10 things you need to know before the opening bell
JPMorgan had a rough quarter. The investment bank earned $1.68 per share, but that number was reduced to $1.32 per share when excluding tax benefits and other items. Analysts were expecting earnings of $1.38 per share. Revenue fell 6.9% to $23.5 billion, missing the $24.04 billion Wall Street consensus. Lower markets revenue and lower mortgage banking revenue weighed. "We saw the impact of a challenging global environment and continued low rates reflected in the wholesale businesses' results, while the consumer businesses benefited from favorable trends and credit quality," CEO Jamie Dimon said in a statement.
Intel posted a solid quarter. The chipmaker announced earnings of $0.64 per share, well ahead of the $0.59 that Wall Street analysts were expecting. Revenue slipped 0.6% to $14.50 billion, but that was ahead of the $14.22 billion that was expected. Intel sees revenue of $14.8 billion, plus or minus $500 million, for the next quarter. "We executed well in the third quarter and delivered solid results in a challenging economic environment," CEO Brian Krzanich said.
SanDisk is considering selling itself. People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg the flash-memory maker was exploring a sale. According to reports, both Micron Technology and Western Digital are in talks to acquire the company. The stock was up as much as 17% in late trading.
China's inflationary pressure fell. Consumer prices in China slowed to up 1.6% year-over-year in September from up 2% in August, missing the up 1.8% print that was expected. The decline in the headline number was a result in abating pressure from food prices. Prices of pork, a staple of the Chinese diet, slowed to up 17.4% YoY from up 19.6% YoY. Meanwhile, producer prices posted a 5.9% YoY drop in September, unchanged from the previous month. China's yuan weakened 0.1% to 6.3482 per dollar.
UK unemployment hit its lowest level since August 2008. The unemployment rate in the UK eased to 5.4% in August, a seven-year low. The number was a bit better than the 5.5% print that economists were forecasting. Wages excluding bonuses were up 2.8% YoY and up 3% YoY with bonuses. Business Insider UK's Mike Bird noted, "In real terms, with UK consumer price inflation bumping around zero, pay increases that would previously have been modest are much more impressive." The British pound is higher by 0.8% at 1.5365 per dollar.
Singapore avoided a technical recession. Singapore's third-quarter advanced gross-domestic-product estimate printed up 0.1%, meaning it has avoided a technical recession of two consecutive quarters of decline. The internals of the report showed the service sector grew at a 3% clip and the manufacturing sector contracted by 6%. In the second quarter, Singapore's economy contracted 2.5%. The Singapore dollar is up 1.1% at 1.3873 per dollar.
India's Wholesale Price Index fell for an 11th straight month. Wholesale prices in India slid 4.54% YoY in September, more than the 4.42% drop that the Bloomberg consensus was anticipating. The reading was an improvement from the 4.95% drop in August, possibly showing the Reserve Bank of India's 50-basis-point cut at last month's meeting is beginning to take hold. The Indian rupee is stronger by 0.2% at 65.0300 per dollar.
Stock markets around the globe are weaker. Japan's Nikkei (-1.9%) paced the decline in Asia, and Germany's DAX (-0.9%) leads the way lower in Europe. S&P 500 futures are lower by 1 point at 1,993.00.
US economic data is heavy. PPI and retail sales are due out at 8:30 a.m. ET, while business inventories and the Fed's Beige Book will be released at 10 a.m. ET and 2 p.m. ET, respectively. The US 10-year yield is down 1 basis point at 2.03%.
Earnings reports pick up. Bank of America, Delta Air Lines, and Wells Fargo release their quarterly results ahead of the market open, and Netflix reports after the closing bell.