BY THE NUMBERS
U.S. stock futures were pointing to a rebound from Friday's stock slide that wiped out the week's gains for the Dow, which has now fallen in four of the past five weeks. However, the S&P 500 has now posted two straight weekly gains, with the Nasdaq up three straight weeks. The Dow also lost its October gains with Friday's drop, although Boeing (BA) was responsible for about two-thirds of the Dow's nearly 256 point drop. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq have now alternated between gains and losses for six straight sessions. (CNBC)
Shares of Boeing remain under pressure in the premarket this morning, following Friday's revelations of 2016 emails that called into question the safety of the 737 Max jet's flight control system. The airplane-maker expressed regret over those messages and is continuing to investigate. (Reuters)
* Boeing survey showed that employees felt pressure from managers on safety approvals (CNBC)
* Congress ramps up scrutiny of Boeing executives, board (WSJ)
There are no economic reports on today's calendar. Oilfield services provider Halliburton (HAL) is among a handful of companies reporting quarterly earnings this morning. TD Ameritrade (AMTD) and Zions Bancorp (ZION) are out with quarterly numbers after today's closing bell. (CNBC)
* Stocks likely to hit new records in the week ahead if earnings keep topping expectations (CNBC)
IN THE NEWS TODAY
The first federal trial on the opioid crisis opens in Cleveland today. Ohio state, local and tribal governments plus hospitals and others have filed a total of more than 2,600 lawsuits against drugmakers, distributors and pharmacies seeking to hold them accountable for the crisis that has killed more than 400,000 since 2000. (AP)
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will face "retribution sooner or later" for saying that Beijing wanted him to fire the general manager of the Houston Rockets for a now-deleted tweet. In the tweet, Daryl Morey showed support for anti-government protests in Hong Kong, Chinese state media said, adding that Silver "crossed the bottom line." (CNBC)
China is seeking $2.4 billion in retaliatory sanctions against the U.S. for non-compliance with a WTO ruling in a tariffs case dating to the Obama era. Appeals judges in July said the U.S. did not fully comply with a WTO ruling and could face Chinese sanctions if it doesn't remove tariffs on solar panels, wind towers, steel cylinders and aluminium extrusions. (Reuters)
* China's economic growth could fall below 6% in 2020, says the IMF (CNBC)
President Donald Trump announced that he has nominated Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette to replace departing Energy chief Rick Perry. Brouillette had previously served as vice president of the Ford Motor Company and is set to start at the end of the year. (CNBC)
* White House's Mulvaney did not mull quitting over "quid pro quo" flap (Reuters)
Trump this weekend bowed after two days of strong criticism and dramatically reversed his decision to have his Miami golf resort host next year's G-7 summit. Democrats had blasted Trump in recent days after acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney revealed that the Doral would be the site of the meeting of an elite group of world leaders. (CNBC)
Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who was initially seen as a long-shot presidential contender, has surged within striking distance of former vice president Joe Biden and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses, a Suffolk University/USA TODAY Poll finds.
Canadians head to the ballot box to elect their new prime minister today, bringing an end to six weeks of campaigning that has been light on policy and heavy on personality. The latest opinion polls show current PM Justin Trudeau's Liberals and Andrew Scheer's Conservatives running practically neck-and-neck. (CNBC)
U.K. lawmakers have delayed a crucial Brexit vote and forced Prime Minister Boris Johnson to ask the EU for an extension to the current Oct. 31 deadline. The developments in Parliament set up a complicated week with just 11 days left until the U.K. is still due to leave the world's largest trading bloc. (CNBC)
Facebook (FB) has suggested its Libra project could use multiple cryptocurrencies backed by different existing currencies like the dollar, called stablecoins, rather than having one single digital token tied to a basket of currencies. The tech giant had initially proposed one synthetic unit of value that would be tied to a basket of currencies and government debt. (CNBC)
Amazon's (AMZN) marketplace has grown to millions of sellers, making it hard for the company to adequately police the platform. Expired food is regularly sold to consumers via third-party vendors on Amazon. Many brands have grown so frustrated by the abundance of expired products that they're taking steps to clean up the marketplace themselves. (CNBC)
STOCKS TO WATCH
Thomson Reuters (TRI) said it was engaged in CEO succession planning "as a matter of good governance," and CEO Jim Smith said in an employee memo he was "not planning to go anywhere soon." That followed a report saying the financial information provider had hired search firm Spencer Stuart to put together a list of CEO candidates.
Alexion Pharmaceuticals (ALXN) received FDA approval for a second use of its blood disorder drug Ultomiris. The new use treats patients with abnormal blood clots in kidney blood vessels.
Verizon (VZ) is seeking a buyer for the HuffPost website, according to the Financial Times. However, the paper said formal talks have not been launched and any talks are at an early stage.
News Corp (NWSA) has reached a deal with Facebook to feature headlines from the Wall Street Journal and other Dow Jones properties, as well as the New York Post.
Raymond James reiterated its "outperform" rating on Apple (AAPL) and raised its price target on the stock by $30 to $280 per share. The firm cites more favorable data on sales of the iPhone 11.
Pinterest (PINS) was upgraded to "outperform" from "sector perform" at RBC Capital, based on strong user trends and prospects for the hobby-sharing website operator to ramp up monetization.
WATERCOOLER
Disney's "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil" topped the box office this past weekend, barely beating "Joker." Studios estimated that "Maleficent" grossed an estimated $36 million in the U.S, as "Joker" added $29.2 million in its third weekend in North America. (USA Today)