2. Brexit deadlock: The United Kingdom continues to march towards Brexit without a viable exit plan.
The regulator said Monday that Musk had continued to fire off tweets about Tesla (TSLA) without consulting others at the company despite having agreed to a court-ordered settlement requiring him to do so.
Musk agreed to the deal with the SEC in order to settle charges over his controversial tweet in August about his plans to take Tesla private. But the SEC has since found fault with Musk’s tweeting.
The regulator said Monday that it was “stunning” that Musk “had not sought pre-approval for a single one of the numerous tweets about Tesla” he has published since the settlement was agreed.
It also dismissed Musk’s argument that his First Amendment rights are being violated.
Lawyers representing Musk responded with a court filing seeking permission to address “unsupported assertions” made by the SEC and to submit documentation that “undermines” the regulator’s position.
2. FedEx (FDX) earnings: FedEx (FDX) will report its fiscal third quarter earnings after the US close, giving investors some insight into how the global economy is faring.
The delivery company has already warned that the global economic slowdown could deliver a blow to its bottom line this year. It warned in December that its international business, especially in Europe, was struggling.
Investors will be looking to see if the shipping and delivery company can correct course, or whether the slowdown in global trade has reduced its outlook further.
3. Bayer damages: A federal jury has awarded $80 million to a California man after determining that the popular Monsanto weedkiller, Roundup, was a substantial factor in causing his cancer.
The pound has taken the latest developments in its stride, but analysts say the already messy process now looks even more uncertain. May’s deal has already been voted down twice in parliament.
In order to avoid crashing out of the European Union in 10 days without a transitional deal — a disastrous scenario for business — May is likely to seek to delay the exit process. The big question is how long a delay she will seek, and whether the European Union will agree.
5. Global market overview: US stock futures were flat.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed 0.1% lower on Wednesday. The S&P 500 dropped 0.5% and the Nasdaq shed 0.6%.
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6. Companies and economics: Shares in Swedbank dropped 3.7% after the Swedish bank fired its CEO amid a widening money-laundering probe.
7. Coming this week:
Thursday — US final estimate Q4 GDP
Friday — Huawei earnings; Carmax
(KMX) earnings