U.S. markets open in 5 hours 1 minute

  • S&P Futures

    3,678.00
    -20.00 (-0.54%)
     

  • Dow Futures

    30,038.00
    -160.00 (-0.53%)
     

  • Nasdaq Futures

    12,493.25
    -32.75 (-0.26%)
     

  • Russell 2000 Futures

    1,878.50
    -12.80 (-0.68%)
     

  • Crude Oil

    45.51
    -0.75 (-1.62%)
     

  • Gold

    1,831.80
    -8.20 (-0.45%)
     

  • Silver

    23.81
    -0.45 (-1.85%)
     

  • EUR/USD

    1.2090
    -0.0037 (-0.30%)
     

  • 10-Yr Bond

    0.9690
    0.0000 (0.00%)
     

  • Vix

    22.60
    +1.32 (+6.20%)
     

  • GBP/USD

    1.3237
    -0.0201 (-1.50%)
     

  • USD/JPY

    104.2710
    +0.1310 (+0.13%)
     

  • BTC-USD

    19,230.42
    -20.08 (-0.10%)
     

  • CMC Crypto 200

    376.20
    -3.04 (-0.80%)
     

  • FTSE 100

    6,554.06
    +3.83 (+0.06%)
     

  • Nikkei 225

    26,547.44
    -203.80 (-0.76%)
     

UK, EU to discuss implementation of Brexit divorce deal

LONDON, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Britain and the European Union will discuss implementation of the Brexit divorce deal on Monday, when the government will press ahead with legislation that breaches the Withdrawal Agreement in parliament.

The British government said in a statement that Michael Gove, the British minister in charge of implementing the divorce deal, and European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic will "discuss issues related to their work as co-chairs of the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee".

It gave no further details.

(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge, writing by Elizabeth Piper; editing by Sarah Young)

Latest Stories

  • Top Oil Stocks For Investors This December

    The energy segment of the stock market is still underperforming other segments despite a sector-wide recovery, but some stocks are set to benefit more than others

  • Steve Wozniak's Blockchain Venture Lists Cryptocurrency Token, Reaches $950M In 13 Minutes

    Steve Wozniak's blockchain venture Efforce has listed its cryptocurrency token on the HBTC exchange.What Happened: Efforce listed the token under the symbol WOZX on Dec. 3. It reached "$950M in the first 13 minutes, 10 times the listing price," according to a company press release. The company says investors have given it a valuation of $80 million valuation in private sales.The WOZX/USDT pair was trading at 1.5250 (approximately 1.48 USD) as of Sunday afternoon, gaining 38,93% over the previous 24 hours at the HBTC exchange.Why It Matters: Wozniak first mentioned Efforce in July 2019 at the Delta Summit in Malta, according to news publication The Malta Independent.The company's goal is to use blockchain to "improve the way we use energy and lower energy consumption without changing our habits," Wozniak said at the summit.Efforce plans to become a marketplace to help fund energy efficiency projects using blockchain. The projects will be able to get funded, getting crowd contributions from investors using Efforce's token WOZX. The company is registered in Malta because the Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) co-founder said he had long wanted to invest in the region."It has been on my mind for decades. Like no other place in the world," he said.Image: Gage Skidmore via WikiCommonsSee more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * MicroStrategy Buys Million Worth Of Bitcoin, Topping Up Holdings To 6M * Guggenheim Fund Mulls Investment in Grayscale Bitcoin Trust(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • The stock market is signaling a ‘severe’ drop is imminent, says contrarian strategist

    Investors are crowding into the stock market right now, and they aren't seeing the big signals that indicate they are about to get caught up in a rough period of selling, says our call of the day from contrarian investor Steven Jon Kaplan.

  • ‘Urgent’ Stimulus Package Isn’t That Urgent

    It’s hard to believe that the economy could survive and thrive during the state lockdowns preferred by Democrats in the last eight months, but it cannot scrape by for eight weeks until Bidenomics arrives and the spending floodgates reopen.

  • The 3 Hottest Electric Car Stocks For 2021

    The electric vehicle boom has taken over the stock market, but there is still plenty of upside for savvy investors who know where to look

  • Kodak $765M Federal Loan Process Involved No Wrongdoing, DFC Concludes

    There was no wrongdoing involved in the process of Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE: KODK) receiving a $765 million federal loan for its pharmaceuticals foray, the U.S. International Development Finance Corp. has reportedly concluded. What Happened: The DFC is the federal agency that originally granted the loan. As per the Wall Street Journal, the DFC Inspector General Anthony Zakel reported his findings to Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) last week.Zakel told Warren -- who has been among the most vocal critic of what she earlier referred to as a "massive fiasco of a deal" -- that the DFC in its review found no conflict of interest for the employees of the federal agency in the deal and that there is no "evidence of misconduct on the part of DFC officials."The loan was sanctioned at the behest of President Donald Trump in July this year.The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has also been reportedly probing the events surrounding around the loan, including allegations of potential insider trading violations.A DFC spokesperson told the Journal, "the record is abundantly clear and the independent IG review confirms that DFC followed its standard process, under its standard timeline, driven by career finance professionals."Why Does It Matter: It isn't immediately clear if DFC will go forward with the loan.One of Warren's aide claimed that Zakel's assessment didn't look into potential ties between the White House and other related parties with a political background. The associate also raised certain questions about the DFC's procedures.Zakel said the DFC limited the probe internally and "did not review conduct by Kodak or non-DFC personnel."Kodak shares have seen immense volatility since the announcement of the loan in July. Grant of stock options to Kodak Chairman and CEO Jim Continenza a day before the loan was announced, along with his purchase of a significant amount of shares in the company ahead of the loan raised eyebrows. An independent committee appointed by the Kodak board in September concluded there was no violation of the law on part of the Rochester-based photography company but it flagged concerns related to corporate governance.Continenza said in October that Kodak will move forward with the generic drug ingredients manufacturing venture even if the federal loan is not granted.Price Action: KODK closed Friday 4.5% higher at $7.53.Photo by El Grafo on WikimediaSee more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Crude Futures Rise On OPEC+ Output Compromise, Potential Brent Oil Benchmark Addition * Microsoft's Cloud Products Are Attracting New Customers(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • JPMorgan Warns of Crowded Trades Amid Markets’ ‘Clear Consensus’

    (Bloomberg) -- There’s strong consensus in markets right now and investors need to position to hedge against crowded trades, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.The last time such a strong agreement on strategy existed was in late 2017 and early 2018, and that time period serves as a reminder that such a consensus view rarely plays out in its entirety, strategists led by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou wrote in a note Friday. Global stocks reached records in January 2018 amid massive inflows, but extended positioning in risk assets became a concern and the next month the “Volmageddon” volatility spike crushed trades that many investors had viewed as a sure thing.“For asset allocators, what is thus important is scale exposures to avoid an overly concentrated portfolio,” according to the report. “One way of scaling exposures to the consensus trading themes is by limiting exposure to the most crowded ones.”Strategists from firms including JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley expect a risk-on environment into 2021 as the global economy recovers from the impact of Covid-19. Positive news on vaccines has bolstered the idea. With central banks and governments pumping in stimulus to counter the pandemic, many see the makings of a bumper period for assets such as high-yield debt, emerging-market currencies and value stocks.For JPMorgan, those crowded trades include: short the U.S. dollar versus cyclical developed-market currencies, long copper and long Bitcoin. On the other hand, bullish positions on oil and gold are less crowded, as are overweight emerging-market equities relative to developed ones, according to the report.Still, medium-term equity positioning appears to be average rather than overbought, the strategists said.“Any equity correction in the near term would represent a buying opportunity,” they said. “We are only in the middle of the current bull market.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Cramer Gives His Opinion On Boeing, Fiverr And More

    On CNBC's "Mad Money Lightning Round" on Friday, Jim Cramer said Boeing Co (NYSE: BA) is still a buy, even though the Dreamliner numbers weren't that good and the stock went down.Instead of Velodyne Lidar Inc (NASDAQ: VLDR), Cramer would rather buy Luminar Technologies (NASDAQ: LAZR).Cramer prefers Lululemon Athletica Inc (NASDAQ: LULU) over Canada Goose Holdings Inc (NYSE: GOOS).Fiverr International Ltd (NYSE: FVRR) is too speculative for Cramer. He would not buy it.Cramer would buy Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: REGN) under $500.Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMD) is good, said Cramer.He wants to stay long BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE: BLK).Cramer is confused by Opko Health Inc. (NASDAQ: OPK). He thinks the company is finally getting some love, but something has to happen soon or otherwise it will die again. See more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Mike Khouw Is Bearish On US Dollar * 'Fast Money' Picks For December 7(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • Better Due Diligence Would Have Turned Up More Clues About Nikola Founder Trevor Milton: Financial Times

    Investors may have found warning signs about Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ: NKLA) founder Trevor Milton if they had bothered to look, Financial Times reported today in one of its regular "Big Read" features.Due Diligence Gaps: The British newspaper dug into Milton's business history, speaking with with past employees, customers, advisers and investors, who said Nikola was the latest in a string of Milton's business failures. "It is a tale of company failures and lawsuits that beg the question of why investors did not look more closely at Mr Milton's business history," FT reported.Milton's previous company, dHybrid Inc., a maker of hybrid fuel systems for diesel trucks, ran into quality problems and lawsuits. Workers were sent across the country to fix the "under-engineered" systems, former employees said.A major customer sued dHybrid for misrepresenting its products' capabilities. The case was dismissed.Milton's earlier ventures included a failed home security business and an ecommerce website.One Nikola investor said his company did not undertake due diligence because of the credibility it placed one of Nikola's existing investors.Why It Matters: Nikola and General Motors Company (NYSE: GM) announced a deal in September, but it quickly unraveled after short seller Hindenburg Research published a report questioning Nikola's product claims. This famously led to the revelation that Nikola had rolled one of its hydrogen-powered vehicles downhill in a promo video to make it appear the vehicle was operating.Milton subsequently resigned as executive chairman, though he remains the largest shareholder. (FT reports that it was personal allegations, accompanied by sexually-charged screenshots posted on Twitter, that led Milton to quit, not Nikola's falling share price.) GM last week dropped its earlier agreement to take an 11% stake in Nikola. It also will not manufacture Nikola's Badger truck. GM will still provide some fuel-cell technology to Nikola.The fallout also has raised questions about the use of SPACs to take a company public, the listing vehicle used by Nikola.Price Action: Nikola's share price fell 14.6% last week on news of the much-reduced deal with GM, ending at $18.88. GM's was down just under 1% at $44.40 to end the week.Meanwhile, short-sellers are cleaning up on Nikola's travails.See more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Google Accuses Ask.com Owner IAC Of Browser Hijacking: Wall Street Journal * FTSE Russell To Drop 8 Chinese Companies From Some Indices, In Response To US Blacklist(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • Dow Jones Futures Rise, Vaccinations Set To Start: Stock Market Rally Outlook; Apple, Google Are Buys Now

    Dow Jones futures: After another strong week, there are reasons to bullish or cautious about the stock market rally. Apple and Google are in buy zones.

  • These Are The 5 Best Stocks To Buy And Watch Now

    Buying a stock is easy, but buying the right stock without a time-tested strategy is incredibly hard. So what are the best stocks to buy now or put on a watchlist?

  • Ford Motor Co. cuts contract workers effective immediately, ends buyout period for salaried employees

    After confirming the new Ford Bronco would be delayed, the automaker trims jobs to adjust staffing to better align with work priorities.

  • I’m 38 with $315,000 saved for retirement, but have $30,000 in debt. Should I lower my 401(k) contributions to get rid of that debt?

    Your issue is a common one: The average personal debt load (that’s debt excluding mortgages) of people with debt is about $38,000, according to research from Northwestern Mutual. “He is still contributing 15% (10% employer, 5% employee) toward retirement with a long runway being only 38 years old.” Frankly, you might even be able to contribute less to retirement if that meant you could pay down debt faster: “Saving money for retirement is incredibly important, but between your savings to date and your company’s 10% contribution (which is amazing — kudos to them), your retirement fund should continue to grow steadily — even if you take a pause from saving altogether and drop your contribution rate down to 0%,” says Amy Ouellette, director of retirement services at Betterment for Business — adding that’s true only “as long as you’re truly ready to be focused on paying down your debt as rapidly as possible.”

  • Airbnb and DoorDash IPOs, Pfizer vaccine review: What to know in the week ahead

    This week, FDA staffers will convene to discuss Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine receiving authorization to be distributed throughout the country. A couple of hotly anticipated initial public offerings will also draw investor focus.

  • 10 Biggest Renewable Energy Companies

    With Orsted A/S leading the pack, these are the 10 biggest renewable energy companies by 12-month trailing revenue.

  • Time Is Running Out to Skip RMDs and Get 401(k) Coronavirus Hardship Withdrawals. Here’s How to Act to Minimize Future Taxes.

    Americans worried about financial stress from the pandemic have until year’s end to take advantage of tax-friendly provisions in the Cares Act, moves that require some planning to avoid draining retirement funds or unleashing a hefty tax bill in the future.

  • 3 Potential Stock Plays for the Week Ahead

    The stock has been on fire for the past two weeks, moving from $6.50 to $8.30. The stock has been cut in half as significant progress continues on a deployable vaccination. The shares were showing some signs of life Friday with the stock pushing higher from a recent wedge.

  • Could you get a second stimulus check by New Year's?

    President-elect Biden says a round of immediate $1,200 payments "may still be in play."

  • Benzinga's Bulls And Bears Of The Week: Amazon, Apple, Ford, GE, Palantir And More

    * Benzinga has examined the prospects for many investor favorite stocks over the past week. * The week's bullish calls included the iPhone maker, the e-commerce colossus and a top airline. * A couple of vehicle makers and and a top solar play were among the more bearish calls.December has arrived, and the big U.S. indexes were marginally higher in the past week. Yet, it was a tough week for big tech, which faced challenges from the president, mergers, former employees, regulators and more regulators.Much of the focus on COVID-19 vaccines has shifted to distribution issues, and traders and investors are looking for clues on how the big retailers are faring so far as the holiday shopping season rolls out.It also was a week that saw a disappointing jobs report, the return of a former Fed chief, yet another new video streaming platform, a troubled aerospace giant finally ready to fly and movie theaters taking another big hit.Through it all, Benzinga continued to examine the prospects for many of the stocks most popular with investors. Here are a few of this past week's most bullish and bearish posts that are worth another look.Bulls "Apple Analyst: iPhone Manufacturer Warrants Premium To The S&P 500" by Shanthi Rexaline examines why an analyst who sat on the sidelines for nearly two years has turned bullish on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL). What do the iPhone build plans suggest, and will Mac and iPad sales see upside too?In "Amazon Option Trader Makes .7M Bet On 42% Upside," Wayne Duggan discusses how at least one large option trader is betting the Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) stock rally will continue deep into 2021, even though growth stocks like Amazon have underperformed value stocks since Election Day.New products and backlog growth in the GE Healthcare division have prompted a price target hike on General Electric Company (NYSE: GE) stock, according to Priya Nigam's "General Electric Analyst Lifts Price Target After Health Care Segment Update." See how the pandemic has boosted this division.Jayson Derrick's "Why United Airlines Is RayJay's Top Airline Pick For Travel Recovery" focuses on why one key analyst believes United Airlines Holdings Inc (NYSE: UAL) is better positioned than its peers to take advantage of a post-pandemic recovery in travel. Are some smaller players worth a look too?For additional bullish calls in the past week, also have a look at the following: * Wall Street Analysts See These 4 Stocks As Winners Moving Into December * 3 Stocks That Could Make You Richer In December * Why BofA Is Upgrading Health Care REITsBears In Wayne Duggan's "Bearish Ford Option Trader Bets .1M Stock Is Headed Lower Over The Next 2 Years," see why one large options trader is making a big bet that Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) shares are headed lower in the long term. Is the company's electric vehicle strategy to blame?Shanthi Rexaline's "Morgan Stanley Downgrades Palantir, Says Risk/Reward Paradigm Shifts Decidedly Negative" shows what has changed for software company Palantir Technologies (NYSE: PLTR) since its direct listing in September that requires a reassessment of its valuation.The shifting political landscape has consequences for First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR). So says the analyst featured in "Barclays Downgrades First Solar As Tariff Tailwinds Subside" by Priya Nigam. Is there anything that might help offset near-term headwinds?"This Nikola Analyst Sees More Pain Ahead For Investors" by Jayson Derrick makes the case that Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ: NKLA) faces more downside ahead, even after the shares pulled back when General Motors Company (NYSE: GM) declined to take an ownership stake in the electric truck maker.Be sure to check out these additional bearish calls: * Markets Risk Short-Term Correction On Overbought Stocks, Morgan Stanley Warns * Canadian Cannabis Stocks Are Becoming Less Desirable Investments, Data SuggestsAt the time of this writing, the author had no position in the mentioned equities.Keep up with all the latest breaking news and trading ideas by following Benzinga on Twitter.See more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Barron's Picks And Pans This Week: Apple, Ford, Royal Dutch Shell, Tesla And A Hair Salon Chain * Notable Insider Buys in the Past Week: Biglari, Coty, Danaher, Foot Locker And More(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • A shortage of short shorts leaves Tesla fans frustrated

    Tesla reportedly can't keep pace with demand for its short shorts. It all started earlier this summer when Elon Musk came up with the idea to poke fun of those betting against the stock by offering up red satin Tesla-branded "short shorts" online.