Financial market research and analysis

News
• Stocks in Asia-Pacific edge higher while airline shares in Hong Kong and Singapore decline after an anticipated air travel bubble between the two cities was delayed due to rising Covid-19 cases in Hong Kong;
• Beijing warns of crackdown on misconduct after bond defaults. China’s debt market roiled after high-profile state-owned groups miss payments;
• Markets in Japan are closed on Monday for a holiday;
• Singapore’s economy contracted by 5.8% in the third quarter compared to a year ago — coming in better than initial estimates. On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally adjusted basis, GDP grew by 9.2%;
• The Trump administration is close to declaring that 89 Chinese aerospace and other companies have military ties, restricting them from buying a range of U.S. goods and technology, according to a draft copy of the list seen by Reuters;
• Trump is running out of chances to overturn election defeat. States to certify Biden victory after crushing weekend courtroom is a setback for outgoing president;
• Putin says he's not ready to recognize Biden as U.S President;
• European weekly ETF inflows hit highest level this year.

What Else?
• Delta casts doubt on NY-London Covid ‘air corridor’;
• Germany agrees to mandatory quota for female executives;
• European nations plan cautious easing of lockdowns for Christmas;
• Saudi Arabia should be a ‘partner’ on any future nuclear deal with Iran, foreign minister says;
• JPMorgan admits it was wrong about end of Bitcoin bull run, renews $140,000-plus price forecast;
• Tesla's S&P 500 entry could spark a $8 billion buying spree, Goldman Sachs says. Of the 189 large-cap core funds tracked by Goldman, 157 funds managing roughly $500 billion don't yet hold Tesla stock, the bank said;
• More Than 2/3rds of Americans oppose mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations.

Week Ahead
• Monday, Nov. 23:
Earnings: Agilent Technologies Inc;
Macro: Market Holiday in Japan; Preliminary Manufacturing and Services PMIs in the Eurozone, Germany, France, the U.K and the U.S.
• Tuesday, Nov. 24:
Earnings: Medtronic PLC, Xiaomi, VMware Inc, Autodesk Inc, Dell Technologies, Analog Devices, LUKOIL Oil Company, Best Buy Co, Dollar Tree, Tiffany & Co;
Macro: German & French Q3 Preliminary GDP (Q3), German Ifo Business Climate Index (November), U.S. S&P/CS Housing Price Index, U.S. Conference Board Consumer Confidence.
• Wednesday, Nov. 25:
Earnings: Deere & Co;
Macro: U.S. Core Durable Goods Orders, U.S. Core PCE Price Index, U.S. Preliminary GDP (Q3), U.S. Michigan Consumer Sentiment and Expectations, U.S. New Home Sales; U.S. FOMC Meeting Minutes Released.
• Thursday, Nov. 26:
Earnings: GAZPROM PJSC;
Macro: Market Holiday in the U.S. for Thanksgiving; ECB Publishes Account of Its Monetary Policy Meeting; ECB Monetary Policy Statement; Japanese Tokyo Core CPI.
• Friday, Nov. 27
Earnings: Pernod Ricard;
Macro: Early Market Close (1 p.m. EST) for Day After Thanksgiving in the U.S; French GDP (Q3); Brazilian Unemployment Rate.

Quote of the day
"If there are no stupid questions, then what kind of questions do stupid people ask? Do they get smart just in time to ask questions?” – Scott Adams.

WRAP
Stocks fell on Friday as rising new coronavirus cases, coupled with questions around central-bank funding for key emergency programs, cast doubt on a swift economic recovery. The Dow Jones dropped 0.8% while the Nasdaq pulled back by 0.4%. Boeing and Salesforce were the worst-performing stocks in the Dow, falling 2.9% and 2.5%, respectively. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed up by almost 0.5%, with oil and gas stocks climbing 1.5% to lead gains. U.S 30Y Yields tumbled, erasing all of the Pfizer vaccine spike. The Dollar drifted lower all week, back at the post-election, pre-Pfizer-vaccine lows. Bitcoin neared its record high.

The U.S. seven-day average of daily new Covid-19 infections now stands at 165,029, 24% higher than a week ago. Many states have rolled back reopening plans and implemented fresh restrictions to curb the spread. On the U.S fiscal front, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced plans to allow several of the Federal Reserve’s emergency lending programs to expire on Dec. 31.