Financial market research and analysis

At its IPO price of $6 per share, Airbnb ABNB, is expected to raise at least $3.5 billion with an initial market capitalization topping $40 billion.

MARKETS
Stocks fell on Wednesday, retreating from the record highs set earlier in the day, as tech shares struggled and traders weighed the prospects of new fiscal stimulus. The Dow Jones closed 0.35% and the Nasdaq pulled back by 1.9%. Apple was among the worst-performing Dow components, falling more than 2%. The overall tech sector came under pressure after DoorDash made its public-market debut.

European markets closed higher as investors monitor Brexit talks; ST Micro fell 12% after the chipmaker said it’s postponing an annual sales target of $12 billion to 2023. Gold and Silver declined sharply as the dollar surged. Bitcoin was weaker but bounced off the $18k level.
The major averages gave back their initial gains after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told Politico that Republicans and Democrats were “still looking for a way forward” on additional fiscal aid. Those remarks came after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin pitched Tuesday a $916 billion stimulus package to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

WRAP
News
• Asia-Pacific markets fell as investors keep an eye on Brexit talks, U.S. stimulus hopes;
• DoorDash shares open up 86% amid IPO frenzy: US meal delivery group begins public trading after raising $3.4bn;
• SoftBank Vision Fund turns $680 million DoorDash investment into $11.5 billion;
• U.S Fiscal update >>> The House passes a bill to extend government funding by one week and sends it to the Senate. The government will shut down on Saturday if Congress fails to pass a spending measure. Lawmakers aim to buy more time to reach a broad spending deal and a coronavirus relief package;
• U.S elections >>> 17 states tell Supreme Court they support Texas bid to reverse Biden win;
• Poland & Hungary accept German proposal on $2.2 Trillion EU stimulus;
• BREXIT: UK’s Boris Johnson sets out UK ‘red lines’ ahead of crunch EU meeting. Prime minister rejects ‘automatic’ trade sanctions over abiding by future rules as Merkel says chance of deal remains;
• COVID UPDATE >>> California Sees Record 30K+ New COVID Cases; Fauci Says US Won't Return To Normal Until Mid-2021 / People with history of significant allergic reactions shouldn’t have Pfizer vaccine, UK regulator warns / Covid vaccine from China’s Sinopharm is 86% effective, says UAE / FDA says Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine works 10 days after first dose / Sweden limits store hours and sports as Cases climb, but insists lockdowns "not possible";
• FTC and states sue Facebook, could force divestment from Instagram and WhatsApp;
• Exxon (XOM) surged after DE Shaw goes activist by pushing the company to cut spending and costs.

What Else?
• JP Morgan says gold will suffer long-term as institutional investors gain bitcoin exposure;
• Societe Generale expects an extension of the ECB″s bond-buying program until December 2021, with an extra 600 billion euros in total, alongside a new financing program for banks;
• Starbucks sees long-term adjusted earnings per share rising 10% to 12%;
• Blue Horizon Capital rolled out an ETF that covers the entire alternative energy economy: The Blue Horizon BNE ETF (BNE);
• Xavier Niel’s organic food Spac rallies in Paris debut; Blank-cheque company raises €300m in biggest French IPO this year.

Day Ahead
• Earnings: Broadcom Inc (AVGO), Ciena Corp (CIEN), Costco Wholesale Corp (COST), Fluor Corp (FLR), Lululemon Athletica Inc (LULU), Oracle Corp (ORCL), Tui AG;
• IPO: Airbnb;
• Macro: U.K. Manufacturing Production, U.K. Monthly GDP Estimate, U.K. Trade Balance, European Central Bank (ECB) Policy Statement and Interest Rate Decision, U.S. Core CPI.

Quote of the day
“I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn’t work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.” – Emo Philips