Dow Jones Industrial Average Today Falls as Deutsche Bank's Stability Rattles Investors

This morning, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell in pre-market hours over growing concerns about the stability of Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE: DB).

In other news, Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) will unofficially kick off earnings season. With volatility heating up this month, investors need to read our list of the best stocks to buy in October 2016.

On Thursday, the Dow cratered almost 200 points as concerns about the European banking sector weighed on investor sentiment and volatility accelerated in the healthcare sector.

Thursday's Stock Market Numbers:

Dow Jones 18,143.38; -195.86; -1.07%

S&P 500 2,151. 2; -20.25; -0.93%

Nasdaq 5,269.15; -49.39; -0.93%

Now let's look at the most important market events and stocks to watch today, plus your economic calendar, for Sept. 30, 2016.

 What's Ahead for the Dow Jones Industrial Average Today

The Dow Jones Industrial Average projected a 45-point decline with all eyes on Deutsche Bank. The stock price for the German investment bank is hovering at an all-time low. Investors are concerned about the company's liquidity. Hedge funds have been cutting back on trading activities with the firm or withdrawing money from their accounts. The way things are going, the firm could be facing a run on its capital. Pressure is growing on German officials to bail out the country's largest bank.

Trending: What to do After the Facebook Stock Split Vote

Today, keep an eye on the September update to consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan. With investors eyeing the month of October, positive sentiment about the U.S. economy would offer a boost to overall optimism for the markets.

Oil prices were tracking near a one-month high as traders appear optimistic about OPEC's deal to cap production by November. The WTI crude oil price today slipped 0.1%. Meanwhile, Brent crude oil prices were flat early this morning.

Following this week's OPEC deal, investors will be keeping an eye on the rig count from Baker Hughes Inc. (NYSE: BHI), as the cartel's deal is expected to jumpstart domestic crude production. The company will announce whether or not U.S. crude production increased in the final week before the OPEC deal.

Money Morning Global Energy Strategist Dr. Kent Moors offers his insight on where oil prices are heading after the OPEC deal, right here.

On the deal front, keep an eye on NXP Semiconductors NV (Nasdaq: NXPI). Shares of the semiconductor giant rallied more than 16.8% on Thursday on news that Qualcomm Inc. (Nasdaq: QCOM) is considering a deal for its rival. While neither company has commented on the deal, The Wall Street Journal says that the two could strike a merger within the next two months. QCOM stock climbed 6.3% on Thursday.

Stocks to Watch Today, Sept. 30, 2016

• Keep an eye on shares of enterprise-tech firm Nutanix Inc. (Nasdaq: NTNX), which will trade publicly for the first time this morning. The company priced its shares at $16 on Thursday night, higher than its initial range of $11 to $13 per share. The stock will trade under the Nasdaq ticker NTNX.
• Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) is back in the news. But this time, the person making the headlines isn't the firm's CEO John Stumpf. Instead, it's billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who denied a report last night that he is seeking major changes at the financial firm. WFC stock has shed more than $20 billion in market capitalization after the firm engaged in a massive fraud that created millions of fake customer accounts. As Money Morning Capital Wave Strategist Shah Gilani explains, the real Wells Fargo scam is a reckless "do whatever it takes" culture that no one stopped.
• On the earnings front, shares of McCormick & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MKC) are on the move this morning as the company prepares to report fiscal third-quarter earnings. Consensus Wall Street expectations call for earnings per share (EPS) of $0.95 on $1.08 billion in revenue.
• Shares of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: AMTD) are in focus this morning on speculation that the firm could be looking to make a purchase of another online brokerage competitor. According to a research note from Barron's, the company may consider a deal for Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) or E*TRADE Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: ETFC).
• Finally, if you can't beat them... and you can't join them... call your regulator. According to reports, Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM) is asking the U.S. government to block the deal between Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) and LinkedIn Corp. (NYSE: LNKD). Salesforce argues that the $26.2 billion deal is anticompetitive. The decision is interesting, considering that Salesforce and Microsoft had enjoyed a good relationship before the former lost out to the latter in a bid for the the professional social network.

Today's U.S. Economic Calendar (all times EDT)

• Personal Income and Outlays at 8:30 a.m.
• Chicago PMI at 9:45 a.m.
• Consumer Sentiment at 10 a.m.
• Baker Hughes Rig Count at 1 p.m.
• Dallas Federal Reserve President Rob Kaplan speaks at 1 p.m.

Up Next: Get the Best Investing Research Today to Grow Your Money

Follow Money Morning on Facebook and Twitter.

[mmpazkzone name="end-story-hostage" network="9794" site="307044" id="138536" type="4"]