Mark Zuckerberg fired 11,000 employees from Facebook-parent Meta, whose stock has plunged 71% this year amid disappointing earnings and sliding revenue.

• Republicans eye control of the US House

• Crypto losses escalate

• More Wall Street banks cut jobs. 

• Sam Bankman-Fried’s $16 billion fortune is eviscerated in days

• Economists see Todays US inflation report showing a fourth straight cooling in the annual increase. The bad news: It’s still way, way too hot.

• China’s producer prices fell into deflation for the first time in nearly two years as Covid outbreaks and lockdowns dragged on demand 

• In another sign of the economic cycle turning, FedEx is parking some of its planes in response to weaker demand for package delivery.

• Crypto Market Falls Below $1 Trillion Overnight

• RBA Deputy Governor Michele Bullock told economists, "Don't doubt our resolve to increase interest rates quite quickly."

• Georgia Senate battle heads for a December runoff.

• Russia pulls out of Kherson in humiliating setback.

• Americans elected a record number of female governors.

• Amazon became the world's first public company to lose a trillion dollars in market value.

• Mark Zuckerberg fired 11,000 employees from Facebook-parent Meta, whose stock has plunged 71% this year amid disappointing earnings and sliding revenue.

• Mortgage fund in Canada halts payouts amid liquidity crunch.

• Musk scrambles to stop the bleeding as advertisers flee Twitter.

• Elon Musk’s wealth hits a 2022 low with 48% drop from peak.

• Wheat grown indoors offers potential for food security.

• Credit Suisse forced to pay junk-level yields for cash infusion.

U.S inflation data (CPI) is out later, expect markets to react. It is likely to have dropped, however, watch the core, this is the most important to traders. Any drop will be welcomed by the Fed, unfortunately, it will not be enough!

The EU keep committing to financial aid to Ukraine, which is great, however, so far, I do not think they have sent any of the money they have promised!!

The midterms are closer than most expected with many blaming the quality of the candidates put up by the Republicans. It does seem as though they will take control of Congress, although the Senate could end up evenly split, this result may take some time to be confirmed. The omens do not look good for Biden in the second half of his presidency with his ability to get things passed very challenging without making deals with the Republicans. The danger is the Republicans end up with enough seats to undo or block some of Bidens fiscal policies and will make increasing the government’s debt ceiling problematic. Will the outcome be enough for Trump to run in 2024…that’s if he wins the nomination from his party!

The UK desperately needs to find around £50 bn but it seems the Chancellor has decided to reduce the surcharge on UK banks from 8% to 3%... so, we can see clearly whose side Hunt is on!

I have been saying recently that crypto seemed the most stable asset class ranging between 18k and 21k, well I certainly jinxed that! As I mentioned yesterday, Binance only offered a letter of intent, which usually allows the potential buyer to see the financials and does not provide anything firm. Binance quickly decided not to consider saving FTX and it quickly sent shivers through the industry as FTX is about the 4^th largest exchange and it sent BTC briefly through $15,000.

Global News

Republicans are headed toward control of the US House, but by smaller margins than forecast, as some of the bellwether races that the GOP had hoped to snatch were held by Democrats. House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy, who is in line to become speaker, declared victory early Wednesday before the full results were known. Meanwhile, control of the Senate will likely come down to a race in Georgia between incumbent Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock and GOP candidate Herschel Walker. That contest may be ultimately decided in a runoff if neither candidate gets more than 50% of the vote. BB

US inflation probably moderated just slightly in October data due Thursday, and yet another above-forecast reading may dash expectations for the Federal Reserve to downshift from steep interest-rate hikes. Economists project the consumer price index and the core measure that excludes food and energy both cooled on an annual basis, but the rate is still consistent with persistent and elevated inflation. The overall CPI is seen rising from a month earlier by the most since June. That’s keeping a fifth-straight 75 basis-point increase in interest rates on the table for the Fed’s meeting next month. Meanwhile, Biden said he is optimistic the US isn’t nearing a recession, but said that his actions to lower inflation would need more time to take effect. BB

Job austerity in the finance world continues. Dozens of positions at Citigroup were cut this week, while reductions expected to eventually total about 200 have begun at London-based Barclays, according to people familiar with those moves. US banks have been hurt by the dramatic slowdown in investment banking as the volatility that spurred gains for trading weighed on capital markets and asset management. Third-quarter investment-banking fees plummeted 64% at Citigroup, and were down 45% at Barclays. BB

Russia launched major attacks overnight in the Dnipropetrovsk region with drones, five of which were shot down, local authorities said. Ukrainian forces repelled assaults near 14 settlements in Donetsk and Luhansk over the past day. BB

The Kremlin ordered its troops to pull out of Kherson, a humiliating setback for Vladimir Putin. In another sign of growing isolation, the Russian leader will skip next week's G-20 summit, people familiar said. And the EU unveiled its €18 billion Ukrainian aid plan. BB

Tropical Storm Nicole, now bigger than Florida, will tighten and strengthen before reaching the state early tomorrow, delivering a storm surge that may reach as far as the Carolinas. BB

Carbon-dioxide emissions from building construction and operations hit an all-time high in 2021, according to the most recent data, a sign that the push to decarbonize the industry by 2050 may be slipping out of reach. BB

Apple and Amazon were accused in a lawsuit of striking an unlawful deal to drive up prices for iPhones and iPads. How? By allegedly wiping out hundreds of third-party sellers who often offered steep discounts. BB

New Covid cases in Beijing jumped to the highest level in more than five months, with officials alarmed by infections being found outside of quarantine that show the virus is still spreading in the community.  BB

· Covid slap. Chinese stocks fell after Covid curbs were expanded in some of the biggest cities, including Beijing. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index slid as much as 2.7%, while a gauge of Chinese tech stocks in Hong Kong lost more than 3%. Crypto-related shares swooned across the region. BB

· China's deepening property crisis is piling pressure on a $1.6 trillion corner of the country's onshore bond market, as local offices step in as white knights to bail out troubled developers. The nation's local government financing vehicles, or LGFVs, have now become the main purchasers of half-finished projects of defaulters. BB

Jeremy Hunt plans to cut a surcharge on UK bank profits to 3% from 8%, people familiar said. The move effectively shields financial firms from the bulk of next April's increase in the corporate tax rate to 25% from 19%. The chancellor is expected to announce the decision as part of his economic package on Nov. 17. BB

The EU is pushing on with one of the central parts of its decarbonization efforts: the drive to eventually eliminate the internal combustion engine. Today the bloc will propose emissions rules for the continent’s last generation of petrol and diesel cars, according to a document we’ve seen, after the EU reached a landmark deal to effectively ban new combustion-engine cars from 2035. But the moves doesn’t come without challenges. Adoption of the rules for the interim fossil fuel-powered vehicles has been delayed several times amid wrangling over their contents. Meanwhile, Internal Markets Commissioner Thierry Breton warned last week that the electrification push poses risks to employment and vehicle affordability, hinting a delay to the 2035 deadline may be possible in a 2026 review. BB

Commodities

Saudi Aramco to ship full oil contract volumes to Asia in Dec - Saudi Aramco has told at least four refinery customers in North Asia they will receive full contract volumes of crude oil in December, several sources with knowledge of the matter said on Thursday. The producer is maintaining a steady supply to Asia despite the decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia, known as OPEC+, to lower the group's output target by 2 million barrels per day (bpd) starting this month.

U.S. crude stockpiles rise, fuel inventories fall – EIA - U.S. crude stocks rose as domestic oil production gained, while gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Crude inventories rose by 3.9 million barrels in the last week to 440.8 million barrels, the highest since July 2021. Analysts in a Reuters poll had expected a 1.4 million-barrel rise.

Mexico not buying U.S. yellow corn as GM ban looms, Lopez Obrador says - Mexico's government cannot make purchases of yellow corn from the United States because it does not want genetically modified (GM) corn, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Wednesday, amid pressure from its top trade partner over the future of the imports. The United States wanted to sell Mexico more yellow corn and Mexico declined, Lopez Obrador said in a regular news conference. 

Argentina wheat harvest slashed to 11.8 mln tonnes, more cuts possible - Argentina's 2022/23 wheat harvest forecast has been cut to 11.8 million tonnes, down from 13.7 million tonnes previously, the Rosario grains exchange said on Wednesday, warning it could fall further amid a protracted drought that is hammering farmers. The estimate is the latest in a series of cuts to the South American country's wheat production outlook, a blow to global supply already hit by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and unfavourable weather in the United States.

Argentina mining sector threatened by shortage of key imports, industry group says - Argentina's mining sector could be forced to shut if the government does not remove barriers to importing key supplies, the country's CAEM mining chamber said on Wednesday. Falling international metals prices and higher costs are also weighing on mining projects, according to the chamber, which blamed the government for delays in regulatory authorizations, including for SIRA and SIRASE permits, that would allow importers to access the official exchange rate.

South Africa's RB Platinum says expert to evaluate Northam bid - South Africa's Royal Bafokeng Platinum said on Wednesday that an independent board will appoint an expert to evaluate Northam Platinum's takeover bid, which rivals an offer by Impala Platinum. The expert's opinion on the counterbid will be included in the RBPlat's response to Northam, due to be published on Dec.7.

Origin Energy backs $11.8 bln buyout offer from Brookfield consortium - Origin Energy Ltd, Australia's no.2 power producer and energy retailer, backed an A$18.4 billion ($11.8 billion) buyout offer from a consortium led by Canada's Brookfield Asset Management, the companies said on Thursday. If successful, the takeover would rank as one of the biggest private equity-backed buyouts of an Australian company, and would be the largest deal in the country this year, Refinitiv data shows.

EU gas stocks could fall short next year, Commission president warns - The European Union will struggle to fill its gas storage tanks next summer, the head of its executive warned on Wednesday as she announced measures to boost renewable energy supply but stopped short of backing a price cap that has split opinion across the region. Adressing the European Parliament, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced plans to accelerate the granting of permits for renewable power projects. 

U.N., Russia to talk Ukraine grain deal on Friday ahead of extension deadline - Top U.N. officials will meet a senior Russian delegation in Geneva on Friday to discuss extending a Ukraine Black Sea grain export deal and efforts to smooth shipments of Russian food and fertilizers to global markets, the United Nations said. The deal allowing the export of food and fertilizers from several of Ukraine's Black Sea ports - brokered by the United Nations and Turkey on July 22 - could expire on Nov. 19 if Russia or Ukraine object to its extension. 

Algerian wheat purchase on Tuesday seen at about 510,000 T - Algeria’s state grains agency OAIC is believed to have bought about 510,000 tonnes of milling wheat in an international tender on Tuesday, European traders said in new assessments on Wednesday. This was above most estimates of around 400,000 tonnes made by traders on Tuesday evening

Crypto/Digital

Cryptocurrencies extended declines as Binance’s potential takeover of embattled rival exchange FTX highlighted how strains in the digital-asset industry are now hitting some of its top players. Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao stunned the crypto world on Tuesday by announcing his firm was moving to take over rival FTX.com, which he said was seeing a liquidity crunch. At their extremes, Bitcoin’s declines exceeded 3% on Wednesday and just about every digital coin struggled, from Ether to Solana and even meme token Dogecoin. BB

FTX was perceived as one of the highest quality exchanges, with some of the most professional practices. Sam was the face of crypto in DC. And of course a major donor to politics and non-profits. So for his empire to implode is similar to a safe asset imploding.

The industry has lost trust since the collapse of entities like Luna, Celsius and 3AC. However, this is even more damaging.

Market levels (all analysis is based on CME futures contracts)

 DISCLAIMER.

The content of this daily newsletter should only be considered a guide and views, opinions or content contained in this email is provided solely for information purposes and does not constitute investment advice or a solicitation to trade or invest.

Chris Tubby

Senior Director Trading and Education

Symax Fintech