1. Dow to recover as bond yields move higher and key inversion goes back to normal
U.S. stock futures were pointing to a strong Wednesday open on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, a day after losing 285 points and breaking a three-session winning streak, was set to advance about 200 points. Concern on Tuesday over new U.S. and China tariffs gave way to a Hong Kong concession to protesters on Wednesday. Rising bond yields were also helping stocks, a day after the inversion recession signal of the 10-year Treasury yield went back to normal, above the 2-year rate.
2. Year-end targets for S&P 500 are all over the place from down 5% to up 11%
Heading into the historically rough month of September, leading stock forecasters differ greatly on where the S&P 500 will end up by year’s end compared with predictions made the same time last year, a CNBC analysis has found. Strategists at Wall Street’s top brokerages and investment banks see a broad array of possible outcomes by the end of December with Deutsche Bank calling for an 11% rally to 3,250 and Barclays and Morgan Stanley seeing another 5% downside to 2,750.
3. Hopes build for an end to months of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong
Hong Kong stocks soared overnight, with the Hang Seng adding nearly 4%, as reports started to emerge that city leader Carrie Lam planned to formally withdraw a contentious extradition bill that’s sparked months of sometimes violent demonstrations. Early Wednesday, Lam officially abandoned the measure, satisfying one of five demands made by pro-democracy demonstrators. On Sunday, the Chinese territory saw its most violent day since the protests started in early June.
4. UK Parliament may take a no-deal Brexit off the table for PM Boris Johnson
The British pound was moving higher Wednesday morning, following a parliamentary vote opening the door for another Brexit delay. The move sets up another vote Wednesday on whether to block the government from proceeding with a no-deal departure from the European Union trading block on Oct. 31, if the U.K. and Brussels cannot reach agreement by that deadline. Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to keep the no-deal scenario on the table to strengthen his hand in last-ditch negotiations with the EU.
5. Hurricane Dorian hits parts of central Florida and tracks toward the Carolinas
Hurricane Dorian was drenching the east coast of central Florida on Wednesday, while taking aim at the Carolinas. The slow-moving storm devastated parts of the Bahamas earlier this week where at least seven people were killed. Dorian is expected to come “dangerously close” to Florida and Georgia on Wednesday night. The storm is seen moving near or over the coasts of South and North Carolina on Thursday through Friday morning. Even if Dorian does not make landfall, hurricane-force winds are still expected threaten the coastline from central Florida to North Carolina, reports NBC News.