The Dow Jones today moved higher in pre-market trading after the Trump administration announced it would rely on existing laws to restrict Chinese investment in the United States. The news signaled a shift away from the administration's plan to aggressively curb Chinese investment with stricter trade legislation.
The White House's shifting approach to trade has rattled markets over the last several weeks, leaving investors searching for profitable sectors. Money Morning Quantitative Specialist Chris Johnson has identified 2018's best-performing sector - and a profit strategy to go along with it...
Here are the numbers from Tuesday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
| Index | Previous Close | Point Change | Percentage Change |
| Dow Jones | 24,283.11 | 30.31 | 0.12% |
| S&P 500 | 2,723.06 | 5.99 | 0.22% |
| Nasdaq | 7,561.63 | 29.62 | 0.39% |
Now, here's a closer look at today's Money Morning insight, the most important market events, and stocks to watch.
Critical: A breakthrough technology could disrupt every major industry, and one tiny company is at the center of it all. Its stock is trading for less than $10 now, but it could deliver a 471.9% gain for early investors. Learn more...
Money Morning Insight of the Day
The wealth of the world's millionaires increased for the sixth consecutive year in 2017, according global consulting giant Capgemini. In the annual World Wealth Report, the firm said that the world's richest class of citizens increased by 10.6% last year to hit a record $70 trillion.
The secret to becoming a millionaire, of course, is getting out in front of a major investment trend before it becomes mainstream. In 2017, it was Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. But this year, it's a taboo investment that is creating millionaires all across North America. Tap into the "green rush," and prepare to become a "Marijuana millionaire." Learn how to get started right here.
The Top Stock Market Stories for Wednesday
U.S. President Donald Trump is facing criticism after threatening to ramp up taxes on Harley-Davidson Inc. (NYSE: HOG). The iconic motorcycle producer said it will move parts of its production overseas in order to avoid tariffs from the European Union. Trump threatened to increase taxes on the firm. "Surprised that Harley-Davidson, of all companies, would be the first to wave the White Flag," Trump tweeted Tuesday. "I fought hard for them and ultimately they will not pay tariffs selling into the E.U., which has hurt us badly on trade, down $151 Billion. Taxes just a Harley excuse - be patient!"- Earlier this month, Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) launched a $7.5 billion takeover of the web-based hosting service GitHub Inc. The acquisition, orchestrated by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, brought out critics who claim that GitHub lacks any real profit potential for Microsoft stock. Here's why those critics are wrong... and why MSFT is a buy.
- Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) has reversed its policy on cryptocurrency ads. The social media giant says that it will permit marketing from "pre-approved advisers." According to TechCrunch, the company will still ban ads pushing binary options and initial coin offerings. The report goes on to explain that cryptocurrency scams cost customers more than $500 million in just January and February 2018 alone.
Four Stocks to Watch Today: ORCL, FB, GOOGL, BA
- Oracle Corp. (NYSE: ORCL) was largely flat despite a strong earnings report after the bell yesterday. The cloud computing giant reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.99 on top of $11.25 billion in revenue. Wall Street had expected EPS of $0.94 on top of $11.20 billion in revenue.
- Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) has abandoned its futuristic plot to bring the Internet to underserved regions of the world. The company will not be building and launching drones that would beam down the Internet from the clouds. The announcement comes after Internet rival Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOGL) rolled back its own titan Internet drone program that relied on large balloons.
- Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) is generating a lot of buzz after it unveiled a new design for a hypersonic passenger jet. Though it's uncertain how much it would cost to actually manufacture, the company says that the jet could fly from the United States to Japan in roughly three hours. The trip from the United States to the United Kingdom would last about two hours. The plane, theoretically, would fly up to Mach 5, or about 3,900 miles per hour. The current flight from Los Angeles to Tokyo requires 11 hours in the sky.
- Look for additional earnings reports from Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (Nasdaq: BBBY), Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR), General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS), Paychex Inc. (Nasdaq: PAYX), Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD), CalAmp Corp. (Nasdaq: CAMP), Progress Software Corp. (Nasdaq: PRGS), Eros International Plc. (Nasdaq: EROS) and HB Fuller Co. (NYSE: FUL).
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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.