- Hotly anticipated bitcoin futures ease off after 22 percent surge (Reuters)
- Bitcoin Futures Debut With 26% Rally, Trigger Cboe Trading Halts (BBG)
- Powell faces early test of policy view as tax cuts near approval (Reuters)
- Small Investors Face Higher Taxes Under Senate Proposal (WSJ)
- US, Japan and South Korea host joint missile tracking drills (DW)
- Bakers, farmers struggle to make any dough on poor wheat crop (Reuters)
- Fund Managers’ Great 2017 Comeback Almost Blew Up (BBG)
- Hospital Giants in Talks to Create U.S.’s Largest Operator (WSJ)
- Catalan protesters clash with police over ‘plunder’ of religious artefacts (Reuters)
- EU tells Netanyahu no support for Trump’s Jerusalem move (Reuters)
- Another Sign of Frothy Markets: Blank-Check Boom (WSJ)
- Small Banks, Big Worry (BBG)
- The Middle Class Might Not Even Notice If the GOP Cuts Their Taxes (BBG)
- Russian military chief criticizes U.S., Japan and South Korea drills (Reuters)
- Palestinian stabs Israeli in Jerusalem; anti-Trump protest flares in Beirut (Reuters)
- A Fight in Afghanistan That America Is Winning (WSJ)
- Investors Told to Brace for Steepest Rate Hikes Since 2006 (BBG)
- U.S. citizen on the run after busting out of Bali prison (Reuters)
- Mobile-Wireless Offers Insight Into Post Net-Neutrality World (WSJ)
Overnight Media Digest
WSJ
– Two hospital systems Ascension and Providence St. Joseph Health are in talks about a possible merger as a series of deals shape up to further consolidate control of the healthcare landscape. on.wsj.com/2AtiZyb
– The government of Qatar and British weapons maker Bae Systems Plc have finalized a multi-billion deal for 24 combat jets, continuing a weapons buying spree by the Middle East country. on.wsj.com/2AsKvMb
– JP Morgan Chase & Co has hired Barclays Plc card executive Matthew Massaua to oversee the popular rewards card and other Sapphire cards. on.wsj.com/2ArX7mx
– The White House is preparing to roll out a long-delayed infrastructure rebuilding plan in January, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s advisers bet that voters want a $1 trillion road-and-bridge-building plan, even though it is opposed by some lawmakers. on.wsj.com/2Atabbu
– Three people have been arrested for allegedly throwing fire bombs at a synagogue in the Swedish city of Goteborg, the second anti-Jewish attack in the Nordic nation in two days. on.wsj.com/2At6tyt
FT
– Ensuring UK production of the combat aircraft into the mid-2020s, BAE Systems and Qatar finalised a 5 billion pound deal for 24 Typhoon fighter jets.
– Bob Kerslake, the chairman of one of the UK’s biggest and busiest NHS trusts, resigned from his post at King’s College Hospital over the government’s approach to the “enormous challenges” around funding.
– UK’s Financial Conduct Authority’s total fines for the year stand at 229.4 million pounds compared with the 22.2 million pounds levied in 2016, a tenfold increase in the level of fines meted out by the UK’s financial watchdog.
– Labour party’s John McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn are joining a campaign for the 612 million pounds parliamentary pension fund to drop its investments in fossil fuels.
NYT
– Matthias Muller, the chief executive of Volkswagen AG , said the German government should consider phasing out the subsidies that encourage Europeans to buy diesel cars, a startling change of position by the company largely responsible for diesel’s popularity in Europe. nyti.ms/2jLGlVr
– Britain’s best-known publicist, Max Clifford, died on Sunday after collapsing in prison, where he was serving an eight-year sentence for indecently assaulting teenage girls in the 1970s and 1980s. nyti.ms/2Aa1oqR
– U.S. President Donald Trump called for a Washington Post reporter named Dave Weigel to be fired over a misleading tweet about the size of the crowd at a rally for the president on Friday in Pensacola, Florida. nyti.ms/2jNJHHx
Canada
** The launch of bitcoin futures on the Chicago-based Cboe Global Markets exchange has accelerated the race among ETF providers in both Canada and the United States to be first to market with products that track the digital currency. tgam.ca/2ye01Wa
** The Chief Executive of Lundin Mining Corp Paul Conibear says the base-metals miner has “some work to do to get confidence back” after the recent sharp selloff in its stock. But Conibear is also shrugging off any suggestions that the company was slow to disclose a damaging rock slide at its flagship mine. tgam.ca/2yeoB9C
** Alberta is set to unveil successful bidders for 400 megawatts of renewable energy projects in a major step by the oil-rich province toward transforming its power grid. tgam.ca/2yeuh38
Britain
The Times
– Qatar’s defence minister signed a deal yesterday to purchase 24 Typhoons to be built at BAE System’s Warton factory in Lancashire, securing hundreds of production-line jobs for several years and marking the biggest order for the aircraft in a decade. bit.ly/2C13wT6
– The economy will slow sharply next year as trade continues to disappoint despite the fall in sterling since the Brexit vote, the British Chambers of Commerce has warned. bit.ly/2C26tmr
The Guardian
– Four Seasons Health Care is on course for a stay of execution before a crunch debt deadline, after its major creditor offered to drop demands rejected by directors. bit.ly/2C3xjdW
– The European Investment Bank has come under fire for moving towards approving a 1.5 billion euros ($1.77 billion) loan for a gas pipeline from Azerbaijan to western Europe as campaigners said the bank was acting against the EU’s climate change commitments. bit.ly/2C3NOqb
The Telegraph
– Government officials have admitted the plan to put a cap on standard energy prices could scupper growing competition in the energy market, unless the regulator keeps bills high enough to make it worthwhile for consumers to switch. bit.ly/2C14lLG
– Uber will head to court on Monday to fight its London ban, kicking off the first of two crucial legal battles over the next fortnight. bit.ly/2BYWfDc
Sky News
– UK’s pensions lifeboat is weighing whether to reject a restructuring proposal for Toys R Us’s British operations amid questions about a big loan write-off and bonuses awarded to company bosses. bit.ly/2BYWluy
– David Cumming is in advanced discussions about a senior role running the equities division of Aviva Investors, which manages assets worth more than 350 billon pounds. bit.ly/2C0wceR
The Independent
– The UK’s financial watchdog has defended its handling of a report into Royal Bank of Scotland’s treatment of small business customers following claims it failed to publish the document over fears of being sued. ind.pn/2C0UcOU
via http://ift.tt/2z1vGhd Tyler Durden