- Yellen Inherits Greenspan’s Conundrum as Long Rates Sink (BBG)
- West African Mining Projects Take Hit From Ebola Crisis (WSJ)
- Saudi oil policy uncertainty unleashes the conspiracy theorists (Reuters)
- Senate Rejection of Keystone XL Measure Sets Up 2015 Showdown (BBG)
- Ferguson, Missouri, remains on edge ahead of grand jury report (Reuters)
- Putin Said to Stun Advisers by Backing Corruption Crackdown (BBG)
- Italian ‘Invasion’ Has Swiss Fuming as Immigration Vote Looms (BBG)
- Apple and Others Encrypt Phones, Fueling Government Standoff (WSJ)
- Ukraine rules out direct talks with separatists (Reuters)
- Nielsen to Measure Netflix Viewing (WSJ)
- French-government owned Areva Drops Most Since 1999 After Financial Targets Scrapped (BBG)
- U.S. auto regulator seeks nationwide recall of Takata air bags (Reuters)
- American Roads Can’t Match French Highways Paved by Tolls (BBG)
- Dollar General may have to shut more than 4,000 stores (Reuters)
- Why Japan’s 8% Tax Mauled Economy as Europe Tolerates 20% (BBG)
- Great White Shark Pulled From Nets at Bondi Beach in Australia (BBG)
Overnight Media Digest
WSJ
* The Senate narrowly defeated legislation that would have approved the Keystone XL pipeline, delivering a political setback to Senator Mary Landrieu, who had pushed for the vote as a way to show political clout in her Senate runoff race against Republican challenger Representative Bill Cassidy. (http://on.wsj.com/1yQQX3U)
* U.S. auto-safety regulator National Highway Traffic Safety Administration demanded auto makers issue a nationwide recall of air bags made by Takata Corp after receiving a report of an air bag injury in North Carolina. (http://on.wsj.com/1t3cz9P)
* Two Palestinians attacked a synagogue in Jerusalem, killing three American-Israeli rabbis, a British-Israeli rabbi and a policeman and shifting the focus of violence to deep within the heart of the Jewish half of the city. (http://on.wsj.com/1AfI4oL)
* Next month Nielsen will begin measuring viewership of TV shows on subscription online video services, such as Netflix Inc and Amazon.Com Inc’s Prime Instant Video.(http://on.wsj.com/1vnBudS)
* Ohio Precious Metals LLC in remote Jackson, Ohio, has become an outpost in the multibillion-dollar global gold trade, melting scrap gold and shipping it world-wide. (http://on.wsj.com/11AOb8Y)
* The Justice Department complains that new encryption technology by Apple Inc, Google Inc and others makes it harder for police to gather evidence. (http://on.wsj.com/1vo07rG)
* Goldman Sachs Group Inc has cemented its position as the top Wall Street bank for mergers and acquisitions in one of the busiest years in the business after planned takeover deals this week by Actavis Plc and Halliburton Co . (http://on.wsj.com/1ylqU54)
* The Ebola epidemic in West Africa has led mining companies in the region to put expansion plans on hold. The Ebola epidemic has scared off ships and planes, prompted expatriates to abandon their posts and delayed the rollout of thousands of jobs meant for residents of the West African countries hardest hit by the virus. (http://on.wsj.com/1xNWVmW)
* French prosecutors have launched a preliminary insider-trading probe targeting several senior managers at BNP Paribas SA, seeking to know how much the managers knew about U.S. litigation risks when selling shares. (http://on.wsj.com/1u8Scr6)
* Canada is debating tighter border security for stock trades. The country’s regulators are probing dealers’ practice of routing stock orders to United States trading venues in exchange for rebates, circumventing domestic markets. (http://on.wsj.com/1usUDIw)
* General Mills Inc agreed to keep the phrase “100 percent Natural” off a brand of granola bars and related products as part of a legal settlement, the food industry’s latest concession in the battle over how to define natural foods. (http://on.wsj.com/1t3vuRP)
* Toyota Motor Corp unveiled a $57,000 fuel-cell car and plans for a United States network of hydrogen refueling stations with a message of exclusivity: Don’t expect to see too many of these vehicles soon. (http://on.wsj.com/1wUxrkR)
* Institutional Shareholder Services is recommending shareholders vote against the pay package for Microsoft Corp’s CEO Satya Nadella in a nonbinding vote at the software company’s annual meeting. (http://on.wsj.com/1u8Y4AD)
* AT&T Inc said federal investigators might need a warrant to gather data about cellphone users’ locations, challenging the more permissive legal framework the government has used for years. (http://on.wsj.com/1uGcL3c)
* The Samsung conglomerate’s shipbuilding and engineering units said Wednesday they have scrapped a plan to merge after facing a hefty bill to buy back shares from shareholders opposed to the deal. Samsung Heavy Industries Co, the world’s second-largest shipbuilder by revenue, said in September it would absorb Samsung Engineering Co. (http://on.wsj.com/1xmEgzv)
* United Parcel Service Inc and FedEx Corp are gearing up for a new test of their ability to handle the surge in holiday e-commerce: The frenzy of online shopping that now comes at the beginning of Thanksgiving weekend, instead of afterward. (http://on.wsj.com/1yRcMAg)
* Irving Azoff is trying to pull his clients’ songs from Google Inc’s YouTube. A lawyer for Azoff’s company, Global Music Rights sent two letters to YouTube demanding the company to immediately stop playing about 20,000 of the group’s songs, saying that the online video service had not sought a license from the organization, Azoff said. (http://on.wsj.com/1EYslZd)
* BHP Billiton Ltd is making a bold bet on China’s rising middle class, starting in sand dunes of southern Australia. Beneath the ground at Olympic Dam lies one of the biggest copper deposits in the world-central to a new investment strategy for the resources company. (http://on.wsj.com/1u90u2e)
* Darden Restaurants Inc said its chief financial officer will retire, and it unveiled a cost-savings plan that includes eliminating a management layer at its Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse chains. The company said the moves are expected to save the company $20 million a year. (http://on.wsj.com/14J12qI)
FT
Labour’s Rachel Reeves announced jobless migrants who are from the European Union would have to wait for two years before they could claim out-of-work benefits as part of significant hardening of Labour’s position on immigration.
Britain’s government owns enough land to build as many as 2 million homes that is equal to a decade’s supply, a study by estate agent Savills has found.
Ministers at the Department for Communities and Local Government could be caught unaware by serious financial problems at local councils because of inadequate monitoring, the National Audit Office warned.
Britain’s supermarkets have suffered their first fall in revenues in at least 20 years hurt by lower food prices and a vicious price war that has cut the amount customers spend on groceries, according to a report by market researcher Kantar Worldpanel.
NYT
* In a significant shift, federal safety regulators on Tuesday called on automakers to conduct a nationwide recall of vehicles that contain driver’s-side airbags made by the Japanese supplier Takata Corp. The nationwide move, urged by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, would expand a recall that has been mostly limited to two states and two territories associated with high humidity. (http://nyti.ms/1EYwbBy)
* New York State’s chief banking regulator on Tuesday announced a $315 million settlement with the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, accusing the bank of “misleading regulators” about its business with Iran and other countries blacklisted by the United States. (http://nyti.ms/1xmMDuW)
* Goldman Sachs Group Inc has dismissed a currency trader because of his ties to an inquiry into potential manipulation of benchmark currency rates, a person briefed on the matter said on Tuesday. (http://nyti.ms/1xU0F7l)
* Three months after formally putting itself up for sale, PetSmart Inc appears to have drawn takeover interest from at least two private equity firms. KKR & Co LP and Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, two prominent private equity shops, are preparing a joint bid for the retailer by early next month, a person briefed on the matter said on Tuesday. (http://nyti.ms/1t3BTwt)
* Phone scams involving reloadable prepaid debit card products like the popular MoneyPak card will be the subject of a Senate committee hearing on Wednesday. Executives from three prepaid card companies are expected to testify before the Senate Special Committee on Aging, along with a representative for a trade association that represents retail chains that sell the cards. (http://nyti.ms/1p0PEQ0)
Canada
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
** Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative Party have retained a pair of seats in by-elections on Monday evening, despite a surge by the Liberal Party in the riding formerly held by Jim Flaherty, Canada’s finance minister. (http://bit.ly/1qjrt08)
** The chair of Canada’s largest school board is calling on Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne’s government to intervene with the board’s highest ranking staffer, alleging that director of education Donna Quan has blocked trustees from probing controversial payments and partnerships. (http://bit.ly/14DBsDG)
** The Competition Bureau is investigating Loblaw Cos Ltd pricing strategies in a probe that is demanding that some of the chain’s key suppliers hand over secret records about their dealings with the grocery giant. (http://bit.ly/1xiBzz2)
NATIONAL POST
** Calvin Nicol, a 31-year-old piercer and tattoo artist was walking home from work along Rideau Street at about 7 p.m. on Nov. 1 when he was attacked by at least four males who Nicol believes singled him out because of his unique look. (http://bit.ly/1yhDodR)
** After release from a U.S. prison, Canada’s embattled Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto summoned top henchmen to secret meetings in Cuba and the Dominican Republic to plot revenge on rivals, a court in Italy has heard. (http://bit.ly/14DLNPR)
** Activist investor Sandell Asset Management Corp is urging pipeline and power giant TransCanada Corp to make big changes to its corporate structure in order to boost its share price. (http://bit.ly/1xLk8pW)
China
CHINA SECURITIES JOURNAL
– China plans to allow insurance funds to invest overseas via the Shanghai-Hong Kong stock connect, reported the paper, citing sources.
– Chinese investors prefer blue chips and focus more on long-term returns when they invest in the Hong Kong market via the Shanghai-Hong Kong equity link, according to a recent survey conducted by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).
SHANGHAI SECURITIES NEWS
– An electronic platform for recruiting financial talent was launched on Tuesday as a part of Shanghai’s “financial talents” project to meet the goal of developing the city into a financial center by 2020.
SHANGHAI DAILY
– More than 7,000 10-year US visas were issued by the US Consulate General in Shanghai in the past week after the new extended visa scheme was introduced.
CHINA DAILY
– China is seeing an increasing number of methamphetamine users, said Liu Yuejin, a senior official from the Ministry of Public Security. In the first nine months of this year, police uncovered more than 100 violent crimes caused by meth users.
Read more: http://ift.tt/1tdYZzx…
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Britain
Supermarkets still selling chicken contaminated by deadly bug
Supermarkets are selling chicken they know to be contaminated with a bacterium that causes food poisoning and kills more than 100 people a year. (http://thetim.es/1tb7v29)
The Guardian
Christmas computer game releases help inflation edge higher
Inflation edged higher last month, pushed up by more expensive computer game releases in the run-up to Christmas, but overall price pressures remained low. (http://bit.ly/1u7YkQ9)
UK grocery sales in decline for first time in 20 years
UK grocery sales have gone into decline for the first time in at least 20 years as a raging price war and the falling cost of food commodities hit Britain’s supermarkets. (http://bit.ly/1xTQQq9)
The Telegraph
ECB entering ‘very dangerous territory’ warns S&P
The European Central Bank’s plans for 1 trillion euros ($1.25 trillion) of monetary stimulus is fraught with risk and is likely to fail without full-blown bond purchases, Standard & Poor’s has warned. (http://bit.ly/1xBenxe)
London Stock Exchange begins investigation into Quindell’s share price fall The London Stock Exchange is in the early stages of investigating the circumstances surrounding Monday’s 19 pence (0.2966 US dollar) price fall in insurance outsourcer Quindell PLC. (http://bit.ly/1u7oQZZ)
Sky News
United count cost of Champions League absence
Manchester United Plc’s revenue fell by 10 percent in the first quarter of this season, as the club paid the price for its absence from the Champions League. (http://bit.ly/1HhCILy)
Drinks Group Britvic Seeks Board Refreshment
Britvic PLC, the soft drinks manufacturer behind Robinsons and J2O, has begun a search for heavyweight figures to refresh its boardroom nearly a decade after it became a separately listed company. (http://bit.ly/1yPGMg5)
The Independent
Quindell founder Rob Terry apologises after controversial share deal
The founder of troubled outsourcer Quindell has issued an apology for his role in a controversial share deal that resulted in his ousting and left the company’s reputation in tatters. (http://ind.pn/1HhEBYD)
UK inflation rises slightly to 1.3 percent in October
The rate of inflation accelerated slightly to 1.3 percent in October but remains well below the Bank of England’s target of 2 percent for the 11th month in a row. (http://ind.pn/1xlY1r0)
Fly On The Wall Pre-Market Buzz
ECONOMIC REPORTS
Domestic economic reports scheduled for today include:
Housing starts for October at 8:30–consensus up 0.8% to 1.025M rate
Housing permits for October at 8:30–consensus up 0.9% to 1.04M rate
ANALYST RESEARCH
Upgrades
Almost Family (AFAM) upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at RW Baird
CF Industries (CF) upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse
Columbia Sportswear (COLM) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup
DSW (DSW) upgraded to Positive from Neutral at Susquehanna
LHC Group (LHCG) upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at RW Baird
Mosaic (MOS) upgraded to Positive from Neutral at Susquehanna
National Grid (NGG) upgraded to Hold from Sell at Deutsche Bank
Downgrades
Beacon Roofing (BECN) downgraded to Hold from Buy at KeyBanc
BlackBerry (BBRY) downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley
Consolidated Edison (ED) downgraded to Sell from Neutral at UBS
Denbury Resources (DNR) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Wunderlich
Pool Corp. (POOL) downgraded to Hold from Buy at KeyBanc
Synchronoss (SNCR) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at RW Baird
Total System (TSS) downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman
Initiations
American Axle (AXL) initiated with a Market Perform at FBR Capital
Church & Dwight (CHD) initiated with a Buy at BTIG
Cooper Tire (CTB) initiated with an Outperform at FBR Capital
Coty (COTY) initiated with a Buy at BTIG
Dana Holding (DAN) initiated with an Outperform at FBR Capital
Diplomat Pharmacy (DPLO) initiated with an Outperform at Leerink
Diplomat Pharmacy (DPLO) initiated with an Overweight at JPMorgan
Energizer (ENR) initiated with a Neutral at BTIG
Herbalife (HLF) initiated with a Buy at BTIG
Jarden (JAH) initiated with a Buy at BTIG
Liberty Broadband (LBRDA) initiated with a Buy at Evercore ISI
Nu Skin (NUS) initiated with a Neutral at BTIG
Rackspace (RAX) initiated with an Overweight at Barclays
Stoneridge (SRI) initiated with a Market Perform at FBR Capital
Tuesday Morning (TUES) initiated with an Outperform at Wedbush
COMPANY NEWS
Darden (DRI) reported restructuring, CFO retirement, closure of aviation department
Colony Financial (CLNY) to acquire Cobalt Capital Industrial Real Estate for $1.6B
La-Z-Boy (LZB) raised quarterly dividend 33% to 8c per share
Barrick Gold (ABX) appointed Shaun Usmar as CFO Designate
Jack in the Box (JACK) set long-term annual SSS growth target of 2%-3%
PetSmart (PETM) forecast FY15 SSS growth in the low-single digits
Avon Products (AVP) announced actions to reduce costs including headcount reductions
EARNINGS
Companies that beat consensus earnings expectations last night and today include:
Lowe’s (LOW), PetSmart (PETM), Leju (LEJU), Stage Stores (SSI), Staples (SPLS), China Distance Education (DL), Golub Capital (GBDC), La-Z-Boy (LZB), M/A-COM (MTSI), Jack in the Box (JACK), Vipshop (VIPS)
Companies that missed consensus earnings expectations include:
E-House (EJ), Nord Anglia (NORD), SQM (SQM), Xueda Education (XUE)
Companies that matched consensus earnings expectations include:
LightInTheBox (LITB)
Stage Stores (SSI) backs FY14 EPS view of $1.05-$1.15, consensus $1.01
Staples (SPLS) sees Q4 EPS 27c-32c, consensus 31c
Lowe’s (LOW) sees FY14 EPS about $2.68, consensus $2.63
Jack in the Box (JACK) sees FY15 operating EPS $2.73-$2.88, consensus $2.81
NEWSPAPERS/WEBSITES
Sources: KKR (KKR), CD&R team up to take PetSmart (PETM) private, Reuters reports
NHTSA wants ‘millions of vehicles’ recalled due to Takata air bags, CNBC reports (TM, HMC, FIATY, F, GM, NSANY, VLKAY)
Ackman urges significant cost cuts at Zoetis (ZTS), Bloomberg reports
iPhone 7 (AAPL) could include ‘biggest camera jump ever,’ TheTechBlock reports
RadioShack (RSH) loan from Monarch off table, Bloomberg reports
Dollar General (DG) may have to sell over 4K stores for deal approval, NY Post says (FDO)
Wells Fargo (WFC), U.S. not as optimistic on settling mortgage suit, Reuters says
Investors should think about buying Home Depot (HD) dip, Barron’s says
SYNDICATE
Amicus Therapeutics (FOLD) 13.85M share Secondary priced at $6.50
CorEnergy (CORR) 13M share Secondary priced at $6.80
Moelis (MC) 5.5M share Secondary priced at $31.75
Paramount Group (PGRE) 131M share IPO priced at $17.50
Receptos (RCPT) 3.6M share Secondary priced at $100.00
via Zero Hedge http://ift.tt/1wXzfto Tyler Durden