Japan

US equity futures in the green ahead of critical Senate debate on US tax reform and a much anticipated testimony from Yellen replacement Jerome Powell for Fed’s current policy approach.  European stocks advance, led by oil and gas stocks after Shell fully restored its cash dividend and unveiled a bullish outlook. Asian shares slide despite the reappearance of the Chinese "National Team" which stabilized the SHCOMP selloff in the last hour. USD recovers gradually from overnight lows against G-10, pushing GBP/USD and EUR/USD to session lows, while oil and treasuries edged lower.

S&P 500 futures are higher, continuing on yesterday's momentum, after European and Asian shares also rose alongside a rebound in oil, as the year-end performance chase appears to be accelerating. There were several different moving parts in a mixed European session, in which early Euro strength gave way to weakness...

... which in turn pushed the Stoxx 600 and US index futures higher, rising above yesterday's session high on negligible volumes. 

Authored by Patrick Buchanan via Buchanan.org,

After the 19th national congress of the Chinese Communist Party in October, one may discern Premier Xi Jinping’s vision of the emerging New World Order.

By 2049, the centennial of the triumph of Communist Revolution, China shall have become the first power on earth.

Her occupation and humiliation by the West and Japan in the 19th and 20th centuries will have become hated but ancient history.

The euphoria of the past month has ended with a thud and BTFDers are strangely missing as the commodity chill out of China (which overnight became full blown carnage), has unleashed a global risk-off phase ahead of today's critical CPI data, resulting in broad and sharp selling across global markets, as European stocks followed declines in Asia while bonds and gold advanced. The equity retreat, which spread to U.S. stock futures, started with last night's sharp puke in Chinese commodities.

Authored by Kevin Muir via The Macro Tourist blog,

A few years ago, the Japanese government made an announcement that went unnoticed by many market pundits.