Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:

• Euro-Area Economic Confidence Soars to Nearly Two-Decade High. (video)
• FedEx(FDX) Readies for Surge in E-Commerce With New Hub in Shanghai.
• Retail Investors Are on Their Longest Buying Spree of the Bull Market. (video)
• U.S. Equity Melt-Up Already Obliterating Analysts' 2018 Targets. (video)

Wall Street Journal:

• Driverless-Car Companies Try to Rev Their Engines on Commercial Prospects. Despite excitement about self-driving vehicles, a tough road to business success amid struggles over regulation and technology limitations.
• As Stocks Reach New Highs, Investors Abandon Hedges. With volatility at consistently low levels, more are revising their strategies.
• Retailers Get Bump From Holiday Season. Strong holiday sales mark a reversal of the previous year’s struggles.

Fox News:

• Obamas criticized for lavish library plans, including 'test kitchen'.

CNBC:

• Cryptocurrencies are plunging, led by ripple, bitcoin. (video)
• New 'insane' ETF proposal for bitcoin generates worry on Wall Street. (video)
• Tax reform prompts Visa(V) to raise 401(k) match for employees. (video)
• Homeowners are sitting on trillions in cash.
• Analyst says iPhone X sales are ‘worse-than-expected,’ downgrades key Apple(AAPL) supplier.
• GoPro(GPRO) has hired JP Morgan to put itself up for sale.
• Trump should only be judged by his policies.
• It's not just the US. Global markets are kicking off 2018 making a killing. (video)
• Fed's Bostic says three rate hikes in 2018 may be too much.
• Billionaire Tom Steyer will funnel $30 million into 2018 elections to help Democrats.
• Celgene(CELG) deal could be the first of many for biopharma as new tax law frees up cash. (video)

Zero Hedge:

• Furious Trump Snubs Bannon Olive Branch: You're With Him Or With Me.
• Two Of Apple's(AAPL) Largest Shareholders Urge Company To Address "iPhone Addiction" Among Kids.
• SEC Halts Trading In Chinese Crypto Company That Soared 900% In 2017.
• NBC Apologizes, Deletes Oprah "OUR Future President" Tweet As CNN Confirms 2020 Ambitions.
• "It Doesn’t Look Good": Intel CEO In Jeopardy For Selling Stock After Learning Of "Staggering" Flaw.

Reuters:

• European shares hit highest since August 2015, Ablynx soars. The STOXX 600 index closed up 0.3 percent at 398 points, a level last seen in August 2015.