Evening Briefing

The quandary remains: Growth, jobs and a lot of other things point to a healthy, albeit more sedate, U.S. economy in 2019. But another round of bad news added more doubt to the existing pile on Wall Street. First it was Apple’s $5 billion revenue miss; then it was an unforeseen drop in U.S. factory activity. Oh, and the market tanked again in spectacular fashion. What's going on? You know. —David E. Rovella

Here are today's top stories

Hours before the S&P 500 began its dive, the yen went wild, surging against every currency tracked by Bloomberg. Apple's depressing numbers may have been to blame.

President Donald Trump has been happy to take credit for an economy that hummed under the policies of President Barack Obama. Bloomberg Businessweek's Peter Coy asks whether Trump will take the blame now that it's heading south.

Trump's adjutants concede that his trade war on China is going to hurt more U.S. companies just like Apple. Trump's ability to win his massive gambit may be fading as a result.

Apple CEO Tim Cook told employees he won’t blame "external forces" for selling fewer iPhones than anticipated. The company may very well have itself to blame.

Bristol-Myers Squibb agreed to acquire Celgene Corp. in a record
$74 billion deal. The tie-up unites two drugmakers battling for advantage in the crowded market for innovative cancer treatments.

The National Rifle Association is going global with its gun industry fueled agenda, Bloomberg Businessweek reports. However, the NRA has a problem: Russia. The FBI and Congress are looking into possible ties to Russian money, espionage and interference in U.S. elections. The NRA's self-identity as a patriotic American organization may be at stake.

What's Joe Weisenthal thinking about? The Bloomberg news director said everyone knows Chinese growth is mediocre. So Apple taking a big hit because China sales of expensive iPhones are down was predictable.

What you'll need to know tomorrow

What you'll want to read tonight

Maybe It's Time For You to Move to Manhattan

It's been decades since Manhattan was home to a diverse collection of the world's best and brightest, rich or poor. Now hyper-gentrified, it's become a trust-fund Disneyland. So why are home prices falling there? Interest rates and last year's partisan tax bill are two reasons. But who cares? Maybe it's finally your time to buy.

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Even before Trump's trade war, China was the world's biggest story. It's reshaping modern industries and has the most billionaires in the world— but its ascent hasn't come without major problems. Sign up to get our new China Rising email, a weekly dispatch starting this month on where China stands now and is headed next.