Hello friends and Fortune readers.
Wall Street stock futures were up slightly just before 7 a.m. ET. Commodities-related stocks in Europe rose earlier on a sharp decline in the U.S. dollar that made dollar-priced crude oil and metals cheaper for those using other currencies. The dollar fell after New York Federal Reserve President William Dudley said financial conditions had tightened and the Fed would have take into account a weakening outlook for the global economy. His remarks raised doubts about the pace of future interest rate increases at the Fed.
Today’s must-read story is from Fortune‘s Adam Lashinsky, who delves into the biggest problems facing struggling Internet company Yahoo (YHOO), including its insistence on being a media company as well as the moves CEO Marissa Mayer has made to make a complicated company even more complicated.
Here’s what else you need to know to start the day.
1. Credit Suisse plunges
Credit Suisse (CSGKF) reported its first full-year loss since 2008 after booking a big impairment charge at its investment banking business, sending its share price tumbling and piling pressure on new Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam. Shares were down more than 10% on Thursday and hit their lowest level since 1992 after Switzerland’s second largest bank signaled a difficult beginning to the year. Its stock price is now down 32% since the start of 2016.
2. More oil earnings
Oil giants Chevron (CVX) and Exxon Mobil (XOM) already shared their bad news (plummeting revenue and profit), but more oil industry companies take their turn today. Occidental Petroleum (OXY) and ConocoPhillips (COP) are both expected to report fourth-quarter losses as the ongoing global oil glut continues to wreak havoc on crude oil prices. Early today, Royal Dutch Shell (RYDAF) reported that it had suffered an 80% drop in profits last year. Annual profits dropped from $19 billion a year ago to $3.8 billion in 2015.
3. Cigna reports Q4 earnings
Health insurer Cigna Corporation (CI) is expected to post a fourth-quarter profit bump today. The company is currently awaiting regulatory approval for its $54 billion takeover by larger rival Anthem (ANTM). Cigna could offer updates on the approval process for that major health insurance industry deal, while investors will also be interested to see whether the company claims that President Barack Obama’s national healthcare reform law affected its fourth-quarter profit, as Anthem did last week.
4. Charter expecting Q4 profit beat
Another company awaiting an important regulatory stamp of approval is cable provider Charter Communications (CHTR), which is likely to report fourth-quarter profit that outpaces Wall Street’s expectations today. But, investors will probably be most interested in hearing any updates in Charter’s $56 billion planned acquisition of Time Warner Cable (TWC), which still awaits approval by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission. Last month, the FCC pushed back its own informal deadline to review the proposed merger by 15 days.
5. Weekly jobless claims
The Labor Department is expected to release figures showing that the number of Americans who filed new applications for unemployment benefits last week increased slightly from the previous week. The number of weekly jobless claims likely ticked upward by 2,000 claims, to 280,000. While the total number of claims still remains well below the benchmark level of 300,000, Reuters notes that claim levels have been volatile in recent weeks, which makes it difficult to judge the health of the U.S. labor market.
—Reuters contributed to this post.
