The Good News On Inflation

At least there was some good economic news today:both CPI and core CPI were below expectations, so inflation concerns are indeed receding.

Futures rallied nearly 15 points on the news. S&P futures have swung in a 50-point range this morning.

Switzerland is taking a nearly 10 percent stake in UBS (6 billion francs); Credit Suisse said it would raise 10 billion francs from several investors, including Qatar.

Credit Suisse up 13 percent pre-open; UBS up 11 percent.

Remember, this is an options expiration week and it is definitely adding to the volatility.

Elsewhere:

1) financial company earnings are basically in line with expectations.

--Citireported a loss of $0.60, beating estimates by $0.10.

--Merrill Lynch reports a loss of $5.56, pretty awful but now far from the expectations of a loss of $5.22

The shareholder vole on the the Bank of America deal will come in mid- to late November, CEO John Thain said.

--PNC Bank, the largest bank in Pennsylvania, reported earnings below expectations, as revenues declined and bad loans increased.

--BB&T, one of the largest banks in the Southeast, reported earnings of $0.65, in line with expectations. They went out of their way to note that their risk-based capital ratios are "significantly" higher than an average of its peers.

• As Recession Looms, Pressure on Fed to Cut More
• Bernanke: Credit Crisis A Major Threat
• Fed Officials Warn of Recession Risk
• Credit Thaws, but Recession Fears Rise
• Shoppers To Constrain Spending: NRF
• America's Rich Feel Bite of Financial Crisis

--Bank of New York Mellonreported earnings above expectations

2) Other earnings reports were basically in line as well:

--United Technologies was in line with expectations; they raised the low end of guidance for the full year but are still in line with expectations.

--Illinois Tool Worksreported earnings of $0.85, 2 cents shy of expectations; fourth quarter guidance was in line with expectations.

• Cramer’s Outrage: Citigroup

_____________________________
New from CNBC.com:

- The Dow 30 at a Glance

_____________________________

Questions? Comments? [e-mail]