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Good evening, Bull Sheeters. This is Fortune finance reporter Rey Mashayekhi, filling in for Bernhard with a special PM edition of the newsletter.
After hints of optimism yesterday, the global markets lagged on Wednesday. Inflation remains the Big Bad Wolf at the door on both sides of the Atlantic, and pressure is mounting on policymakers to deliver some kind of relief. Meanwhile, Amazon takes a chunk out of Visa’s stock price, while Turkey’s president takes a chunk out of his own currency.
Markets update
U.S.
- Markets in New York retreated, giving back most of Tuesday’s gains. The Dow fell 0.6%, while both the S&P and Nasdaq slipped 0.3%.
- In the wake of electric automaker Rivian’s massive IPO last week, the total value of companies that went public on U.S. exchanges this year hit an unprecedented $1 trillion, per PitchBook data. Yogurt maker Chobani is among those next in line.
- Amid escalating energy prices, President Biden has asked the Federal Trade Commission to examine whether “illegal conduct” by oil and gas companies is costing consumers at the gas pump. Biden also said he will decide on his nominee to lead the Federal Reserve in a matter of days.
- The Securities and Exchange Commission is reportedly investigating Alzheimer’s drugmaker Cassava for reportedly manipulating research results.
Europe
- The European bourses had an underwhelming day. London’s FTSE lost 0.5%, Frankfurt’s DAX notched up fractionally, and the CAC 40 in Paris gained less than 0.1%. The pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.1%.
- Lest we needed confirmation, Europe is not immune to inflation woes of its own. Eurozone inflation exceeded 4% in October—more than twice the European Central Bank’s target. It also surpassed 4% in the U.K., a 10-year high for the country.
- Amazon announced that it will no longer accept Visa’s credit cards in the U.K. due to a dispute over transaction fees. The news dragged down shares of the payments giant, as well as its rival Mastercard.
- Turkey’s currency, the lira, has plummeted after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan continued to push for low interest rates.
Asia
- The Asian markets reversed roles on Wednesday, with mainland China outperforming its counterparts for a change. Tokyo’s Nikkei fell 0.4%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped nearly 0.3% and South Korea’s KOSPI sank 1.2%. Meanwhile, Shanghai’s SSE Composite rose 0.4% and Shenzhen’s SZSE Component climbed 0.7%.
- Chinese internet giant Baidu beat revenue and earnings expectations in its third-quarter earnings report, but warned about a slowdown in ad sales over the coming quarters.
- Japan and the U.S. are bolstering trade ties, with China unsurprisingly the elephant in the room.
- The Evergrande debt crisis has apparently scared some Asian high-yield bond managers away from new deals.
Elsewhere
- Gold climbed toward $1,870/ounce
- The dollar eased slightly amid its recent rally.
- Crude oil fell around 3%, with Brent settling above $80/barrel.
- Bitcoin continued to lag below $60,000.
***
That’s all from me; you’ll be back in Bernhard’s hands tomorrow. Please be sure to check out today’s reads below, and have a wonderful evening.
Rey Mashayekhi
@reym12
rey.mashayekhi@fortune.com
As always, you can write to bullsheet@fortune.com or reply to this email with suggestions and feedback.
Today's reads
The streaking stocks of the new Big Three—Tesla, Rivian and Lucid—challenge the laws of market physics. Or do they? by Christiaan Hetzner
Firing CEO Bobby Kotick wouldn’t be cheap for Activision by Chris Morris
China already banned crypto mining. Now it’s cracking down on any holdouts by Grady McGregor
Europe’s new push to halt deforestation could make it harder to find many food treats—and furniture and car seats too by Vivienne Walt
Apple will finally let you repair your own iPhone by Chris Morris
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Market candy
$136.9 million
That’s how much former Tesla employee Owen Diaz was awarded last month in his racial discrimination lawsuit against the Elon Musk-led electric automaker. In a court filing on Tuesday, Tesla asked a judge to throw out the “egregious” ruling and called for a new trial.
