Dow Jones Today, Nov. 12, 2014: U.S. stock markets were flat Wednesday as both the Dow Jones and S&P 500 ended their five-day winning streaks. The Nasdaq bucked the trend to close higher.
What Moved the Markets Today: The Dow Jones turned downward on concerns following settlements by global financial companies over allegations of currency trading manipulation. Sliding oil prices continue to weigh on the S&P 500 and many international oil majors.
Now check out the day's most important market notes:
Banks Behaving Badly: U.S. and British regulators announced they have reached a $3.4 billion settlement with five global banks over allegations that they manipulated the international currency trading markets. Regulators reached settlements with HSBC Holdings Plc. (NYSE ADR: HSBA), Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc. (NYSE: RBS),UBS AG (NYSE: UBS), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM). U.K. bank Barclays Plc. (NYSE ADR: BCS) pulled out of the settlement at the last minute and will attempt to forge its own negotiations with regulators in the near future.
Besting Expectations: Shares of Twitter Inc. (Nasdaq: TWTR) jumped more than 7% this afternoon during Analyst Day. This afternoon, the company's executives introduced a number of new apps and plans for enhanced private messaging. The company said that more than 500 million people visit its site each month, although it has just a shave below 250 million active users. The firm is attempting to increase optimism about its international growth strategy. Get the most important info about Twitter stock here.
Retail Mania: Shares of Macy's Inc. (NYSE: M) jumped more than 5% this afternoon on news that the company reported better than expected earnings in the third quarter. Still, the company missed analyst expectations by reporting lower revenue estimates and slashing its 2015 outlook.
Changes in Plans: Shares of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) were up this afternoon on news that the company plans to alter its holiday sales schedule. According to reports, the company plans to eliminate its Black Friday promotions and instead move its holiday promotions to a five-day week.
The Pressure Is On:Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer is under scrutiny from multiple shareholders over her efforts to turn around the company. A recent Reuters report reveals a greater effort in recent months to push Yahoo to reach an agreement with AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL). Here are the three things that YHOO stock investors need to see from Mayer now...
Now our experts share some of the most important investment moves to make based on today's market trading - for Money Morning Members only:
Profit from China's Currency Move: As China continues to position itself for economic dominance, its currency will take center stage in the global financial arena. There are clear and visible signs that the Yuan is on the march, but the financial press has seriously underreported its surge. It's an unstoppable trend, and you can profit by taking these critical steps...
How Google Will Dominate the Future: Today, our tech expert Michael A. Robinson wants to tell you why Google is such an intriguing tech investment with enormous upside. This industry leader has somehow combined Warren Buffett's business genius and Google Director of Engineering Ray Kurzweil's futurist brain... And there's nothing but profit for investors ahead...
The China Bears Are Wrong: Many talking heads are shouting that China is a trap for investors. And every time they say the sky is going to fall on the world's second-largest economy, the Asian nation continues to beat back the naysayers. Of course, the critics never go away, and they've been out in abundance recently. But as our Executive Editor Bill Patalon explains today, anyone who is bearish on China is wrong. And worse, they're leaving a lot of money on the table...
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.