Why the Dow Jones Today Is Flat Ahead of Big Tech Firms Appearing Before Congress

Garrett Baldwin

The Dow Jones news today is flat this morning after a sharp decline yesterday, as representatives from Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB), Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOGL), and Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) appear before Congress today.

The Dow Jones futures are up 27 points this morning after falling over 85 points yesterday. Tech firms are set to testify in front of the Senate today over how they handled Russia's attempts to influence the last election. Investors are concerned Congress could take action to constrain these tech giants. But we're not worried, and Alphabet alone could surge another 1,294%...

Here are the numbers from Monday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:

Now here's a closer look at today's most important market events and stocks, plus Tuesday's economic calendar.

The Five Top Stock Market Stories for Tuesday

• Expect a lot of noise today about social media giant Facebook Inc. According to CNBC, the company is under severe scrutiny over its advertising policies. Facebook disclosed that Russia-backed election advertisements reached 126 million Americans thanks to more than 80,000 posted on the social network's site. Congress is set to call on executives from Facebook, Twitter Inc., and Alphabet Inc. to discuss the impact of Russian misinformation on the 2016 election.

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• Markets are gearing up for the start of the November meeting of the Fed Open Market Committee. The two-day meeting begins today, but observers do not anticipate that the U.S. central bank will increase interest rates. However, markets will be looking for clues into whether the U.S. Federal Reserve will remain committed to a rate hike in December and at least two more hikes in the year head. Meanwhile, expect a lot of speculation on President Donald Trump's plan to nominate the next chair of the central bank. Analysts now anticipate that Trump will nominate Fed Gov. Jerome Powell to step into Janet Yellen's role next year.

• Markets are on the move after the Bank of Japan announced that it will hold interest rates in place and not make any sudden moves to its stimulus plan. The central bank concluded its two-day meeting on monetary policy this morning and said that inflation levels remain well below expectations. Markets are starting to doubt that the Bank of Japan is going to raise interest rates again this year or next year. With rates rising in the United States, concerns about the stability of the U.S. dollar or stock market could shift investment capital to Japan.

• Wall Street remains concerned about the latest updates out of Washington on the timeline of the Trump administration's tax reform plan. According to various reports, the proposed tax plan would be phased in over the next five years. In addition, there is a lot of infighting over the alterations to tax deductions, particularly in blue-leaning states.

• Crude oil prices are hovering near their highest levels in two years. But they were slightly in the red on news that Iraq is on pace to bolster its export capacity by another 220,000 barrels. The uptick in supply puts the focus on international demand. Later this afternoon, the American Petroleum Institute will release its weekly inventory report. The WTI crude oil price today fell 0.2%. Brent crude dipped 0.2%.

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• Shares of Under Armour Inc. (NYSE: UAA) are in focus as the global apparel giant prepares to report quarterly earnings. Wall Street expects a profit of $0.19 per share on top of $1.49 billion in revenue. Meanwhile, keep an eye on global payment giant Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA). Wall Street expects earnings per share of $1.23 on top of $3.287 billion in revenue.

• Both SoftBank Group Corp. (OTCMKTS: SFTBF) and Deutsche Telekom AG (ADR) (OTCMKTS: DTEGY) are on the verge of calling off a massive merger over which the firm will retain the majority stake of the soon-to-be third-largest telecom company. The deal would combine Sprint Corp. (NYSE: S) and T-Mobile U.S. Inc. (NYSE: TMUS).

• Will Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) be the first $1 trillion company? On Monday, shares were almost seven-eighths of the way there. The stock hit an all-time high of $168.07 Monday and surpassed a market capitalization of $861 billion. The uptick comes at a time when its supplier, Qualcomm Inc. (Nasdaq: QCOM), could experience a sharp downturn. According to a report from Reuters, Apple is considering a move that would drop the chipmaker from its iPhones and iPads in next year's iterations of the devices.

• Tuesday will feature a busy day of earnings reports. Keep an eye out for additional results from Electronic Arts Inc. (NYSE: EA), 3D Systems Corp. (NYSE: DDD), Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE), United States Steel Corp. (NYSE: X), Sturm, Ruger & Co. (NYSE: RGR), Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN), Papa John's International Inc. (Nasdaq: PZZA), Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI), Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC), Kellogg Co. (NYSE: K), and Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LL).

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

• Employment Cost Index at 8:30 a.m.
• Redbook at 8:55 a.m.
• S&P Corelogic Case-Shiller HPI at 9 a.m.
• Chicago PMI at 9:45 a.m.
• Consumer Confidence at 10 a.m.
• State Street Investor Confidence Index at 10 a.m.
• Four-Week Bill Auction at 11:30 a.m.

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Garrett Baldwin

About the Author

Browse Garrett's articles | View Garrett's research services

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.

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