These are the early headlines and other items poised to influence the market at the start of the trading day. As we share this collection of market drivers, U.S. equity futures point to a mixed market open later on Monday morning. Odds are we will have slower than usual start to the trading week due to the Columbus Day holiday on Monday that has the bond market and others closed.
1. Iran is fortifying its defenses, rallying loyalists and threatening a wider, harsher response against the U.S. and its Gulf allies as it prepares for potential American attacks after the midterms and seeks to deter them. Iranian officials have warned publicly and in private conversations with regional officials that the Islamic Republic will respond with further escalation across the Middle East if the U.S. launches new strikes. (WSJ)
Despite the above, we are seeing oil prices trend lower this morning after Brent crude hit an almost one-month high yesterday. An increasing number of reports are raising questions about Russian-supplied diesel alleviating tightness in global fuel markets given the state of its refining sector and the year-over-year fall in diesel inventories. Yesterday, the EIA reported another large weekly drop in U.S. oil inventories, this time driven by U.S. crude oil, which saw a massive drop of nearly 18 million barrels for commercial and strategic inventories.
2. JPMorgan Chase reported a rise in third-quarter profits, but its results missed expectations…