Alibaba employees are turning up to handle a lot of traffic on their e-commerce platforms this week.
$8,200,000,000
Expected sales during this year's Single's Day (Nov 11) sale on Alibaba's Tmall and Taobao e-commerce platforms. 2013 revenues totaled $5.8 billion.
A Single Company Will Dwarf All of America's Black Friday and Cyber Monday Online Sales on Tuesday, Business Insider
http://www.businessinsider.com/singles-day-is-chinas-cyber-monday-2014-11
On Tuesday November 11 (11/11), China marks their annual "anti-Valentine's Day" celebrating bachelors, bachelorettes, and single's life. Single's Day also marks an annual online shopping bonanza. With revenues last year of $5.8 billion, Alibaba is anticipating sales this year in excess of $8 billion. Products sold include everything ranging from body pillows to BMWs. By comparison, e-commerce for all sellers during the US's Cyber Monday is expected to come in at less than $2 billion.
http://blogs.barrons.com/asiastocks/2014/11/06/wsj-opec-unlikely-to-act-till-oil-hits-70/
Although oil has dropped 20% in price so far this year, there is more downside coming. Experts say that OPEC is unlikely to cut production (i.e. limit supply, producing upward pressure on prices) until oil prices reach $70/barrel. The cartel does not see oil falling below $75 this year. Lower fuel prices may provide a boon to airlines, who could pass gas savings onto customers to boost the number of flyers during the holiday season.
Lampert Weighs Turning 300 Sears Stores Into REIT, New York Post
http://nypost.com/2014/11/07/lampert-weighs-turning-300-sears-stores-into-reit/
As sales at brick-and-mortar retail locations continue to fall, Sears chairman and chief executive Eddie Lampert is planning to 200 to 300 stores to a real estate investment trust (REIT). With same-store sales falling across the franchise, Sears is selling off assets to raise cash to support a failing balance sheet. The company said is has about $330 million in cash and $234 million in its credit facility.
http://online.wsj.com/articles/bond-swings-draw-scrutiny-1415581163 (paywall)
Changes in bond trading practices from phone-based to electronic exchanges and the continued rise of high-frequency and algorithmic trading may have contributed to the 10-year Treasury's dip below 1.9% last week. Some officials are comparing the event to the 2010 Flash Crash during which the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 900 points before recovering a few minutes later.
New Vocabulary (Investopedia):
- REIT http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/reit.asp
- High-frequency trading http://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/high-frequency-trading.asp
- Algorithmic trading http://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/algorithmictrading.asp
- Flash Crash http://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/flash-crash.asp
Calendar, November 10-14 (Nasdaq Economic Calendar):
- Mon 10th: AAPL, MRK
- Tue 11th: PFE
- Wed 12th: NFIB Small Business Optimism (96.0); Wholesale trade (0.2%); CMCSA, SBUX
- Thu 13th: Jobless Claims (280K); AIG, XOM
- Fri 14th: Retail Sales (0.2%/0.5%); CVX
Let's Play Nostradamus! GBA FFS Predictions, Nov 11-14:
- Following lower oil prices and increased consumer confidence reports from October, consumer stocks should continue to increase in price into the holiday season
- Stocks relating to prevention and treatment of Ebola, such as LAKE, APT, and TKMR, should continue to climb
- Oil prices will rebound as cold air hits the US Northeast and seasonal consumption picks up
