Reuters - Daily Investor Update

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Tuesday, December 12, 2017

S&P, Dow rise with help from banks; Nasdaq lags

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Dow industrials registered record closing highs on Tuesday with a boost from bank stocks as investors eyed a potential cut in U.S. corporate taxes and continued economic growth after strong inflation data.

Bitcoin euphoria puts other retail bets in shade

(Reuters) - If you wondered why 18-year old twitterati and seasoned speculative traders alike have bet on bitcoin's surge toward $20,000 this week, look no further than the comparison with the past year's new stock exchange floatations.

Europe's Unibail bids $16 billion for Westfield to counter online threat

SYDNEY/MELBOURNE/PARIS (Reuters) - Europe's biggest property firm Unibail-Rodamco is to buy U.S. and UK mall operator Westfield Corp for $16 billion, in a defensive move to create a global leader in a sector grappling with the online shopping challenge led by Amazon .

PepsiCo makes biggest public pre-order of Tesla Semis: 100 trucks

SEATTLE (Reuters) - PepsiCo Inc has reserved 100 of Tesla Inc's new electric Semi trucks, the largest known order of the big rig, as the maker of Mountain Dew soda and Doritos chips seeks to reduce fuel costs and fleet emissions, a company executive said on Tuesday.

Bitcoin hits another record high in march toward $20,000

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Virtual currency bitcoin hit another all-time peak on Tuesday, two days after the launch of the first ever bitcoin futures on a U.S. exchange and ahead of the start of another futures contract next week, as investors grew optimistic that the $20,000-mark is within reach.

Bitcoin firms won't be included in Israel share indexes: regulator

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's markets regulator said on Tuesday bitcoin-based companies would not be included in any indexes on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) but that does not mean they should be banned from trading.

European stocks close higher; Brent dips after hitting $65

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major European stock indexes closed higher on Tuesday as the S&P and the Dow advanced further into record territory, while Brent crude oil slipped after reaching $65 per barrel for the first time since mid-2015.

Tezos director resigns, sowing more uncertainty at crypto startup

LONDON/ZURICH (Reuters) - One of the three board members of the Swiss foundation that conducted the online fundraiser for the embattled Tezos cryptocurrency tech project has resigned, Reuters has learned.

Oil drops after rally on pipeline outage; Brent premium narrows

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Oil prices fell sharply on Tuesday, as traders took profits after prices surged early to a two-year high on an unplanned closure of the pipeline that carries the largest North Sea crude oil grade.

Trump administration holds talks with airlines, keeps pressure on Gulf carriers

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration met with major airlines on Tuesday to discuss complaints that some Gulf states are unfairly subsidizing state-owned carriers, keeping up pressure on the Middle East airlines at the center of a spat with U.S. rivals.