Wall Street looks to break out of 2016 slump

IN THE NEWS TODAY

U.S. stocks were steady this morning, after Wednesday's severe slide sent Wall Street to its lowest level since late September. The Dow, , and the Nasdaq were in correction territory. (CNBC)

JPMorgan (JPM) kicked off this week's bank earnings, reporting this morning better-than-expected earnings and revenue. Meanwhile, Intel (INTC) leads the short list of after-the-bell releases. (CNBC)

Expectations have been low for corporate profits this quarter, with analysts projecting a consensus 4.7 percent decline for S&P 500 profits, according to Thomson Reuters. (CNBC)

Oil prices, a recent drag on stocks, were higher this morning, U.S. crude trading at a rare premium to Brent, with potentially more supply from Iran flowing as sanctions may be lifted as early as Friday. (Reuters)

Asian stock markets were mostly lower, with Japanese stocks losing nearly 2.7 percent overnight. But Chinese stocks bucked the trend, erasing early losses to close up almost 2 percent. (CNBC)

Almost $3.2 trillion has been wiped off the value of stocks around the world since the start of 2016, according to calculations by a top market analyst. U.S. stocks are now off $1.77 trillion, while overseas stocks are down $1.4 trillion. (CNBC)

GoPro (GPRO) shares were losing more than a quarter of their value in premarket trading, after the action-video cameramaker announced an earnings warning and plans to cut its workforce by 7 percent. (CNBC)

In a note to clients on GroPro, Goldman Sachs said it cut three years' worth of earnings estimates on the company and slashed its price target on the stock nearly in half. (CNBC)

Sears Holdings (SHLD) is closing a number of stores, primarily Kmart locations, across the U.S., as part of an annual review of its store network and ongoing efforts by the struggling retailer to cut costs. (Reuters)

Apple (AAPL) stock has fallen more than 22 percent in the past six months, while Alphabet (GOOGL), parent of Google, has seen an almost equal but opposite move. While Apple remains the world's most valuable company, Alphabet is narrowing the gap. (CNBC)

Tesla (TSLA), in response to consumer concerns about slaughtering animals for leather seats, is offering a synthetic leather option, a shade the electric automaker calls Ultra White. (NY Times)

Goldman Sachs (GS) is reportedly planning to cut up to 10 percent of its fixed-income unit jobs this quarter. The firm usually cuts at least 5 percent of its low performers every March. (WSJ)

A loan from Goldman Sachs, not disclosed in campaign finance reports, helped fund the 2012 Senate bid of GOP presidential hopeful Ted Cruz, according to The New York Times.

Tonight's Republican presidential debate in North Charleston, South Carolina, is the sixth of the primary season, but the next-to-last before the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses. (NY Times)

Indonesia's capital city of Jakarta was rocked by a bomb and gun attack today that left at least seven police officers and civilians dead. The latest attack focused on the central business district, including a shopping mall. (CNBC)

BY THE NUMBERS

After a virtually empty economic calendar for the first three days of the week, investors get a look at two reports at 8:30 a.m. ET: the Labor Department's weekly initial jobless claims and December import and export prices.

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, a voting member of the central bank's policymaking committee this year, delivers an economic speech in Memphis this morning at 8:15 a.m. ET.

New Jersey and Florida last year, with both states and several of their metropolitan areas topping the list in 2015, according to RealtyTrac data released this morning.

Extra Space Storage (EXR) replaces insurer Chubb in the S&P 500 after ACE Limited completes its deal to acquire Chubb today. Extra Space Storage is a real estate investment trust that owns storage properties.

STOCKS TO WATCH

Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) is under pressure after Automotive News reported that two Chicago dealerships sued the automaker for allegedly inflating its US sales figures.

Best Buy (BBY) said holiday same-store sales fell 1.2 percent, due to softer than expected mobile phone sales. However, the electronics retailer also said other areas, like home theater and appliances, performed well.

Boeing (BA) reached a tentative six-year deal with its engineering union, coming well ahead of an Oct. 6 contract deadline for more than 20,000 workers.

Amazon (AMZN) is losing about 8.3 percent of its revenue in state taxes, according to a study published in The Washington Post, which is owned by CEO Jeff Bezos.

Pfizer (PFE) may sell the infusion pump business that it acquired when it bought Hospira for $15 billion in September, according to a Bloomberg report. The deal could fetch about $2 billion.

WebMD (WBMD) is exploring a sale of all or part of its business, according to the Financial Times. The online health-care information website operator is said to be in talks with Walgreens (WBA) and UnitedHealth (UNH).

WATERCOOLER

The winning tickets for last night's $1.6 billion Powerball jackpot were sold in California, Florida, and Tennessee. The lottery reported ticket sales of just over 300 million by the middle of the day Wednesday. (CNBC)

The cast of hit TV show "Friends" is set to be reunited for a special two-hour episode, 12 years after the show aired its last episode, which was watched by over 50 million American viewers. (CNBC)