China reported a 10% decline in exports, raising new concerns about its economic growth and previous stimulus efforts.
On Wednesday, the Dow gained 15 points as traders eyed several speeches from Federal Reserve officials and digested the release of the September FOMC meeting minutes.
Expectations are rising that the Fed will hike interest rates after the election.
So when is the next Fed Open Market Committee meeting, and what's on tap next for our readers? We answer those questions, right here.
Dow Jones: 18,144.20; 15.54; 0.09%
S&P 500: 2,139.17; 2.44; 0.11%
Nasdaq: 5,239.02; -7.77; -0.15%
Now let's look at the most important market events and stocks to watch today, plus your economic calendar, for Oct. 13, 2016.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average projected a 93-point decline as investors weighed the monthly Chinese export data. But there's far more happening that has pushed global stocks down over the last few weeks. Investors are eyeing the Fed's next interest hike, a heated and controversial presidential election, weakness in the European financial sector, and the fallout from Britain's decision to depart the European Union.
Trending: America Will Always Be Great - and This Tech Investment Proves It
Oil prices were pushing higher thanks to record imports to China. However, gains were limited due to a rising U.S. dollar and news that OPEC production had surged to its highest level in eight years. Meanwhile, the markets were still reacting to Wednesday's announcement by the American Petroleum Institute that domestic crude stocks had increased by 2.7 million barrels. The U.S. Energy Information Administration will announce its official report at 11 a.m. today. Any increase would be the first after five straight weeks of inventory declines.
The WTI crude oil price today added 0.2%, while the Brent crude oil price gained 0.3%.
But the big story on Thursday is happening at Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC). CEO John Stumpf has stepped down as CEO due to pressure over the firm's fake account scandal. WFC stock gained 2% on the news. In a statement, Stumpf said that he felt he'd become a distraction over the last few weeks. Tim Sloan will take over control of the firm. But unless the company radically changes its culture, we could see more of the same from the "too big to fail" bank. Oh, by the way... Stumpf will walk away from Wells Fargo with up to $137 million. Money Morning Capital Wave Strategist Shah Gilani weighs in on the crisis, right here.
Don't Miss: This is your ticket to bigger and better returns... and it won't cost you a penny. What are you waiting for? Read more...
Follow Money Morning on Facebook and Twitter.
[mmpazkzone name="end-story-hostage" network="9794" site="307044" id="138536" type="4"]
About the Author
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.