IN THE NEWS TODAY
President Donald Trump landed in Tel Aviv this morning, the next stop on his first foreign trip since taking office. In remarks on the tarmac, Trump said he sees a "rare opportunity" to bring stability the Mideast and defeat terrorism. Trump will meet with the Israeli and Palestinian leaders. (CNBC)
Trump began his trip in Saudi Arabia over the weekend, calling on the Arab world to confront extremism in a Sunday speech. The president on Saturday sealed a $350 billion arms deal with the Saudis, an accord that drew concern from Israel. (CNBC & NBC News)
American private equity giant Blackstone (BX) and Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund unveiled plans to create a $40 billion infrastructure fund to invest mostly in U.S. projects. (Reuters)
Boeing (BA) reached deals to sell military and passenger aircraft to Saudi Arabia. Separately, General Electric (GE) signed $15 billion in agreements involving power, health care, and energy. (USA Today & Reuters)
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told CNBC he saw signs that Saudi Arabia continues "liberalizing their society" and relaxing some of the restrictions on women under the strict interpretation of Islamic law that rules the kingdom.
China told the new U.S. trade representative that stronger cooperation is needed between the two nations. According to China's commerce ministry, USTR Robert Lighthizer said trade wars are not in the interest of either side. (Reuters)
North Korea is claiming it successful tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile that allegedly confirms the reliability of the late-stage guidance of the nuclear warhead, indicating further advances in the ability to hit U.S. targets. (Reuters)
President Trump's budget proposal, expected tomorrow, won't make good on campaign promises to reform Social Security or Medicare. But the blueprint will make $1.7 trillion in cuts to other entitlement programs over the next ten years. (Axios)
A Monday court hearing offers the Trump administration its best opportunity to prevent significant increases in health care costs for about 7 million lower-income Americans who buy their plans on Obamacare exchanges. (USA Today)
STOCKS TO WATCH
Texas-based Huntsman (HUN) and Switzerland's Clariant are combining in a more than $14 billion merger of specialty chemical companies. The all-stock transaction would create a combined firm that will be 52 percent owned by Clariant shareholders.
Akzo Nobel shareholders are taking the Dutch paint maker to court over its rejection of a $29.5 billion takeover bid from U.S. rival PPG Industries (PPG). Activist investor group Elliott Advisors wants an investigation into alleged mismanagement by Akzo's board.
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is reportedly trying to reach a last-minute settlement with investors, according to Reuters. Those investors sued the bank, accusing it of misleading them over a 2008 capital increase.
Amgen (AMGN) said it does not expect an experimental osteoporosis drug to win FDA approval this year, following a trial which showed a higher rate of heart problems.
Apple (AAPL) is being sued for patent infringement by a small Boston-based company called Universal Secure Registry over technology used in its Apple Pay service.
Facebook's (FB) big push into original video is taking longer than expected. The social network's plans to release a slate of made-for-Facebook original video shows has been pushed back and may not arrive until the end of summer, according to Recode.
WATERCOOLER
"Alien: Covenant" debuted as No. 1 at the North American box office with $36 million in ticket sales. But "Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2" remained in second place, adding $35 million to its more than $300 million domestic take so far. (AP)