, is at a two-week high.
- Stocks in Asia were up. U.S. futures were lower. European markets were slightly higher.
- Australia will soon be without a single automaker on its shores as Toyota has announced it will shut down all its factories Down Under by the end of 2017, the result of a too-strong Aussie dollar and rising production costs. 40,000 people country-wide are expected to lose their jobs.
- The New York Times' Jessica Silver-Greenberg and Ben Protess report on an email showing a top Chinese regulator personally asking JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon for a "favor" to hire a young family friend. The acquaintance works for the megabank today. Meanwhile Reuters' Fiona Lau reports UBS has suspended two Hong Kong employees in connection with the hiring of an employee related to a Chinese corporate client.
- China's Alipay, owned by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, says it has surpassed PayPal to become the world's largest online payment service, having processed $150 billion in transactions last year. Square and PayPal combined only did $50 billion last year, it said, according to Marketwatch's Lauren He.
- Michael Sam, a former Missouri defensive end entering the 2014 NFL draft, announced he is gay. BI's Tony Manfred has the league reaction covered.
- There is no major economic data today coming out today. Hasbro, Loews, and Urban Outfitters announce earnings today.