Bloomberg:
- The US Treasury may slash its proposed debt sales this quarter by almost 50% because of soaring tax revenue. A decrease might provide a further lift to government bonds, which rallied for the second week in a row last week. A 27% surge in corporate tax receipts to the US government helped shrink the budget deficit to under 2% of GDP.
- Iraq will invite China National Petroleum Corp. and other overseas companies to invest in oil fields to double daily production to 6 million barrels within five years, the country’s oil minister Hussain al-Shahristani said.
- Tribune(TRB) received competing initial takeover offers from buyout firms Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP.
- Jeff Weaver scattered four hits over eight innings and David Eckstein drove in two runs as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Detroit Tigers 4-2 to win their first World Series title in 24 years.
- Wal-Mart Stores(WMT) said October sales at US stores open at least a year rose about .5%, the smallest gain since August 2004 when it reported a similar increase.
- US Treasuries rose for a second straight week after the Fed left interest rates unchanged and reports showed economic growth and inflation are moderating.
- President Bush urged Americans to vote Republican next month or face higher taxes and a sluggish economy under a Democratic-held Congress. Tax cuts on incomes, for married couples and on dividends have fueled wage growth and the creation of 6.6 million jobs in the US since 2003, Bush said in his weekly radio address. The Republican-backed tax breaks will expire unless Congress extends them.
- Australian Prime Minister John Howard said today Australia will keep its troops in Iraq to assist US and British forces in restoring security in the country. “You can’t go until you are satisfied that the Iraqis can look after the situation,” Howard said. “If it is all right for Australia to go, it’s all right for Britain and America to go, and if we all go Iraq will certainly descend into greater bloodshed and chaos.”
- The US unemployment rate held at a five-year low in October and employers added more than twice as many jobs as a month earlier, according to a survey of economists. Job growth will help recharge the economy, economists said. A separate report tomorrow is forecast to show consumer spending quickened as the third quarter drew to a close.
- Merrill Lynch, Dresdner Kleinwort Group and Deutsche Bank AG economists have been wrong all year in calling for the US dollar to tumble against the Japanese yen.
- Newcrest Mining Ltd., Australia’s largest gold mining company, produced 13% more bullion in the first-quarter because of higher output from its Telfer mine.
Investment Dealers’ Digest:
- McDonalds(MCD), Apple Computer(AAPL) and Boeing(BA) may to be typical buyout targets at market caps of $50 billion, $63 billion and $65 billion, respectively, but they’re no longer too large to escape a firm’s crosshairs.
Miami Herald:
- US officials are investigating if Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who constantly makes defamatory comments about President Bush, controls Smartmatic Corp., whose affiliate runs voting machines in 17 US states. The probe questions Smartmatic’s 2005 purchase of California-based Sequoia Voting Systems and their relationship with Bizta, which is 28% owned by the Venezuelan government. Sequoia owns the voting machines in question.
NY Times:
- Upstate New York’s attempt to build a high-tech center to increase manufacturing won’t work unless the state encourages innovation, citing AnnaLee Saxenian of the Univ. of California, Berkeley.
- Mattel’s(MAT) sales overseas of toys represents 45% of revenue compared with 31% five years ago, citing the CEO.
- Kouta Matsuda, founder of Koots Green Tea, opened his first US store in Washington state to challenge the hometown coffee-shop advantage of Starbucks(SBUX).
- Russia led the world last year in selling $7 billion in weapons to developing countries, followed by France at $6.2 billion. Russia’s sales included $700 million worth of surface-to-air missiles to Iran.
Newsweek:
- Osama bin Laden may release a taped video message to try and influence the US mid-term elections, citing two counterterrorism officials and private security expert Evan Kohlmann.
dailyii:
- For the first time, the average compensation for hedge fund managers with more than a decade of experience has topped $1.5 million a year, according to the just-released 2007 Hedge Fund Compensation Report, which is published by Glocap, Institutional Investor News and Lipper HedgeWorld.
Washington Post:
- Google(GOOG) is expanding its web reach to Madison Avenue.
Financial Times:
- Fund managers wrote to SEC Chairman Cox urging the regulator to make it easier for shareholders to elect or fire company directors.
- Concern is growing in Japan that the yen could appreciate markedly should investors lose their appetite for so-called carry trades, where they borrow in the currency to invest in countries with higher interest rates.
- The European Union “must aim to substantially increase, over time, the amount of zero or low-carbon energy” it uses, citing European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.
- A global regulator may be needed to help resolve policy disputes between financial regulators should issues arise in the wake of consolidation among exchanges, citing an interview with Democratic US Representative Barney Frank.
- Oracle’s(ORCL) decision to distribute a copied version of the Linux operating system offered by Red Hat(RHAT) will “have a damaging and divisive effect” on the market, citing an interview with IBM Chief Technology Officer Kristof.
Sunday Times:
- Jules Kroll may buy back his Kroll Inc. investigating company from Marsh & McLennan Cos.(MMC) for $1.9 billion.
Sun-Herald:
- Australia’s top Muslim cleric, Cheik Taj Din al-Hilali, said he may resign if the nation’s Muslim leaders prove that a sermon he gave last month was offensive and aimed at degrading women. Al-Hilali last month in a sermon drew an analogy between women who fail to wear the Islamic headscarf and discarded meat that falls prey to animals. Prime Minister John Howard has told the Muslim community it risked lasting damage if it didn’t deal with the sheik. In response to reporters’ questions on whether he would resign, al-Hilali said, “after we clean the world of the White House first.”
Press Trust:
- Steel Authority of India Ltd. expects alloy prices to fall in 2007 as China reduces imports and increases exports, citing company Chairman S.K. Roongta.
- Hewlett-Packard(HPQ) has dropped plans to build a special economic zone for information technology companies near Bangalore, citing officials.
Sunday Telegraph:
- Morgan Stanley(MS) may announce $700 million of investments in hedge funds this week. NY-based Morgan Stanley has bought FrontPoint Partners for $400 million and 20% of Avenue Capital Group for $300 million.
Guardian:
- Shiites, Sunnis, Kurds and Christians shared living quarters for a month in the latest reality television show to reach Iraqi screens.
Le Figaro:
- Two buses and 25 cars were burned in suburbs north of Paris on the first anniversary of rioting in suburban ghettos.
Cinco Dias:
- Union Fenosa SA, Spain’s third-largest power company, and Enel SpA plan to accelerate investment in their renewable energy joint venture.
El Universal:
- Peruvian authorities are probing allegations that the presidential campaign of Ollanta Humala received money from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, which would be a violation of election laws.
China Daily:
- Proposed legislation in China would ban citizens under 18 from entering Internet cafes as part of the government’s efforts to “combat juvenile Internet addiction,” citing Yang Jingyu, chairman of the National People’s Congress’s law committee.
Weekend Recommendations
Barron's:
- Made positive comments on (TLAB), (MFE), (SYMC), (KLAC), (ASML), (CYMI), (STX) and (DELL).
Morgan Stanley:
- Reiterated Overweight on (ATE), Top Pick.
Night Trading
Asian indices are -1.0% to unch. on average.
S&P 500 indicated -.14%
NASDAQ 100 indicated -.19%.
Morning Preview
US AM Market Call
NASDAQ 100 Pre-Market Indicator/Heat Map
Pre-market Commentary
Before the Bell CNBC Video(bottom right)
Global Commentary
Asian Indices
European Indices
Top 20 Business Stories
In Play
Bond Ticker
Daily Stock Events
Macro Calls
Rasmussen Consumer/Investor Daily Indices
CNBC Guest Schedule
Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
- (ADPT)/-.01
- (ASH)/.54
- (BEAV)/.24
- (NILE)/.10
- (CCU)/.37
- (DBD)/.42
- (HUM)/.97
- (MET)/1.17
- (RACK)/.20
- (SKYW)/.63
- (PCU)/1.91
- (SBL)/.12
- (SYY)/.36
- (VZ)/.66
- (VMC)/1.52
- (WMS)/.21
Upcoming Splits
- None of note
Economic Releases
8:30 am EST
- Personal Income for September is estimated to rise .3% versus a .3% gain in August.
- Personal Spending for September is estimated to rise .2% versus a .1% gain in August.
- The PCE Core for September is estimated to rise .2% versus a .2% gain in August.
BOTTOM LINE: Asian Indices are lower, weighed down by technology shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open modestly lower and to maintain losses into the afternoon. The Portfolio is 50% net long heading into the week.
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