Here are the most important news items that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Feeling flat
Stocks didn’t do all to much Tuesday. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 each declined slightly, while the Dow barely finished in the green. Futures were down Wednesday morning. Earnings season marches on in the meantime. Before the open, we have Morgan Stanley and Procter & Gamble, while Tesla and Netflix report after the close. As for economic data, the housing market is in focus Wednesday, with housing starts and mortgage demand reports due. (See below for more on housing.) Follow live market updates.
2. High-stakes trip
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) greets U.S. President Joe Biden upon his arrival at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport on October 18, 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas.
Brendan Smialowski | Afp | Getty Images
3. War impact
A United Airlines plane is seen taxiing on the tarmac at Orlando International Airport in Orlando, Florida.
Paul Hennessy | Lightrocket | Getty Images
United Airlines warned investors that its suspension of Tel Aviv flights, forced by the Israel-Hamas war, will weigh on its bottom line for the current quarter. How much of an impact will depend on how long the war, and, consequently, the halt continue. United also blamed the profit pressure on airport jet fuel costs, which have surged nearly 25% since the beginning of summer. For the third quarter, United posted earnings and revenue growth that topped Wall Street’s expectations.
4. Housing horrors
Contractors raise a framed wall on a house under construction at the Toll Brothers Regency at Folsom Ranch community in Folsom, California, on Thursday, May 18, 2023.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
5. Still no speaker
Former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) laughs at something he saw on his mobile phone and hands the phone off to Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) as they sit behind U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), the top contender in the race to be the next Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, during the first round of voting for a new Speaker on the floor of the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, October 17, 2023.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
The House of Representatives failed to elect a speaker, yet again, as super conservative Trump ally Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, flopped in his first attempt to win the gavel. The next vote is expected late Wednesday morning, while Jordan continues to jockey for votes. “We got to keep talking to members,” Jordan told reporters late Tuesday. The House GOP caucus is divided as it tries to find a replacement for Rep. Kevin McCarthy, whom eight far-right Republicans helped oust from the job. Just days ago, Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., earlier pulled out of contention because he couldn’t secure enough votes.
– CNBC’s Samantha Subin, Emma Kinery, Sam Meredith, Natasha Turak, Leslie Josephs, Diana Olick and Spencer Kimball contributed to this report.
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