The Market In 5 Minutes: GDP, Intel's Beat, XFL's Return, Bitcoin And Japan

IN THE NEWS

Medical journal The Lancet published an article Wednesday that could mold the future of cannabis-derived therapeutics: Link

It’s official: Word Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) CEO Vince McMahon is taking another shot at what many consider the biggest flop of his business career—the XFL: Link

President Donald Trump proposed a path to citizenship for 1.8 million undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, if lawmakers agree to create a $25 billion fund to expand barriers along the Mexican border and implement other deep changes to the immigration system: Link $

New tax rules are hastening automation and modernizing in U.S. factories, giving manufacturers an incentive to buy machinery and boost productivity in a tight labor market: Link $

Intel Corp (NASDAQ: INTC) on Thursday gave a bullish forecast and blew past Wall Street expectations for the fourth quarter on the strength of data center sales, the business it sees as key to its transformation from a PC supplier: Link

U.S. computer maker Dell Technologies Inc is exploring a range of options that could see the world’s largest privately held technology company grow further through acquisitions or go public, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday: Link

In its determination to reverse a two-decade slump in U.S. stock listings, a regulator might offer companies an extreme incentive to go public: the ability to bar aggrieved shareholders from suing: Link

Cryptocurrencies slumped after one of Japan’s biggest bitcoin venues halted client withdrawals, spooking investors in a country that’s still wary of digital-token exchanges four years after the collapse of Mt. Gox: Link

ECONOMIC DATA

• USA GDP (QoQ) for Q4 2.60% vs 3.00% Est; Prior 3.20%
• Gross Domestic Product report for the fourth quarter is schedule for release at 8:30 a.m. ET.
• USA Durable Goods Orders (MoM) for Dec 2.90% vs 0.80% Est; Prior 1.30%. Core Durable Goods Orders (MoM) for Dec 0.60% vs 0.50% Est; Prior -0.10%
• The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week is schedule for release at 1:00 p.m. ET.

ANALYST RATINGS

• Wedbush upgraded Jack In The Box (NASDAQ: JACK) from Neutral to Outperform
• Jefferies upgraded Gilead (NASDAQ: GILD) from Hold to Buy
• Keybanc upgraded Zillow (NASDAQ: ZG) from Sector Weight to Overweight
• Keybanc downgraded Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR) from Overweight to Sector Weight
• RBC downgraded Newell Brands (NYSE: NWL) from Outperform to Sector Perform

This is a tool used by the Benzinga News Desk each trading day — it's a look at everything happening in the market, in five minutes. To get the full version of this note every morning, click here.