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SummarySummary Companies Best Buy up, sees smaller annual sales dropMedtronic down, lowers FY profit outlookTesla attempts to recoup losses post slumpFutures up: Dow 0.44%, S&P 0.49%, Nasdaq 0.40%Nov 22 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were set to open higher on Tuesday, with gains in shares of Walgreens and Best Buy helping investors assuage worries around the economic fallout of stricter COVID-19 curbs in China. Leading gains among S&P 500 (.SPX) components trading before the bell, Best Buy Co Inc (BBY.N) jumped 9.1% after forecasting a smaller-than-expected drop in annual sales ahead of the crucial holiday season. Dow component (.DJI) Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (WBA.O) rose 1.7% after Cowen & Co upgraded the drug distributor stock, citing its healthcare services business push. ET, Dow e-minis were up 148 points, or 0.44%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 19.25 points, or 0.49%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 46 points, or 0.4%. Analysts expect thin trading volumes as markets will be shut on Thursday for Thanksgiving holiday and will remain open for half day on Friday.

Restrictions in Beijing and elsewhere tightened further on Tuesday, though currency traders seemed to think the previous day's moves were sufficient. In Europe on Tuesday, data from the European Central Bank showed the euro zone's current account deficit narrowed in September. In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin fell to a new two-year low of $15,479 on Monday, another victim of Monday's rush to the dollar, and also amid jitters about the health of crypto broker Genesis. The lending unit suspended redemptions last week, citing fallout from the collapse of FTX, which filed for bankruptcy on November 11. Reporting by Rae Wee and Alun John; editing by Kim Coghill, Jason Neely and Emelia Sithole-MatariseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Morning Bid: Wild oil ride amid China and crypto woe
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] General view of the oil refinery, part of Grupa Lotos taken over by PKN Orlen in 2022, in Gdansk, Poland August 9, 2022. Turbulence in oil, China's COVID crunch and unravelling cryptocurrencies make for uncomfortable reading for investors starting to parse what looks like a recessionary year ahead. Higher interest rates and slowing economies dominate most 2023 outlooks, not least Tuesday's latest from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. Underlining the growth gloom, China's battle with COVID and its widening curbs only seemed to worsen. Pain in the crypto world continued, with many investors fearing the fallout from the collapse of exchange FTX is just beginning.

"What's going on in China is going to take centre stage," said Joseph Capurso, head of international and sustainable economics at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. MUFG analysts noted that more cautious remarks from Fed officials were also been a factor in the dollar losing some momentum on Tuesday. The major factor driving dollar moves in recent months has been market expectations of how aggressively the Federal Reserve will raise rates. The dollar fell 0.5% on the offshore yuan to 7.1412, having gained 0.7% overnight. The lending unit suspended redemptions last week, citing fallout from the collapse of FTX, which filed for bankruptcy on Nov 11.

☆ Dollar pauses climb; China COVID fears mount
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

China's capital warned on Monday that it was facing its most severe test of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a surge in COVID cases sparking fresh restriction measures. The offshore yuan gained 0.3% to 7.1574 per dollar in Asia trade, after falling more than 0.7% overnight. "It could just be a consolidation phase after yesterday's pretty big move up," said Capurso of the U.S. dollar. The Japanese yen last traded 0.2% higher at 141.79 per dollar, after slumping more than 1% to the weaker side of 142 per dollar in the previous session. "It's more like a cork in the ocean, subject to risk aversion as well as movements in 10-year Treasury yields."

☆ Morning Bid: COVID blues
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Kirsty Needham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Anshuman Daga:A nationwide spike in COVID-19 cases in China is again the main talking point for weary global markets on Tuesday as Beijing shut parks and museums and more cities resumed mass testing. Last week finance minister Jeremy Hunt announced tax hikes and spending cuts to fix the country's balance sheet and its economic policy reputation after former prime minister Liz Truss's controversial "mini-budget". Brent crude futures steadied at $87.85 a barrel after plunging by more than $5 a barrel to 10-month lows. Still, Brent crude is up 13% so far this year, marking one of the strongest performances in any asset class. Concerns about Genesis follow the collapse of FTX, one of the world's biggest crypto exchanges, which has shattered investor confidence.

☆ Dollar steadies as China COVID fears linger
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

China's capital warned on Monday that it was facing its most severe test of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a surge in COVID cases sparking fresh restriction measures. The offshore yuan traded 0.1% higher at 7.1665 per dollar in early Asia trade on Tuesday, after falling more than 0.7% overnight. The Japanese yen slumped more than 1% to the weaker side of 142 per dollar overnight and last traded 142.01. "It's more like a cork in the ocean, subject to risk aversion as well as movements in 10-year Treasury yields." "Fed comments remained in line with the recent slant of rhetoric," said economists at ING in a note.

☆ Dollar steadies as China Covid fears linger
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The dollar pared some of its strong overnight gains on Tuesday after investors flocked to the safe-haven currency on nerves over China's Covid flare ups, though cautious risk sentiment kept the greenback in demand. China's capital warned on Monday that it was facing its most severe test of the Covid-19 pandemic, with a surge in Covid cases sparking fresh restriction measures. The offshore yuan traded 0.1% higher at 7.1665 per dollar in early Asia trade on Tuesday, after falling more than 0.7% overnight. The Japanese yen slumped more than 1% to the weaker side of 142 per dollar overnight and last traded 142.01. "It's more like a cork in the ocean, subject to risk aversion as well as movements in 10-year Treasury yields ."

☆ US stocks surge as investors prepare for the Fed to slow the pace of rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

US stocks surged on Tuesday as investors prepare for a possible December slowdown in Fed interest rate hikes. Market consensus currently expects a rate hike of just 50 basis points at the December meeting. Current market consensus expects a rate hike of just 50 basis points at the December Fed meeting, according to the CME FedWatch Tool, with an assigned 75% probability. This year's drastic interest rate increases have yet to slow down the consumer, based on solid earnings reports from retailers on Tuesday. Both stocks surged about 10% in Tuesday trades.

☆ Gold ticks up as dollar pauses advance; focus on Fed minutes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

One kilo gold bars are pictured at the plant of gold and silver refiner and bar manufacturer Argor-Heraeus in Mendrisio, Switzerland, July 13, 2022. Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,740.56 per ounce by 0033 GMT. San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly said on Monday the real-world impact of the U.S. central bank's interest rate hikes is likely greater than what its short-term rate target implies. SPDR Gold Trust , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.2% to 906.06 tons on Monday. Spot silver advanced 0.4% to $20.92 per ounce, platinum also rose 0.3% to $985.30, while palladium added 0.6% to $1,877.14.

☆ What Cramer is watching Tuesday — Nasdaq tough year, seasonal oil strength, P&G looking good
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Citi lowers DVN price target by $2 pe share to $78; keeps buy rating. Piper Sandler cuts Club holding Amazon (AMZN) price target to $119 per share from $125. Honeywell (HON), also a Club stock, is an underappreciated tech franchise, JPMorgan says. Zoom Video (ZM) catches multiple price target cuts on Wall Street. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

☆ Wall Street slips as concerns rise of stricter China COVID curbs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Carolina Mandl | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

U.S. casino operators with businesses in China including Wynn Resorts Ltd (WYNN.O), Las Vegas Sands Corp (LVS.N), MGM Resorts International (MGM.N) and Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd all fell at least 2%. [1/2] Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., November 21, 2022. Energy was the only major S&P 500 sector eying gains for the year, surging around 63%. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.27-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.60-to-1 ratio favored decliners. The S&P 500 posted 9 new 52-week highs and 2 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 96 new highs and 220 new lows.

☆ Fed nearing a slowdown in the pace of rate increases, says Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFed nearing a slowdown in the pace of rate increases, says Cleveland Fed President Loretta MesterCleveland Fed President Loretta Mester joins 'Closing Bell' to discuss the Fed's funds rate entering a restrictive stance, looking to the economy for inflation indicators and nearing a different cadence in Fed tightening.

☆ Fed's Mester says she supports smaller rate hike in December
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 21 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve can downshift to smaller interest rate hike increments from next month as it fine-tunes its policy actions to help bring down high inflation while keeping the economy humming, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said on Monday. I don't have a problem with that, I do think that's very appropriate," Mester said in an interview with broadcaster CNBC. "But I do think we're going to have to let the economy tell us going forward what pace we have to be at." Investors overwhelmingly expect a rate increase of 50 basis points at the Fed's next policy meeting on Dec. 13-14. "Right now my forecast is that we're going to see some real, good progress on inflation next year," Mester said.

☆ Fed's Mester wants more progress on inflation before ending interest rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Cleveland Federal Reserve President Loretta Mester said Monday inflation will need to show more signs of progress before she's ready to stop advocating for interest rate increases. While acknowledging that recent data has been encouraging, the central bank official told CNBC that the progress is only a start. Markets rallied in recent days following data showing the rate of price increases slower than estimates, though inflation is still running at a 7.7% annual rate as gauged by the consumer price index. In recent days, the Fed has faced some criticism that its focus on inflation could cause unnecessary damage to the economy. Mester said the Fed is trying to bring down inflation "as painlessly as possible."

☆ Stock futures are little changed on Monday evening
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Stock futures are little changed Monday night as investors worry about the prospect of China reinstating pandemic restrictions. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 6 points and was near the flatline. S&P 500 futures were flat while Nasdaq-100 futures added 0.1%. Expect appearances from Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, Kansas City Fed President Esther George and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard. Economic reports due out include the Philadelphia Fed's nonmanufacturing business outlook survey and the Richmond Fed's manufacturing index.

☆ Here's why the Fed may have won already but is still acting like nothing has improved
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

We can bet that they will be one-upping each other about how high they want to take fed funds, the overnight bank lending rate. They seem to want to ignore anything that's succeeded since the Fed's rate increase cycle began back in March. I think that, again, if the Fed were to wait through Christmas they would see the layoffs and the corporate failures. One thing that's for certain, the buyers of the 2-year may be more sensitive to the data than the Fed. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

☆ Markets are watching for more clues on Fed hikes and the economy in the week ahead
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Patti Domm | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Investors may be a bit more cautious in the week ahead, with stocks seeking direction in quiet trading and the bond market's warnings about recession getting louder. "That's going to cause its own pressure on markets because markets never look through a profit recession." In the past week, Fed officials maintained their tough tone and some even sounded more hawkish. A rallying stock market is a sign of looser financial conditions. "The stock market is complicating the Fed's objective," said Lyngen.

☆ Shares and pound splutter as UK dishes out budget gruel
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/3] Pound and Dollar banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken June 13, 2017. Pound and UK Gilt recover from 'mini budget' turmoilOvernight in Asia, grim signals from Micron Technology about excess inventories and sluggish demand sent chipmaker stocks sprawling. Mainland Chinese shares also wobbled, with blue chips there (.CSI300) falling 0.5% having ripped 10% higher this month. Traders will also scrutinise speeches from Fed officials on Thursday for hints about rate hikes. Crude oil steadied in Europe after settling more than a dollar lower overnight, following the resumption of Russian oil shipments via the Druzhba pipeline to Hungary and as rising COVID-19 cases in China weighed on sentiment.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationSINGAPORE, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The dollar was little changed on Thursday as investors digested mixed U.S. economic data, while the British pound rose ahead of the government's budget update. Yet the dollar paused on Thursday after U.S. retail sales data for October, released on Wednesday, came in stronger than expected. "Markets have positioned for the Fed to pivot (but) the U.S. retail sales data very much challenges that narrative," said Commonwealth Bank of Australia currency strategist Kim Mundy. Traders will also scrutinise speeches from numerous Fed officials on Thursday for hints about rate hikes. China's yuan weakened 0.36% to 7.126 per dollar as new COVID cases caused concerns that officials could order more lockdowns.

☆ Morning Bid: Bear Hunt
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Long-term sovereign bond yields have been falling sharply all week in advance of finance minister Jeremy Hunt's new budget, dragged down largely by U.S. disinflation hopes. UK 10- and 30-year gilt yields outperformed, however, dropping to their lowest since early September before backing up slightly on Thursday. U.S. housing starts numbers out later will give another glimpse at the state of the ailing property sector. Reverberations continued around the world from this month's latest implosion in the crypto universe and the failure of the FTX exchange. Major crypto player Genesis Global Capital suspended customer redemptions in its lending business on Wednesday, citing the FTX collapse.

☆ Stock market rally will be put to test in week ahead, after yields fall and tech surges
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Patti Domm | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

This week, bond yields also came off their highs and were sharply lower, paving the way for gains in tech and growth shares. They include Fed Vice Chair Lael Brainard, New York Fed President John Williams and Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari to name a few. Hogan said that group includes Bullard, Brainard and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly. Many strategists are calling the move higher a bear market rally, and some expect it will fizzle in December while others say it could continue into the new year. Friday Earnings: JD.com, Foot Locker, Buckle 8:40 a.m. Boston Fed President Susan Collins 10:00 a.m.

☆ Dollar slides, CPI data suggests Fed could slow pace of rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Herbert Lash | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"Inflation is clearly moving in the right direction, and that keeps a more hawkish Fed at bay," he said. The spike higher in the yen versus the dollar stirred speculation the Bank of Japan intervened, which analysts doubted. Fed funds futures priced in a drop in expectations for the U.S. central bank's peak target rate, which fell below 5%. The likelihood of a 50-basis-point rate hike by the Fed instead of a 75-basis-point increase in December rose to 71.5%. CPI rose 7.7% in October on a year-over-year basis, down from 8.2% in the prior month, as headline inflation fell below 8% for the first time since February.

☆ Fed officials welcome inflation news but still see tighter policy ahead
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Federal Reserve officials welcomed Thursday's news showing that inflation rose less than expected last month, and they noted that interest rate increases could slow ahead. But they also cautioned against getting too excited by the data, noting that prices are still far too high. The data sent a possible signal that while inflation is still running high, price increases may have leveled off and could soon head lower. Likewise, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said Thursday's report "suggests some easing in overall and core inflation," though she noted that the trend is still "unacceptably high." Kansas City Fed President Esther George noted that even with the lower monthly gain, inflation is still "uncomfortably close" to the 41-year annual high hit in the summer.

Now some of those same policymakers are reaching for a more familiar lexicon dating from a time when rate hikes came in bland, quarter-point increments, not the 75-basis-point-per-meeting pace they've stuck to since June. It's one clear signal the U.S. central bank is poised to slow what's been the fastest round of rate hikes in 40 years to take stock of the impact of higher borrowing costs. It was a point seemingly lost on market participants, as U.S. stocks soared and traders priced in a lower peak for the Fed policy rate next year - 4.75%-5%, versus the 5%-plus level seen before the inflation report and the policymaker speeches. But even as she said the peak fed funds rate cannot be "predetermined," she noted that "some have argued" the Fed funds rate must at a minimum rise above year-ahead inflation expectations, currently running at about 5%. Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker for his part said he believes the Fed ought to pause once rates get above 4.6%, to gauge the effects of tighter policy.

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