Friday Watch

Evening Headlines

Bloomberg:

• Emerging-Market Central Banks Are Losing Battle Against Traders.  

• History Shows Emerging-Stock Slump Is Nothing to Fret About, Yet.

• China's Steady Hand Keeps FX Traders From Hitting Panic Button.

• Asia Stocks to Gain, Dollar Slips With Treasuries. Asian stocks looked set to advance on the final day of what’s been the worst quarter in nearly three years characterized by trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Treasuries retreated alongside the dollar. Equity futures in Japan, Hong Kong and Australia pointed to gains after technology stocks drove the S&P 500 Index higher. A gauge of emerging market stocks sank to the lowest level in 10 months, while West Texas Intermediate crude pushed above $73 a barrel. Futures on Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.3 percent in Singapore. Futures on Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.1 percent. 

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

Wall Street Journal:

• Trump Consults on Successors for Chief of Staff Kelly.

• Democrats Weigh Battle Strategy Over Trump Court Pick.

• Trump’s Bid to Weaken Iran Is Strengthening the Saudi Economy.

• Synnex to Buy Convergys.

MarketWatch.com:

• What every American should know about a Foxconn in their backyard.

Fox News:

• Gunman's mutilated fingers hinder ID process after 5 killed, several wounded in Maryland.

CNBC:      

• Nike sales top estimates as retailer sees 'return to growth' in US.

• Wells Fargo, JP Morgan, Citi will hike dividends, buy back more stock.

• Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley must keep capital return plans unchanged after Fed stress test blunder.

• The Red Hen restaurant that refused to serve Sarah Sanders was hit by a cyberattack.

• After-hours buzz: NKE, WFC, SNX, KBH, JPM, C, BAC. 

• With food allergies on the rise, biotech Aimmune is focusing on raising patients' tolerance.  

• US Senate passes farm bill without big food stamp changes.

Zero Hedge:

• "Finish It The Hell Up": Gowdy Slams Rosenstein Over Never-Ending Russia Probe.

• Cryptos Slide Accelerates Since Congress Warned Bitcoin Poses Threat To US Election.

• 5 Killed In Annapolis Newsroom Shooting, Gunman Identified Using Facial Recognition.

• Capitol Police Arrest 575 People Protesting Trump Immigration Policies At Senate Building. 

• Bulletproof Car Production Hits Record High In Mexico As Violence Soars.

• Fed Test Fails Deutsche Bank, Forces JPMorgan, Goldman, Four Others to Limit Payouts.

• Bank Bounce Breaks Longest Losing Streak Ever But Yuan Collapse Continues.

• Iranian President Reopens Nuclear Plant: "We Will Bring The US To Its Knees".

Business Insider:

• Amazon's(AMZN) $1 billion purchase of PillPack wiped out 15 times that from pharmacy stocks — and it shows the outsized effect the juggernaut can have on an industry.

• Robots may be taking your job — here are the skills you need to survive.

Night Trading 

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

• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 95.5 +.75 basis point. 

• Asia Pacific Sovereign CDS Index 14.75 +.5 basis point.

• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 69.33 +.05%.

• FTSE 100 futures +.45%.

• S&P 500 futures +.10%.

• NASDAQ 100 futures +.04%.

Morning Preview Links

Earnings of Note
Company/Estimate
Before the Open:

• (STZ)/2.44

• (GBX)/115

Economic Releases

8:30 am EST

• Personal Income for May is estimated to rise +.4% versus a +.3% gain in June.

• Personal Spending for May is estimated to rise +.4% versus a +.6% gain in June.

• The PCE Core MoM for May is estimated to rise +.2% versus a +.2% gain in April.

9:45 am EST

• The Chicago Purchasing Manager for June is estimated to fall to 60.0 versus a reading of 62.7 in May.
  

Upcoming Splits

• None of note

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Eurozone CPI report could also impact trading today.

BOTTOM LINE:  Asian indices are mostly higher, boosted by industrial and technology shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open modestly higher and to weaken into the afternoon, finishing mixed.  The Portfolio is 50% net long heading into the day.