Global stocks plunged and oil moved higher in the immediate aftermath of the missile attack. However, markets soon pared those losses as hopes rose that the response could lead to a cooling of tensions. Overnight, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.8% while Europe’s Stoxx 600 Index was 0.2% lower by 5:45 a.m. Eastern Time. S&P 500 futures had erased all losses to trade slightly higher, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 1.800% and Brent crude had reversed almost all of its $3-a-barrel surge. (Bloomberg)

Continuing its surge into 2020, Tesla rose as much as 4.7% on Tuesday to carve out yet another all-time high at over $470/share. The extended rally has pushed the company's market cap to the highest ever recorded by a U.S. automaker, topping the $80.81B cap of Ford in 1999 and easily outdistancing the record cap for pre-bankruptcy General Motors or post-bankruptcy GM. Global records? Tesla's market cap still trails Toyota and Volkswagen, which were valued at $231.76B and $98.05B, respectively. (SA)

Results today from Walgreens Boots Alliance, Constellation Brands, and Bed Bath & Beyond will be among the last ahead of the fourth-quarter earnings season, which kicks into full gear over the coming weeks. While profits are expected to fall slightly - capping 2019 as a lackluster year - Wall Street is hopeful that earnings will rebound in 2020, possibly rising 9.6%. That would be the third-best growth rate in the last seven years, helping justify high stock prices and boosting further economic growth.

With Northwest Quadrant Wealth Management, a Registered Investment Advisor I am Josh Fenili.