Frontrunning: December 4

• Stock futures jump after Senate approves tax bill (Reuters)
• Tax Bill Marked by Blinding Speed (WSJ)
• Corporate Winners and Losers in the GOP Tax Bill (BBG)
• Flynn’s Guilty Plea Sparks Clashing Interpretations (WSJ)
• Irish border deal reported settled as May meets Juncker (Reuters)
• Houthi radio says ex-president Saleh killed in Yemen fighting, no confirmation (Reuters)
• Oil falls after U.S. drilling picks up (Reuters)
• FBI Agent Removed From Russia Probe Had Key Role in Clinton Email Investigation (WSJ)
• As Brokers Line Up to Offer Bitcoin Futures, Others Are Quiet (BBG)
• Goldman Sachs tried to cut its debt exposure to Altice (FT)
• HNA's Units Are on a Borrowing Spree, Swallowing High Rates (BBG)
• Trump backs Alabama Republican Senate candidate Moore (Reuters)
• BlackRock and Vanguard’s $20 Trillion Future Is Closer Than You Think (BBG)
• Billy Bush: Yes, Donald Trump, You Said That (NYT)
• Elon Musk Isn’t Joking About Sending a Tesla to Mars (BBG)
• Overseas Buying Gives U.S. Stocks New Lift (WSJ)
• Dialog shares tumble on warning Apple could build its own chips (Reuters)
• CVS-Aetna Deal May Hinge on Antitrust Approach Under Trump (BBG)
• CVS-Aetna deal to change how big employers buy health benefits (Reuters)
• Mortgage fraud frenzy spells peril for China’s banks (Reuters)
• Will Fed Catch Digital-Currency Fever? (WSJ)
• Xiaomi Seeks Valuation of at Least $50 Billion in IPO (BBG)

Overnight Media Digest

WSJ

- CVS Health Corp agreed to buy Aetna Inc for about $69 billion in cash and stock in a move to transform the pharmacy company and capture more of what consumers spend on healthcare. on.wsj.com/2kjM9bI

- The FBI agent who was removed from his post last summer for allegedly sending text messages critical of Donald Trump during the presidential campaign led the bureau's investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server and later served as the top agent on its probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. on.wsj.com/2ki1t8J

- U.S. banks have quietly launched a doomsday project they hope will prevent a run on the financial system should one of them suffer a debilitating cyberattack. The effort, which went live earlier this year and is dubbed Sheltered Harbor, currently includes banks and credit unions that have roughly 400 million U.S. accounts. on.wsj.com/2knONgN

- The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond is expected to pick Thomas Barkin, a senior executive at McKinsey & Co, to serve as its next president, according to people familiar with the matter. on.wsj.com/2kj3guh

- The Trump administration will roll out its first national-security strategy in the next few weeks, marking the beginning of what it calls a tough new approach to confront a raft of global security challenges. on.wsj.com/2klps6M

FT

- America’s biggest drugstore chain CVS Health agreed to acquire the insurer Aetna for about $68 bln. Aetna Inc will be offered about $207 a share, comprising $145 in cash and $62 in stock.

- This week, UK ministers will renew their support for nuclear power with measures to strengthen the industry’s supply chain and develop a new generation of small-scale reactors.

- A formal inquiry into the market power of Facebook, Google and other digital platforms has been initiated by Australia’s competition regulator to determine if it is negatively affecting the media and advertising industries.

- Simon Thompson was appointed as Rio Tinto’s new chairman ending a nine-month search. Thompson will take up the position in March, when Jan du Plessis steps down.

NYT

- CVS Health Corp said it had agreed to buy Aetna Inc for about $69 billion in a deal that would combine the drugstore giant with one of the biggest health insurers in the United States and has the potential to reshape the nation's health care industry. nyti.ms/2BvLS8J

- Wang Huning, the professor-turned-Communist theoretician who has been a major adviser to three Chinese leaders, called for security and order on the internet as part of five proposals he made to guide the future of cyberspace. He also emphasized China's technological prowess, and said more should be done by the government to guide the development of new industries like artificial intelligence and quantum computing. nyti.ms/2ArCfbP

- New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is going to Washington for oral arguments before the Supreme Court in a case that could legalize sports betting in New Jersey, and the governor made clear last week that the stakes give this trip special, personal meaning. nyti.ms/2nppPyp

Canada

** David Baazov and two associates conspired to try to pump up the price of Amaya Inc stock in the leadup to its $4.9-billion (U.S.) takeover of PokerStars, Quebec's securities regulator alleges in a new court filing ahead of their insider trading trial later this month. (tgam.ca/2kopGuh)

** Rogers Communications Inc will increase spending on its wireless network in a bid to get back on the same footing as its rivals, says new Chief Executive Joe Natale, who sees demand for mobile data as one of the company's biggest growth opportunities. (tgam.ca/2BCMeeF)

** Any free trade talks between Canada and China are now uncertain after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau emerged from a meeting with Premier Li Keqiang Monday to announce the two countries will merely keep exploring whether to launch negotiations. (tgam.ca/2kovdB2)

Britain

The Times

- Toys r Us is poised to enter a company voluntary arrangement, which will leave up to a third of its 105 British shops facing closure and about 800 staff out of work. bit.ly/2jckaYa

SPONSORED

- Heathrow will not be able to expand to its promised 740,000 flights a year because of safety flaws involving its third runway, according to a report by the engineering consultancy Ebeni. bit.ly/2jcwojz

The Guardian

- Hundreds of thousands of UK children and older people have been plunged into poverty in the past four years, according to an analysis by Joseph Rowntree Foundation. bit.ly/2jacNQS

- Ministers are expected to back the first generation of small nuclear power stations in Britain with tens of millions of pounds this week, in an attempt to give the UK a competitive edge on the technology and provide a new source of clean power. bit.ly/2je93xY

The Telegraph

- Facebook has opened a new office in London and has pledged to hire 800 new staff in the UK over the next year. bit.ly/2jcfSzX

- Rio Tinto has named former Anglo American executive Simon Thompson as its new chairman. bit.ly/2jb0K5S

Sky News

- Financial Reporting Council (FRC) will publish a consultation on revisions to the UK corporate governance code, which will include giving remuneration committees a formal responsibility to demonstrate the alignment between boardroom and workforce pay. bit.ly/2je8Meq

- Vodafone has told Deloitte, EY and K‎PMG in the last few weeks that it may ditch PricewaterhouseCoopers audit contract because of the 2014 collapse of Phones 4U. bit.ly/2jcjxhg

The Independent

- MPs have raised serious concerns about the post-Brexit regulation of the pharmaceuticals sector, warning that the UK's departure from the EU could make Britain a less desirable place for investment and development. ind.pn/2jbsXJC