Wednesday Watch

Evening Headlines

Bloomberg:    

• Russia to Seek Oil-Cuts Rollback for Most OPEC+ Nations.  

• Bitcoin’s Collapse Accelerates, Falls to Lowest Since February.

• Asian Stocks Set to Slip as Central Banks Meet: Markets Wrap. Asian stocks are poised to open in the red following a lackluster session in the U.S. as investors turn their attention to the major central bank meetings this week after shrugging off Tuesday’s North Korea summit. The dollar gained alongside Treasury yields. Futures were lower in Japan, Australia and Hong Kong. Though the S&P 500 Index recovered from session lows, volumes were below average. Safe-haven assets including the yen and gold edged lower amid the prospects of diminishing geopolitical risks after President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un pledged to work toward peace on the Korean Peninsula. The British pound rose after Prime Minister Theresa May fended off a rebellion by pro-EU Conservatives and won a key Brexit vote, only to give up most of that gain. Futures on the Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 0.3 percent in Singapore.
  Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index futures lost 0.1 percent. Hang Seng Index futures declined 0.4 percent. S&P 500 futures rose 0.1 percent as of 7:04 a.m. in Tokyo.

• Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day.  

• U.S. Government Lowers Domestic, World 2019 Oil Output Forecasts.

• Gundlach Says Rising Rates and Deficits Like ‘Suicide Mission’.

• Apple(AAPL) Tries to Stop Developers Sharing Data on Users' Friends.

Wall Street Journal:

• Trump, Kim in New Phase of Diplomacy.

• Starting Gun Fired in Battle Against Big Tech.

• Five Takeaways From AT&T’s Victory.

• Experts React to the Ruling.  

• Tech Companies to Watch 2018.

• Wall Street Investment Banks Face New Hurdle in China.

• Seattle Reverses New Tax.

MarketWatch.com:

• Used-car prices rise to a record, and sedans are partly to blame.

CNBC:    

• AT&T(T) wins: Judge clears $85 billion bid for Time Warner with no condition.

• Time Warner(TWX) shares shoot higher after judge rules in favor of merger with AT&T; other media stocks gain.

• Comcast(CMCSA) preparing to announce bid for Fox(FOXA) on Wednesday if AT&T-Time Warner is approved, sources say.  

• Now that AT&T has been cleared to buy Time Warner, here's what happens next. 

• After-hours buzz: TWX, HRB and more.

• Brazil's record murder rate has taken a huge toll on its economy.

Zero Hedge:    

• Mueller Scrambles To Limit Evidence After Indicted Russians Actually Show Up In Court.

• Trump Says "Got Along Great" With Kim; Kim Praises End Of "Antagonization", Seeks Guarantees.

• "Downright Chilling": Rosenstein "Threatened" To Subpoena Congressmen In Closed-Door Meeting.

• Kim Agrees To Visit US, Confirms Inviting Trump To Pyongyang.

• This Is What Paul Tudor Jones Does When He Wakes Up At 3am Every Morning.

• "What About The Girls You Molested On C-SPAN?" Heckler Asks Biden.

• Judge Approves AT&T's $85BN Takeover Of Time Warner.

• US Budget Deficit Hits $530 Billion In 8 Months, As Spending On Interest Explodes.

• Bitcoin Tumbles Below $6500 As Cryptos Suddenly Plunge.

• WTI/RBOB Slide On Russia Oil-Cut Rollbacks, Surprise Inventory Builds.

• Stocks & Bonds Shrug At Historic Summit, Surging Inflation, Sky-High Optimism.

Business Insider:

• A judge just approved the $85 billion merger between AT&T(T) and Time Warner(TWX) — and it will affect the future of media M&A for decades to come.

Night Trading 

• Asian equity indices are -.25% to +.25% on average.

• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 77.75 -1.0 basis point 

• Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 12.5 -.5 basis point.

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 70.59 +.01%.

• FTSE 100 futures -.03%.

• S&P 500 futures +.22%.

• NASDAQ 100 futures +.36%.

Morning Preview Links

Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
Before the Open:

• (KFY)/.70

After the Close:

• (TLRD)/.48

Economic Releases

8:30 am EST

• The PPI Final Demand MoM for May is estimated to rise +.3% versus a +.1% gain in April.

• PPI Ex Food and Energy MoM for May is estimated to rise +.2% versus a +.2% gain in April. 

• PPI Final Demand YoY for May is estimated to rise +2.8% versus a +2.6% gain in April.

10:30 am EST

• Bloomberg consensus estimates call for a weekly crude oil inventory decline of -1,086,830 barrels versus a +2,072,000 barrel gain the prior week. Gasoline supplies are estimated to rise by +907,640 barrels versus a +4,603,000 barrel gain the prior week. Distillate supplies are estimated to rise by +373,640 barrels versus a +2,165,000 barrel gain the prior week. Finally, Refinery Utilization is estimated to fall by -.04% versus a +1.5% gain the prior week.
  

2:00 pm EST

• The FOMC is expected to raise the benchmark Fed Funds Rate to 1.75%-2.0%.
  

Upcoming Splits

• (TREX) 2-for-1

• (HBNC) 3-for-2

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Fed Press Conference, UK CPI report, weekly MBA Mortgage Applications report, JP Morgan Materials conference, UBS Industrials/Transport Conference and the (CUB) investor day could also impact trading today.

BOTTOM LINE:  Asian indices are slightly higher, boosted by technology and biotech shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to rally into the afternoon, finishing modestly higher.  The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the day.