Hello friends and Fortune readers.
Wall Street stock futures are a fraction higher this morning, while crude oil is slipping again after finding strong support late Tuesday after a sell-off on the Iran nuclear deal ran out of steam.
Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech in Aspen, Colo. heads into its third and final day today. Tune into the live stream to catch discussions with Quirky CEO Ben Kaufman (9 a.m. MT / 11 a.m. ET) and Dow Chemical Company CEO Andrew Liveris (10:35 a.m. MT / 12:35 p.m. ET) as well as a special announcement from Joyus Founder Sukhinder Singh Cassidy (11 a.m. MT / 1 p.m. ET). Watch here.
Here’s what else you need to know today.
1. China’s GDP surprise
China’s economy grew by a surprisingly strong 7.0% on the year in the second quarter, defying government expectations and a host of data that had suggested it would be lower than the government’s official growth target. That’s good news for the world economy, but it didn’t help the feverish stock market, with the mainland indexes falling sharply as investors scaled back hopes for further emergency measures from the authorities to support the market.
2. Janet Yellen talks with Congress.
Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen will head to the House of Representatives today to delivery her semi-annual testimony on monetary policy in front of the House Financial Services Committee. She was last there in February, and this presentation is likely to get much more heated than last time as the Fed slowly inches closer to raising interest rates for the first time since 2006. Yellen is not likely to drop too many policy hints since the Federal Open Market Committee’s next meeting is only two weeks away. That is unless she wants strongly indicate that a September rate rise is likely in order to prep onlookers.
3. Intel’s trying to play catchup.
Intel (INTC), the world’s largest chipmaker, reports its second-quarter earnings after the market close today. It’s likely not going to be good news for investors, who expect the company to reveal revenue and profit below expectations, according to Thomson Reuters data. Intel has been trying to play catch up after its late entry into the mobile market and recent declines in personal computers have also hurt its sales. As part of its catchup plan, Intel agreed to buy Altera Corp for $16.7 billion in a bid to boost high-end sales to data centers, shifting away from the PC market.
4. Did ‘Orange is the New Black’ bring in new Netflix subscribers?
That’s one of the questions investors will be looking to answer when Netflix reports its second-quarter earnings, which are expected to come in above estimates, according to analysts. Other original shows like ‘Daredevil” are also expected to drive new customer signups over the last quarter. Netflix (NFLX) has been spending big to bring in more subscribers, especially in new overseas markets, though its international forays have yet to be profitable. Investors still seem pretty happy with the company, which just approved a seven-for-one stock split, as its stock hit an all-time high on Monday.
5. The hedge fund elite gather.
Global investors Carl Ichan, Larry Fink and Jeffrey Gundlach are just a sampling of the top financial minds that are gathering today for the 5th annual Delivering Alpha conference–a one-day summit organized by CNBC and Institutional Investor. Bill Ackman of Pershing Square Capital Management and Nelson Peltz of Trian Fund are also expected to make an appearance. The hedge fund billionaires will be sharing their views on the state of the market and what they think is ahead.
