TODAY WORLD'S FINANCIAL NEWS ON MAY 6TH, 2015

U.S. stock futures rose this morning, after snapping the best two-day winning streak in more than a month on Tuesday. Meanwhile, depressed oil prices were trading at 2015 highs. (CNBC) Fed Chair Janet Yellen will get a chance to weigh in on the debate about U.S. interest rates in a conversation this morning with IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde. (MarketWatch) The British trader fighting extradition to the U.S. on charges of having contributed to the 2010 "flash crash" on Wall Street told a London court today that he'd done nothing wrong. (Reuters) The 2010 "flash crash" that sent the Dow plunging almost 1,000 points wasfive years ago today. But since then, there have been changes made in the hope of reducing the chances that it could happen again. Wealthy voters like Democrat Hillary Clinton best among presidential hopefuls, according to the third CNBC Millionaire Survey, and think she'd win against Republican Jeb Bush. (CNBC) Alexion Pharmaceuticals (ALXN) has agreed to buy Synageva BioPharma (GEVA) in a $8.4 billion deal to bolster its development of therapies for patients with rare diseases. (Reuters) GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) today reported earnings that fell short of expectations, while revenue matched forecasts. The health care giant is also presenting a strategic roadmap today. CEO Andrew Witty joins CNBC's "Squawk Box" at 8:30 a.m. ET. The European Union has unveiled a signature plan to unite the region's fragmented online markets and crack down on possible abuses by U.S. Internet firms. (Dow Jones) Facebook (FB) and IBM (IBM) are entering into a marketing partnership to combine data and analytics from the two firms to create personalized advertising for users. (NY Times) After being out of the spotlight for more than two years, former J.C. Penney (JCP) CEO Ron Johnson is back at the helm of a company, one he founded called Enjoy, aimed at improving the service customers get with their online purchases. (CNBC) JetBlue (JBLU) has becomes the first major carrier to announce a new flight to Cuba from New York since travel restrictions were recently eased. Meanwhile, at least four Florida companies were approved for ferry service to Cuba. (NBC News & Sun Sentinel) The FAA plans to announce today an initiative to study drone flights beyond the sight of the operator. The agency has virtually banned such flights and proposed rules earlier this year to prohibit them. (WSJ-subscription) The Germanwings co-pilot suspected of deliberately crashing a plane in the French Alps in March, killing all 150 people on board, practiced a similar descent on a previous flight. (Reuters)

	BY THE NUMBERS

The April ADP report on private sector jobs is out at 8:15 a.m. ET, as anticipation about Friday's government employment report ramps up. The economy is seen to have added 205,000 new private sector jobs last month, following growth of 189,000 in March. At 8:30 a.m. ET, the government is expected to report that first quarter productivity declined at an annual rate of 1.8 percent, following a 2.2 percent decline during 2014's fourth quarter. Unit labor costs are expected to show a 4.3 percent increase. The Energy Department releases at 10:30 a.m. ET its weekly Wednesday look at oil and gasoline inventories. A sharp rise in interest rates at the end of last week sent mortgage applications on a slide. Total volume fell 4.6 percent for the week ending May 1 from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Earnings reports out this morning include the latest numbers from Chesapeake Energy (CHK), Occidental Petroleum (OXY), SodaStream (SODA), and Wendy's (WEN). Among today's after-the-bell numbers, Tesla Motors (TSLA), 21st Century Fox (FOXA), Keurig Green Mountain (GMCR), and Whole Foods (WFM) are out. Ahead of its annual meeting this morning, Bank of America (BAC) reversed course and said it would soon allow shareholders to vote on the company's decision last year to combine the CEO and chairman titles.

	STOCKS TO WATCH

Shares of Salesforce.com (CRM) were higher again in premarket trading, with Bloomberg reporting that Microsoft (MSFT) is considering a bid for the provider of customer service software. Herbalife (HLF) earned an adjusted $1.29 per share for its latest quarter,beating forecasts by 29 cents, with revenue in line. The nutritional products maker also raised its full-year profit forecast. LendingClub (LC) doubled estimates with adjusted quarterly profit of 2 cents per share, with revenue exceeding forecasts as well. The online lender raised its revenue forecast for the full year. ABInBev (BUD) reported a sharp jump in first quarter profit, despite weak demand in the U.S. and negative impact from the strong dollar. JPMorgan Chase (JPM) is in advanced talks with government officials and the Federal Reserve to resolve investigations into its foreign exchange trading. Sears Holdings (SHLD) is no longer offering the Kardashian Kollection, with the family reportedly saying they believe Sears is a "sinking ship."

	WATERCOOLER

Led by a $66 million van Gogh and a $54 million Monet, Sotheby's (BID)kicked off the spring auctions, taking in a total of $368 million. (Reuters) A class-action lawsuit seeking $5 million has been filed against Manny Pacquiao and the fight promoter of Saturday's bout in Las Vegas. (CNBC) Dictionary.com is adding hundreds of new words to its database, including "dark web," "revenge porn," and "bigender." (NY Daily News)

Email X (Twitter) Facebook Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp

RELATED POSTS