10 Things You Need To Know This Morning
Good morning. Here's what you need to know.
Asian markets were down in overnight trading with the Nikkei plunging 6.4% . The Shanghai Composite which resumed trading after the Dragon Boat holiday was down 2.8%. Europe is also selling off and U.S. futures are lower.
Stocks fell 6.4% in Tokyo, as the Nikkei entered a bear market. Stocks were impacted on concerns of Fed tapering. The Nikkei is down more than 20% from its recent closing high which is how the bear market is defined.
Australia's payrolls climbed by 1,100 in May, beating expectations for a drop of 10,000. The jobless rate declined to 5.5%, from 5.6%.
Initial claims fell to 334,000 last week, beating expectations for a rise to 350,000. Meanwhile, retail sales beat expectations rising 0.6%.
The Bank of Indonesia unexpectedly raised its key interest rate by 25 basis points to 6.00%. This is part of the central bank's effort to support the Indonesian rupiah.
The World Bank lowered China's 2013 GDP forecast to 7.7%, from 8.4%. The cut was prompted by a slowdown in investment. It projects global GDP growth of 2.2% in 2013.
Another event investors will be watching today is the 30-year bond auction which begins at 1 p.m. ET. In the backdrop of the recent bond sell-off it will be interesting to see how this auction shapes up. Follow the release at Business Insider >
IBM has announced that it will spend $1 billion on severance and other costs to lay off employees. Laurence Balter of Oracle Investment Research told Bloomberg this would amount to between 6,000 and 8,000 global job cuts.
The Royal Bank of Scotland announced 2,000 job cuts as it restructures its investment bank. CEO Stephen Hester will also step down by the end of the year.
The UN has said the death toll in Syria hit at least 93,000 at the end of April, according to Reuters. Meanwhile, Gen. Salim Idris, a top Syrian rebel, has requested weapons from Western countries like the U.S., France, and Britain to support his forces in Aleppo, according to the WSJ.
More From Business Insider
