CNBC
Stock index futures were flat this morning as traders appeared to adopt a wait-and-see approach ahead of monetary policy guidance from the Federal Reserve. On Tuesday, the Dow posted its 41st record close of the year. The S&P and Nasdaq also notched record closes. (CNBC)
Many market participants believe the U.S. central bank will announce the unwinding of its $4.5 trillion portfolio. It amassed most of its massive balance sheet as it tried to bring the economy back to life following the financial crisis. An interest rate hike is not expected until December. (CNBC)
IN THE NEWS TODAY
Rescuers searched through the rubble of collapsed schools, homes and apartment buildings early this morning after Mexico's deadliest earthquake since 1985 killed at least 217 people. The quake struck around 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday and had a magnitude of 7.1, the U.S. Geological Survey said. (NBC News)
Hurricane Maria has weakened to a Category 4 hurricane but remains "extremely dangerous" and is expected to retain this intensity until it makes landfall in Puerto Rico in a couple of hours, the National Hurricane Center said. (Reuters)
President Trump is using money donated to his re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee to pay for his lawyers in the probe of alleged Russian interference in the U.S. election, Reuters has learned. (Reuters)
Vice President Mike Pence says the administration fully supports a last-ditch Senate bill to gut and replace Obamacare — but 10 governors of both parties immediately afterward called on Senate leaders to not even consider that legislation. (CNBC)
Officials and pundits across Asia struggled to parse Trump's vow Tuesday at the U.N. General Assembly to "totally destroy North Korea" if provoked. In a region well used to Pyongyang's pursuit of nuclear weapons, Trump's comments stood out. (AP)
Republican lawmakers have agreed to move forward on a budget that would add to the federal deficit in order to pave the way for a $1.5 trillion tax cut over the next 10 years. (NY Times)
Sen. Elizabeth Warren again urged the Federal Reserve to remove Wells Fargo's board in response to the bank's fake account scandal. The Massachusetts Democrat contended that the central bank has a chance to "step up" and prove it cares about protecting consumers. (CNBC's Mad Money)
Wal-Mart, Target, and PepsiCo joined an expanded group of nearly 800 companies calling in a letter for U.S. legislation to protect immigrants brought into the country illegally by their parents from deportation, according to organizer FWD.us. (Reuters)
*Trump administration red tape tangles up visas for skilled foreigners, data shows (Reuters)
Amazon is growing its partnership with department store chain Kohl's. Kohl's said it will begin accepting Amazon.com returns at certain U.S. locations. The retailer will pack and ship eligible items — back to an Amazon fulfillment center — for free. (CNBC)
Uber, which is the subject of a federal probe into whether it broke bribery laws, has started a review of its Asia operations and notified authorities about payments made by staff to police officers in Indonesia, Reuters has learned. (Reuters)
STOCKS TO WATCH
Sprint (S) and T-mobile (TMUS) are in active talks about a merger, CNBC has learned. People close to the situation stress that negotiators are still weeks away from finalizing a deal and believe the chances of reaching an agreement are not assured.
Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) reported same-store sales that fell well below Wall Street's expectations. The retailer said restructuring costs, Hurricane Harvey and a new accounting standard weighed on its second-quarter results.
FedEx (FDX) lowered its fiscal 2018 forecast to account for the impact of the TNT Express cyberattack, which FedEx said "significantly affected" the worldwide operations of the segment. It also said that Hurricane Harvey negatively impacted its fiscal first-quarter results.
Adobe (ADBE) Q3 earnings and revenue beat forecasts. It also said it added several new subscribers to Creative Cloud.
WATERCOOLER
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett called pessimists about the United States "out of their mind." He spoke at an event in New York on Tuesday night and said he expects the Dow to be "over 1 million" in 100 years, up from Tuesday's close of 22,370.80. (Reuters)
Reviews of the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, which Apple unveiled at its product event last week, are out and there seems to be one common theme: hold off for the iPhone X. (CNBC)
CONTRIBUTORS
Matthew J.
Belvedere
Senior Producer
@Matt_Belvedere
Peter
Schacknow
Senior Producer
@peterschack
Tom
DiChristopher
Web and TV producer
