Well, this is counter-intuitive: last week the Fed lifted interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade. The result: the US dollar is on track to have its biggest decline in eight months.  The dollar index, which gauges the currency against global rivals, has sunk 1.8 per cent this month, through Monday. That would be its biggest monthly drop since April, when it fell 3.8 per cent.  Rising interest rates should, of course, boost the dollar. And in a sense, they did, it’s just that move was so well-telegraphed, that the climb occurred before the rate rise. (FT)

 

A surge of deals in the pharmaceuticals, energy and consumer sectors has pushed merger and acquisition activity to an all-time high, surpassing 2007’s peak — but dealmakers have admitted that bond market turmoil and geopolitical instability are their biggest worries for 2016.  The total value of announced transactions climbed to $4.6tn this year, compared with $4.3tn eight years ago. (FT)

 

Forget about delivery...drones may soon have a bigger role in social media. Twitter was granted a patent last week for an unmanned aerial vehicle, which is capable of snapping photos and videos, before sharing those items on user accounts. The company declined to comment on possible production or roll-out plans for the device, but a spokesman did say the following, "Two words: Drone selfies." (SA)

 

Chipotle shares hit a new 52-week low in yesterday’s trading session after the CDC said it's investigating a possible new E. coli outbreak linked to restaurants in Kansas, North Dakota, and Oklahoma. The five illnesses, reported late last month, have not been part of any of the prior CDC tallies. Chipotle shares are down 20% since the first E. coli cases were reported last month.  (Bloomberg)

 

S&P 500 futures are up 18, and NASDAQ futures are up 34. The MSCI International Index is up 1/5 of a %.

The oil market is recovering slightly after a volatile start to the week when Brent crude touched lows not seen since 2004.  Oil is down $.07 at $34.66 a barrel.