Morning Brief: Trump to announce decision on Iran deal
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
What to watch today
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Stocks finished higher on Monday, though President Donald Trump’s announcement in the afternoon that Tuesday will bring a decision on the Iran deal sent both stocks and oil prices lower.
On Monday afternoon, Trump tweeted that at 2:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday he will announce his decision on whether the U.S. will continue to abide by the terms of the nuclear deal struck with Iran in 2015 by the Obama administration.
Market thinking goes that were Trump to remove the U.S. from this deal, oil prices would rise with new sanctions imposed on Iran and stocks would tumble with tensions in the Middle East escalating. Staying in the deal could do the opposite. Monday’s reaction saw both stocks and oil drop from their intraday highs, indicating markets are unsure what Tuesday holds.
Top news
Comcast prepares all-cash bid to gate-crash Disney-Fox deal: U.S. cable operator Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) is asking investment banks to increase a bridge financing facility by as much as $60 billion so it can make an all-cash offer for the media assets that Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. has agreed to sell to Walt Disney Co. (DIS) for $52 billion, three people familiar with the matter said on Monday. [Reuters]
Takeda clinches $62B deal to buy drugmaker Shire: Takeda Pharmaceutical agreed to buy London-listed Shire for 45.3 billion pounds ($61.50 billion) on Tuesday after the Japanese company raised the amount of cash in its offer to secure a recommendation. The deal — assuming it wins the backing of shareholders — will be the largest overseas acquisition by a Japanese company and propel Takeda, led by Frenchman Christophe Weber, into the top ranks of global drugmakers. [Reuters]
Dimon lays out 100-year China vision: Jamie Dimon laid out his long-term vision for JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s (JPM) expansion in China, while expressing hopes that mounting trade tensions won’t derail the plans. He reiterated that JPMorgan still plans to achieve 100% ownership of a Chinese brokerage operation, adding that the bank is in the “process.” [Bloomberg]
Small business optimism climbs as earnings jump to all-time high: Small business earnings rose to the highest levels in at least 45 years last month, according to the results of a survey from the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB), a lobbying organization that represents small business owners nationwide and has historically given money to Republican causes and candidates. NFIB said that small business earnings were the highest in the history of its survey, which dates back to 1973, and also noted that small business optimism increased in April to a level in the top 95th percentile of its all-time average. It noted that April was the 17th consecutive month of “historically high readings.” [Yahoo Finance]
ValueAct takes $1.2 billion stake in Citigroup: Activist investing firm ValueAct Capital Partners invested $1.2 billion in Citigroup Inc. (C), citing the U.S. bank’s low risk and reliable revenue and not calling for major changes, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Monday. In the letter ValueAct sent to clients, the firm said it built its roughly $1.2 billion Citigroup position over the last four to five months and is adding to it “opportunistically.” [Reuters]
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