Stock market news today, October 22, 2014: Good morning. Stock market futures today (Wednesday) indicate the Dow Jones opening one point lower than yesterday's close. The Dow Jones jumped more than 1% Tuesday, adding 215 points. The Nasdaq soared more than 2% on the day, buoyed by Apple Inc.'s (Nasdaq: AAPL) strong earnings report. The Dow Jones rose on stronger corporate earnings and speculation that the European Central Bank may soon introduce new stimulus measures to beat back concerns about growth in the region. The S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) dipped another 11% on the day. This is the first time ever that the VIX has dropped more than 10% in three consecutive trading sessions.
The most important number to watch today - besides the Dow - is the September update to the Consumer Price Index, set to report at 8:30 this morning. The CPI is an important indicator that offers the Federal Reserve direction on how to manage monetary policy. The CPI slipped 0.2% in August, its first decline since the fall of 2012. The August figure was lower than expected and allowed Fed doves to remain loose with monetary policy and keep rates down. With declining energy and food prices, consensus expectations are for the CPI to be flat for September. Less food and energy, the CPI is expected to tick north just 0.1%.
Here's what else you should know to make your Wednesday profitable:
Oil Prices Today: Oil prices were up again this morning. Brent crude, the global benchmark priced in London, was up 0.8% to reach just below $87 per barrel. Meanwhile, WTI crude, which is priced at the NYMEX in Manhattan, was up nearly 0.5% and just a notch below $83 per barrel. Many anticipate that WTI prices will tick north and narrow the gap on Brent crude prices when the U.S. dramatically increases crude exports. And our energy expert, Dr. Kent Moors, predicts that a surge in U.S. crude exports is coming very soon, and you can profit from it.
Tech Turnout: Shares of Yahoo Inc! (Nasdaq: YHOO) were up 4.5% in pre-market hours. The stock got a boost in after-market trading following an earnings report that beat analyst estimates. Yahoo! earned an adjusted $0.52 per share, besting analyst expectations of $0.33 per share. The earnings were fueled by the company's massive gain provided by the Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) IPO in September. For a full recap of Yahoo's earnings, be sure to click here. Shares of Alibaba were back within range of its IPO opening of $92 in pre-market hours, gaining another 3% yesterday.
Printer Problems: Shares of Xerox Inc. (NYSE: XRX) jumped more than 1% in pre-market hours after the company topped Q3 earnings estimates but also reported a 2% decline in quarterly revenues. The services and tech giant reported an adjusted earnings-per-share level of $0.27, besting expectations by a penny. The firm blamed its revenue decline on falling demand in its printing business. Still, shares of Xerox were up more than 4% during yesterday's regular trading hours and are up more than 10% year to date.
Electric Slump: Shares of Tesla Motors Co. (Nasdaq: TSLA) slipped nearly 1% in pre-market hours on news that shareholder Daimler AG (USA) (OTCMKTS: DDAIF) sold its position in the company. Daimler sold its 4% stake in Tesla for $780 million. Shares of Daimler were up more than 1.1% yesterday.
Ebola Solutions: The Wall Street Journal reports that healthcare holding giant Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) announced plans to start testing an Ebola vaccine in humans by January in a partnership with Danish biotech firm Bavarian Nordic (OTCMKTS: BVNRY). Should the testing prove effective and receive regulatory waivers, the firm said it could have up to 250,000 doses available within four months for victims of this deadly disease. Shares of Johnson & Johnson were up nearly 1.5% in pre-market hours.
Tip of the Day: The Federal Reserve plans to wind down its asset purchases this month, but Japan and the United Kingdom are still buying, full swing. Meanwhile, the European Union is just looking to get started with its stimulus efforts. That's sent the U.S. dollar into a major run up, with the euro and yen on the losing side. This adds up to a global currency conflict. And our resource expert Peter Krauth, a 20-year commodity guru and portfolio advisor, has identified a very rare, very lucrative opportunity...
Earnings Reports: Stay tuned for earnings reports from AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA), Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT), Cheesecake Factory Inc. (Nasdaq: CAKE), Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW), General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM), Norfolk Southern Corp. (NYSE: NSC), and Yelp Inc. (Nasdaq: YELP).
Economic Calendar: Today's economic calendar features the September update to the Consumer Price Index, the EIA Petroleum Status Report, and an update on MBA Purchase Applications.
Full U.S. Economic Calendar October 22, 2014 (NYSE: all times EST):
MBA Purchase Applications at 7 a.m.
Consumer Price Index at 8:30 a.m.
EIA Petroleum Status Report at 10:30 a.m.
Today's Big Story: The Fed may be winding down its quantitative easing soon, but the Eurozone is just getting started and the euro is sure to weaken. Here's how to profit off a strengthening dollar...
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.