Le 129 persone di finanza si deve seguire su Twitter Twitter è evoluto in una piattaforma seria e guru della finanza. Al di là delle jabberings dei giocatori di piccolo-tempo, questi analisti, finanziatori fund e grandi giocatori hanno il potere di influenzare i mercati in 140 caratteri, e spesso prendono a Twitter per dare loro due centesimi. E la sua roba intelligente. Abbiamo chiesto analisti di Wall Street e giornalisti Business Insider a darci i loro tweeter must da seguire per rendere questa versione aggiornata dello scorso lista anni. Questi tweeter stessi hanno dimostrato di essere must-segue con un mix di analisi tagliente, assassino umorismo, serio personalità, e l'intuizione svolta. Si tratta di una versione aggiornata di ultima lista anni, che potete trovare qui. Vedi come: Una pagina Slides Kit Juckes Professione: Responsabile della strategia di FX a Société Générale, con sede a Londra. Perché: Hes uno degli strateghi più alto livello a SocGen, ma hes casuale su Twitter. Si impegna altre persone finanza e mantiene la conversazione. James Bond Vigilantes Professione: squadra MampGs dettaglio legame. Perché: i loro tweets sono incredibilmente dettagliati e forniscono analisi del mercato obbligazionario europeo. Joe Lavorgna Professione: Amministratore Delegato e Chief US Economist di Deutsche Bank. Perché: Egli tweets reazioni immediato a tutti i dati economici ad alta frequenza. Egli tweets anche attività di ricerca della Deutsche Bank. Molto maneggevole. Peter Tchir Professione: Fondatore del TF Advisors mercato. Perché . Egli segue il mercato obbligazionario come un falco. John Hempton Professione: gestore di hedge fund per Bronte Capitale. Perché . Ha grande visione in cui le aziende a lavorare, che non, e come il mercato ei suoi attori sarà sbagliare. Paul Kedrosky Professione: venture capitalist, imprenditore, collaboratore Bloomberg. Perché: Oltre ad essere un investitore intelligente, questo ragazzo ha un grande occhio per le storie che vi farà ridere. Goldman Sachs Perché: Il gigante di investment banking ha finalmente aperto fino a Twittersphere e theyre davvero bravo. Theyve twittato fuori grandi immagini, tra cui Lloyd Blankfein in jeans papà, e theyve preso alcuni colpi divertenti a pubblicazioni di notizie. Carl Icahn REUTERS Chip orientale Professione: miliardario investitore e presidente di Icahn Enterprises. Eddy ElfenbeinThe cambiamenti climatici Regime Campo di applicazione del cambiamento climatico sfida è una delle minacce più significative di fronte al mondo di oggi. Secondo l'American Meteorological Society, c'è una probabilità del 90 per cento che le temperature globali aumenteranno di 3,5-7,4 gradi Celsius (6,3 a 13,3 gradi Fahrenheit) in meno di cento anni, con ancora maggiore aumento per la terra e ai poli. Questi cambiamenti apparentemente minori di temperatura potrebbero provocare disastri diffusi sotto forma di innalzamento del livello del mare, i modelli climatici violenti e volatili, la desertificazione, carestie, scarsità d'acqua, e altri effetti secondari tra cui il conflitto. Nel novembre 2011, l'Agenzia Internazionale per l'Energia ha avvertito che il mondo possa essere veloce si avvicina ad un punto di non ritorno per quanto riguarda i cambiamenti climatici, e ha suggerito che i prossimi cinque anni saranno cruciali per gli sforzi di riduzione dei gas a effetto serra. Evitando le peggiori conseguenze del cambiamento climatico richiederà grandi tagli delle emissioni globali di gas a effetto serra. Gli esseri umani producono gas ad effetto serra dalla combustione di carbone, petrolio e gas naturale per produrre energia per il potere, il calore, l'industria e trasporti. La deforestazione e l'attività agricola resa anche le emissioni climalteranti. Un modo per ridurre le emissioni sarebbe quello di passare da potere a base di combustibili fossili a fonti alternative di energia, come il nucleare, solare e eolica. Una seconda opzione parallelo sarebbe quella di ottenere una maggiore efficienza energetica attraverso lo sviluppo di nuove tecnologie e la modifica di comportamento quotidiano in modo che ogni persona che produce un minore impatto ambientale. Inoltre, gli edifici di retrofitting e nello sviluppare nuove tecnologie a basso consumo energetico notevolmente contribuire a contenere le emissioni di gas a effetto serra. Tutte queste misure, tuttavia, generano costi significativi, e l'inizio della crisi finanziaria globale ha posto gravi nuovi vincoli sui bilanci nazionali, sia nel mondo sviluppato e in via di sviluppo. Alcuni esperti di cambiamento climatico hanno espresso la preoccupazione che l'attuale crisi finanziaria globale potrebbe rinviare azione sul cambiamento climatico a tempo indeterminato. Anche se sono state attuate tali riforme, notevoli sforzi saranno ancora necessari per adattarsi ai cambiamenti inevitabili. eventi legati al clima recenti, come le inondazioni in Pakistan e Thailandia. hanno causato attenzione a cadere sul finanziamento di adattamento per i paesi in via di sviluppo, che potrebbero sostenere i progetti di infrastrutture per proteggere le aree vulnerabili. Altri sforzi potrebbero includere l'agricoltura resistente alla siccità. Distribuzione delle emissioni globali rafforza la necessità di un'ampia cooperazione multilaterale nel mitigare i cambiamenti climatici. Quindici-venti paesi sono responsabili per circa il 75 per cento delle emissioni globali. ma rappresenta nessun paese per più di circa il 26 per cento. Gli sforzi per ridurre le emissioni di mitigazione devono quindi essere globale. Senza la cooperazione e il coordinamento a livello internazionale, alcuni stati possono liberare giro su altri sforzi, o anche sfruttare i controlli delle emissioni irregolari per ottenere un vantaggio competitivo. E poiché gli impatti dei cambiamenti climatici saranno avvertiti in tutto il mondo, gli sforzi per adattarsi ai adattamento ai cambiamenti climatici dovranno essere troppo globale. In occasione del lancio della Convenzione quadro delle Nazioni Unite sui cambiamenti climatici diciassettesima Conferenza delle parti (COP-17) a Durban, Sud Africa, molti esperti di cambiamento climatico erano preoccupati che il Protocollo di Kyoto potrebbe scadere nel 2012 con No secondario accordo giuridicamente vincolante sulla limitazione globale emissioni in atto. Questa paura, però, era un po 'placato, come i quasi duecento paesi presenti alla COP-17 ha approvato un'estensione del protocollo fino al 2017 e, potenzialmente, il 2020. Una decisione è stato raggiunto anche in occasione della riunione di redigere un accordo successivo al Protocollo di Kyoto da parte 2015, che finirebbe per entrare in vigore nel 2020. I delegati hanno anche previsto che il nuovo accordo dovrebbe includere obiettivi di emissioni di gas serra per tutti i paesi, indipendentemente dal loro livello di sviluppo economico. Questo quadro contrasta in particolare con quella del Protocollo di Kyoto, che si concentra principalmente sulla riduzione delle emissioni provenienti da paesi sviluppati. Nonostante questi e altri successi segnati durante la COP-17, la percepita mancanza di leadership dai giocatori centrali del cambiamento climatico debateespecially Stati Stateshas ha suscitato una crescente preoccupazione circa le prospettive a lungo termine del regime di cambiamento climatico globale. Inoltre, la decisione Canadas Dicembre 2011 a ritirarsi dal Protocolbased Kyoto sulle preoccupazioni economiche interne, così come la sua opinione che i mondi top emettitori di gas serra si sono rifiutati di ratificare le accordhas generato preoccupazioni che il Protocollo di Kyoto si può essere in pericolo di crollo. Entrambe queste preoccupazioni e molte altre questioni sarà probabilmente una parte del giorno della COP-18, prevista per novembre 2012 in Qatar. Punti di forza e di debolezza Valutazione complessiva: Un sistema poco sviluppato e inadeguato il centrotavola correnti per azioni multilaterali contro il cambiamento climatico sono la Convenzione quadro delle Nazioni Unite sui cambiamenti climatici (UNFCCC), la sua associata Protocollo di Kyoto. l'Accordo di Copenaghen. e la piattaforma di Durban COP-17 per un'azione rafforzata (Durban Platform). Il protocollo di Kyoto prevede impegni precisi per ridurre le emissioni solo dei paesi sviluppati, ma non include gli Stati Uniti, e non ha conseguenze significative per non conformità si è anche venuto sotto pressione senza precedenti come il Canada ufficialmente ritirato dalla l'accordo nel dicembre 2011. In particolare, Canadas ministro dell'ambiente ha suggerito il Canada potrebbe essere solo una parte di un accordo che comprende tutti i principali emettitori come parti. Come il Giappone e la Russia potrebbe presto seguire Canadas esempio, le speranze di un accordeven clima legalmente vincolante se desirablemay essere svanendo. Inoltre, il regime, che permette di numerose esenzioni per quanto riguarda le emissioni di gas ad effetto serra, non riesce a fornire grandi emettitori emergenti come Cina e India, con obiettivi significativi e incentivi per ridurre le loro emissioni. L'architettura della governance del clima globale sembra particolarmente traballante dopo la quindicesima conferenza delle parti (COP-15), a Copenaghen, non è riuscito a superare le differenze radicate tra i maggiori partiti e fornire tagli delle emissioni mirati. A seguito di Copenaghen, COP-16, a Cancun, ha fatto alcuni passi verso un'efficace azione multilaterale, ma il regime cade ancora ben al di sotto di promuovere azioni necessarie per ottenere un cambiamento positivo, tra cui impegnarsi in un quadro postKyoto. Allo stesso modo, è stato fatto pochi progressi nel corso della riunione COP-17 a Durban. Mentre le parti hanno convenuto di prorogare il protocollo di Kyoto almeno fino al 2017, così come solidificato una struttura operativa per il Fondo verde per il clima, poco è stato chiarito per quanto riguarda la forma di un accordo successivo al Protocollo di Kyoto. I delegati alla COP-17 era d'accordo, tuttavia, che il nuovo accordo dovrebbe includere obiettivi di riduzione per tutte le nazioni, piuttosto che esclusivamente quelli ritenuti da sviluppare. Anche se le delegazioni a Durban, Cancun e Copenhagen sviluppati meccanismi di segnalazione, promesse di finanziamento e gli obiettivi di riduzione delle emissioni specifiche del paese dichiarate unilateralmente, la continua mancanza di un organo esecutivo internazionale ha lasciato queste promesse in gran parte vuoto. Le limitazioni della Piattaforma di Durban. così come lo stato sempre più tenue del protocollo di Kyoto, hanno creato un imperativo fresco per azione globale sui cambiamenti climatici. La tensione tra i paesi in via di sviluppo e sviluppati è alimentata da disaccordi in corso su come interpretare un sostegno fondamentale della UNFCCC e Kyoto frameworknamely, il principio delle responsabilità comuni ma differenziate PDF tra industrializzati (allegato I) e nei paesi in via di sviluppo (non allegato I), in particolare quando si tratta di stabilire e raggiungere obiettivi di mitigazione significative. Il vertice Variazioni 2010 ONU sul clima a Cancun non ha realizzato un quadro internazionale completo, né ha aspettava di. L'ordine del giorno è spinto ai 2011 incontri a Durban, in Sud Africa, dove il protocollo di Kyoto è stato prorogato per altri cinque anni almeno. Le preoccupazioni, tuttavia, sono sorti nel corso dei rifiuti di India, Cina e Stati Uniti di accettare in modo inequivocabile giuridicamente vincolanti di ammissione obiettivi nel corso della riunione, mettendo in dubbio la misura in cui gli altri emettitori di gas serra significativo parteciperanno alla nuova finestra di impegno. Al livello più elementare, i paesi non sono d'accordo su monitoraggio del clima e disposizioni di finanziamento nel Protocollo di Kyoto e di altri accordi legalmente vincolanti. quadri clima lottano per controllare efficacemente le uscite di gas serra, in particolare nei paesi in via di sviluppo. Molti paesi non hanno la capacità interna di verificare le loro emissioni totali, anche se sono in grado di monitorare i livelli nazionali, alcuni temono che la segnalazione tali numeri incoraggerebbe le pressioni internazionali per ricoprire le loro emissioni. Altri, come la Cina, sostengono che un sistema di monitoraggio internazionale rappresenta una violazione della sovranità nazionale e che gli Stati in via di sviluppo dovrebbe essere concesso un po 'di clemenza delle emissioni in quanto sono attualmente in fasi critiche di sviluppo economico. Inoltre, il regime climatico non affronta adeguatamente le fonti di finanziamento necessarie per aiutare i paesi in via di sviluppo ad affrontare il cambiamento climatico. Mentre la riunione di Copenaghen assistito progressi politici, compresi gli impegni da parte dei paesi industrializzati di fornire 100 miliardi entro il 2020 per i paesi sviluppati e il Fondo verde per il clima è stato messo in posto a Cancun, flussi di finanziamento concreti devono ancora materializzarsi. Mentre la COP-17 ha tentato di chiarire come il Fondo verde per il clima opererebbe e disperdere i fondi, poco sostegno monetario fermo è stato assegnato al meccanismo. Fino ad oggi, il totale erogato fondi per iniziative di cambiamento climatico. sia all'interno che all'esterno della UNFCCC, aggiungere fino a solo 2,1 miliardi. Alla ricerca di un approccio più flessibile ed efficace, gli Stati Uniti e gli altri emettitori hanno cominciato a girare per la multilateralismo carte, concentrandosi su, strutture meno formali più piccoli, come ad esempio il Forum Econonomies Maggiore (MEF) e del Gruppo dei Venti (G20). Il MEF stato lanciato nel marzo 2009 come successore del Bush amministrazioni Major Economies Meeting (MEM). Il MEF diciassette membri, che comprende i paesi responsabili di circa il 80 per cento delle emissioni globali, ha fornito un'arena per i principali paesi responsabili delle emissioni per affrontare questioni spinose e martello strategie praticabili senza entrare nel labirinto della diplomazia delle Nazioni Unite. Nel febbraio 2012, una coalizione di sei-stato è stato anche stabilito di affrontare climatici e rischi per la salute pubblica e poste dalle sostanze inquinanti di breve durata, tra cui il metano, idrofluorocarburi, e nerofumo (fuliggine). Anche questi ambiti di nicchia, tuttavia, non sono immuni da rancore politico sulla riduzione delle emissioni giuridicamente vincolanti. Nonostante la preoccupazione che gli sforzi alternativa al processo UNFCCC potrebbero minare la credibilità e il successo di quel forum universale, il MEF e il G20 in parallelo hanno il potenziale per completare la pista delle Nazioni Unite, consentendo un dialogo significativo tra i paesi i cui impegni e soluzioni finanziarie in materia di mitigazione e la tecnologia veramente importa. Il MEF e G20 offrono leader un'impostazione per il dialogo schietto in cui le parti possono incontrarsi per negoziare nuovi accordi bilaterali e minilateral, allineare le iniziative nazionali parallele e approcci normativi, e monitorare ogni altri progrediscono come parte di un ambiente informale, impegno e processo di revisione. Realizzazioni del MEF e G20 includono rispettivamente, il lancio di un partenariato globale sul Clean Energy Technologies e raggiungere un accordo per eliminare gradualmente i sussidi ai combustibili fossili. Nel settembre 2011 il MEF come riferito ha avuto una discussione franca per quanto riguarda la riunione COP-17 a Durban e il futuro del protocollo di Kyoto tra le altre questioni. Al di là del processo UNFCCC e forum minilateral come il MEF e G20, il cambiamento climatico è indirizzata sempre più da una serie di altri attori internazionali il cui mandato primario non può includere esplicitamente il cambiamento climatico. All'interno del sistema delle Nazioni Unite da solo, una ventina di agenzie di lavoro sui cambiamenti climatici, spesso attraverso il proprio obiettivo specifico. La realizzazione dei progetti, per esempio, si sviluppa attraverso istituzioni come il Programma delle Nazioni Unite (UNEP), il Global Environment Facility (GEF), il Programma delle Nazioni Unite per lo Sviluppo (UNDP), e la Banca mondiale. che affiancare le agenzie bilaterali in materia di progetti di mitigazione e di adattamento nei paesi in via di sviluppo. Anche se una proliferazione di attori focalizzati su questo ordine del giorno non è necessariamente negativo, la mancanza di politiche e programmi coordinati può essere un problema quando si porta alla ridondanza. In parte, questa frammentazione riflette la complessità intrinseca dei cambiamenti climatici, che ha collegamenti sostanziali a molte aree tematiche, tra cui lo sviluppo, finanza, salute pubblica, l'energia, e la sicurezza. Capire le minacce dei cambiamenti climatici: forte ma potrebbe essere migliorata Il regime internazionale sul clima è al suo più forte quando si tratta di capire le minacce poste dai cambiamenti climatici. Tali sforzi, che sono centrate sul gruppo intergovernativo sui cambiamenti climatici (IPCC), precedono qualsiasi altro elemento dedicata del regime. Eppure, l'infiltrazione della politica nel dibattito sul cambiamento climatico ha ostacolato la legittimità e la pervasività delle nuove scoperte. L'IPCC è stato creato nel 1988 per rivedere, valutare, e sintetizzare i mondi informazioni scientifiche relative ai cambiamenti climatici. Si rilascia periodicamente relazioni di valutazione. che sintetizzano i dati globali sul cambiamento climatico. L'IPCC report PDF sono centrali nel dibattito politico del cambiamento climatico, e le loro stime svolgono un ruolo fuori misura nel fissare parametri di riferimento per l'azione internazionale. L'IPCC produce anche rapporti occasionali su temi urgenti quali la cattura del carbonio e del trasferimento tecnologico. L'IPCC non è esente da critiche, tuttavia, e una serie di scandali riguardanti i metodi della sua segnalazione ha in qualche modo indebolito la sua legittimità. Alcuni hanno accusato i suoi rapporti di essere riassunti politicamente driventheir deve essere firmato fuori su da tutti gli Stati governmentsand overplaying lo stato di un accordo sui cambiamenti climatici dall'uomo. Reagendo ai risultati di una revisione indipendente, l'IPCC ha introdotto institutionalreforms maggio 2011 per affrontare alcune di queste preoccupazioni. Detto questo, le conclusioni del panel generalmente concordano con quelli di maggiori associazioni scientifiche PDF. come ad esempio la National Academy of Sciences degli Stati Uniti. All'interno della comunità di esperti di scienza del clima, pochi credono che i rapporti dell'IPCC sovrastimano l'evoluzione del fenomeno. L'IPCC è stato anche criticato, dall'altro lato, per sottovalutando i rischi di cambiamenti climatici estremi, sempre a causa della necessità di consenso politico. Allo stesso modo, è stato criticato come ritardo dello stato attuale della scienza a causa del suo processo di approvazione lungo e burocratico. Nel momento in cui molti studi stanno alzando la possibilità di cambiamenti climatici estremi, questo può tendere a pregiudizi dell'IPCC conservativo. La cooperazione internazionale sull'osservazione scientifica e l'analisi ha anche beneficiato di diversi altri forum per la condivisione di dati climatici globali. Questi includono il Group on Earth Observations (GEO), un gruppo di ottanta i governi impegnati a creare un sistema di osservazione globale della Terra di Systems (GEOSS) come una fonte comune per i dati dettagliati su tutto ciò che riguarda i cambiamenti climatici. Nonostante questi guadagni nella ricerca, l'analisi e la comprensione dei cambiamenti climatici, una grande quantità di lavori scientifici di base rimane a chiarire lo stato del parere scientifico sulle cause antropiche del cambiamento climatico e modi per mitigare i loro effetti. Inoltre, la comunità internazionale ha bisogno di espandere gli sforzi di cooperazione nella raccolta di dati sugli effetti del cambiamento climatico per favorire sistemi di adattamento e di allarme precoce. Riduzione delle emissioni: alcuni progressi, ma troppo pochi impegni Molti paesi con obiettivi vincolanti nell'ambito del protocollo di Kyoto, sono sulla buona strada per ridurre le loro emissioni di gas serra, e grandi emettitori come Cina, India e Brasile suggeriscono che essi adotteranno misure volontarie per controllare i livelli di inquinamento antropico. Ma nonostante questi successi, il regime climatico esistente rimane ampiamente inadeguata quando si tratta di stabilizzare i livelli di gas serra del resto, i regolamenti che hanno già superato o che stanno per entrare in vigore, come la tassa aereo UE, continuare a mescolare significativa polemica politica. Inoltre, il Durban Platform dicembre 2011 impegna le parti dell'UNFCCC per stabilire un accordo più universale postKyoto con forza di legge, e nel dicembre 2012 presso la UNFCCC COP-18, le parti hanno concordato di estendere il periodo di impegno di Kyoto al 2020 e ad avviare negoziati per un trattato per sostituire il protocollo di Kyoto nel 2015. Tuttavia, non tutte le parti hanno convenuto di questa seconda tornata di impegni e grandi emettitori come Canada e Giappone rinunciato. La varianza tra l'impegno e l'azione rimane un ostacolo allo sviluppo di una soluzione completa. L'accordo di Copenaghen non vincolante ha fatto poco per forzare paese per paese di responsabilità e di azione. L'accordo Cancun 2010 ha impegni di riduzione dei gas a effetto serra, sotto gli auspici della Convenzione quadro delle Nazioni Unite sui cambiamenti climatici, ma resta da vedere se Cancuns richiesta di valutazione internazionale di attuazione di questi sforzi di mitigazione porterà a guadagni sostanziali oltre lo status quo. Uno spostamento della discussione diplomatica su promesse di implementazione è un risultato positivo della Conferenza di Cancun. L'IPCC ha chiesto una riduzione delle emissioni di limitare l'aumento della temperatura globale di 2 gradi Celsius (3,6 gradi Fahrenheit). Anche se i leader a Copenhagen e Cancun usato lo stesso numero per determinare i loro impegni di mitigazione, l'attuale crescita delle emissioni, assente un'azione significativa sui cambiamenti climatici, provoca una media di temperature globali su 5 gradi Celsius (9 gradi Fahrenheit), secondo il più recente analisi prodotta dal clima Interactive quadro di valutazione. La politica di base e strumenti normativi per frenare esistono emissioni di gas serra a livello nazionale, e le prestazioni variano quindi da paese a paese. A livello internazionale, il Protocollo di Kyoto prevede tre meccanismi che possono aiutare i paesi controllano le proprie emissioni attraverso accordi flessibili. Il Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) permette ai paesi industrializzati di investire in progetti ecocompatibili nei paesi poveri e guadagnare crediti di carbonio in cambio. Il meccanismo di Joint Implementation (JI) permette ai paesi industrializzati di investire in progetti ecocompatibili in altri paesi industrializzati e guadagnare crediti di carbonio in cambio. Infine, lo scambio di emissioni crea un mercato per la negoziazione di crediti di carbonio con i paesi che si trovano sopra il loro obiettivo. Fin dall'inizio, il più promettente dei tre era il CDM, che fornisce gemelle benefici della riduzione delle emissioni e facilitare lo sviluppo economico per i non-Annex I paesi. Tuttavia, gli esperti hanno evidenziato carenze per quanto riguarda le sue operazioni e la sua incapacità di fornire ridurre le emissioni a costi accettabili. In particolare, il CDM è gravata da ampi coinvolgimenti burocratici che hanno ritardato il registro reale di molti progetti preapproved. Più seriamente, i critici accusano il CDM per guadagnare alcune aziende cumuli di crediti di carbonio per i cambiamenti a basso costo, facendo notare che il regolamento nazionale o altri mezzi di riduzione delle emissioni di finanziamento potrebbero essere stati alternative migliori. Inoltre, alcuni esperti lamentano la Cina l'acquisizione di un numero significativo di crediti di carbonio, noti come riduzioni certificate delle emissioni (CER), a scapito di altri paesi in via di sviluppo. Tuttavia, Cine ampia partecipazione può anche contribuire a jump-start il suo settore delle energie rinnovabili, che potrebbe avere benefici secondari a lungo termine. Anche se il COP-17 non ha risolto tutte queste preoccupazioni, che si estendeva il CDM di includere stoccaggio cattura del carbonio progetti d'mossa che gode di notevole sostegno al settore privato. Lo scambio di emissioni, più sviluppata nel quadro dell'UE, ha anche dovuto affrontare una raffica di critiche. I mercati del carbonio sono ancora nella loro infanzia e irto di sfide connesse scoperta toprice. la volatilità dei prezzi. e l'esposizione al rischio politico. In questa fase, alcune aziende sostengono che il prezzo del carbonio è troppo basso per sostenere le opportunità redditizie. Allo stesso modo, gli attivisti ambientali PDF sostengono che i mercati dei capitali sono troppo regolamentata e instabile per servire come base per gli sforzi globali contro i cambiamenti climatici. Nonostante il valore di mercato del carbonio d'Europa si avvicina una stima di 120 miliardi nel 2010, permangono preoccupazioni circa il futuro del mercato globale del carbonio in assenza di un accordo giuridicamente vincolante delle emissioni. Il G20 ha sottolineato l'importanza dei meccanismi di mercato per combattere il riscaldamento globale, e alcuni hanno sostenuto che i mercati del carbonio può essere visto come un modo economico e semplice per garantire la riduzione delle emissioni. Quando rinforzato dal regolamento, come ad esempio il sistema di cap-and-trade obbligatoria in Europa, di scambio delle emissioni può essere un utile meccanismo di PDF che contribuisce alla riduzione complessiva delle emissioni. Il mercato del carbonio dell'UE, per esempio, ha un valore stimato di 120 miliardi. Simile al modello UE, nove stati del Mid-Atlantic e nord-est degli Stati Uniti hanno creato quadro obbligatoria guidato dal mercato, chiamato Iniziativa Greenhouse Gas Regional (RGGI), per ridurre le emissioni. A tutt'oggi, questa è una delle iniziative più promettenti per la riduzione delle emissioni negli Stati Uniti. Al di fuori del regime di Kyoto, gli sforzi internazionali per ridurre le emissioni di anidride carbonica hanno portato ad un programma delle Nazioni Unite sulla riduzione delle emissioni da deforestazione e degrado (UN-REDD). Il programma prevede incentivi finanziari per i paesi poveri di proteggere le loro foreste nazionali e quindi li assegna con una certa responsabilità per la riduzione delle emissioni globali. Secondo alcune stime, la deforestazione tropicale per il 15 per cento PDF delle emissioni globali di anidride carbonica annuali. Il Protocollo di Kyoto, tuttavia, non ha avuto alcun meccanismo per la conservazione o la prevenzione della deforestazione come mezzo per mitigare i cambiamenti climatici. Sotto il protocollo, i paesi potrebbero cercare crediti e il sostegno finanziario dopo foreste sono state abbattute, ma nessun supporto era disponibile per impedire loro di taglio boschi verso il basso, in primo luogo. Fortunatamente, l'attivismo sulla questione ha generato abbastanza interesse per i paesi industrializzati di impegnarsi 3,5 miliardi di fornire finanziamenti per le attività di deforestazione. Allo stesso modo, il COP-17 ha stabilito un quadro tecnico per facilitare i prodotti di deforestazione. Inoltre, nel febbraio 2012, gli Stati Uniti, insieme a Canada, Messico, Svezia, Ghana e Bangladesh, ha lanciato uno sforzo comune per mitigare il clima di breve durata pollutantssuch inquinanti rimangono nell'atmosfera solo brevemente, ma essi rappresentano circa il 30 per cento di warmingsuch globale come nerofumo, idrofluorocarburi, e metano. Un fondo limitato di 15 milioni di fondo è stato istituito per sostenere gli sforzi dei gruppi, ma emettitori pesanti come la Cina e l'India non è iscritto. Il monitoraggio e l'applicazione di cordoli emissioni: Monitoraggio a chiazze ma in miglioramento, l'applicazione trasparenza inesistente nella riduzione delle emissioni è diventato un relativamente nuova attenzione del regime sui cambiamenti climatici. Il piano d'azione di Bali ha adottato nuovi parametri di monitoraggio che richiedevano sia sviluppato e in via di sviluppo di impegnarsi per la mitigazione azioni che potrebbero essere misurati, ha riferito, e verificato (MRV). Rafforzato un po 'a Copenaghen, questo programma è stato promosso a Cancun, in cui il documento finale chiamato per la valutazione internazionale degli emissioni e gli assorbimenti relativi alla quantificati di riduzione delle emissioni obiettivi tutta l'economia per i paesi sviluppati in modo trasparente. Tuttavia, questo linguaggio in materia di esecuzione deve ancora essere accompagnato da un piano di attuazione, il che rende probabile una questione controversa per i futuri accordi internazionali sul clima. Il Durban Platform 2011 potrebbe aver creato ulteriore confusione per quanto riguarda l'applicazione degli accordi sul clima. Particolarmente ambiguo era la sua richiesta di un nuovo accordo con forza di legge per sostituire il protocollo di Kyoto, piuttosto che uno che è espressamente giuridicamente vincolante. Nell'ambito del quadro dell'UNFCCC corrente, i paesi sviluppati riferiscono le loro emissioni di ogni anno e in via di sviluppo dovrebbero riferire loro ogni sei anni. Emissioni scorte nei paesi sviluppati sono generalmente accettato di essere forti, e sono accettati come base per lo scambio internazionale delle emissioni (in cui gli errori delle emissioni di contabilità porterebbe a grandi trasferimenti finanziari). Segnalazione da parte di paesi in via di sviluppo è ampiamente considerato come molto più debole, e l'obbligo di segnalazione di sei anni è spesso violata. Le eccezioni sono progetti CDM, che vengono attentamente monitorati per determinare se la riduzione delle emissioni promessi vengano effettivamente raggiunti qui, il monitoraggio è ampiamente accettato di essere forte. Nel tentativo di migliorare il monitoraggio, nel 2009, l'UNFCCC ha prodotto un nuovo processo di pegno e revisione. Questa attività di processo paesi di pubblicare di riduzione delle emissioni obiettivi in linea con le loro capacità nazionali e poi presentare al monitoraggio internazionale sotto l'accordo di Copenaghen. Le barriere per migliorare il monitoraggio delle emissioni nei paesi in via di sviluppo sono di tre tipi. In primo luogo, molti di questi paesi non hanno la capacità interna di monitorare le proprie emissioni, il che rende il monitoraggio internazionale ancora più difficile. stime sulle emissioni esistenti sono generalmente estrapolazioni basate su uso di energia, e anche grandi paesi in via di sviluppo come la Cina e l'India, per esempio, non si conosce la loro produzione totale delle emissioni. Questa incertezza è aggravata nei paesi con le emissioni da deforestazione significativi perché i mezzi tecnici di misurare con precisione non esistono ancora tali emissioni. In secondo luogo, anche se i paesi in via di sviluppo sono in grado di monitorare le proprie emissioni, molti sono diffidenti che la segnalazione delle emissioni li avrebbe aperto alla pressione per coronare quelli emissionssomething hanno fortemente resistito. In terzo luogo, paesi come la Cina affermano pubblicamente che le concessioni per un sistema di monitoraggio verificabile a livello internazionale sono una diretta violazione della loro sovranità nazionale. Nonostante questi ostacoli, un accordo che si concentra sul monitoraggio delle emissioni potrebbe essere più facile da implementare rispetto un accordo sulla base di riduzione delle emissioni vincolanti. L'applicazione, nel frattempo, è essenzialmente inesistente. I paesi che non riescono a soddisfare i loro obiettivi di Kyoto sono tenuti per legge a sottrarre tale deficit (più una penale del 30 per cento), dai loro totale delle emissioni consentite nella prossima fase del protocollo. In pratica, però, questo non ha senso, dato che i futuri permesso emissioni non sono ancora stati negoziati. Se le regole di penalizzazione del Protocollo di Kyoto sono ancora in observedsomething questioncountries potrebbe semplicemente negoziare nuovi tappi che sono gonfiati di un importo che compensa la pena o solo formalmente ritirarsi dal l'accordo come il Canada ha fatto nel 2011. tagli delle emissioni di finanziamento: Opzioni concreti convogliare i fondi per frenare le emissioni e adattarsi al riscaldamento globale è una delle sfide più spinosi nella lotta contro i cambiamenti climatici. Il Fondo verde per il clima, di cui a Cancun per essere un hub centralizzato per finanziamenti per il clima, solo di recente concordato nel mese di ottobre 2011 su un progetto di piano per disperdere i fondi. Mentre la COP-17 ha fatto progressi nel chiarire la struttura di governance del Fondo verde per il clima, solo 50 milioni era stato promesso il finanziamento di semi. E, nonostante i paesi di cui all'allegato I aver mostrato una leadership significativa COP-16 della Convenzione ONU sul clima, impegnandosi per facilitare i finanziamenti privati e fornire il 100 miliardi di dollari all'anno in aiuti multilaterali nel 2020 e riconfermato il loro impegno a farlo al COP-18. Nonostante questo recommitment, tuttavia, un quadro è stato concordato per il finanziamento nel documento finale. Inoltre, alcuni critici sostengono che il finanziamento di 100 miliardi di assistenza dovrebbe essere una figura di base, in quanto è inferiore di quello in via di sviluppo richiedono. che si prevede di aumentare PDF a 300 miliardi di euro all'anno entro il 2020. Totale impegni per raggiungere i 30 miliardi di fondi a breve termine pegno per il 2012 hanno quasi raggiunto l'importo-obiettivo, ma i rapporti indicano che poco di questo rappresenta il denaro al di fuori degli aiuti precedentemente esistenti pacchetti PDF. Nel febbraio 2010, Segretario generale dell'ONU Ban Ki-moon ha istituito il gruppo ad alto livello consultivo sui cambiamenti climatici finanziamento di esplorare mezzi di realizzare Copenaghen promesse di finanziamento. I gruppi rapporto finale è stato rilasciato nel novembre 2010 e chiede che le tasse sulle emissioni, il commercio, e viaggi internazionali. Mentre le risposte politiche concrete in merito alla relazione sono stati per lo più poco brillante negli Stati Uniti, l'Unione europea ha istituito una tassa emissioni controverse su linee aeree che volano dentro e fuori del suo territorio UE, entrato in vigore nel gennaio 2012. Di recente, l'Agenzia Internazionale per l'Energia ( IEA) ha riferito che il raggiungimento degli obiettivi climatici entro il 2020 richiederebbe un investimento di circa 5 trilioni. La situazione diventa particolarmente fastidioso quando il trasferimento di denaro dai paesi industrializzati ai paesi in via di sviluppo entra in gioco. At the September 2009 G20 meeting in Pittsburgh, leaders proposed significant increases in funding to poor countries, but differences in how to achieve this goal led to a weak statement PDF that merely recognized the need for climate change financing (for which there was no follow-through at the Toronto G20 summit in June 2010). More recent pledges made at the UN climate conference in Cancun are short of the aspirations of some world leaders and lack details regarding their source and disbursement. Currently, some PDF climate change financing comes by way of official development assistance (ODA). Several multilateral funds have been established under the UNFCCC. the World Bank. and the GEF to provide grants and loans targeting specific aspects of climate change, ranging from adaptation to development of clean technology. However, by and large these funds are voluntary and have limited differences. Many experts have pointed to private investments as a way forward. Private investment has been critical in industrialized countries but much harder to come by in developing countries. The clean development mechanism (CDM), initially set up by the Kyoto Protocol, has been applauded for injecting private-sector funding for clean energy projects into developing countries and helping industrialized countries meet their emissions-cutting targets. However, the CDM has brought little benefit to areas most in need of clean energy, notably sub-Saharan Africa. Some economists and policymakers have proposed innovative solutions to the financing deficit such as a Tobin tax on financial transactions or a carbon tax on air transportation (the EU instituted the latter in 2012). The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has reported PDF that if all industrialized countries used carbon taxes or auctioned emissions-trading permits to reduce their emissions by 20 percent in 2020 relative to 1990 levels, fiscal revenues could reach 2.5 percent of GDP by 2020. Utilizing carbon sinks: Achievements in deforestation Approximately one-fifth of global emissions come from land use, including deforestation. Mitigating the effects of climate change will require looking at a broad set of alternatives, including leveraging tools inherent to our natural ecosystem. Forests provide natural carbon sinks that help mitigate the effects of carbon dioxide emissions. There are currently few initiatives that compensate countries that promote this natural process. Through the CDM, the UNFCCC regime provides carbon credits for afforestation and reforestation projects. Although this is a positive step, critically missing are incentives for forest conservation activities that would help reduce emissions from existing carbon stocks. In an effort to bridge this gap, numerous PDF bilateral and multilateral arrangements outside the UNFCCC framework have been created to provide assistance to developing countries in harnessing their carbon sinks. Negotiations at the fifteenth meeting of states party to the UN climate convention, for instance, secured a pledge for 3.5 billion to combat deforestation in developing countries, which complements an existing UN-REDD program funded by Norway, Denmark, and Spain. Additionally, the World Bank Forest Carbon Partnership Facility provides better forestry management and conservation. At the national level, some governments have established funds, such as Brazils Amazon Fund. and Burkina Fasos cash fx tree-planting program, which leverage private donations and government resources to provide incentives for the preservation of forests. Additionally, there has been some attention on promoting oceans as a natural carbon sink. However, scientific skepticism on the oceans ability to absorb carbon dioxide emissions remains. Promoting low-carbon development: Needs coherence, financial support, and developing-country buy-in Low-carbon development must be at the heart of any successful climate change mitigation effort. Yet it faces two distinct challenges. The world is not particularly good at development assistance beyond climate change, and it has no large-scale experience with low-carbon development. The Kyoto Protocol focused on promoting low-carbon development through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Although the CDM has undoubtedly resulted in some low-carbon investment that would not have otherwise occurred, it has not prompted fundamental shifts in development patterns. Alongside it, traditional development organizations have begun to invest in low-carbon development. The World Bank. for example, has ramped up climate-related spending, and the UNEP has set climate change as a priority in its capacity-building efforts. These efforts are constrained, however, by funding that is not commensurate with the scale of the challenge, as well as by deeper challenges in the development aid model. These international institutions are also not well coordinated, with occasionally weak mechanisms that can fail to complement each other. Another important path to low-carbon development is new technology, such as carbon capture and storage (CCS), which focuses on securing and storing carbon dioxide emissions before they are released into the atmosphere. Although this technology is still in its early stages, successful pilot projects offer hope of developing and implementing it for large-scale projects. Some countries are committed to implementing variations of it, and both bilateral and multilateral cooperation is under way. This cooperation is particularly important because implementing CCS on a large scale can be expensive and offers few obvious economic benefits. One of the major multilateral efforts in this area is the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF), which supports joint efforts to develop cost-effective carbon sequestration technology. At the bilateral level, the EU-China Partnership on Climate Change helps to develop Near-Zero Emissions Coal (NZEC) plants in China using CCS technology. The United States and China have also recently agreed to develop joint projects using CCS technology. Additionally, an international initiative, Futuregen. led by the U. S. Department of Energy, harnesses public and private-sector funds and expertise to help build near-zero emissions plants around the world. Renewable and nuclear energy will be critical in diminishing reliance on fossil fuels and developing low-carbon communities. Expectations for nuclear power as an alternative source of energy are especially high among big emitters such as India, China, and the United States, as well as in a number of developing countries that lack the necessary infrastructure to meet their growing energy needs. Since the nuclear incident in the wake of Japans March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, some of the support for nuclear power has declined. Currently, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) assists countries in determining whether nuclear energy is a feasible option. When nuclear energy is optimal, the agency assists with energy planning and developing relevant infrastructure, such as drafting nuclear legislation and establishing independent and effective safety regulators. However, given its limited resources, the IAEA will find it increasingly difficult to meet the growing demands for its services as more developing countries seek help in establishing nuclear facilities. There has also been significant international action on renewable energy. The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), founded in January 2009, is the first international forum for specifically promoting the use of renewable energy. The UNEP has launched several initiatives, including the Global Bioenergy Partnership (GBEP), to support the deployment of biomass and biofuels, and the Solar and Wind Energy Resource Assessment (SWERA), which seeks to make renewable energy data widely available. Despite these promising international efforts, only about 25 percent PDF of the worlds energy is produced through renewable and alternative sources (including hydroelectric, biomass, and nuclear). However, investment in these areas continues to increase PDF (rising seventeen percent to a total of 257 billion in 2011) and more and more countries are setting policy targets for using renewable energy. Another dimension of the solution is often ignored but is likely, in the long term, to be the most prominent: domestic policy reform in developing countries that encourages low-carbon investment. This might include steps like energy market reform or reduction of tariff barriers to low-carbon technology transfer. International institutions have begun to promote domestic policy shifts through measures like technical assistance provided by organizations like the UNEP and UNDP. discussions PDF on tariff reductions for environmentally friendly technologies through the WTO, and processes aimed at phasing out fossil fuel subsidies spurred through the G20. Some existing institutions, though, may incidentally work against positive developments in this area. The Kyoto Protocols CDM, for example, may discourage countries from making climate-friendly policy changes by rewarding countries only for activities that go beyond existing national policy. Complicating matters, efforts to promote policy shifts and efforts aimed at providing assistance with clean development are rarely coordinated with each other. Adapting to climate change: Addressed weakly and incidentally Adapting to climate change is currently being addressed incidentally through traditional development aid. Organizations like the World Bank and USAID are working to climate-proof their investments. Moreover, most traditional development aid (often aimed at areas like health and agriculture) will help countries become more resilient in a changing climate. Yet the perennial shortfalls in development assistanceboth financially and in having the desired policy impactmean that adaptation assistance invariably falls short as well. There have been targeted efforts to address adaptation in particular. The Kyoto Protocols Adaptation Fund. supported by a small tax on CDM credit sales, currently yields funds that are supposed to be spent on adaptation. The fund, however, is severely underfinanced and hobbled by its own bureaucratic governance. The GEF also administers several funds that target adaptation efforts. The Least Developed Countries Climate Fund (LDCF) and the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF) aim to address long-term efforts for the most vulnerable developing countries. Additionally, the World Bank Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR) works to integrate adaptation measures into development aid. National Adaptation Programs of Action under PPCR are underway in eighteen countries in the Caribbean, the Pacific, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. While the World Bank facilitates this and other Climate Investment Funds, it has also provided loans for coal power plants and other projects not friendly to the climate change agenda. Most of these efforts are not distinguishable from other development support, however, making it difficult for a separate adaptation fund to make a big difference in any case. The sixteenth Conference of Parties in Cancun developed a Cancun Adapation Framework (CAF) to raise the prominence of adaptation measures in the UNFCCCs efforts. The CAF also represented the first formal agreement to establish guidelines concerning capacity building in communities vulnerable to the effects of cliamte change. Adaptation financing, even after the COP-17 in Durban remains an ad hoc enterprise. Adaptation efforts are also hurt by the failure of the international community to generate precise predictions on the effects of climate change. The IPCC focuses on long-term projections and on regional or global analyses. Organizations like the UNDP help countries use broader projections in national adaptation planning, and national governments sometimes assist others in such efforts. Whether having governments and international institutions handle these projections offers any benefits is, however, still unclear. U. S. Climate Change Policy Issues The United States and the international community face a host of challenges on the domestic and international fronts in the attempt to build a more robust international climate regime. At home, progress has come to a virtual standstill after the failure of national cap-and-trade legislation. Abroad, the ultimate fate of the Kyoto Protocol looms large. The United States will need to decide whether to rely on state-by-state targets, participate in minilateral forums, or engage in multilateral negotiations for reducing emissions, among other questions. It must also decide whether it intends to pursue a legally binding climate agreement. Other policy issues straddle the domestic-international divide. Should the international community pursue a legally binding treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol Yes . Proponents of legally binding commitments, like the Kyoto Protocol, argue that they are the only way to guarantee that countries will cut their emissions. Proponents also argue that by ensuring that others meet their obligations, legally binding commitments help promote stronger action by all parties. Moreover, they note that in some cases, legal commitments are needed to serve as the basis for schemes involving large financial flows, such as carbon trading. They also point to the heritage of the Kyoto Protocol, which included legally binding commitments for developed countries, and argue that it would be a step backward to take a different route in the future. Moreover, withdrawing from efforts toward a binding accord would likely signal a retreat from the Durban Platform agreed to by 194 state parties in December 2011. Specifically, the COP-17 outcome document calls on states to develop a successor to the Kyoto Protocol with legal force by 2020. No . On the other hand, detractors of the Kyoto Protocol claim the emissions reduction model inherent to the accord is not tenable, and the outcome of the COP-17 meeting in Durban may prove the international community is trying to move away from using legally binding emissions targets. Objections to including legally binding commitments at the center of an international climate deal take at least four forms. Some argue that enforcing climate commitments is extremely difficult and that, as a result, the legal nature of commitments may not be meaningful. Thus, they counsel against investing the extra effort normally required to devise a legally binding arrangement. Others argue that because climate commitments may turn out to be difficult or impossible, they should not be made legally binding, thus avoiding the risk of noncompliance. A frequent counterpart to this argument is the claim that because countries are concerned about noncompliance, they will tend to focus on making weak commitments in the first place freeing them from concerns about being legally bound might also free them to do more. While some accept the prospect of legally binding commitments for Annex-I countries like the United States in principle, they argue that all major economies or all countries should make similar commitments. If those same analysts also believe that major developing countries will not make legally binding commitmentsa widely shared viewthen they conclude that major greenhouse gas emitters like the United States should not make such commitments either. Canadas December 2011 decision to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol reflects this line of thinking. Should the United States focus its resources on minilateral forums rather than the UN climate framework Yes . Some say that progress on global climate change requires a joint strategy among the small number of actors responsible for the lions share of the worlds carbon dioxide emissions, including China (25.3 percent), the United States (17.8 percent), the European Union (14.2 percent), and a handful of other developed and emerging economies. The United States and other major economies have already begun to turn to smaller, less formal frameworks, including the Group of Twenty (G20), the Major Economies Forum (MEF), and the Climate Change Forumwhich some analysts point to as alternatives to the United Nations. These arenas allow large emitters to confront tricky issues and hammer out viable strategies without having to engage all 193 members of the United Nations. If the United States focuses its attention on minilateral forums with important players, it may achieve meaningful emissions control targets, as well as financial commitments for mitigation and technological development. Moreover, the United States can use the MEF and similar minilateral forums to complement the UNFCC process by negotiating realistic multilateral agreements that can subsequently be legitimated at the UN level. No . Others argue that the breadth of its membership and depth of its history makes the UN climate framework the bedrock of the international climate regime. Climate change is a global threat that requires input from the worlds most vulnerable nationsnot just the worlds largest emitters. Experience suggests that major emitting nations may use minilateral forums not to drive concrete action but to avoid binding emissions reductions and other sacrifices to address climate change. By focusing on minilateral forums. the United States diverts its limited resources from the UN climate negotiations, which are the most legitimate basis for global action. Any climate negotiations that exclude the majority of the worlds countries would be difficult to implement and inherently flawed. Still, others note that focusing on the minilateral versus broader UN forums may obscure focus on adequate levels of political will to address climate change. Should the United States focus on state-by-state targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions Yes . Proponents of this idea note that climate change action at the federal level is no longer a politically feasible goal within the United States. Efforts to enact cap-and-trade systems in the United States, such as the McCain-Lieberman and Lieberman-Warner legislation, have failed. The House ultimately passed the Waxman-Markey bill in June 2009, which would have capped greenhouse emissions at 17 percent of 2005 levels and provided increased investment for clean energy technology, but the U. S. Senate failed to agree on a matching cap-and-trade bill. Furthermore, even relatively minor climate change mitigation regulations have faced bipartisan resistance, with issues like cap-and-trade and a carbon tax basically disappearing from political debate. In October 2011, the Housepassed a measure through a bipartisan voice vote, which would order U. S. airliners to not pay fees associated with a new EU emissions tax on air travel scheduled to take effect in January 2012. The nine-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and the Western Climate Initiative (WCI) also provide evidence that the fifty states are capable of crafting their own climate change plans moulded to the particularities of their geography, resources, and region. The WCI, launched in 2007 by six U. S. states and four Canadian provinces along the western rim of North America, illustrates an effort to tackle climate change at the regional level. According to its design, the WCI forms working committees, which recommend policies aimed at collectively reducing greenhouse gas emissions among member states and provinces. Relying on a cap-and-trade system, WCI members aim to reduce regional greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent from 2005 levels by 2020. No . Opponents argue that the rest of the world is looking to the United States to act on climate change, and that pursuing national level reformeven if during the global financial crisiscould give the United States credibility and leverage in this area. Since the failure of cap-and-trade, no significant climate change legislation has passed the House or Senate, calling U. S. global leadership in this area into question. Many climate change analysts also point to criticism regarding the inaction of the United States during the COP-17 as evidence that the climate change issue may be negatively affecting perceptions of U. S. global leadership. Furthermore, some would also suggest that the December 2011 decision by Canada to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol has placed the entire global climate change regime in jeopardy. Opponents of a state-by-state strategy also point to New Jerseys decision in 2011 to unilaterally pull out of the RGGI and Arizonas move in 2010 to leave the Western Climate Initiative as evidence that a state-by-state approach to reducing emissions in the United States is too risky of a strategy to rely on. In short, a top-down approach, rather than bottom-up alternatives, is likely to be more effective, and more enforceable . Finally, those calling for a national level reprioritization of the issue of climate change in the United States point to the recent passage of carbon tax legislation in another Annex 1 country, Australia, as evidence to support their position. Should international carbon trading be a central part of U. S. climate change strategy Yes . Proponents of using international carbon trading argue that it lowers PDF compliance costs for U. S. companies by allowing them to buy cheap emissions-reduction credits from abroad in lieu of cutting their own emissions. In addition, trading based on either project-based offsets or broader schemes with relatively high baselines could also channel large amounts of money to developing countries. Many believe that such transfers are the only way to induce deep cuts in developing countries emissions. Some also make a political argument for trading: integrating countries emissions-cutting programs into a global market would make it more difficult for any country to back away from its obligations. Supporters of international carbon trading differ on the forms of trading they support. Some support all optionsproject-based offsets. program-based offsets. sectoral trading. and economy-wide trading. Others support only certain variations, most commonly ones with wider scope such as sectoral or economy-wide options. No . Opponents of international carbon trading make a variety of arguments. Some object to any efforts to transfer significant sums of money to developing countries, and hence oppose carbon trading. Others support such efforts but argue that they could often be done more effectively through large public funds rather than through carbon markets. Some support carbon trading in principle, but object on the basis that many such systems are unworkable in practice. They point to the experience of the CDM, a part of the Kyoto Protocol that allows developed countries to pay for emissions-cutting projects in developing countries in lieu of reducing their emissions. The CDM has been widely criticized as inefficient and as including many projects that would have occurred anyhow. Some who criticize it believe that its problems can be fixed by moving to other schemes for carbon trading others disagree. A final group opposes international carbon trading on ethical grounds, arguing that developed countries have a moral obligation to reduce their emissions and that avoiding that obligation by paying others is wrong. Should the world agree to country-by-country targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions Yes . Agreeing on country-by-country targets has become the primary goal of recent climate change negotiations. Proponents of assigning greenhouse gas emissions targets to all countries maintain that they are needed to ensure that aggregate global emissions do not exceed dangerous thresholds. They take their cue from the Kyoto Protocol and its recent extension until 2017 or 2020, which focuses on a targets and timetables approach for developed countries. Some experts argue that it would be helpful to develop emissions-reduction goals for major emitters by setting short-term timetables and by targeting specific sectors. Limiting emissions intensity based on the production process instead of setting absolute targets could also prove beneficial. Beyond these points, many note that country-by-country targets are essential to enabling full-blown global carbon trading schemes (which could reduce the cost of cutting global emissions) and argue that it is only fair for all countries to adopt targets if some do so. No . Following the failure of the Copenhagen Accord, as well as a lack of agreement on a new legally binding emisssions treaty at the COP-17, some argue that it may be impossible to garner international consensus on country-specific emissions cuts. Capacity and verification also remain issues in developing countries, making it difficult to implement policies that control ultimate emissions (such as cap-and-trade systems). Others support global emissions cutsoften stronglybut argue that adopting targets is not necessary to achieving that end. They contend that international discussions should be focused on suites of emissions-cutting policies and measures (policy inputs) rather than on emissions (policy outcomes). Should trade sanctions be used to enforce climate change rules Yes . Climate change agreements are notoriously weak on enforcement. The Kyoto Protocol technically included penalties for noncompliance in practice, though, those penalties have not been enforced. Some have turned to trade sanctions as an enforcement tool, arguing that border adjustment tariffs are the appropriate sanction for noncompliance. These would, ostensibly, impose costs on imports from countries with weak climate regulation equal to the costs those countries avoid through lax regulation. Some also argue that implementing a cap-and-trade system in the United States would politically require border adjustment provisions to compensate for productivity losses stemming from rising energy costs. Domestic legislation taking this factor into account passed in the House, but failed to get through the Senate. It is yet to be seen, however, how to implement these provisions without violating rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Others argue such a system would be too weak to prompt appropriate behavior, and push for more punitive sanctions. Proponents of using sanctions for enforcement are also split over whether such sanctions must be part of an international agreement or might be imposed unilaterally. Those in the first school argue that internationally approved sanctions are more credible as a threat and less likely to disrupt the broader global trading system. They also contend that unilateral sanctions would be too weak. Those in the latter camp doubt that appropriate sanctions could be built into an international agreement and think that sanctions are worth pursuing unilaterally . No . Opponents of using sanctions argue that they are ineffective and that they could create problems for broader trade and climate efforts. They assert that border adjustment tariffs would target only a limited part of a countrys economy (energy-intensive exports) and would impose a penalty smaller than the value of noncompliance. Regardless of their efficacy, many object to unilateral sanctions on legal grounds. They argue that punitive sanctions would violate global trade rules. More controversially, some also argue that border adjustment tariffs, done unilaterally, would violate WTO rules. Either of these options, they contend, would not only cause harm to global trade, but also poison the political environment for international climate negotiations and cooperation. Most agree, though, that multilateral sanctions, if made part of an international climate agreement, could be designed to withstand WTO scrutiny. Recent Developments December 2013: GCF opens in Korea In December 2013, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) opened its headquarters in Songdo, South Korea. The GCF was originally established as a result of the C0P-16 negotiations in Cancun, Mexico. It is designed to manage annual commitments that will escalate to a combined 100 billion by 2020 for adaptation. Developed countries have pledged to provide this assistance to developing countries to help them adapt to the impacts of climate change and achieve their own emissions reduction targets. Though the opening of a physical headquarters was a welcome first step, it remained difficult to determine whether contributions to date by developed countries were genuinely additional allocations to this effort, or simply reapportionment of previously allocated financial resources. November 2013: COP-19 in Warsaw In November 2013, the nineteenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change convened in Warsaw, Poland. Longstanding disagreements between industrialized and developing countries continued to obstruct efforts to reach consensus on international emissions reduction targets. Still, the establishment of the Warsaw Mechanism for Loss and Damage was a sign of progress. This mechanism may mobilize support for overcoming these disagreements between industrialized and developing countries by providing a substantive means for the former to render assistance to the latter for adaptation to the impacts of climate change. This momentum could prove critical to realizing the full potential of the 2014 COP in Lima, Peru and ultimately the 2015 COP in Paris, France. September 2013: IPCCC publishes carbon budget In September 2013, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a draft of its working group report that will ultimately be released as part of the IPCC 5th Assessment Report. The report articulated a target threshold of one million metric tons for the planets human population in order to impede global warming in excess of 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit from a preindustrial baseline. If warming exceeds that temperature, the panel warned of perilous consequences across the entirety of the climate system. Remarkably, the IPCC estimates the remainder of this carbon budget will be completely expended by the year 2045. Indeed, the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration of the United States earlier the same year logged measurements that indicated atmospheric carbon dioxide had reached an average daily level in excess of 400 parts per milliona level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that is not believed to have been reached in the preceding three million years. May 2013: Human causes of climate change A survey has found that 97 percent of scientific studies on climate change conclude human activity, due to the consumption of fossil fuels, is causing global warming. The survey, published in Environmental Research Letters, examined the work of nearly 12,000 peer-reviewed research papers published over the last two decades. Of these, over 4,000 papers took a position on the causes of climate change, of which 0.7 percent disputed the consensus of anthropogenic-induced warming. A further 2.2 percent argued that the science is unclear one way or another. Our findings prove that there is a strong scientific agreement about the cause of climate change, says survey director John Cook, despite public perceptions to the contrary. Indeed, a public opinion survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in October 2012 reported that only 45 percent of Americans held the belief that scientists agree Earth is getting warmer because of human activity. April 2013: China to cut HCFCs The Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol struck an agreement with the Chinese government on the elimination of the industrial production of ozone-depleting substances (ODS). In exchange for 385 million over a seventeen-year period, China committed to retiring all production capacity of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) by 2030. Beijing also agreed to retire any surplus capacity of HCFCs that is not currently in use. China is the worlds largest producer and consumer of HCFCs. Since ratification of the Montreal Protocol in 1987, state parties have eliminated ninety-seven percent of ODS, and HCFCs represent one of the last remaining sources of ozone pollution that the Protocol aims to curb. April 2013: California-Canadian initiative On April 22, the State of California officially linked its cap-and-trade program with a similar scheme in Quebec province. Established in 2006 under a landmark global warming law (AB 32), Californias program places a price on carbon emissions and allows companies to buy and sell carbon credits issued at state auctions. Under the merger. which formally begins on January 1, 2014, California businesses will be able to use Quebecs permits and Californias permits will be valid in Quebec. Options for Strengthening the Climate Change Regime The multi-faceted threats posed by climate change demand policies that address both mitigation and adaptation. Operationally, this will require a variety of flexible partnerships among national, bilateral, and multilateral actors, and a combination of short-term and long-term strategies. These recommendations reflect the views of Stewart M. Patrick. director of the program on international institutions and global governance. While the Durban Platform. approved by nearly two hundred countries in December 2011, may have provided a small window of breathing room concerning the development of a successor accord to the Kyoto Protocol, much work remains to be done. In moving towards a postKyoto agreement due to come into force in 2020, the international community should remain cognizant of certain trends that emerged during and immediately after the COP-17. This, for one, includes acknowledging growing cracks among countries in the developing world regarding accepting binding emissions targetsan issue of critical concern to small island developing states in the Pacific and other areas. These fissures should be explored as much as possible to both create a global consensus regarding the creation of major greenhouse gas emissions targets and to isolate intransigent countries. Second, the global financial crisis cannot become a catch-all excuse to avoid meeting pledges for global climate change finance mechanisms like the Green Climate Fund. While the 50 million in seed money promised during the COP-17 is an excellent start, moremuch moreis needed as the environmental effects of climate change become increasingly apparent around the world. Importantly, the narrative among developed economies must change because waiting to act will be substantially more costly than action now. Third, the international community must not let its existing accomplishments on climate changesuch as the Kyoto Protocol itselffall by the wayside as it struggles to develop new alternatives for a comprehensive climate change accord. Canadas December 2011 decision to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol should be interpreted as a crystal clear warning that the agreement is increasingly at risk of unraveling. As a result, countries such as the United States, China, and India need to place a fresh emphasis on their commitments to combat climate change, including providing clear, reasonable, and practical indications as to their expectations for a post-Kyoto accord. Even though the Durban Platforms call for a 2020 accordwhich would apply both to developed and developing stateswith legal force does not necessarily imply legally binding, the time for big emitters like the United States to simply stay the course on climate change has expired. Reform, Refresh, and Renew the Clean Development Mechanism The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) has come under fire on many fronts. Some have argued that too many nonadditional projects (those that would have reduced emissions even without the CDM) have been approved others argue that the project approval process is too stringent. And others have argued that because it has no legal life beyond Kyoto, it will fail to bring about lasting results. These criticisms have on various occasions been right. Scrapping the CDM entirely is not likely to be politically feasible, especially considering the COP-17 decision to extend the Kyoto Protocol for at least another five years. Reforming the CDM will thus be necessary to ensure that money is not wasted and that large volumes of offset credits remain available. The international community should reform CDM to focus on the least developed countries and on activities that are unquestionably additional. It should focus on sector-based trading for other countries. This could allow crediting for sectors that beat aggressive preset baselines, without penalizing them for exceeding those baselines. At the same time, the UNFCCC will need to work on streamlining the CDM approval process. Ideally, the CDM bureaucracy could be substantially reduced if CDM governance were shifted more to the countries providing funds. The recent announcement of a year-long CDM reform consultation process process as well as the decision during the COP-17 in Durban to formally include carbon capture storage projects under the CDM are significant first steps. However, both must be followed by firm policy action to keep the CDM relevant and economically sustainable. Force progress in U. S. domestic climate change policy The failure to pass comprehensive U. S. climate legislation, with a sweeping carbon cap-and-trade at its base, is a significant setback to U. S. mitigation efforts. Cutting U. S. emissions remains an essential step toward a climate-change solution at home and abroad, providing not only an environmentally sound solution to the problem, but giving the United States leverage in international bargaining as well. The increasingly intractable position of the United States became more apparent during the COP-17 meeting in Durban. There, the United States faced nearly universal criticism for not showing the leadership necessary to address climate change. While a cap-and-trade system remains ideal, deep cuts in U. S. emissions can be pursued in a variety of ways, including energy-efficiency regulations, subsidies for renewable energy, and tax incentives for low-carbon technologies. Effort to reach consensus on these solutions should be pursued in the short term, keeping in mind that a broad-based and economy-wide price on carbon is essential to driving the very deep emissions cuts that will be needed through 2050 and beyond at a reasonable economic cost. Facing a divided Congress and significant pressure to reduce the federal deficit, President Obama seems to have limited options with regard to advancing an effective domestic climate change policy nonetheless the picture is far from hopeless. One way for Obama to force progress is to issue more executive orders and administrative rulemakings to partially substitute for Congressional opposition to his climate and energy agenda. Working through the EPA and the Clean Air Act, he could enact tougher rules that would cut carbon pollution from power plants and mitigate the potential effects of the failure to enact a national cap-and-trade program. An agreement reached with the auto industry in July 2011 to double fuel standards to fifty-four miles per gallon by 2025 is also a step in the right direction, provided that its stipulations are enforced. Other significant measures the administration can take include government procurement of renewable energy and energy-efficient products and services, and reductions in subsidies for fossil fuel-related research and extraction. Perhaps one of the most significant steps President Obama can take towards realizing his climate change policy is to strike a deal with China to reduce global emissions of CO2. The two nations combined account for 40 percent of the worlds carbon pollution, so a bilateral agreement could mollify Obamas opponents in Congress and encourage other nations to follow suit. In the longer term, the United States and its international partners should consider the following steps: Build a credible institution or institutions for measuring, reporting, and verifying global emissions and emissions-cutting efforts Countries will not make strong efforts to reduce emissions unless they are confident that others are playing their part. Nor will wealthier countries provide financial or technological assistance to poorer counterparts unless they are confident that the efforts they support will actually be implemented. This demands robust institutional capacity to verify that countries are making the cuts and investing in the emissions-cutting actions that they claim to be. The precise approach to this could take multiple forms. with the task falling primarily to the international level at one extreme, and domestic institutions at the other. At a minimum, an international institution will need to aggregate national-level reporting this might usefully happen under the aegis of the UNFCCC. Other lessons in monitoring and verification might be learned from experience with the WTO, IMF, and OECD. Reform Bretton Woods and UN institutions Institutions that support global economic development have a large potential role in promoting low-carbon growth and adaptation to climate change. The World Bank. along with the regional development banks, has unique capacity to mobilize large amounts of capital for the sorts of investments that will be needed in low-carbon infrastructure. Several UN organizations, such as the United Nations Development Program and United Nations Environment Program. lack the ability to handle such large infrastructure projects but can play a major role in building relevant capacity in developing countries. All these organizations would benefit from both clear strategies for supporting climate action and increased related funding. They might also, more controversially, consider promoting policy shifts through conditionality on their assistance. For example, the World Bank might condition assistance in increasing energy supply on efforts to moderate demand through subsidy reform. Such steps would be difficult politically but would not be unprecedented. Set up substantial international funds for low-carbon technology finance International financial transfers in support of low-carbon development have occurred principally through carbon finance (i. e. offsets). Yet offsets are often an inefficient way of financially supporting low-carbon development. Many countries lack the capacity to administer robust offset systems yet could benefit from financial support for emissions-cutting activities. Offset schemes also often overpay, sometimes massively, for reductions dedicated funds could remove that waste. Funds can also be targeted at eliminating specific problems that stand in the way of private financial flows, by offering tailored products like risk guarantees and concessional loans. Funds can also target opportunities that are difficult to quantify for the purposes of offsets, such as investments in public transportation and long-distance grid infrastructure, or avoided deforestation, where measuring emissions changes is difficult. Make climate change a regular Group of Twenty agenda item Dealing with climate change will require high-level political leadership and deal-making of a sort that is difficult to achieve through formal negotiations with the 194 parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change by dedicated climate diplomats alone. Smaller gatherings that include heads of state and powerful cabinet ministers have the potential to unlock less rigid forms of cooperation and to find opportunities to trade across issue areas. Such meetings also provide a regular spotlight that can help hold leaders accountable for past promises in the absence of strong formal compliance mechanisms. The Group of Twenty (G20) has effectively replaced the Group of Eight (G8) as the main multilateral consultative forum for economic decision-making. Climate issues will largely be transferred there, though in the short term the G20 will remain primarily focused on finance as it was during its most recent summit in November 2011. The United States and other big emitters should likewise continue regular meetings of the Major Economies Forum, as a minilateral negotiating framework paralleland complementaryto the ongoing UNFCCC process.10:19 pm Grana y Montero categorically denies statements from former representative of Odebrecht Jorge Barata ( GRAM ). quotWe categorically deny such statements and reiterate that our Company and executives were not aware of, participated in, nor made any payments in connection with any type of bribe or reimbursement of any such payments made by Odebrecht. Likewise, and with the same firmness, we reiterate our willingness to continue cooperating with the investigations regarding this case, with the utmost interest in letting the truth be known. quot 7:47 pm This weeks biggest gainerslosers (:WRAPX). The following are this weeks top 20 percentage gainers and top 20 percentage losers, categorized by sectors (over 300 mln market cap and 100K average daily volume). This weeks top 20 gainers Healthcare: LNTH (12.73 34.66), CYH (9.22 33.62), AXDX (26.6 14.9), THC (21.99 13.53), SRPT (31.95 12.98)Materials: TROX (17.4 20.67)Industrials: GNK (11.36 15.1), SBLK (9.5 15.01), FIX (38.65 14.86)Consumer Discretionary: PLKI (79.02 19.51), RH (31.34 16.85), TV (26.44 14.41), LL (17.39 13.22), GNC (8.63 12.96)Information Technology: KEM (11 36.48), AAOI (46.22 24.01), SQ (17.43 20.46), UCTT (14.66 20.26), CNDT (16.97 12.98), OLED (81.5 12.96)This weeks top 20 losers Healthcare: TRVN (4 -43.9), MNTA (15.5 -18.42), AMRI (15.21 -18.27), AMPH (15.19 -17.45), BCRX (5.51 -16.01)Materials: NAK (1.55 -31.42), HCLP (17.35 -18.54)Industrials: GRAM (3.32 -35.03)Consumer Discretionary: ENT (4.31 -30.71)Information Technology: SREV (4.01 -31.22), ACIA (54.03 -18.86), OCLR (9.23 -16.29)Financials: OCN (4.24 -19.08)Energy: BPT (21.3 -27.92), FMSA (9.93 -17.59), PKD (1.95 -17.02), QEP (14.05 -16.72), AROC (13.35 -15.51), SWN (7.35 -15.32) 7:20 pm Platinum Group Metals confirms the retirement of Mr. Peter Busse as Chief Operating Officer as previously announced - replacement will be appointed in due course. ( PLG ). 7:00 pm Renesas announced the completion of Renesas acquisition of Intersil CorporatioN ( ISIL ) ( RNECF ). As previously announced in September 2016, Renesas anticipates that near - and long-term revenue expansion opportunities combined with the modest anticipated cost efficiencies associated with greater scale will eventually generate synergies of US170 million (approximately 17 billion yen at an exchange rate of 100 yen to the dollar). The transaction is expected to immediately increase Renesas gross and operating margins and be accretive to Renesas non-GAAP earnings per share and free cash flows after closing. 6:40 pm Banro provides update on the pROGRESSION OF THE RECAPITALIZATION ( BAA ). Banro reports that, as contemplated by the terms of the Recapitalization, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has issued the interim order which, among other things, authorizes the Company to convene meetings of holders of its US175 million senior secured notes and Banros series A preference shares and series B preference shares to approve, among other things, the previously announced corporate plan of arrangement. The Company also intends to hold a meeting of holders of its common shares to approve, among other things, the Recapitalization. The meetings are scheduled to be held on March 31, 2017.As the Existing Notes are contemplated to be exchanged pursuant to the terms of the Plan of Arrangement as described above, it is not intended to make the principal repayment on the Existing Notes on March 1, 2017 and the Existing Notes are expected to remain outstanding until the implementation of the Recapitalization, which implementation is expected to occur in early to mid-April 2017. The Interim Order also provides a stay whereby, until the earlier of April 30, 2017 and the date the Recapitalization is implemented, any person, including the holders of the Existing Notes, is stayed from exercising certain rights or remedies, including rights or remedies arising as a result of the commencement of proceedings under the CBCA or any default or cross default under the Existing Notes, against or in respect of the Company or any of its material subsidiaries or any of their respective properties or assets. 6:14 pm FireEye on radar after confirming participation at three upcoming investor coNFERENCES (FREQUENTLY THE TARGET OF MampA SPECULATION) ( FEYE ). Co announced participation in upcoming investor conferences. Morgan Stanley Technology Media and Telecom Conference on February 27, Pacific Crest Emerging Technology Summit February 28, JMP Securities 2017 Technology Conference February 28. 6:02 pm Raytheon confirms it was awarded 1,066,297,129 contract to pROVIDE THE STATE OF QATAR WITH EARLY WARNING RADAR SYSTEM (SEE 17:09) ( RTN ). 6:01 PM CELANESE WILL INCREASE THE PRICE OF VINYL ACETATE-BASED EMULSIONS SOLD IN CHINA ( CE ). The price for VAE emulsions sold in China will increase by 240MT effective February 23, 2017, or as contracts otherwise allow. This price increase affects all applications for VAE emulsions including, but not limited to, adhesives, paints and coatings, waterproofing, building and construction and carpet. 4:31 PM SYCAMORE PARTNERS HAS ACQUIRED THE LIMITEDS BRAND AND OTHER RELATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ASSETS ( XRT ). The intellectual property was purchased through a competitive auction run by The Limited as part of its ongoing Chapter 11 proceedings in the U. S. BANKRUPTCY COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF DELAWARE. 4:24 PM EQUITY ONE STOCKHOLDERS ALSO APPROVED REGENCY CENTERS ( REG ) merger today transaction expected to close on March 1 (see 10:46) ( EQY ). 4:23 pm Closing Market Summary: Afternoon Rally Leaves Averages with Modest Gains (:WRAPX) : The stock market held a modest loss throughout the majority of Fridays session, but the cautious sentiment was just an illusion as bulls bought the dip and pushed the stock market into the green during the final minutes of the session. The SampP 500 (0.2) and the Nasdaq (0.2) eked out slim gains while the Dow (0.1) finished just above its flat line to record its 11th consecutive record close. Outside of an opening dip, todays session was rather range-bound as the market cut its initial loss in half and traded in sideways fashion until an afternoon charge into the green. Equity indices did show some life around noon following a report that Gary Cohn, who is the chief economic adviser to President Trump, indicated that the White House does not support the House GOP version of a border adjustment tax. This was construed as a positive for retailers given that they import so much of their merchandise for sale in the United States hence, their earnings prospects would be likely to suffer. Retail stocks surged to new highs following the initial report, but gave back a portion of those gains after the White House denied the reports validity, saying Mr. Cohns comment was taken out of context. Still, the SPDR SampP 500 Retail ETF (XRT 43.73, 0.63) closed Friday 1.5 higher as earnings news provided a sturdy backstop. Nordstrom (JWN 46.46, 2.52) jumped 5.7 after its better than expected earnings overshadowed a miss on revenues and below-consensus guidance. Foot Locker (FL 75.01, 6.43) and Gap (GPS 24.70, 0.73) also finished higher, adding 9.4 and 3.1, respectively. FLs strength stemmed from its better than expected earnings while GPS overcame below-consensus earnings guidance with an otherwise in-line report. Consumer discretionary (0.4) and consumer staples (0.4) rode the bullish retail sentiment to finish Friday higher. The industrial sector (0.5) closed with a similar gain, drawing strength from aerospace amp defense names after President Trump vowed to implement one of the quotgreatest military buildups in American historyquot on Friday morning. On the downside, financials (-0.8) and energy (-0.9) finished the day at the bottom of the leaderboard. Financials saw some pressure amid the continued uncertainty around the scope and the timing of a tax reform plan while energys downtick was influenced crude oils 0.9 slide. The energy component closed the week at 53.97bbl. U. S. Treasuries finished the week on a positive note, closing Friday near their three-month highs. The benchmark 10-yr yield finished six basis points lower at 2.31. The rate-sensitive utilities (1.4) sector closed at the top of the days leaderboard as investors relished the slip in interest rates. The remaining sectors--technology, materials, health care, telecom services, and real estate--closed with gains between 0.2 and 0.7. Todays economic data included January New Home Sales and the final reading of the University of Michigan Sentiment Index for February: New Home Sales in January hit an annualized rate of 555,000, which was above the revised December rate of 535,000 (from 536,000), and less than the 566,000 that was expected by the Briefing consensus. The key takeaway from the report is that high prices continue to impede stronger sales activity at the lower end of the new home market. That point is borne out in the fact that homes priced 299,999 or less accounted for 44 of new homes sold in January 2017 versus 53 in January 2016.The final reading of the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for February rose to 96.3 (Briefing consensus 95.8) from 95.7 in the preliminary reading. The key takeaway from the report is that overall consumer confidence is high, yet there are clear splits along party lines with respect to the economic outlook. That understanding, it was noted, creates an expectation that there will be greater volatility and discretionary spending differences across subgroups. On Monday, investors will receive January Durable Orders (Briefing consensus 1.8) and January Pending Home Sales (Briefing consensus 0.9). The two reports will cross the wires at 8:30 am ET and 10:00 am ET, respectively. Nasdaq Composite 8.6 YTDSampP 500 5.7 YTDDow Jones Industrial Average 5.4 YTD Russell 2000 2.8 YTD Week in Review: Friday Uptick Helps Secure Fifth Consecutive Weekly Gain The stock market appeared to be in jeopardy of recording its first down week in a month, but a recovery on Friday afternoon helped the SampP 500 add 0.7 for the week, extending its first quarter gain to 5.7. Equity indices motored higher to start the week, but investor sentiment soured a bit on Thursday, after Axios reported that Republican lawmakers are likely to delay a decision on infrastructure spending until 2018, givING CONGRESS TIME TO FOCUS ON TAX AND HEALTH CARE REFORM IN 2017. THE NEWS WEIGHED ON CONSTRUCTION AND ENGINEERING NAMES WITH CATERPILLAR ( CAT ) falling 3.3 during the final two sessions of the week. However, the overall stock market took the news in stride, which was impressive, considering pro-growth policies were cited for the post-election charge that lifted the SampP 500 to a fresh record. The market did see some selling on Friday morning, but dip buyers helped the benchmark index turn positive by the close. The past week was very quiet on the economic front, but investors did receive the most recent policy minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee. The minutes acknowledged that a rate hike will be in order fairly soon, if incoming data on jobs and inflation remains in line with expectations. It is worth noting that some members of the FOMC expressed concern that low volatility in equity markets is inconsistent with considerable uncertainty attached to the outlook for changes to the fiscal landscape. The CBOE Volatility Index (:VIX) held its ground in the 11.50 area, ending the week well below its 200-day moving average (13.80). Rate hike expectations saw limited movement during the past week. The implied likelihood of a hike in May ticked up to 50.4 from last weeks 44.1 while the implied probability of a rate hike in June slipped to 66.5 from last Fridays 69.9. 4:21 PM FIRSTENERGY EXPECTS TWO UNITS AT ITS BRUCE MANSFIELD PLANT TO RESTART EARLY NEXT WEEK FOLLOWING A SHORT OUT-OF-SERVICE PERIOD THAT BEGAN MID-FEBRUARY ( FE ). Restart activities at Units 1 and 3, each with a capacity of 830 megawatts, will begin this weekend. While the units were offline, Bruce Mansfields 350 employees completed routine daily maintenance work that supports ongoing safe and reliable operation. Unit 2, also with an 830-megawatt capacity, will remain out of service as maintenance on plant equipment is compLETED. 4:15 PM TRANSDIGM GROUP PRICES OFFERING OF 300 MLN OF ADDITIONAL 6.500 SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES DUE 2025 WILL BE ISSUED AT A PRICE OF 101.500 OF THEIR PRINCIPAL AMOUNT ( TDG ). 4:07 pm Events of interest for next week. Events and conferences of interest for next week, February 27 - March 3rd, are listed below. For a complete list of next weeks events, please see the . Monday JPMorgan Global High Yield and Leveraged Finance Conference (Feb 27-March 1st)Scheduled to appear: PBH, SBGI, S, PTC, CXO, RYI, DCP, CC, TTMI, COT, SEE, SIRI, SCI, TEN, OLN, MSCI, MNI, MD, MDCA, GLT, HLS, SSNC, AXE Conference Information Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecom Conference (Feb 27-March 2nd)Notable cos to present: NTAP, SAP, TV, CBS. A, TRIP, HIVE, GRPN, CBB, PYPL, SPLK, TMUS, CBS, MSFT, MB, LAMR, RPD, DST, GDDY, P, CALD, GOOG, GOOGL, CMCSA, CTXS, TEAM, IMAX, JIVE, VZ, NATI, CSCO, HPE, FB, SNI, FTNT, LRCX, CY, ZEN, ADBE, AMAT, CNK, INFN, EA, ANET, MRVL, NEWR, PFPT, RNG, GLW, CCI, EIGI, MXIM, CSOD, NLSN, SYMC, NOW, HPQ, ZNGA, WDAY, LVLT, CTL, VIA, VIAB, NVDA, IBM, NTCT, STX, TNET, SWKS, SALE, FWONA, VRNS, VMW, OUT, MDSO, XLNX, DBD, ACIA, WK, CHTR, INST, TRVG, QLYS, YELP, MSCC, CA, NWS, SNPS, CTSH, SSNC, PI, EGHT, PI, IMPV, EFII, BV, LYV, VSAT, TYL, DATA, ATEN, PEGA, APTI, DLB, ARRS, MSTR, PTC, IPHI, TLND, SABR, MU, BOX, ELLI, V, ATHN, CDNS, PANW Keefe, Bruyette and Woods Cards, Payments amp Financial Technology SymposiumScheduled to appear: DFS, AXP, ADS, MA, GPN, V, WEX ( Conference Agenda ) Tuesday Credit Suisse 2017 Global Healthcare Conference (Feb 28- March 1st)Scheduled to appear: ACIU, ALIOY, AAAP, ALDR, ALKS, LBTSF, AZN, BSLN, BAYRY, CS, FSNUY, GLPG, GMXAY, GSK, IPHYF, IPSEY, LZAGY, MRK, NVS, NVO, ORINY, QGEN, REGN, ROVI, SNY, SNN, SONVY, STDAF, WILYY, CHMP Evercore ISI Annual Industrial ConferenceNotable cos to present: CAT, CMI, KMT, ITW, URI President Trump to give address to joint session of Congress at 21:00 ET Wednesday BTIG Medical Technology, Diagnostics, and Healthcare Conference (March 1st-2nd)Scheduled to appear: VREX, MMSI, VRAY, HQY, VNRX, CFMS, INGN, NVDQ, VAR Gabelli and Company 27th Annual Pump, Valve, and Water Systems SymposiumNotable cos to appear: AC, AME, WAAS, BMI, CIR, CR, FLS, GRC, GGG, IEX, RXN, XYL, HI, LAYN, WTS, MWA, ITT, NPO Simmons and Co Energy Conference (March 1st-3rd)Scheduled to appear: RRC, CRR, TTI, CXO, TSO, PXD, SWN Thursday Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Agriculture amp Chemicals ConferenceScheduled to appear: OLN, MOS, DD, POT, AGU, CF, RPM JPMorgan Gaming, Lodging, Restaurant amp Leisure Management Access Forum (March 2nd-3rd)Notable cos to present: YUM, DNKN, STAY, WYN, FOGO Among Investor Days: Crane (CR) 2017 Investor Conference at 8:30 ET Friday 2017 AAAAI Annual Meeting (March 3rd-6th)Scheduled to appear: DBVT, ANAB 2017 American Academy of Dermatology Annual Meeting (March 3rd - 7th)Scheduled to appear: ANAB FED CHAIR JANET YELLEN TO SPEAK AT 13:00 ET 4:06 PM LPL FINANCIAL TO REFINANCE ITS EXISTING CAPITAL STRUCTURE IN A LEVERAGE-NEUTRAL TRANSACTION ( LPLA ). LPL Holdings intends to enter into an amendment to the credit agreement governing its senior secured credit facilities, pursuant to which it expects to borrow a new term B loan due 2024 in an original aggregate principal amount of 1,700 million, increase the size of its revolving credit facility to 500 million, and make certain other changes. LPL Holdings also intends to raise 500 million in gross proceeds through an offering of senior notes due 2025. LPL Holdings intends to use the net proceeds from the offering of the notes and the new term B loan to repay LPL Holdings existing senior secured credit fACILITIES AND TO PAY ACCRUED INTEREST AND RELATED FEES AND EXPENSES. 4:02 PM MERCK ANNOUNCES ITS PHASE 3 STUDY RESULTS FOR V212 FOR THE PREVENTION OF SHINGLES IN IMMUNOCOMPROMISED PATIENTS MET ITS PRIMARY ENDPOINT ( MRK ) : In the trial, V212 met its primary endpoint and reduced the incidence of confirmed HZ cases by an estimated 64 percent (95 CI, 0.48, 0.75) in recipients of auto-HSCT. Secondary endpoint findings from the study showed that V212 reduced the incidence of moderate-to-severe HZ pain by an estimated 69.5, utilizing the Zoster Brief Pain Inventory (:ZBPI) score. V212 demonstrated an estimated 83.7 percent reduction of the incidence of post-herpetic neuralgia (:PHN) beyond 90 days after onset of HZ. In the study PHN was defined as pain in the area of the HZ rash with a quotworst pain in the last 24 hoursquot score of 3 or greater (on a 0 to 10 scale) on the ZBPI that persists or appears 90 days or beyond after HZ rash onset following auto-HSCT. In addition, V212 showed reduction of other HZ complications by an estimated 73.5 percent. These other complications included hospitalization or prolongation of hospitalization due to HZ disseminated HZ (including disseminated HZ rash or VZV viremia) visceral HZ, ophTHALMIC HZ NEUROLOGICAL IMPAIRMENT DUE TO HZ OR ADMINISTRATION OF INTRAVENOUS ACYCLOVIR THERAPY FOR TREATMENT OF HZ POST AUTO-HSCT. 4:01 PM SUMMIT FINANCIAL INCREASES QUARTERLY DIVIDEND TO 0.11SHARE FROM 0.10SHARE ( SMMF ). 1:10 pm Pfizer prices 1.065 bln aggregate principal amount of 4.20 notes due 2047 to professional institutional investors in Taiwan ( PFE ). Co intends to use the net offering proceeds for general corporate purposes, including to repay a portion of its outstanding commercial paper. 1:05 pm Midday Market Summary: Averages Hold Modest Losses at Midday (:WRAPX) : After a sluggish start, investors have become a bit more optimistic this afternoon as the stock market approaches its flat line following a border tax related report from the White House. The three major averages are all down near 0.2 at midday. Retail stocks have seen a nice pop in recent action following a news report that Gary Cohn, who is the chief economic adviser to President Trump, indicated at a forum of CEOs today that the White House does not support the House GOP version of a border adjustment tax. That news was sourced by Axios from an attendee at the conference. This has been construed as a positive for retailers who fear a border tax due to the increased labor cost implications it carries. Mr. Trump said that he supports quota formquot of the border tax yesterday, but todays report from the White House indicates that this quotformquot is not necessarily the one that the GOP is trying to push through Congress. Rather, it is likely that President Trumps preference would be for a watered down version as hes expressed his concern that the border tax is quottoo complicated. quot The retailer group has also been in todays earnings headlines as household names like Nordstrom (JWN 46.71, 2.78), Foot Locker (FL 75.14, 6.56), and Gap (GPS 25.10, 1.13) reported their quarterly results between yesterdays close and todays open. Nordstrom has jumped 6.2 after its better than expected earnings have overshadowed its miss on revenues and below-consensus guidance. Foot Locker and Gap also trade higher, up 9.6 and 4.5, respectively. FLs strength stems from its better than expected earnings while GPS has overcome below-consensus earnings guidance with an otherwise in-line report. After all the headlines, the SPDR SampP 500 Retail ETF (XRT 43.95, 0.85) is up 2.0 while the consumer discretionary sector holds a 0.3 gain. Fellow cyclical spaces havent fared as well as the consumer discretionary group. Financials (-1.0), the space that has led the stock markets post-election rally, paces todays mild pullback while energy (-0.8) performs only modestly better. Crude oils 0.6 loss has weighed heavily on the energy group. The energy component trades at 54.08bbl as investors cautiously await todays Baker Hughes rig count data, which will be released shortly at 1:00 pm ET. U. S. Treasuries have slipped from their session highs in recent action, but still hold gains amid the stock markets slight downtick. The benchmark 10-yr yield trades four basis points lower at 2.33. The rate-sensitive utilities (1.1) sector holds the top spot on todays leaderboard as investors relish todays slip in interest rates. Telecom services (0.3) also trade comfortably in the green at midday. Todays economic data included January New Home Sales and the final reading of the University of Michigan Sentiment Index for February: New Home Sales in January hit an annualized rate of 555,000, which was above the revised December rate of 535,000 (from 536,000), and less than the 566,000 that was expected by the Briefing consensus. The key takeaway from the report is that high prices continue to impede stronger sales activity at the lower end of the new home market. That point is borne out in the fact that homes priced 299,999 or less accounted for 44 of new homes sold in January 2017 versus 53 in January 2016.The final reading of the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for February rose to 96.3 (Briefing consensus 95.8) from 95.7 in the preliminary reading. The key takeaway from the report is that overall consumer confidence is high, yet there are clear splits along party lines with respect to the economic outlook. That understanding, it was noted, creates an expectation that there will be greater volatility and discretionary spending differences across subgroups. 12:39 pm Earnings Calendar for the week of February 27 (:SUMRX). Monday (February 27)Pre-Market: AES, CORE, AMT, AFSI, NGHC, TGNA, JKS, HYH, MDCA, HZNP, FCE. A, AWI, SNH, BID, KOS, AMWD, IBP, AIMC, GOGO, SSTK, NWN, etc. After-Hours: THC, ZTO, OKS, FTR, OKE, CST, PCLN, WNR, EOG, HTZ, KND, PRGO, ESND, DK, ALB, MHLD, WNRL, ESV, KRA, WDAY, SBAC, SYKE, JBT, BWXT, ITGR, WUBA, ICFI, APLE, NNI, KTOS, FRGI, etc. Tuesday (February 28)Pre-Market: TGT, BNS, BMO, SRE, NRG, AZO, VRX, TOUR, CNP, TA, ENDP, PAH, DPZ, SDRL, LNG, PRIM, BNED, BLD, FCN, SHOO, IPCC, NXST, USCR, RHP, STAY, INCR, SEAS, NYLD, XHR, LBY, etc. After-Hours: ROST, CBI, UHS, CRM, BLDR, EVHC, DPLO, DAR, TNET, AMC, AR, HY, BW, ITRI, ILG, KAMN, PANW, JAZZ, AMED, HEI, AEGN, BVN, BUFF, AIRM, CHDN, WTW, BGFV, CLNS, PRAA, LQ, etc. Wednesday (March 1)Pre-Market: LOW, BBY, DLTR, WIN, AEO, BMCH, DY, TRCO, DCI, HPT, HRI, STKL, VSI, AKRX, BITA, GTN, IPXL, CROX, TTI, DIN, GTE, INXN, PEGI, LXP, EGRX, PCRX, EVEP, MACK, etc. After-Hours: AVGO, ANW, GEF, MNST, PK, VGR, EPE, CODI, VEC, FOE, PSTG, CCRN, NNBR, CWST, PLNT, WTI, BOX, FOXF, ICUI, FOR, OME, SHAK, PMTS, NVGS, etc. Thursday (March 2)Pre-Market: JD, KR, BUD, TD, BURL, BKS, ANF, GTS, JOY, SSI, ACIW, ATHM, ZEUS, TAST, MEI, SUP, AMRC, SRI, NDLS, SQBG, etc. After-Hours: COST, MRVL, ADSK, AOBC, NTNX, GWRE, NEFF, HABT, EVC, BBG, AMRS, WING, STAA, ETC. FRIDAY (MARCH 3)PRE-MARKET: BIG, BIOS, DXYN 12:31 PM ENTEGRA FINANCIAL EXTENDS REPURCHASE PROGRAM FOR UP TO 5 OF THE COS OUTSTANDING SHARES THROUGH FEB 23, 2018 ( ENFC ). 12:29 pm Floor Talk: Retailers Pop on Border Tax Blurb (:TALKX) : Retail stocks have seen a nice pop in recent action following a news report that Gary Cohn, who is the chief economic advisor to President Trump, indicated at a forum of CEOs today that the White House does not support the House GOP version of a border adjustment tax. That news was sourced by Axios to an attendee at the conference. Recall that the retail stocks got hit in late action on Thursday after President Trump said in a Reuters interview that he supports quotsome form of a border adjustment tax. quot That was viewed as a negative since he had previously said the border tax plan was too complicated, creating a sense that he would not be in favor of one. So, it didnt sit well with retail investors that the president acknowledged supporting some form of a border adjustment tax, as they felt he might now be aligned with the more restrictive border tax proposal being pushed by the House GOP. The retail industry is opposed to a border adjustment tax because retailers import so much of their merchandise for sale in the U. S hence, their earnings prospects would suffer presumably since they would get hit disproportionately by a border adjustment tax. Accordingly, with Mr. Cohn reportedly offering a softer stance today, there is some relief that a border tax supported by the White House wont be as restrictive as feared yesterday. Any border tax would be a negative in its own right, yet the retail stocks have been bid up since the Cohn headline hit on the perception that any future border tax might not be as bad as feared. It would still be negative, but just not as negative as feared and that understanding qualifies as a positive (for now). The SPDR SampP Retail ETF (XRT 43.90, 0.80, 1.9) was down 0.5 at its low today. 12:14 pm Currency Commentary: Rangebound COntinues (:SUMRX). The Dollar Index is testing the 101 level for resistance. The greenback was trending lower but saw some buyers jump in right ahead of the open. But that rally has fizzled out at 101. We will be getting a steady flow of data next week which will help set up the March meeting expectations. The biggest headwind at the moment appears to be the dollar and the low yields in Europe as the Fed is worried about the divergence. Of note, the jobs report is not out until March 10. This is due to how the timing of the three week period at the BLS plays out. The euro was trading above the 1.06 level but would tumble below that level before finding support at the 1.0560 area. The weakness came as we saw headlines regarding difficult Brexit negotiations. This is hardly a new story, but as we approach the Article 50 trigger (expected at the end of March), it should pick up some steam and act as a headwind. The pound would slip from the mid-1.25 area to just below 1.25. Sterling was able to find footing and is attempting to regain some of its losses with limited success. The yen is now starting to find support at 113 after breaking through the resistance level yesterday. Yen is coming in to test its multi-month low (11.59) and the 100-sma (111.72). The later would be the first test since late October. The yuan remains steady. Earlier in the week Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said that he would await the April FX report before making any statements on China currency manipulation. The President was a little more forward with commentary as he reiterated concerns over China manipulating its currency (BONDX, FOREX). 12:02 pm European Markets Closing Prices (:SUMRX). European markets are now closed stock markets across Europe performed as follows: UKs FTSE: -0.4 Germanys DAX: -1.2 Frances CAC: -0.9 Spains IBEX: -0.4 Portugals PSI: -0.3 Italys MIB Index: -1.2 Irish Ovrl Index: -0.9 Greece ASE General Index: -0.6 11:33 am Chevron completes the acquisition of SKIL Power Tool Brands from Robert Bosch Tool terms not disclosed ( CVX ). The acquisition gives Chervon complete control over the SKIL and SKILSAW businesses in the North American market. 11:31 am Trillium Therapeutics presented new pharmacology data from its ongoing Phase 1 ab trial of TTI-621 at the ASCO-SITC Clinical Immuno-Oncology Symposium ( TRIL ) : The company presented the following new information from the trial: Receptor occupancy increases with multiple infusions of TTI-621, conferring robust CD47 blockade on circulating leukemic cells: Compared to the initial infusion, the extent and duration of CD47 occupancy on peripheral leukocytes was elevated following the sixth dose. Importantly, emerging data suggests increased receptor occupancy on circulating leukemic blast cells. Increases in cytokines associated with macrophage activation suggest rapid engagement of the innate immune system: Post-infusion elevations were observed in MIP-1a, MIP-1b and other cytokines associated with macrophage activation, supporting the proposed role of TTI-621 as an innate immune checkpoint inhibitor. Increases in cytokines associated with macrophage activation suggest rapid engagement of the innate immune system: Post-infusion elevations were observed in MIP-1a, MIP-1b and other cytokines associated with MACROPHAGE ACTIVATION, SUPPORTING THE PROPOSED ROLE OF TTI-621 AS AN INNATE IMMUNE CHECKPOINT INHIBITOR. 11:30 AM IDERA PHARMA REPORTS ADDITIONAL DATA FROM THE DOSE-ESCALATION PHASE OF ITS ONGOING PHASE 12 CLINICAL TRIAL OF INTRATUMORAL IMO-2125 AT THE 2017 ASCO-SITC CLINICAL IMMUNO-ONCOLOGY SYMPOSIUM ( IDRA ) : quotWe are very pleased to have achieved successful completion of all our objectives in the Phase 1 portion of this trial which established safety across all doses tested, and demonstrated preliminary evidence of clinical activity, including durable responses of over one year in two of the evaluable patients so far, quot stated Mark Cornfeld, M. D. Ideras Medical Lead, Oncology. quotAdditionally from a scientific standpoint, weve established proof of mechanism through our translational effort which has gone well beyond the norm compared to what is typically done in oncology drug development. quot Results Demonstrate IMO-2125 plus ipilimumab combination is tolerable at all dose levels studied and has demonstrated durable clinical activity in PD-1 Refractory Melanoma. The company is also announcing the acceptance of two abstracts at the upcoming AmERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR CANCER RESEARCH (:AACR) 2017 ANNUAL MEETING BEING HELD APRIL 1-5, IN WASHINGTON DC. IDERA HAS GAINED ACCEPTANCE OF TWO PRESENTATIONS RELATED TO IMO-2125. 11:19 AM AVERY DENNISON PRICES EUR 500 MLN 1.250 SENIOR NOTES DUE 2025 IN AN UNDERWRITTEN PUBLIC OFFERING AT 99.917 OF THEIR PRINCIPAL AMOUNT ( AVY ). The co intends to use EUR 200 mln of the net proceeds from the offering to repay commercial paper borrowings that it used to finance a portion of its acquisition of the European biz of Mactac in Aug 2016, and the remainDER FOR GENERAL CORPORATE PURPOSES, WHICH MAY INCLUDE THE REPAYMENT OF OTHER INDEBTEDNESS, INCLUDING ITS 6.625 GUARANTEED NOTES DUE 2017, ACQUISITIONS, INCLUDING THE ACQUISITIONS OF HANITA COATINGS AND YONGLE TAPE CO, CAPEX, WORKING CAPITAL, AND OTHER CORPORATE PURPOSES. 10:55 AM NOTABLE MOVERS OF INTEREST: OLED 19.4 ON Q4 EPS AND REVENUE BEATS ( SCANX ) : Notable movers of interest The following are some of todays most notable movers of interest, categorized by market capitalization (large cap over 10 billion and mid cap between 2-10 billion) and ranked by change (all stocks over 100K average daily volume). Large Cap Gainers INTU (126.56 4.86): Reports Q2 EPS beat guides Q3 EPS and revenues above consensus. YUMC (27.03 0.97): Initiated with a Buy at Deutsche Bank 31.48 tgt. Large Cap Losers HPE (22.68 -8.05): Reports Q1 EPS and revenue misses, guides Q2 EPS below consensus lowers FY17 EPS, in-line. MGA (42.78 -5.25): Shares fall after reporting Q4 EPS miss. BIDU (177.48 -3.88): Reports Q4 revenue miss guides Q1 revenues below consensus. Mid Cap Gainers OLED (80.5 19.35): Reports Q4 EPS and revenue beats initiates 0.03 quarterly dividend. RLGY (29.52 7.7): Shares rise on Q4 EPS and revenue beats. MTZ (39.6 6.88): Reports Q4 EPS and revenue beats guides Q1 FY17 EPS above consensus. Mid Cap Losers ACIA (55.3 -12.82): GUIDES Q1 EPS AND REVENUES BELOW CONSENSUS. JCP (6.26 -8.75): SHARES FALL DESPITE Q4 EPS BEAT GUIDES FY18 EPS IN-LINE WITH FLAT COMPS PLANS TO CLOSE 13-14 OF STORE. KBR (14.91 -7.68): REPORTS Q4 EPS MISS. 10:46 AM REGENCY CENTERS SHAREHOLDERS APPROVE MERGER WITH EQUITY ONE ( EQY ) transaction expected to close on March 1 ( REG ). 9:45 am Opening Market Summary: Equity Indices Hold Losses in Early Action (:WRAPX) : The SampP 500 trades 0.4 lower shortly after Fridays opening bell. Financials (-1.0) show relative weakness while some countercyclical groups provide positive support. The ligHTLY-WEIGHTED UTILITIES (0.4) AND TELECOM SERVICES (0.6) SECTORS TRADE IN THE GREEN AND ARE CURRENTLY AT THE TOP OF THE WEEKS LEADERBOARD WITH WEEK-TO-DATE GAINS OF 3.0 AND 2.3, RESPECTIVELY. U. S. TREASURIES HOVER NEAR THEIR OVERNIGHT HIGHS AMID TODAYS MILD PULLBACK. THE BENCHMARK 10-YR YIELD IS CURRENTLY DOWN THREE BASIS POINTS AT 2.34. 9:30 AM ONEX CORP REPORTED FY16 RESULTS ( ONEXF ). Co reported FY16 revenues increased by 14 to 22.5 billion from the prior year. The increase in revenues was primarily driven by the same factors that drove the increase during the fourth quarter of 2016 as well as the full year impact of 2015 acquisitions. Net loss for the year was 36 million compared to a net loss of 505 million in 2015. 9:29 am On The Wires (:WIRES). Vonage (VG) announced that it will collaborate with Google to provide businesses with enhanced features to the standard messaging experience on mobile devices. Through Nexmo, the Vonage API platform, this SMS upgrade enables delivery of improved business messaging to any Android mobile device, via RCS (Rich Communication Services), helping businesses to engage with their customers for deeper relationships and better business outcomes. Cascades Sonoco, a joint venture of Sonoco Products Company (SON) and Cascades Inc. announced the investment of approximately 16 million US for the expansion of its existing Birmingham, Al. facility. This investment in world-class water-based coating technology will provide coated paper and paperboard substrates using its new FlexShield, FluteSHIELD and SurfSHIELD coating technology. These coatings, recently introduced to the folding carton and corrugated industries, are revolutionary water-based functional and barrier coatings designed to replace the standard LDPE coating used in take-out container folding carton applications, as well as wax replacement technology for the corrugated industry. They offer solutions that are recyclable, repulpable and compostable. CenturyLink, Inc. (CTL) is expanding its Alliance programs to serve their enterprise customers with advanced communications and IT solutions. Each program is tailored to meet the specific support and enablement needs of its members. Kulicke amp Soffa Industries (KLIC) announced its contribution of an automatic single-head semiconductor wedge bonder to the Engineering Product Development Pillar of the Singapore University of Technology and Design. Wedge Bonder equipment is used in interconnect technologies in a wide range of power semiconductor packages and modules such as the automotive, industrial, renewable energy, consumer and computing markets. Altius Minerals announced THAT IT HAS ENTERED INTO A LETTER AGREEMENT PURSUANT TO WHICH FAIRFAX FINANCIAL (FRFHF) WILL MAKE AN UP TO CAD100 MILLION INVESTMENT IN ALTIUS IN EXCHANGE FOR THE ISSUANCE BY ALTIUS OF PREFERRED SECURITIES AND WARRANTS. 9:15 AM HI-CRUSH PARTNERS PRICES PRIMARY PUBLIC OFFERING OF 20.5 MLN UNITS REPRESENTING LIMITED PARTNERSHIP INTERESTS FOR TOTAL GROSS PROCEEDS OF APPROXIMATELY 369 MLN ( HCLP ). 9:15 am SampP futures vs fair value: -11.50. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -31.60. (:WRAPX) : The SampP 500 futures trade 12 points (0.5) below fair value this morning, pointing to a lower Friday open on Wall Street ahead of the New Home Sales (Briefing consensus 566,000) and University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment (Briefing consensus 95.8) reports at 10:00 a. m. ET. The market will be opening on a weak note because it is due for a pullback after an incredible run that has been driven by its own share of convenient excuses for keeping the post-election rally going. In earnings news, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE 22.44, -2.22) has captured investors attention this morning after diving 9.0 in pre-market trade following the companys latest earnings report. HPEs miss on revenues and below-consensus earnings guidance has overshadowed its better than expected earnings per share results. Elsewhere on the earnings front, the SPDR SampP 500 Retail ETF (XRT 42.87, -0.23) trades lower in pre-market action after the latest earnings reports from JC Penney (JCP 6.68, -0.18) and Gap (GPS 23.33, -0.64). JCP holds a loss of 2.3 after the company revealed its plan to close two distribution facilities and 130-140 of its stores over the next few months. Gaps weakness stems from its downbeat earnings guidance. Crude oil has followed yesterdaYS BIG ADVANCE WITH A SOLID LOSS THIS MORNING. THE ENERGY COMPONENT IS DOWN 1.0 AT 53.91BBL AHEAD OF TODAYS BAKER HUGHES RIG COUNT DATA, WHICH WILL BE RELEASED AT 1:00 PM ET. U. S. TREASURIES HAVE POSTED A FRESH HIGH IN RECENT ACTION TO EXTEND THEIR EARLY GAINS. THE BENCHMARK 10-YR YIELD TRADES LOWER BY THREE BASIS POINTS AT 2.34. 9:03 AM VUZIX SIGNS AGREEMENT TO BUILD A CUSTOMIZED PAIR OF SMART GLASSES FOR TOSHIBA ( TOSBF ) ( VUZI ). Under the terms of this agreement, Vuzix and Toshiba have embarked on a rapid development program with milestone payments totaling over one million US dollars. With development efforts well under way, Toshiba, subject to a finAL MANUFACTURING AGREEMENT, EXPECTS TO PLACE ADDITIONAL PURCHASE ORDERS FROM VUZIX FOR PRODUCTION DELIVERIES IN THE 4TH QUARTER OF 2017. FURTHER DETAILS ON THE NEW SMART GLASSES PRODUCT WILL BE RELEASED SOON AFTER PUBLIC MARKETING OF THE PRODUCT COMMENCES. 9:03 AM VAIL RESORTS ANNOUNCES THE RENEWAL OF WHISTLER BLACKCOMBS MASTER DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS WITH THE PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA AND APPROVAL OF THE ASSOCIATED MASTER PLANS FINANCIAL DETAILS NOT DISCLOSED ( MTN ) : quotThis is a significant milestone for Whistler Blackcomb and our local communities as it provides us with the long-term certainty for the capital investment required to maintain our position as a premier mountain resort destination in the world, quot says Dave Brownlie, chief operating officer at Whistler Blackcomb. quotWe are grateful for the support the Province has provided during this process and for our strengthened relationships with the Squamish Nation and Lilwat Nation through which all our communities will benefit. quot In connection with the execution of the Master Development Agreements and Master Plans, Whistler Blackcomb has entered into AGREEMENTS WITH THE SQUAMISH AND LILWAT NATIONS ON WHOSE TRADITIONAL TERRITORIES IT OPERATES. THESE AGREEMENTS RUN CONCURRENTLY WITH THE MASTER DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS AND ENSURE THAT LOCAL FIRST NATIONS PARTICIPATE IN THE SUCCESS OF THE RESORT AS PARTNERS THROUGH ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL COMMITMENTS, JOBS, CONTRACTING AND DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND RECREATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE YOUTHS OF THOSE NATIONS. 9:02 AM COFFEE HOLDING ACQUIRES COMFORT FOODS FOR 2.3 MLN ( JVA ). Comfort Foods is a medium sized regional roaster that manufactures both branded and private label coffee for reTAIL AND FOODSERVICE CUSTOMERS LOCATED PREDOMINANTLY IN THE NORTHEAST MARKETPLACE. IN CONNECTION WITH THE ACQUISITION, THE COMPANY PAID 2.3 MILLION FOR 100 OF THE CAPITAL STOCK OF COMFORT FOODS WHICH HAD APPROXIMATELY 7.3 MILLION IN TRAILING TWELVE MONTH REVENUES. 9:02 AM NORTHRIM BANK INCREASES QUARTERLY DIVIDEND TO 0.21SHARE FROM 0.20SHARE ( NRIM ). 9:02 AM LIFEPOINT HOSPITALS APPOINTS HARRY R. PHILLIPS, III, MD, AS CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER ( LPNT ). Phillips is also professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, associate director of the Duke Heart Center, and chief medical officer, Duke Network Services, for Duke University Health System. 8:51 am Function(x) prices underwritten public offering of about 4.57 mln shares of common stock at 1.05share for gross proceeds of about 4.8 mln ( FNCX ). 8:50 am SampP futures vs fair value: -10.00. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -32.60. (:WRAPX) : The SampP 500 futures trade ten points (0.4) below fair value. Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended the week on a mixed note, but trading ranges were fairly narrow. Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe acknowledged that the global economy is on firmer footing, but noted his preference for a lower Aussie exchange rate. The Australian dollar is down 0.4 against the greenback at 0.7687. In economic data: South Koreas February Consumer Confidence ticked up to 94 from 93. Singapores January Industrial Production -6.0 month-over-month (expected -2.6 last 6.7) 2.2 year-over-year (consensus 8.4 previous 22.1) ---Equity Markets--- Japans Nikkei lost 0.5, but gained 0.3 for the week. Growth-sensitive names struggled in response to speculation that an infrastructure spending bill in the US will be delayed. Komatsu, Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi Materials, Kobe Steel, Furukawa, Hitachi Construction, and Pacific Metals lost between 2.9 and 5.4. On the upside, Toshiba spiked 4.5 to continue its recent volatile stretch. Hong Kongs Hang Seng lost 0.6 to end the week lower by 0.3. Apple supplier AAC Technologies was the weakest performer, falling 4.7. Financials like BoC Hong Kong, Ping An Insurance, Bank of China, and HSBC lost between 0.8 and 1.5. Chinas Shanghai Composite ticked up 0.1, extending its weekly gain to 1.6. China Southern Airlines, China World Trade Center, Besttone Holdings, and China Eastern Airlines climbed between 3.5 and 5.7. Indias Sensex was closed for Mahashivratri. Major European indices trade lower across the board with Germanys DAX (-1.7) showing relative weakness. Todays underperformance in the DAX comes after the index spent the past two days just below its record high from early 2015. Also of note, polling data from Infratest shows that Chancellor Angela Merkels CDUCSU coalition has seen its support drop to 31.0, falling behind SDU, which polled at 32.0. In economic data: Frances February Consumer Confidence held at 100, as expected. UKs BBA Mortgage Approvals 44,700 (expected 41,900 last 43,600) Italys December Industrial New Orders 2.8 month-over-month (last 1.7) -0.9 year-over-year (last 0.1). Industrial New Sales 2.6 month-over-month (last 2.4) 9.4 year-over-year (last 3.9). February Business Confidence 106.3 (expected 104.6 last 105.0) and Consumer Confidence 106.6 (consensus 109.0 last 108.6) ---Equity Markets--- UKs FTSE is lower by 0.9 with miners and financials showing relative weakness. Rio Tinto, Glencore, BHP Billiton, Antofagasta, Anglo American, and Fresnillo are down between 1.4 and 4.1. Financials like RBS, Standard Chartered, fx, RSA Insurance, and Lloyds Banking show losses between 1.5 and 5.1. Frances CAC has given up 1.5 amid broad weakness. ArcelorMittal is one of the weAKEST COMPONENTS, FALLING 3.9, WHILE OTHER GROWTH-SENSITIVE NAMES LIKE SAINT GOBAIN, LAFARGEHOLCIM, SOLVAY, AND TECHNIP ARE DOWN BETWEEN 2.9 AND 3.3. AUTOMAKERS PEUGEOT AND RENAULT SHOW RESPECTIVE LOSSES OF 3.5 AND 2.5. GERMANYS DAX TRADES DOWN 1.7. BASF HAS SURRENDERED 3.5 WHILE COMMERZBANK AND DEUTSCHE BANK ARE DOWN 4.1 AND 3.2, RESPECTIVELY. BMW, CONTINENTAL, DAIMLER, AND VOLKSWAGEN ARE DOWN BETWEEN 1.2 AND 2.3. 8:47 AM VALE S. A. ANNOUNCED THAT MURILO FERREIRA WILL NOT RENEW HIS TERM AS VALES CEO ( VALE ). 8:44 am Wabash Natl announces that its board of directors has authorized the Co to repurchase up to an additional 100 mln of its common stock over the next two years ( WNC ). This authorization is an increase to the existing 100 million repurchase program previously approved in February 2016 and of which approximately 15 million was available as of February 23, 2017. 8:37 am Pinnacle West reports EPS in-line, misses on revs ( PNW ). REPORTS Q4 (DEC) EARNINGS OF 0.47 PER SHARE, IN-LINE WITH THE CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS OF 0.47 REVENUES ROSE 0.7 YEARYEAR TO 739 MLN VS THE 791.38 MLN CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS. THE 2016 FOURTH-QUARTER RESULTS COMPARISON VERSUS THE SAME 2015 PERIOD WAS POSITIVELY IMPACTED BY LOWER OPERATING EXPENSES, PARTIALLY OFFSET BY LOWER RETAIL ELECTRICITY SALES. WHILE OCTOBER 2016 PROVED TO BE HOTTER THAN AVERAGE, SALES DECREASED IN THE LAST TWO MONTHS OF THE YEAR, WITH DECEMBER TURNING OUT TO BE THE THIRD MILDEST DECEMBER SINCE 1970 - A SPAN OF 46 YEARS. 8:36 AM GAPPING DOWN ( SCANX ) : Gapping down In reaction to disappointing earningsguidance: ACIA -16.6, KBR -10.2, ZOES -10, ALDR -8.7, HPE -8.2, BGS -6.2, CECO -5.7, ACHN -5.7, ACHC -5.2, ASPN -5.1, BNFT -4.8GIFI -4.6, DGI -4.6, BRFS -4.4, SPLK -4.2, PLUG -4.2, RBS -4, IMAX -3.7, NCMI -3.5, CENX -3.5, LGND -3.2, GLPG -3, NVRO -2.9HLF -2.9, (to form a JV w Tasly Holding Group ), EYEG -2.5, MGA -2.5, SWN -2.3, PEB -1.7, NSU -1.4, BIDU -1.3, SPXC -1.2, SSP -1.1RDUS -1, TWOU -1, HTGC -1, TERP -1 MampA news: HCLP -9 (acquires Permian Basin Sand, Whitehall facility and remaining interest in augusta facility for a total consideration of 415 million commences a primary public offering of 20,500,000 common units representing limited partnership interests in the Partnership) Select EU financial related names showing weakness in sympathy with RBS and Standard Chartered earnings: DB -3.1, CS -2.5, ING -2.4, BCS -1.9 Select metal producers trading lower: VALE -2.7, BBL -2.4, BHP -2.3, X -2, RIO -1.8. Select ACIA PEERS TRADING LOWER IN SYMPATHY: IIVI -3.7, OCLR -2.9, FNSR -1.1, IPHI -0.9, LITE -0.9, INFN -0.7, NPTN -0.5. Other news: NAO -26.8 (commences public offering of 33,333,333 common share also intends to grant the unDERWRITERS A 30-DAY OPTION TO PURCHASE 5,000,000 ADDITIONAL COMMON SHARES)SMCI -5.5 (RECEIVES NOTICE THAT APPLE ( AAPL ) has cut ties with co as supplier, according to The Information article)WSO -5.1 (United Technologies announces the commencement of an underwritten secondary offering of 4,235,685 shares of common stock of Watsco)NVDA -3.4 (continued weakness)PFGC -3.3 (prices 13.5 mln common stock offering by certain of its stockholders, including affiliates of The Blackstone Group ( BX ), at 23.50share)CELG -1.7 (President and COO Jackie Fouse, PH. D. to retire effective June 30, 2017 co has promoted Scott Smith to President and COO)PAGP -0.9 (upsizes offering by 8 mln shares and prices 42 mln shares of Class A shares for gross proceeds of 1.3 bln) Analyst comments: YY -2 (downgraded to Underweight from Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley)SFUN -1.7 (downgraded to Equal-Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley)RIG -1.5 (downgraded to Sell from Hold at Pareto Securities)GS -1.5 (ddowngraded to Sell from Hold at Berenberg)HTGC -1 (downgraded to Mkt Perform from Outperform at Raymond James) 8:32 am ANI Pharma acquires InderalXL from Cranford Pharmaceuticals, LLC and InnoPran XL from Holmdel Pharmaceuticals terms not disclosed ( ANIP ) : The acquired assets include the NDA and trademark for InnoPran XL including a license to an Orange Book listed patent, and a distribution license and trademark for Inderal XL as well as finished goods inventory of both products. Inderal XL and InnoPran XL are currently available in 80mg and 120mg sustained release capsules and are indicated for hypertension. Inderal XL and InnoPran XL generated combined sales of 23.3 million in calendar year 2016, according to IMS Health. The acquisitions were funded through a combination of cash and debt. In conjunction with todays announcement, ANI has immediately begun selling both Inderal XL 80mg and 120mg sustained release capsules as well as InnoPran XL 80mg and 120mg sustained release capsules under their current labels. 8:30 am SampP futures vs fair value: -10.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -31.90. (:WRAPX) : The stock market is poised for a lower open on Friday as the SampP 500 futures trade ten points (0.4) below fair value. Retailers have dominated the earnings front this morning with Nordstrom (JWN 45.41, 1.47), Restoration Hardware (RH 29.15, 3.96), Foot Locker (FL 70.70, 2.12), Gap (GPS 23.90, -0.07), and JC Penney (JCP 6.67, -0.19) all reporting their quarterly results between yesterdays close and todays open. The reactions have been mixed with Nordstrom, Restoration Hardware, and Foot Locker trading higher in pre-market action. JWNs better than expected earnings have overshadowed its miss on revenues and below-consensus guidance. Meanwhile, RH is trading higher in reaction to its upbeat guidance while FLs strength stems from its above-consensus earnings results. On the flip side, JC Penney trades lower as news that the company plans to close two distribution facilities and 130-140 of its stores over the next few months has outweighed better than expected earnings per share results. Gap also shows a loss after issuing downbeat earnings guidance. The SPDR SampP 500 Retail ETF (XRT 42.87, -0.23) will be fighting to avoid its third consecutive loss in todays session. 8:29 am On The Wires (:WIRES). Harmony Gold Mining (HMY) advised that following the announcement of the Budget Speech delivered on 22 February 2017 by the Minister of Finance in South Africa, the withholding tax on dividends was increased from 15 to 20. This change will have an impact on the interim dividend that was declared payable by Harmony on 20 March 2017. The impact of this change is that the net local dividend amount decreased from 42.5 SA cents to 40 SA cents. Other arrangements for the dividend payMENT REMAINS THE SAME. NXT-ID (NXTD) RESPONDS TO A PRESS RELEASE ISSUED ON FEBRUARY 23, 2017, BY A LAW FIRM. YESTERDAY, THE COMPANY WAS ALERTED TO AN ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT A LAW FIRMS INVESTIGATION INTO CERTAIN CORPORATE ACTIONS TAKEN BY SHAREHOLDERS IN 2015. THE COMPANYS BOARD OF DIRECTORS PLANS TO REVIEW THE ASSERTIONS IN THE LAW FIRMS CORRESPONDENCE AND INVESTIGATE THE SUBSTANCE OF THESE CLAIMS AND TO THEN RESPOND ACCORDINGLY. MERCK (MKGAY) ANNOUNCED THAT THE EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR MEDICINAL PRODUCTS FOR HUMAN USE HAS GRANTED A POSITIVE OPINION FOR THE NEW PERGOVERIS PEN. 8:29 AM GAPPING UP ( SCANX ) : Gapping up In reaction to strong earningsguidance: RH 15.5, ( guides Q4 EPS and revenues above consensus authorizes a 300 million common share repurchase program), AAOI 11.5, OLED 10.4MTZ 9.3, TPC 7.3, RMAX 6.7, SB 5.1, INWK 5.1, EGO 4.7, SGY 4.7, VICR 4.2, PSO 3.6, RDC 3.4, PACD 3.1, WMAR 3.1FL 2.7, BJRI 2.5, JWN 2.5, EBS 2.4, DYN 2.4, AL 1.9, MELI 1.8, MAIN 1.5, AGO 1.5, PEG 1.3, CLMT 1.1, INTU 1AINC 0.9, STMP 0.9 Select metalsmining stocks trading higher: SBGL 3.7, AUY 3.2, AG 3.1, SLW 2, NEM 2, IAG 1.9, ABX 1.8, GG 1.7, HMY 1.4, GDX 1.3, AU 1, Other news: CEMP 44.4 (positive topline results from a phase 3 study of oral fusidic acid )IPCI 30.2 (receives FDA approval for its ANDA for metformin hydrochloride extended release tablets)AXDX 22.2 (FDA allows marketing of the PhenoTest BC Kit, performed on the Pheno System )EARS 13 (FDA has granted Fast Track designation for AM-111)INCY 5.1 (to join SampP 500)NVLS 4.4 (announces its Phase 2 trial evaluating cavosonstat at a dose of 400 mg in adult patients with CF who were being treated w Kalydeco did not meet its primary endpoint )DFT 4.3 (announces an at-the-market program through which it may issue and sell, from time to time, up to an aggregate of 200 mln of its common shares)BATS 2.2 (higher following SampP index change announcement - CBOE to join SampP 500 after acquiring BATS)CONE 2.2 (will replace CLARCOR in the SampP MidCap 400)NUS 2 (WILL REPLACE EQUITY ONE IN THE SampP MIDCAP 400)CXW 1.7 (REPORTS THAT THE DOJ REVERSES OBAMA DECISION ON PRIVATE PRISONS)GEO 1.3 (REPORTS THAT THE DOJ REVERSES OBAMA DECISION ON PRIVATE PRISONS) Analyst comments: AERI 2.6 (INITIATED WITH AN OUTPERFORM AT COWEN)HL 2 (UPGRADED TO MARKET PERFORM FROM UNDERPERFORM AT BMO CAPITAL) 8:29 AM NORDIC AMERICAN OFFSHORE PRICES 40,000,000 COMMON SHARES (UPSIZED FROM 33,333,333 MLN) AT A PUBLIC OFFERING PRICE OF 1.25SHARE ( NAO ). The Company intends to use the net proceeds of this offering for general corporate purposes and working capital purposes and for the expansion of its fleet. 8:17 am Watsco prices the offering by certain subsidiaries of United Technologies Corp. ( UTX ) of 4,235,685 shares of its stock at 144.00share ( WSO ). 8:14 am Realogy reports Q4 results ( RLGY ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.40 per share, 0.17 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.23 revenues rose 3.4 yearyear to 1.37 bln vs the 1.34 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Reports FY16 EPS of 1.65 vs. 1.53 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. quotOur 2016 results continued to reflect the operating challenges of strong competition for sales agents and soft demand at the high end of the housing market for NRT, quot said Richard A. Smith, Realogys chairmaN, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER AND PRESIDENT. quotWhile we still have work to do, we have made good progress. Our strategic priorities are to continue strengthening our core businesses while further investing CAPITAL TO DRIVE FUTURE GROWTH. REFLECTING OUR STRONG FREE CASH FLOW, WE ARE PLEASED TO EXPAND ON OUR CAPITAL RETURN PROGRAM THROUGH AN ADDITIONAL 300 MILLION SHARE REPURCHASE AUTHORIZATION. WE ARE CONFIDENT THAT OVER THE LONG TERM WE ARE WELL-POSITIONED TO CAPITALIZE ON FAVORABLE DEMAND CONDITIONS AND EXISTING HOMESALE VOLUME GROWTH WITHIN THE INDUSTRY. quot 8:12 am Medtronic receives CE mark for a suite of quadripolar cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemakers that also allow patients to receive MRI scans in either 1.5 or 3 Tesla machines ( MDT ). 8:11 am FelCor Lodging comments on the unsolicited, non-binding and conditional proposal to combine its business with Ashford Hospitality Trust ( AHT ) ( FCH ) : AHTs February 21, 2017 proposal follows several months of discussions between FelCor and AHT, during which FelCor repeatedly expressed numerous concerns regarding the value and structure of AHTs various proposals. Notable concerns include: proposed offer would dilute AHTs Funds From OpeRATIONS (:FFO) BY MORE THAN 30 (BASED ON CURRENT CONSENSUS ESTIMATES FOR 2017AHTS PROPOSAL FOR A ONE-YEAR GUARANTEE OF 18 MILLION IN COST AND OPERATING SYNERGIES WOULD BE MORE THAN OFFSET BY EXTERNAL MANAGEMENT FEES TO ITS EXTERNAL ADVISOR, ASHFORD INC. IN EXCESS OF 25 MILLION. A COMBINATION OF AHT AND FELCOR WOULD RESULT IN A NEW COMPANY WITH LEVERAGE OF APPROXIMATELY 8.5X EBITDA, OR APPROXIMATELY 1.5X HIGHER THAN FELCOR ON A STANDALONE BASIS, INCLUDING PREFERRED SHARES. AHTS OFFER OF THREE FELCOR-DESIGNATED SEATS ON THE AHT BOARD IS NOT COMMENSURATE WITH FELCORS 58 PRO FORMA COMBINED COMPANY OWNERSHIP 8:06 AM WESTMORELAND COAL WILL RESTATE FINANCIAL INFORMATION STEMMING FROM CHANGES IN THE ACCOUNTING FOR ITS CUSTOMER RECLAMATION RECEIVABLES ( WLB ) : This change has no impact on cos cash flow, the economic value of its contracts or its ability to collect cash for reclamation from customers. Based on a preliminary assessment, co expects the following changes to its financial statements as a result of this restatement: For the year ended December 31, 2015, an increase in revenue of 9.5 mln, an increase in accretion expense (reflected in cost of sales) of 9.1 mln, and an increase in deplETION EXPENSE OF 9.6 MLN. FOR THE NINE MONTHS ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2016, AN INCREASE IN REVENUE OF 3.4 MILLION, AN INCREASE IN ACCRETION EXPENSE (REFLECTED IN COST OF SALES) OF 8.7 MILLION, AND AN INCREASE IN DEPLETION EXPENSE OF 11.8 MILLION. THE THIRD PARTY RECLAMATION RECEIVABLE WILL NOW BE RECOGNIZED ON THE BALANCE SHEET AS LAND AND MINERAL RIGHTS. THERE IS NO IMPACT ON WESTMORELANDS ABILITY TO BE REIMBURSED FOR RECLAMATION FROM ITS CUSTOMERS. CO EXPECTS ITS ADJUSTED EBITDA TO BE HIGHER THAN PREVIOUSLY REPORTED PRIMARILY FROM THE INCREASE IN REVENUE AND THE EXCLUSION OF ACCRETION AND DEPLETION EXPENSE FROM THE CALCULATION. 8:05 AM PHARMERICA BEATS BY 0.07, BEATS ON REVS GUIDES FY17 EPS BELOW CONSENSUS, REVS ABOVE CONSENSUS ( PMC ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.58 per share, EXCLUDING NON-RECURRING ITEMS, 0.07 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.51 revenues rose 2.7 yearyear to 534.4 mln vs the 523.56 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Co issues downside EPS guidance for FY17, sees EPS of 1.75-1.95, excluding non-recurring items, vs. 2.18 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate sees upside FY17 revs of 2.3-2.4 bln vs. 2.24 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. 8:04 am TearLab will effect a 1-for-10 reverse stock split will begin trading on a split-adjusted basis on Monday, February 27, 2017 ( TEAR ). 8:04 am AMERICAN RAILCAR INDUSTRIES BEATS BY 0.18, BEATS ON REVS ( ARII ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 1.16 per share, excluding non-recurring items, 0.18 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.98 revenues fell 35.8 yearyear to 167.5 mln vs the 153.14 mln Capital IQ Consensus. ARIs backlog as of December 31, 2016 was 3,813 railcars, with an estimated market value of 350.5 million. Of the total backlog, 1,637 railcars, or 43, were subject to lease with an estimated market value of 152.2 million. Adjusted EBITDA of 188.0 million, or 29.4 of revenue. 8:04 am AES agreed to acquire FTP Power LLC from Fir TREE PARTNERS AND ITS MINORITY OWNERS, FOR 853 MILLION IN CASH PLUS THE ASSUMPTION OF 724 MILLION IN NON-RECOURSE DEBT ( AES ). Co has agreed to acquire FTP Power LLC (sPower), the largest independent owner, operator and developer of utility scale solar assetS IN THE UNITED STATES, FROM FIR TREE PARTNERS AND ITS MINORITY OWNERS, FOR 853 MILLION IN CASH, PLUS THE ASSUMPTION OF 724 MILLION IN NON-RECOURSE DEBT. IN CONNECTION WITH THE TRANSACTION, AES AND AIMCO WILL EACH DIRECTLY AND INDEPENDENTLY PURCHASE AND OWN SLIGHTLY BELOW 50 EQUITY INTERESTS IN SPOWER. THE SPOWER PORTFOLIO INCLUDES 1,274 MW OF SOLAR AND WIND PROJECTS IN OPERATION OR UNDER CONSTRUCTION AND A DEVELOPMENT PIPELINE OF MORE THAN 10,000 MW LOCATED IN THE UNITED STATES. THE OPERATING ASSETS AND PROJECTS UNDER CONSTRUCTION ARE UNDER LONG-TERM POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENTS ( PPA ) with an average remaining life of 21 years. The offtakers under the PPAs have an average credit rating of A1. 8:03 am Intellipharmaceutics Intl receives FDA approval for its ANDA for metformin hydrochloride extended release tablets in the 500 mg and 750 mg strengths ( IPCI ). The Companys newly approvED PRODUCT IS A GENERIC EQUIVALENT FOR THE CORRESPONDING STRENGTHS OF THE BRANDED PRODUCT GLUCOPHAGE XR SOLD IN THE UNITED STATES BY BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB ( BMY ) 8:03 am Flowserve appoints Jay Roueche interim Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately ( FLS ). Mr. Roueches appointment follows Karyn Ovelmens departure from the company as executive vice president and chief financial officer. Flowserve will initiate a search to identify a permanent chief financial officer under incoming president and CEO Scott Rowes dIRECTION. JAY ROUECHE HAS SERVED AS VICE PRESIDENT, INVESTOR RELATIONS AND TREASURER, SINCE OCTOBER 2012. 8:02 AM HERON THERAPEUTICS ANNOUNCES THE INCLUSION OF SUSTOL EXTENDED-RELEASE INJECTION AS PART OF THE NATIONAL COMPREHENSIVE CANCER NETWORK CLINICAL PRACTICE GUIDELINES IN ONCOLOGY FOR ANTIEMESIS VERSION 1.2017 ( HRTX ). 8:02 am Echostar Holdings beats by 0.02, reports revs in-line ( SATS ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.40 per share, 0.02 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.38 revenues fell 6.3 yearyear to 740.4 mln vs the 742.28 mln Capital IQ Consensus. EBITDA 3 to 229 mln. 1,036,000 Hughes consumer broadband subscribers as of December 31, 2016. 8:02 am Intersect ENT receivs FDA approval FOR ITS PROPEL CONTOUR STEROID RELEASING SINUS IMPLANT ( XENT ). Co announces it has received approval from the FDA for its PROPEL Contour steroid releasing sinus implant. PROPEL Contour features an innovative hourglass design that facilitates treatment of patients with chronic sinusitis in the frontal (behind the forehead) and maxillary (behind the cheeks) sinuses. With this approval, Intersect ENTs PROPEL family of steroid releasing implants allows for treatment of patients undergoing ethmoid, frontal or maxillary surgeries, which represent the majority of procedures for the treatment of chronic sinusitis. Co expects to launch PROPEL Contour broadly in Q2 and maintains its previously stated 2017 revenue guidance of 87-89 mln vs consenSUS OF 87.2 MLN. 8:01 AM AURIS MEDICAL ANNOUNCES THAT THE FDA HAS GRANTED FAST TRACK DESIGNATION FOR AM-111 IN THE TREATMENT OF ACUTE SENSORINEURAL (INNER EAR) HEARING LOSS ( EARS ). Auris Medical is currently evaluating AM-111 in two Phase 3 clinical trials. The first is the HEALOS trial, which is being conducted in several European and Asian countries. HEALOS aims to enroll approximately 255 patients with severe to profound idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss. Auris Medical expects to complete enrollment in the second quarter of 2017 and announce top-line results from this trial in the third quarter of 2017.Auris Medical expects to announce top-line results from the ASSENT trial in the second half of 2018. 8:01 am RMG Networks Holding converts one of its Visual Supply Chain pilots, into a contract, for the first stage of what has the potential of being a major company-wide rollout in 2017 and beyond ( RMGN ). The customer, a 10 billion global manufacturing company with 50 facilities world-wide, implemented a pilot of RMGs Visual Supply Chain solution in mid-2016, to streamline its operations by improving internal communications and productivity at its distribution centers. The success of the distribution center pilot led to a secondary project awarded in December 2016 for more than 250,000, at one of its manufacturing facilities. 8:00 am SampP futures vs fair value: -11.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -31.10. (:WRAPX) : Equity futures trade solidly lower this morning following the Dows tenth straight record close on Thursday, a milestone which hasnt been achieved since 1987. The SampP 500 futures currently trade 11 points (0.5) below fair value. U. S. Treasuries trade just above their flat lines in early action, looking to post their third consecutive gain on Friday. The benchmark 10-yr yield is one basis point lower at 2.36. Conversely, crude oil has followed yesterdays big advance with a solid loss this morning. The energy component is down 0.8 at 54.03bbl ahead of todays Baker Hughes rig count data, which will be released at 1:00 pm ET. On the data front, investors will receive January New Home Sales (Briefing consensus 566,000) and the final reading of the University of Michigan Sentiment Index for February (Briefing consensus 95.8). Both reports will be released at 10:00 am ET. In U. S. corporate news: Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE 22.80, -1.86): -7.5 after the company missed revenue expectations and issued below-consensus earnings guidance. Foot Locker (FL 69.10, 0.52): 0.8 after reporting better than expected earnings per share results. Nordstrom (JWN 45.29, 1.35): 3.1 after a beat on earnings overshadowed a miss on revenues and disappointing guidance. JC Penny (JCP 6.55, -0.31): -4.5 despite beating bottom line estimates. It is worth noting that the company plans to close two distribution facilities and 130-140 of its stores over the next few months. Super Micro Computer (SMCI 26.10, -1.30): -4.7 after reports that Apple (AAPL 135.20, -1.33) has cut ties with the server supplier. Reviewing overnight developments: Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended the week on a mixed note, but trading ranges were fairly narrow. Indias Sensex was closed for Mahashivratri. Japans Nikkei -0.5, Hong Kongs Hang Seng -0.6, Chinas Shanghai Composite 0.1.In economic data:South Koreas February Consumer Confidence ticked up to 94 from 93. Singapores January Industrial Production -6.0 month-over-month (expected -2.6 last 6.7) 2.2 year-over-year (consensus 8.4 previous 22.1)In news:Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe acknowledged that the global economy is on firmer footing, but noted his preference for a lower Aussie exchange rate. ThE AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR IS DOWN 0.4 AGAINST THE GREENBACK AT 0.7687.MAJOR EUROPEAN INDICES TRADE LOWER ACROSS THE BOARD. UKS FTSE -0.7, FRANCES CAC -1.3, GERMANYS DAX -1.4.IN ECONOMIC DATA:FRANCES FEBRUARY CONSUMER CONFIDENCE HELD AT 100, AS EXPECTED. UKS BBA MORTGAGE APPROVALS 44,700 (EXPECTED 41,900 LAST 43,600) ITALYS DECEMBER INDUSTRIAL NEW ORDERS 2.8 MONTH-OVER-MONTH (LAST 1.7) -0.9 YEAR-OVER-YEAR (LAST 0.1). INDUSTRIAL NEW SALES 2.6 MONTH-OVER-MONTH (LAST 2.4) 9.4 YEAR-OVER-YEAR (LAST 3.9). FEBRUARY BUSINESS CONFIDENCE 106.3 (EXPECTED 104.6 LAST 105.0) AND CONSUMER CONFIDENCE 106.6 (CONSENSUS 109.0 LAST 108.6)IN NEWS:IN GERMANY, POLLING DATA FROM INFRATEST SHOWS THAT CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKELS CDUCSU COALITION HAS SEEN ITS SUPPORT DROP TO 31.0, FALLING BEHIND SDU, WHICH POLLED AT 32.0. 7:56 AM TELEPHONE amp DATA BEATS BY 0.13, MISSES ON REVS GUIDES FY17 REVS BELOW CONSENSUS ( TDS ). Reports Q4 (Dec) loss of 0.05 per share, 0.13 better than the two analyst estimate of (0.18) revenues rose 0.3 yearyear to 1.28 bln vs the 1.36 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Co issues downside guidance for FY17, sees FY17 revs of 5.015-5.265 bln vs. 5.29 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Operating Cash FLow 805-995 mlnAdjusted EBITDA 955-1145 mlnCapEx approx 735 mln 7:50 am TerraForm Power misses Q3 rev estimates exoects to miss 10-K for 2016 deadline and 10-Q for Q1 deadline ( TERP ). Q3 adj. EBITDA 5 to 132 mln revs 9 to 178 mln vs 194.81 mln Capital IQ Consensus CAFD -65 to 34 mln cash 540 mlnAs disclosed more fully in the ForM 10-Q FOR 3Q 2016, WITH THE FILING OF ITS FORM 10-Q FOR 3Q 2016, THE COMPANY HAS FILED ALL OF ITS PREVIOUSLY DELAYED SEC PERIODIC REPORTS, INCLUDING ITS FORM 10-K FOR 2015 AND ITS FORMS 10-Q FOR 1Q 2016, 2Q 2016, AND 3Q 2016. HOWEVER, DUE TO THE TIME AND RESOURCES REQUIRED TO COMPLETE ITS DELAYED SEC PERIODIC REPORTS, THE COMPANY HAS EXPERIENCED DELAYS IN ITS ONGOING EFFORTS TO COMPLETE ALL STEPS AND TASKS NECESSARY TO FINALIZE ITS FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND OTHER DISCLOSURES REQUIRED FOR ITS FORM 10-K FOR 2016 AND SUBSEQUENT QUARTERLY REPORTS. THE COMPANY CURRENTLY DOES NOT EXPECT TO BE ABLE TO FILE ITS FORM 10-K FOR 2016 BY THE SEC DEADLINE OF MARCH 1, 2017 OR ITS FORM 10-Q FOR 1Q 2017 BY THE SEC FILING DEADLINE OF MAY 10, 2017. AS A RESULT, THE COMPANY WILL REQUEST FROM NASDAQ ANOTHER EXTENSION OF TIME TO REGAIN COMPLIANCE WITH APPLICABLE NASDAQ REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND AVOID BECOMING DELISTED. NASDAQ MAY GRANT OR DENY SUCH A REQUEST IN ITS DISCRETION. 7:49 AM TELEPHONE amp DATA INCREASES QUARTERLY DIVIDEND TO 0.155SHARE FROM 0.148SHARE ( TDS ). 7:48 am Cheniere Energy Partners intends to enter into a Note Purchase Agreement to issue and sell 800 million principal amount of 5.00 Senior Secured Notes due 2037 in a private placement ( CQP ). SPL intends to use the net proceeds from the offering (after deducting the estimated fees, expenses and incremental interest during construction related to the SPL 2037 Notes) to prepay all of the principal amounts currently outstanding under SPLs credit facilities (the quot2015 SPL Credit Facilitiesquot) and to pay capital costs in connection with the construction of Trains 1 through 5 of the Sabine Pass Liquefaction Project. 7:47 am RAIT Financial Trust provides an update on comprehensive strategy amp transformation initiative to enhance shareholder value ( RAS ). Co noted they will continue to transform into a more focused, cost-efficient and lower leverage biz concentrated on its core commercial real estate lending business. Co plans to focus on the following priorities:Focus RAITs business on core middle-market commercial real estate lending business, Opportunistically divest and maximize the value of RAITs legacy owned real estate portfolio amp ultimately minimize REO holdings, opportunistically divest and maximize the vALUE OF RAITS COMMERCIAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT BIZ, OPTIMIZE CAPITAL STRUCTURE AND REDUCE OUTSTANDING INDEBTEDNESS, REDUCE THEIR TOTAL EXPENSE BASE, REALLOCATE CAPITAL AND CASH PROCEEDS FROM DIVESTING THEIR NON-CORE ASSETS INTO GROWING CORE MIDDLE-MARKET COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE LENDING ACTIVITIES, amp CONTINUE DISTRIBUTING CASH TO SHAREHOLDERS ON A REGULAR BASIS THROUGH DIVIDENDS. quotWe believe our strategy of transforming RAIT into a pure-play commercial real estate lender is the right strategy to differentiate RAIT, drive sustainable earnings and, ultimately, grow long-term shareholder value. quot said Scott Davidson, RAITs Chief Executive Officer. quotAs we detail in our investor presentation and will discuss during our fourth quarter 2016 earnings call, we have achieved significant progress in 2016 in implementing our strategy and transformation initiative and look to carry that momentum into 2017.quotREMINDER: CO ALSO REPORTED EARNINGS IN A SEPARATE PRESS RELEASE - SEE 7:43 AM ET COMMENT. 7:35 AM SCRIPPS BEATS BY 0.03, BEATS ON REVS GUIDES Q1, FY17 BY SEGMENT ( SSP ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.46 per share, excluding non-recurring items, 0.03 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.43 revenues rose 33.2 yearyear to 272.7 mln vs the 269.82 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Television In the fourth quarter of 2016, revenue from television group was 233 million, up 62.7 million or 37 percent. Retransmission revenue increased 24.7 million, and political advertising revenue was 56.2 million in the presidential election year, compared to 2.1 million in 2015.Sees Q1 TV rev flat FY17 down mid-single digits, retransmission up 20. Radio rev flat for the year down MSD for Q1 digital rev up high 30 for the year mid-20 in Q1. 7:33 am Harsco beats by 0.07, reports revs in-line guides Q1 EPS below two analyst estimate guides FY17 EPS in-line ( HSC ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.16 per share, 0.07 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.09 revenues fell 7.0 yearyear to 360 mln vs the 357.1 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Co issues downside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of (0.01)-0.04 vs. 0.09 two analyst estimate. Co issues in-line guidance for FY17, sees EPS of 0.32-0.50 vs. 0.49 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.2017 GAAP and Adjusted Operating Income Expected Between 100 Million and 120 Million Free Cash Flow Anticipated Within a RangE OF 60 MILLION TO 80 MILLIONTHE COMPANYS 2017 GUIDANCE REFLECTS AN OVERALL MIXED OUTLOOK ACROSS ITS SERVICES AND PRODUCTS PORTFOLIO COMBINED WITH THE EXPECTED FINANCIAL IMPACTS FROM A STRONGER U. S. DOLLAR AGAINST VARIOUS CURRENCIES. FOR METALS amp MINERALS, ADJUSTED OPERATING INCOME IS ANTICIPATED TO BE COMPARABLE WITH 2016 AS OPERATIONAL SAVINGS, NEW SITES AND A MODEST INCREASE IN CUSTOMER STEEL OUTPUT AND COMMODITY PRICES ARE EXPECTED TO BE OFFSET BY FOREIGN EXCHANGE IMPACTS, SERVICES MIX AND LOWER NICKEL AND APPLIED PRODUCTS VOLUMES. MEANWHILE, INDUSTRIAL EARNINGS ARE PROJECTED TO SLIGHTLY INCREASE AS IMPROVED DEMAND FOR HEAT EXCHANGERS AND COMMERCIAL BOILERS ARE EXPECTED TO OFFSET A LESS FAVORABLE PRODUCT MIX AND LOWER INDUSTRIAL GRATING DEMAND, AND IN RAIL, ADJUSTED EARNINGS ARE ALSO EXPECTED TO MODESTLY INCREASE AS HIGHER CONTRIBUTIONS FROM AFTER-MARKET PARTS, INTELLIGENT SOLUTIONS OFFERINGS, AND INTERNATIONAL EQUIPMENT SALES ARE ONLY PARTIALLY OFFSET BY WEAKER NORTH AMERICAN MARKET DEMAND AND LOWER CONTRACT SERVICES CONTRIBUTIONS. 7:33 AM PUBLIC SERVICE BEATS BY 0.02 GUIDES FY17 EPS IN-LINE ( PEG ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.54 per share, 0.02 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.52. Co issues in-line guidance for FY17, sees EPS of 2.80-3.00 vs. 2.91 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. PSEG currently plans to invest approximately 10.2 billion over 2017 -- 2019 primarily in PSEampG (77) and PSEG Power (23). 7:31 am RAIT Financial Trust confirms receipt of a notice of nomination from from an affiliate of Highland Capital Management, L. P. regarding its intention to nominate five trustee candidates to its Board ( RAS ). 7:29 am On The Wires (:WIRES). Klondex Mines Ltd. (KLDX) provided results on the completed 2016 surface exploration drill program at its Fire Creek Mine located in northern Nevada, USA. The following drill results are not included within the mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates released on September 14, 2016. EIGHTEEN SURFACE HOLES TOTALING 28,721 FT (8,754.2 M) WERE DRILLED DURING THE REPORTING PERIOD. THESE EXPLORATION HOLES PRIMARILY TARGETED MINERALIZATION EXTENSIONS IN THE WEST, NORTH AND EAST ZONES. HOLES FCC-0064, FCC-0065, AND FCC-0068 ARE FOLLOW-UP HOLES TO FCC-0020 (PREVIOUSLY REPORTED IN PRESS RELEASE DATED NOVEMBER 10, 2016) WHICH TARGETED A 6,500 FT (1,981.2 M) NORTH-SOUTH STRIKING GEOPHYSICAL ANOMALY LOCATED ABOUT 4,000 FT (1,219.2 M) WEST OF THE CURRENT MINE WORKINGS. WOORI BANK (WF) DISCLOSED IN A REGULATORY FILING THAT IT IS CURRENTLY REVIEWING A POTENTIAL CONVERSION OF ITS STRUCTURE TO A HOLDING COMPANY STRUCTURE FOR ITS IMPROVEMENT OF MANAGEMENT EFFICIENCIES AND DIVERSIFICATION OF BUSINESS OFFERINGS HOWEVER, NO DECISIONS HAVE BEEN MADE AS OF THIS DATE. IN MAKING SUCH DECISION, WOORI BANK WILL COMPREHENSIVELY CONSIDER THE RELATED ISSUES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF ALL STAKEHOLDERS, INCLUDING SHAREHOLDERS AND CUSTOMERS, AND WILL PROVIDE ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURE AS NECESSARY. 7:28 AM TRANSDIGM GROUP TO OFFER AN ADDITIONAL 300 MILLION AGGREGATE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF 6.500 SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES DUE 2025 IN A PRIVATE OFFERING ( TDG ). Co intends to use the net proceeds from the offering of the Notes for general corporate purposes, which may include potential future acquisitions, dividends and purchases under its stock repurchase program, as well as to replenish approximately 90 million of cash on its balance sheet used to fund the acquisition of SCHROTH Safety Products GmbH and certain aviation and defense assets and liabilities from subsidiaries of Takata Corporation on February 22, 2017. 7:19 am European Markets Update: FTSE -0.7, CAC -1.3, DAX -1.4 (:SUMRX) : Major European indices trade lower across the board with Germanys DAX (-1.4) showing relative weakness. Todays underperformance in the DAX comes after the index spent the past two days just below its record high from early 2015. Also of note, polling data from Infratest shows that Chancellor Angela Merkels CDUCSU coalition has seen its support drop to 31.0, falling behind SDU, which polled at 32.0. In economic data: Frances February Consumer Confidence held at 100, as expected. UKs BBA Mortgage Approvals 44,700 (expected 41,900 last 43,600) Italys December Industrial New Orders 2.8 month-over-month (last 1.7) -0.9 year-over-year (last 0.1). Industrial New Sales 2.6 month-over-month (last 2.4) 9.4 year-over-year (last 3.9). February Business Confidence 106.3 (expected 104.6 last 105.0) and Consumer Confidence 106.6 (consensus 109.0 last 108.6) ---Equity Markets--- UKS FTSE IS LOWER BY 0.7 WITH MINERS AND FINANCIALS SHOWING RELATIVE WEAKNESS. RIO TINTO, GLENCORE, BHP BILLITON, ANTOFAGASTA, ANGLO AMERICAN, AND FRESNILLO ARE DOWN BETWEEN 1.4 AND 3.6. FINANCIALS LIKE RBS, STANDARD CHARTERED, fx, RSA INSURANCE, AND LLOYDS BANKING SHOW LOSSES BETWEEN 1.1 AND 3.9. FRANCES CAC HAS GIVEN UP 1.3 AMID BROAD WEAKNESS. ARCELORMITTAL IS THE WEAKEST COMPONENT, FALLING 4.2, WHILE OTHER GROWTH-SENSITIVE NAMES LIKE SAINT GOBAIN, LAFARGEHOLCIM, SOLVAY, AND TECHNIP ARE DOWN BETWEEN 2.6 AND 3.3. AUTOMAKERS PEUGEOT AND RENAULT SHOW RESPECTIVE LOSSES OF 3.0 AND 2.0. GERMANYS DAX TRADES DOWN 1.4. BASF HAS SURRENDERED 3.1 WHILE COMMERZBANK AND DEUTSCHE BANK ARE DOWN 2.8 AND 1.9, RESPECTIVELY. BMW, CONTINENTAL, AND DAIMLER ARE DOWN BETWEEN 1.3 AND 2.0 WHILE VOLKSWAGEN OUTPERFORMS WITH A LOSS OF 0.1. 7:16 AM CAMBER ENERGY ANNOUNCES THAT ITS NEWLY FORMED SUBSIDIARY, CAMBER PERMIAN II LLC, HAS ENTERED INTO A DEFINITIVE PURCHASE AND SALE AGREEMENT WITH PRIVATE SELLERS TO ACQUIRE OIL AND GAS LEASES COVERING APPROX. 15,500 GROSS ACRES (13,000 NET ACRES) IN THE PERMIAN BASIN FOR 11.03 MLN ( CEI ). The Permian Basin, also known as quotThe Arrowhead Projectquot, covers a contiguous block OF ACREAGE ACROSS THE YOAKUM AND COCHRAN COUNTY LINE OF THE PERMIAN BASIN AND INCLUDES A COMPLETED HORIZONTAL SAN ANDRES WELL AND A SALT-WATER DISPOSAL WELL, BOTH CURRENTLY SHUT-IN. CPII WILL PUT THE SAN ANDRES WELL BACK INTO PRODUCTION ONCE THE SALT-WATER DISPOSAL WELL IS PLACED INTO SERVICE. THE TRANSACTION, WHICH IS TARGETED TO CLOSE ON OR BEFORE MARCH 30, 2017, IS SUBJECT TO, AMONG OTHER THINGS, CERTAIN PURCHASE PRICE ADJUSTMENTS PURSUANT TO TITLE CONFIRMATION AND A CUSTOMARY DUE DILIGENCE INVESTIGATION. CONCURRENTLY WITH THE EXECUTION OF THE PSA, CPII ALSO ENTERED INTO AN EXPLORATION AGREEMENT WITH CERTAIN UNDISCLOSED JOINT-VENTURE PARTNERS. THIS AGREEMENT GIVES CPII ACCESS TO THE PROPRIETARY TECHNICAL, GEOLOGIC DATABASE OVER THE ARROWHEAD PROJECT. AS CONSIDERATION, THE JOINT-VENTURE PARTNERS HAVE THE OPTION TO OWN UP TO A 10 WORKING INTEREST, 5 OF WHICH IS CARRIED IN THE LEASE ACQUISITION. CPII WILL OWN THE REMAINING 90 TO 95 WORKING INTEREST IN THE LEASEHOLD AND WILL CONTROL OPERATORSHIP OF THE SUBJECT PROPERTIES. 7:15 AM GENMAB AS CONFIRMS CHMP OF THE EMA ISSUED A POSITIVE OPINION RECOMMENDING BROADENING THE EXISTING MARKETING AUTHORIZATION FOR DARZALEX IN THE EU ( GMXAY ) : The recommendation is for the use of DARZALEX (daratumumab) in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone, or bortezomib and dexamethasone, for the treatment of adult patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior therapy. In August 2012, Genmab granted Janssen Biotech, Inc. (JNJ) an exclusive worldwide license to develop, manufacture and commercialize daratumumab. 7:10 am Novartis AG confirms the CHMP adopted a positive opinion recommending approval of Tafinlar in combination with Mekinist to treat patients with advanced or metastatic non - small cell lung cancer whose tumors express the BRAF V600 mutation. ( NVS ). 7:08 am J. C. Penney beats by 0.03, reports revs in-line guides FY18 EPS in-line with flat comps plans to close 13-14 of stores ( JCP ). Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of 0.64 per share, excluding non-recurring items, 0.03 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.61 revenues fell 0.9 yearyear to 3.96 bln vs the 3.97 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Comparable store sales were (0.7) for the quarter. Reported holiday comps down 0.8 and reaffirmed FY17 EBITDA in early January. Home, Sephora, Salon and Fine Jewelry were the Companys top performing merchandise divisions during the quarter. Geographically, the Southeast and Pacific were the best performing regions of the country. FOR THE FOURTH QUARTER, GROSS MARGIN WAS 33.1 OF SALES VS. 34.3 ESTIAMTES, A 100 BASIS POINT DECLINE COMPARED TO THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR. GROSS MARGIN WAS IMPACTED PRIMARILY BY INCREASED PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITY DURING THE QUARTER, COUPLED WITH THE CONTINUED GROWTH IN BOTH ONLINE AND MAJOR APPLIANCES. CO ISSUES IN-LINE GUIDANCE FOR FY18, SEES EPS OF 0.40-0.65, EXCLUDING NON-RECURRING ITEMS, VS. 0.58 CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS ESTIMATE. COMPARABLE STORE SALES: EXPECTED TO BE -1 TO 1, JUST BELOW ESTIMATES GROSS MARGIN: EXPECTED TO BE UP 20 TO 40 BASIS POINTS VERSUS 2016 SGampA DOLLARS: EXPECTED TO BE DOWN 1 TO 2 VERSUS 2016. ACHIEVES 1 BILLION IN EBITDA FOR FULL YEAR A 477 MILLION IMPROVEMENT. CO EXPECTS TO CLOSE TWO DISTRIBUTION FACILITIES AND APPROX. 130-140 STORES OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS EXPECTS ANNUAL COST SAVINGS OF APPROX. 200 MLN RELATED TO THE CLOSURES (6.86) THE TOTAL STORE CLOSURES REPRESENT 13-14 OF ITS CURRENT STORE PORTFOLIO, LESS THAN 5 OF TOTAL ANNUAL SALES, LESS THAN 2 OF EBITDA AND 0 OF NET INCOME. 7:03 AM MATTERSIGHT ANNOUNCES A PRIVATE PLACEMENT OF 5.33 MLN SHARES OF COMMON STOCK FOR GROSS PROCEEDS OF 16 MLN ABOUT 5.23 MLN TO BE SOLD AT 3.00SHARE amp 100K AT 3.45SHARE ( MATR ). Proceeds from the private placement are expected to be used for general corporate and working capital purposes. 7:01 am Cempra announces positive topline results from a phase 3 study of oral fusidic acid in 716 patients with acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (:ABSSSI) fusidic acid met primary endpoint and secondary efficacy endpoints ( CEMP ) : quotWe are excited that the results of this phase 3 study with fusidic acid confirm the results of our phase 2 study and are consistent with the more than 40 years of experience that the product has accumulated outside the United States. We look forward to meeting with the FDA to discuss the next steps required to bring fusidic acid to patienTS IN THE UNITED STATES, quot said David Oldach, M. D. chief medical officer of Cempra. Fusidic acid was well tolerated in the study. The rates of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were comparable between treatment groups (37.9 percent fusidic acid, 36.1 percent linezolid). The most common TEAEs in both treatment groups were gastrointestinal events (22.8 percent fusidic acid, 18.2 percent linezolid). Serious adverse events (SAEs) occurred in six fusidic acid recipients and eight linezolid recipients, and were considered study-drug related in one fusidic acid recipient (vomiting) and in two linezolid recipients (one drug induced liver injury, one vomiting). Adverse events led to study drug discontinuation in 2.2 percent of fusidic acid recipients, and 2.0 percent of linezolid recipients. There was one death in the study, an event due to illicit drug overdose and aspiration which occurred in a patient receiving linezolid. Rates of treatment-emergent ALT elevation to gt3x ULN occurred in 1.0 percent of fusidic acid recipients and 0.7 percent of linezolid patients. 7:00 am J. C. Penney expects to close two distribution facilities and approx. 130-140 stores over the next few months expects annual cost savings of approx. 200 mln related to the closures ( JCP ) : The total store closures represent 13-14 of its current store portfolio, less than 5 of total annual sales, less than 2 of EBITDA and 0 of net income. The stores identified for closure either require significant capital to achieve its new brand standard or are minimally cash flow positive today relative to its overall consolidated average. Comparable sales performance for the closing stores was significantly below the remaining store base and these stores operate at a much higher expense rate given the lack of productivity. Once cycled, these closures are expected to be net income neutral. The annual cost savings resulting from these strategic decisions, primarily occupancy, payroll, home office support, corporate administration and other store-related expenses, are estimated at 200 mln. During the 1H17, co expects to record an estimated pre-tax charge of 225 mln, primarily lease termination obligation expenses, non-cash asset impairments and transition costs, in connection with this initiative. Nearly all impacted stores are expected to close in 2Q17. 6:58 am Asian Markets Close: Nikkei -0.5, Hang Seng -0.6, Shanghai 0.1 (:SUMRX) : Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended the week on a mixed note, but trading ranges were fairly narrow. Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe acknowledged that the global economy is on firmer footing, but noted his preference for a lower Aussie exchange rate. The Australian dollar is down 0.4 against the greenback at 0.7687. In economic data: South Koreas February Consumer Confidence ticked up to 94 from 93. Singapores January Industrial Production -6.0 month-over-month (expected -2.6 LAST 6.7) 2.2 YEAR-OVER-YEAR (CONSENSUS 8.4 PREVIOUS 22.1) ---EQUITY MARKETS--- JAPANS NIKKEI LOST 0.5, BUT GAINED 0.3 FOR THE WEEK. GROWTH-SENSITIVE NAMES STRUGGLED IN RESPONSE TO SPECULATION THAT AN INFRASTRUCTURE SPENDING BILL IN THE US WILL BE DELAYED. KOMATSU, SUMITOMO HEAVY INDUSTRIES, MITSUBISHI MATERIALS, KOBE STEEL, FURUKAWA, HITACHI CONSTRUCTION, AND PACIFIC METALS LOST BETWEEN 2.9 AND 5.4. ON THE UPSIDE, TOSHIBA SPIKED 4.5 TO CONTINUE ITS RECENT VOLATILE STRETCH. HONG KONGS HANG SENG LOST 0.6 TO END THE WEEK LOWER BY 0.3. APPLE SUPPLIER AAC TECHNOLOGIES WAS THE WEAKEST PERFORMER, FALLING 4.7. FINANCIALS LIKE BOC HONG KONG, PING AN INSURANCE, BANK OF CHINA, AND HSBC LOST BETWEEN 0.8 AND 1.5. CHINAS SHANGHAI COMPOSITE TICKED UP 0.1, EXTENDING ITS WEEKLY GAIN TO 1.6. CHINA SOUTHERN AIRLINES, CHINA WORLD TRADE CENTER, BESTTONE HOLDINGS, AND CHINA EASTERN AIRLINES CLIMBED BETWEEN 3.5 AND 5.7. INDIAS SENSEX WAS CLOSED FOR MAHASHIVRATRI. ---FX--- USDJPY -0.3 TO 112.34 USDCNY 0.1 TO 6.8715 USDINR -0.1 TO 66.618 6:55 AM MOODYS FILES FOR DEBT OFFERING SIZE UNDISCLOSED ( MCO ). 6:52 am Foot Locker beats by 0.05, reports revs in-line sees mid-single digit comps and double-digit EPS growth this year ( FL ). Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of 1.37 per share, 0.05 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 1.32 revenues rose 5.3 yearyear to 2.11 bln vs the 2.11 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Q4 comparable-store sales increased 5.0. Total sales increased 5.3 percent, to 2,113 million this year, compared with sales of 2,007 million for the corresponding prior-year period. Excluding the effect of foreign currency fluctuations, totAL SALES FOR THE FOURTH QUARTER INCREASED 6.1 PERCENT. THE COMPANYS GROSS MARGIN RATE IMPROVED TO 33.7 PERCENT OF SALES FROM 33.6 PERCENT A YEAR AGO, AND THE SELLING, GENERAL, AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSE RATE IMPROVED 60 BASIS POINTS TO 18.7 PERCENT OF SALES. quotAlthough we currently face a softer sales environment than at this time last year, we are planning for a mid-single digit comparable sales gain and a double-digit earnings per share increase for the full year of 2017.quot Consensus calls for EPS 9.3 to 5.27share. 6:50 am Rowan Cos beats by 0.17, beats on revs ( RDC ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.08 per share, excluding a 0.27 per share loss on extinguishment of 463.9 mln of debt, 0.17 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of (0.09) revenues fell 34.3 yearyear to 351.8 mln vs the 343.7 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Rev decline was driven by a 41 decline in the Deepwater segment and a 30 decline in the Jack-up segment. The Deepwater decline resulted from Rowan Relentless being idle and Rowan Resolute operating at a reduced day rate due to the blend and extend amendment to its contract. Jack-up revenues were impacted by lower utilization and lower day rates. 6:50 am Comstock misses by 0.40 ( CRK ). Reports Q4 (Dec) loss of 2.58 per share, 0.40 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of (2.18)stock produced 62 Bcfe or 169 million cubic feet equivalent (quotMMcfequot) per day during 2016. Natural gas production grew 13 in 2016 to 53.7 Bcf while oil production decreased by 55 TO 1.4 MILLION BARRELS. NATURAL GAS COMPRISED 87 OF COMSTOCKS 2016 TOTAL PRODUCTION AS COMPARED TO 72 OF TOTAL PRODUCTION IN 2015. PRODUCTION IN THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 2016 WAS 14 BCFE OR 153 MMCFE PER DAY, WHICH WAS COMPRISED OF 3,217 BARRELS OF OIL AND 133 MILLION CUBIC FEET (quotMMcfquot) of natural gas. The production decline in the fourth quarter was primarily attributable to the SUSPENSION OF THE DRILLING PROGRAM IN JUNE 2016, WHICH WAS RESTARTED IN THE FOURTH QUARTER, THE COMPANYS DIVESTITURE OF CERTAIN NATURAL GAS PROPERTIES IN THE FOURTH QUARTER, AND THE SHUT-IN OF CERTAIN OF THE COMPANYS HAYNESVILLE SHALE PRODUCTION FOR OFFSET COMPLETION ACTIVITY. COMSTOCK CURRENTLY PLANS TO DRILL 20 (15.5 NET) ADDITIONAL HAYNESVILLE SHALE WELLS IN 2017 AND COMPLETE THE 2016 WELLS AT AN ESTIMATED CAPITAL OUTLAY OF 142.9 MILLION. COMSTOCK HAS BUDGETED AN ADDITIONAL 7.0 MILLION FOR OTHER NON - DRILLING EXPENDITURES. THE COMPANY ALSO HAS TENTATIVELY BUDGETED AN ADDITIONAL 17.6 MILLION FOR TWO (1.7 NET) BOSSIER SHALE WELLS THAT MAY BE DRILLED IN LATE 2017 DEPENDING ON NATURAL GAS PRICES. THESE WELLS WOULD FURTHER PROVE UP THE BOSSIER SHALE POTENTIAL OF ITS PROPERTIES DEMONSTRATED BY THE SUCCESSFUL JORDAN WELL DRILLED IN 2015. 6:48 AM SOUTH JERSEY INDUSTRIES IN SLIDES PLANS 1.7 BLN OF CAPEX FROM 2016-2020, PLANS 2017 CAPEX OF 316 MLN ( SJI ). planned capex for 2018 of 472 mlnplanned capex for 2019 of 353 mlnplanned capex for 2020 of 259 mln 6:47 am Asanko Gold publishes updated mineral resource and reserve estimate measured and indicated resources of 7.34 million ounces at 1.44 gt au and inferred resources of 1.43 million ounces at 1.43 gt au, as of December 31 ( AKG ). Mineral Resource Estimate includes updated constraining parameters, in line with best practice. Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves of 4.82 million ounces at 1.57 gt AU, POST NKRAN MINING DEPLETION OF 270,471 OUNCES, REPRESENTING NO MATERIAL CHANGE TO THE GLOBAL RESERVE INVENTORY. INCREASED EXPLORATION PROGRAM IN HIGHLY PROSPECTIVE BELT EXPECTED TO ADD ADDITIONAL OUNCES IN 2017. 6:46 AM DAIMLER AGS MERCEDES-BENZ VANS UNIT REPORTS FY16 RESULTS ( DDAIF ). For FY16, Daimlers van division handed over a total of approximately 359,100 vans and multipurpose vehicles to its customers, representing growth of 12 (2015: 321,000). Revenue also increased by about 12 percent to 12.8 billion euros (2015: 11.5 billion euros). Mercedes-Benz Vans EBIT actually rose by a third to EUR 1,170 mln (plus approximately 33 percent froM 880 MILLION EUROS IN 2015) AND WERE FOR THE FIRST TIME ABOVE ONE BILLION EUROS. RETURN ON SALES ALSO INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY COMPARED WITH THE PREVIOUS YEAR TO 9.1 PERCENT (2015: 7.7 PERCENT) AND WAS THUS AT THE TARGETED LEVEL. A SIGNIFICANT PART OF THE INVESTMENT BY MERCEDES-BENZ VANS IN 2017 WILL BE FOR THE ONGOING MODERNIZATION AND EXPANSION OF THE WORLDWIDE PRODUCTION NETWORK -- ESPECIALLY IN VIEW OF PREPARATIONS FOR THE NEW MODELS. THIS YEAR THE DIVISION WILL INVEST APPROXIMATELY 260 MILLION EUROS AT THE GERMAN SPRINTER PLANTS IN DSSELDORF AND LUDWIGSFELDE ALONE. 6:44 AM SAMSUNG INTRODUCES MEASURES TO ENHANCE TRANSPARENCY IN FINANCIAL DONATIONS ( SSNLF ). Board Approval for Donations Over 1 Billion Won: All financial donations and CSR funding amounting to more than 1 billion won will require the approval from the companys Board of DirECTORS. THIS IS TO ENHANCE THE TRANSPARENCY OF THE MANAGEMENT OF SUCH DONATIONS AND FUNDS AND TO STRENGTHEN THE COMPLIANCE BY REQUIRING THE APPROVAL OF THE BOARD, WHICH IS COMPRISED OF A MAJORITY OF OUTSIDE DIRECTORS. TO DATE, THE COMPANY ONLY REQUIRED BOARD APPROVAL FOR ENDOWMENTS THAT WERE MORE THAN 0.5 OF THE COMPANYS SHAREHOLDER EQUITY. CURRENTLY, 0.5 OF THE SHAREHOLDER EQUITY IS APPROXIMATELY 680 BILLION WON. 6:37 AM ARES MANAGEMENT MISSES BY 0.03, BEATS ON REVS ( ARES ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.34 per share, 0.03 worse than the CapITAL IQ CONSENSUS OF 0.37 REVENUES ROSE 124.6 YEARYEAR TO 358.2 MLN VS THE 334.3 MLN TWO ANALYST ESTIMATE. TOTAL ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT OF 95.3 BILLION, OR 98.9 BILLION PRO FORMA FOR ARES CAPITALS (quotARCCquot) acquisition of American Capital, Ltd. (quotACASquot) which closed on January 3, 2017. quotDuring 2016, we continued to enjoy widespread demand from our existing and new clients with approximately 14 billion in AUM raised, quot said Michael Arougheti, President of Ares. quotLookinG FORWARD, WE ARE WELL POSITIONED FOR FEE RELATED EARNINGS GROWTH AS WE INCREASE OUR FEE PAYING AUM BY INVESTING OUR AVAILABLE CAPITAL AND BENEFIT FROM RECENT STRATEGIC INITIATIVES. quot 6:35 am Royal Bank of Canada beats by CAD 0.05, misses on revs ( RY ). Reports Q1 (Jan) earnings of CAD 1.83 per share, excluding non-recurring items, CAD 0.05 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of CAD 1.78 revenues rose 2.0 yearyear to CAD 9.55 bln vs the CAD 9.79 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Adj ROE was 16.7 (up 120 bps from 15.5).Co announces that Jennifer Tory, currently Group Head Personal amp Commercial Bank will assume the role of Chief Administrative Officer. Neil McLaughlin, currently Executive Vice-President, Business Financial Services, PampCB will become Group Head PampCB, replacing Ms. Tory. 6:35 am AIA Group reports FY16 results ( AAGIY ). Co reports FY16 EPS up 15 to 0.3325.share. quotThe Board has recommended a further step up of 25 per cent in the 2016 final dividend from our higher base in 2015 to 63.75 Hong Kong cents per share. This dividend uplift reflects our excellent financial performance and our confidence in the future outlook for the Groupquot 6:34 am Harvest Natural sells all of its Gabon interests to BW Energy Gabon for 32 mln ( HNR ). At the closing of the sale, BW Energy Gabon will pay Harvest 32 million, subject to certain adjustments. 2.5 million of the purchase price will be deposited in escrow for three months to satisfy certain post-closing claims under the Sale and Purchase Agreement. 6:34 am Cabot Oil amp Gas reports EPS in-line, misses on revs reiterates full year production guidance ( COG ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.01 per share, in-line with the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.01 revenues rose 12.7 yearyear to 316.5 mln vs the 350.92 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Equivalent production in the fourth quarter of 2016 was 164.2 Bcfe, consisting of 158.6 Bcf of natural gas, 822.7 Mbbls of crude oil and condensate, and 106.5 Mbbls of NGLs. EquivALENT PRODUCTION INCREASED NINE PERCENT SEQUENTIALLY COMPARED TO THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2016 AND WAS IN LINE WITH THE HIGH-END OF THE COMPANYS GUIDANCE RANGE FOR THE QUARTER. quotDespite our lowest level of capital spending since 2004, Cabot grew proved reserves and proved developed reserves by five percent and 16 percent, respectively, at record-low finding and development costs, quot explained Dinges. quotWe expect a return to double-digit reserve growth in 2017 as the Company increases its capital spending in anticipation of new takeaway capacity out of the Marcellus Shale. quot Q1 guidance: Cabot has provided first quarter 2017 net production guidance of 1,780 to 1,820 million cubic feet (Mmcf) per day for natural gas 10,000 to 10,500 Bbls per day for crude oil and condensate and 1,200 to 1,250 Bbls per day for NGLs. Reiterates full year production guidance: The Company has reiterated its 2017 production growth guidance range of 5 to 10 percent and initiated crude oil production growth guidance of 15 percent, which represents a substantial increase from the zero percent oil growth contained in the preliminary 2017 budget issued in October 2016. Based on the expectation for higher operating cash flow due to an improvement in the commodity price outlook, the Company is increasing its exploration and production (EampP) capital budget from 575 million to 650 million. 6:34 am Materialise reports EPS in-line, misses on revs guides FY17 revs below consensus ( MTLS ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.01 per share, in-line with the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.01 revenues rose 12.3 yearyear to 31.48 mln vs the 32.57 mln Capital IQ Consensus. quotThe additive manufacturing market continues to evolve, particularly in the direction of end part production, and we intend to continue positioning Materialise to benefit from this promising growth market in the coMING YEARS. OUR STRATEGIC PRIORITIES FOR 2017 ARE TO SUSTAIN OUR LEADERSHIP POSITION IN SOFTWARE THROUGH CONTINUED INNOVATION AND STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS TO DRIVE THE NEXT STAGE OF GROWTH IN OUR MEDICAL DIVISION THROUGH OUR FOCUS ON THE HOSPITAL MARKET TO CONTINUE INCREASING OUR MANUFACTURING OF END PARTS AND TO ENABLE THE DEVELOPMENT OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IN SPECIFIC VERTICAL MARKETS. WE ANTICIPATE DELIVERING SALES AND ADJUSTED EBITDA MARGIN EXPANSION IN 2017 WHILE REINVESTING EFFICIENCY GAINS IN SELECTED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES. quotCo issues downside guidance for FY17, sees FY17 revs of 128-134 mln vs. 135.38 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate expects Adjusted EBITDA between 10,500 - 13,500 kEURquotAs the seasonality of our Materialise Manufacturing segment and our software businesses are expected to combine with the effects of the ramp up of the partnerships we entered into in the past months, we expect our financial results to be particularly strong in the third quarter and even stronger in the fourth quarTER. WE EXPECT THE AMOUNT OF DEFERRED REVENUE THAT MATERIALISE GENERATES FROM ANNUAL LICENSES AND MAINTENANCE IN 2017 TO INCREASE BY AN AMOUNT BETWEEN 4,000 - 5,000 KEUR. quot 6:33 am VolitionRx presents data a the World Congress of GI ENDO from a study that confirms prior test results that the Nu. Q Colorectal Cancer Screening Triage test reduces the total number of colonoscopy referrals while maintaining high sensitivity for cancer detection ( VNRX ). 6:32 am Magellan Health beats by 0.12, misses on revs guides FY17 EPS in-line, revs in-line ( MGLN ). REPORTS Q4 (DEC) EARNINGS OF 1.80 PER SHARE, EXCLUDING NON-RECURRING ITEMS, 0.12 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 1.68 revenues fell 0.4 yearyear to 1.26 bLN VS THE 1.33 BLN CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS. CO ISSUES IN-LINE GUIDANCE FOR FY17, SEES EPS OF 5.08-5.99, EXCLUDING NON-RECURRING ITEMS, VS. 5.52 CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS ESTIMATE SEES FY17 REVS OF 5.8-6.1 BLN VS. 5.9 BLN CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS ESTIMATE. SEGMENT PROFIT FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2016 INCREASED 9.5 PERCENT TO 301.8 MILLION, WHICH REFLECTS YEAR OVER YEAR EARNINGS GROWTH IN BOTH THE HEALTHCARE AND PHARMACY MANAGEMENT SEGMENTS. 6:32 AM NEWELL BRANDS REAFFIRMS ITS FY 17 OUTLOOK AHEAD OF CAGNY CONFERENCE SEES NET SALES OF 14.52-14.72 BLN VS 14.67 BLN CONSENSUS AND ADJ. EPS OF 2.95-3.15 VS 3.01 CONSENSUS ( NWL ) : FY 17 Outlook Net sales of 14.52-14.72 bln vs 14.67 bln consensusCore sales growth of 2.5-4Adj. EPS of 2.95-3.15 vs 3.01 consensus 6:32 am Stone Energy announces that the Co received approval to list its new common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the same NYSE ticker symbol SGY following emergence from Chapter 11 reorganization ( SGY ). 6:31 am Performance Food Group prices 13.5 mln common stock offering by certain of its stockholders, including affiliates of The Blackstone Group ( BX ), at 23.50share ( PFGC ). 6:19 am Toshiba reports notice on conclusion of absorption-type company split agreement in respect of the memory business ( TOSBF ). Co concluded an absorption-type company split agreement, and wishes to announce the information on matters that remain undecided. The Company announced, on January 27, 2017, that the Memory business of the Storage amp Electronic Devices Solutions Company, one of its in-house companies, will be separated from the Company by a compaNY SPLIT. THE COMPANY SPLIT IS SUBJECT TO APPROVAL AT THE EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS SCHEDULED FOR MARCH 30, 2017. AT THE SAME TIME, AS STATED IN ITS FEBRUARY 14, 2017 ANNOUNCEMENT, quotProvisional Outlook for FY2016 3Q Business Results and FY2016 Forecast, and Outline of Loss in Nuclear Power Business and Countermeasures, quot impairment loss of goodwill in the Nuclear Power business in FY2016 could reach 712.5 billion yen, and this will lead to a significant deterioration of the financial position, although the disclosed figures are still being reviewed by an independent accounting auditor. Given this, Toshiba Group urgently needs to enhance its financial structure, and Toshiba is considering various capital measures. In connection with the Company Split, as a means to further secure management resources for growth of the Memory business, and to enhance the financial structure of Toshiba Group, Toshiba is considering a restructuring with third-party capital, including potential sale of a majority stake. Toshiba will commence the procedure promptly, aiming to make a final decision in early FY2017.Co also decided to transfer Miike Power Plant, a coal-fired power generation business operated by Sigma Power Ariake Corporation, a subsidiary of Sigma Power Holdings Limited Liability Company, a wholly-owned consolidated subsidiary of Toshiba, to the IDI Infrastructure 3 Limited Liability Partnership managed by IDI infrastructures Inc, an energy and infrastructure business investment fund. 6:14 am DigitalGlobe: MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates confirms it will acquire DigitalGlobe for 35share in cash amp stock ( DGI ) : MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. and DigitalGlobe announced they have entered into a definitive merger agreement, pursuant to which MDA will acquire DigitalGlobe for 35.00 per share in a combination of cash and stock. The transaction values DigitalGlobe at an equity value of approximately 2.4 billion, and an enterprise value of 3.6 billion, including assumption of DigitalGlobes 1.2 billion in net debt. The transaction has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies, and is expected to close in the second half of 2017. Under the terms of the agreement, each DIGITALGLOBE COMMON SHARE WILL BE EXCHANGED FOR 17.50 IN CASH AND 0.3132 MDA COMMON SHARES, REPRESENTING A PER SHARE VALUE OF 17.50 BASED ON MDAS UNAFFECTED CLOSING SHARE PRICE OF C73.40 ON THE TORONTO STOCK EXCHANGE ON FEBRUARY 16, 2017, THE DAY PRIOR TO MARKET SPECULATION ABOUT A POTENTIAL COMBINATION, AND A CUS EXCHANGE RATIO OF 0.7612. THE TOTAL CASH AND STOCK PER SHARE VALUE CONSIDERATION REPRESENTS AN 18 PREMIUM BASED ON DIGITALGLOBES UNAFFECTED CLOSING STOCK PRICE ON THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE (:NYSE) ON FEBRUARY 16, 2017. As part of the transaction, MDA will apply to list its shares on the NYSE in addition to the TSX. Upon completion of the transaction, the combined Company will coNTINUE TO EXECUTE ITS U. S. ACCESS PLAN STRATEGY. THIS WILL INCLUDE FURTHER REORGANIZATION OF ALL OR PART OF THE COMBINED COMPANYS CORPORATE AND OPERATING STRUCTURE TO ENSURE THAT THE ULTIMATE PARENT OF DIGITALGLOBE IS INCORPORATED IN THE U. S. BY THE END OF 2019, SUBJECT TO CUSTOMARY APPROVALS. MDA UNDERTOOK A CORPORATE REORGANIZATION IN 2016 THAT INCLUDED THE FORMATION OF SSL MDA HOLDINGS, INC. THE U. S. OPERATING COMPANY OF MDA, UNDER THE GUIDANCE AND APPROVAL OF THE U. S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE. SSL MDA HOLDINGS CURRENTLY OPERATES UNDER A SECURITY CONTROL AGREEMENT WITH DOD, ALLOWING IT TO PURSUE AND EXECUTE U. S. GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS THAT REQUIRE SECURITY CLEARANCES. 6:12 am Calumet Specialty Products reports Q4 EPS below consensus ( CLMT ). Co reports Q4 EPS of (1.01) vs (0.56) Capital IQ Consensus. For fiscal year 2017, the Partnership expects throughput to increase as it continues to optimize its use of heavy crude oil in conjunction with increasing the efficiency and utilization of its assets. Total capital spending for fiscal year 2017 is expected to range from 120 million and 140 million. The Partnership remains on schedule to achieve its 150 million to 200 million operations excellence initiative objectives by the end of 2018, with a projected 40 million to 60 million expected to be realized during fiscal year 2017. 6:10 am DigitalGlobe misses BY 0.28, BEATS ON REVS GUIDES FY17 REVS ABOVE CONSENSUS ANNOUNCES COMBINATION WITH MACDONALD, DETTWILER AND ASSOCIATES ( DGI ). Reports Q4 (Dec) GAAP loss of 0.17 per share, 0.28 worse than the Capital IQ GAAP Consensus of 0.11 revenues rose 6.1 yearyear to 192.7 mln vs the 186.05 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY17, sees FY17 revs of 840-865 mln vs. 831.44 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate sees Adjusted EBITDA in a range of 380 million to 395 million sees Capital expenditures of approximately 100 millionquotOur improved results reflect solid execution against our strategy for shareowner value creation and position us well for 2017. We look forward to continued profitable growth as we expand our International Defense and Intelligence business with assured access to our newest high resolution satellite, develop new commercial use cases, expand our rapidly growing geospatial big data analytics platform, and realize the full potential of our services business with the addition of Radiant. Furthermore, we are pleased to have reached an agreement to combine with MDA as we separately disclosed today. quotBriefing note: The company has yet to issue the formal release announcing its combination with MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates, and no terms of the deal were disclosed in their earnings PR 6:07 AM DEL FRISCOS RESTAURANT BEATS BY 0.04, REPORTS REVS IN-LINE GUIDES FY17 EPS BELOW CONSENSUS INCREASES REMAINING STOCK REPURCHASE PROGRAM TO 50 MLN ( DFRG ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.37 per share, excluding non-recurring items, 0.04 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.33 revenues rose 4.5 yearyear to 119.2 mln vs the 118.94 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Total comparable restaurant sales increased 0.8parable restaurant sales increased 0.1 at Del Friscos Double Eagle Steak House coMPRISED OF A 0.5 INCREASE IN AVERAGE CHECK AND 0.4 DECREASE IN CUSTOMER COUNTSPARABLE RESTAURANT SALES INCREASED 0.9 AT SULLIVANS STEAKHOUSE COMPRISED OF A 1.5 DECREASE IN AVERAGE CHECK AND 2.4 INCREASE IN CUSTOMER COUNTSPARABLE RESTAURANT SALES INCREASED 2.1 AT DEL FRISCOS GRILLE COMPRISED OF A 1.5 INCREASE IN AVERAGE CHECK AND 0.6 INCREASE IN CUSTOMER COUNTS. CO ISSUES downside guidance for FY17, sees EPS of 0.80-0.84, excluding non-recurring items, vs. 0.87 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Co sees FY17 total comparable restaurant sales of -0.5 to 0.5.Co sees one Del Friscos Double Eagle Steak House and one Del Friscos Grille opening in FY17.Co sees two Sullivans Steakhouse closings in FY17.Co sees FY17 cost of sales of 27.8 to 28.2 of consolidated revenues. Co sees FY17 restaurant-level EBITDA of 21.1 tO 21.4 OF CONSOLIDATED REVENUES. 6:07 AM HMS HOLDINGS BEATS BY 0.01, MISSES ON REVS GUIDES FY17 REVS IN-LINE ( HMSY ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.20 per share, 0.01 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.19 revenues fell 0.3 yearyear to 128.1 mln vs the 130.86 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Q4 Share Repurchases of 20.5 mlnCo issues in-line guidance for FY17, sees FY17 revs of 7-9 YoY to 530.7-540.6 mln vs. 532.22 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. including high teens commercial health plan growth 6:07 am KBR misses by 0.77, reports revs in-line guides FY17 EPS in-line ( KBR ). Reports Q4 (Dec) loss of 0.59 per share, excluding non-recurring items, 0.77 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.18 revenues rose 10.2 yearyear to 1.19 bln vs the 1.2 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Co issues in-line guidance FOR FY17, SEES EPS OF 1.10-1.40, EXCLUDING NON-RECURRING ITEMS, VS. 1.31 CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS ESTIMATE. THE EXPECTED EBITDA RANGE FOR 2017, WHICH IS ON THE SAME BASIS AS THE EPS GUIDANCE, IS 300-350 MILLION. OVER 70 OF OUR PROJECTED EARNINGS IS EXPECTED FROM CONTRACTS ALREADY SECURED IN OUR BACKLOG AT YEAR-END 2016. OUR ESTIMATED ANNUAL EFFECTIVE TAX RATE FOR 2017 IS PROJECTED TO BE APPROXIMATELY 27 GIVEN THE MIX OF EARNINGS IN THE VARIOUS TAX JURISDICTIONS IN WHICH KBR CONDUCTS BUSINESS. 6:03 AM VWR CORP BEATS BY 0.01, MISSES ON REVS GUIDES FY17 EPS IN-LINE, REVS BELOW CONSENSUS ( VWR ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.45 per share, excluding non-recurring items, 0.01 better than THE CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS OF 0.44 REVENUES ROSE 1.6 YEARYEAR TO 1.13 BLN VS THE 1.15 BLN CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS. ON AN ORGANIC BASIS, NET SALES INCREASED 10.8 MILLION, OR 1.0, WHILE RECENT ACQUISITIONS INCREASED NET SALES BY AN ADDITIONAL 24.3 MILLION, OR 2.2.CO ISSUES GUIDANCE FOR FY17, SEES EPS OF 1.79-1.87, EXCLUDING NON-RECURRING ITEMS, VS. 1.81 CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS ESTIMATE SEES FY17 REVS OF 4.56-4.61 BLN VS. 4.66 BLN CAPITAL IQ CONSENSUS ESTIMATE. 6:02 AM NET 1 UEPS TECHS RECEIVES A WRITTEN CONFIRMATION FROM SASSA THAT A FORMAL MEETING HAS BEEN SCHEDULED FOR MARCH 1, 2017 TO DISCUSS THE PAYMENT OF SOCIAL GRANTS BEYOND MARCH 31, 2017 WHEN THE CURRENT CONTRACT BETWEEN CPS AND SASSA TERMINATES ( UEPS ). 6:01 am Hilton Hotels authorizes 1 bln stock repurchase program and approves a 0.15 quarterly dividend also announces name change to Hilton Inc. ( HLT ). 5:56 am SampP futures vs fair value: -5.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -19.60. 5:56 am European Markets. FTSE. 7230.36. -41.00. -0.60. DAX. 11856.94. -90.90. -0.80. 5:56 am Asian Markets. Nikkei. 19284. -87.90. -0.50. Hang Seng. 23966. -149.20. -0.60. 5:51 am Boise Cascade beats by 0.15, revs in-line ( BCC ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.11 per share, 0.15 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of (0.04) revenues increased 5 yearyear to 919.5 mln vs the 920.58 mln Capital IQ Consensus. Co anticipates capital spending, excluding acquisitions, of 75-85 mln during 2017, inclusive of the work being completed at Roxboro. 5:47 am Celgene receives EC approval for new indication for REVLIMID ( CELG ) : Celgene International Srl, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Celgene, announced that the European Commission has approved REVLIMID as monotherapy for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma who have undergone autologous stem cell transplantation The REVLIMID Marketing Authorisation has been updated to include this new indication, which expands on the existing multiple myeloma indications as combination therapy for the treatment of those not eligible for transplant who are newly diagnosed, or have received at least one prior therapyThe EC decision to approve REVLIMID as monotherapy for multiple myeloma in the post-ASCT setting was based on the results of two cooperative group-led studies, CALGB 1001049 and IFM 2005-02.10CALGB 100104 was a phase III, controlled, double-blind, multi-centre study of 460 patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma undergoing ASCT who were randomized to receive continuous daily treatment with REVLIMID or placebo until relapse or intolerance. IFM 2005-02 was an international, phase III, controlled, double-blind, multi-centre study of 614 patients newly diagnosed with multiple myeloma who were randomized to receive a 2-month consolidation regimen post-ASCT of REVLIMID monotherapy, followed by continuous daily treatment with either REVLIMID or placebo until relapse or intolerance 5:20 am On The Wires (:WIRES). Sony (SNE) announced that it will transfer certain rights and obligations related to shares of Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony, and its related business, to Sony Interactive Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony, by an quotabsorption-type company splitEricsson (ERIC), Orange (ORAN) and PSA Group (PEUGF) have taken a signifiCANT STEP TOWARDS THE REALIZATION OF 5G TECHNOLOGY FOR CONNECTED VEHICLES AFTER CONDUCTING FIELD TRIALS TO TEST ADVANCED APPLICATIONS IN FRANCE. TO SUPPORT DIRECT COMMUNICATIONS TESTING, THE quotTowards 5Gquot initiative looks forward to welcoming Qualcomm (QCOM), as a new member. The9 Limited (NCTY) received a written notification from the Nasdaq Stock Market indicating that the Co no longer meets the continued listing requirement of minimum Market Value of Publicly Held Shares, because the market value was below the minimum requirement of 15 mlnToyota Motor (TM) delivered the first fuel cell bus sold under the Toyota brand to the Bureau of Transportation of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. This FC bus will be put into operation as a Toei route bus in March along with a second bus that is scheduled for delivery in the same month. Qunar Cayman Islands (QUNR) announced that, at an extraordinary general meeting, the Companys shareholders voted in favor of, among others, the proposal to authorize and approve the previously announced agreement and plan of merger dated as of October 19, 2016, by and among the Company, Ocean Management Holdings Ericsson (ERIC) and WeDo Technologies have formed a global partnership to give operators the confidence they need when exploring digital services. This new solution from the two companies means operATORS CAN PROACTIVELY SAFEGUARD NEW REVENUE STREAMS, ASSURE HEALTHY MARGINS AND MINIMIZE RISKS IN A VERY DYNAMIC ECOSYSTEM. CHINA YUCHAI INTERNATIONAL (CYD) ANNOUNCED THAT 321 UNITS OF XIAMEN KINGLONG BUSES HAVE BEEN PURCHASED BY THE SAUDI ARABIA PUBLIC TRANSPORT COMPANY FOR USE IN MECCA. 5:17 AM MAGNA MISSES BY 0.11, REPORTS REVS IN-LINE GUIDES FY17 REVS IN-LINE ( MGA ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 1.24 per share, 0.11 worse than the Capital IQ Consensus of 1.35 revenues rose 8.0 yearyear to 9.25 bln vs the 9.21 bln Capital IQ Consensus. This strong year over year growth was achieved despite both North American and European light vehicle production decreasing 4 compared to the fourth quarter of 2015. Complete vehicle assembly volumes decreased 70, largely reflecting the end of production of the MINI Countryman and Paceman in the fourth quarter of 2016. Co issues in-line guidance for FY17, sees FY17 revs of 36.0-37.0 bln vs. 36.98 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. FY17 Total Production Sales: 30.4 - 31.7 billionEBIT Margin: 3:29 am On The Wires (:WIRES). Prologis (PLD) and CBRE Global Investment Partners, a division of CBRE Global Investors announced the formation of a new development venture in the United Kingdom. Gemalto (GTOMY) and MPT are extending their partnership. MPT has acquired Gemaltos Device Management and Advanced Over-The-Air, in a bid to strengthen the relationship with its subscribers and expand its service portfolios. 3:27 am Prima Biomed reports H1 operational update reports cash position sufficient through 1Q18 ( PBMD ) : Co announce the following updates on our clinical applications of IMP321: AIPAC (Active Immunotherapy PAClitaxel), completed the safety-run in phase in December 2016. The randomized phase started in January 2017 with 30 mg of IMP321 as the recommended phase 2 dose. First patients have been recruited and we pLAN TO OPEN FURTHER CLINICAL SITES IN THE NEAR TERM TO RAMP UP THE PATIENT RECRUITMENT. IN TOTAL, THE TRIAL AIMS TO RECRUIT UP TO 226 PATIENTS IN A RANDOMIZED, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED, DOUBLE BLIND SETTING. TACTI-MEL (TWO ACTIVE IMMUNOTHERAPEUTICS IN MELANOMA), OUR AUSTRALIAN MELANOMA TRIAL IS PROGRESSING WELL WITH THE FIRST PATIENT COHORT OF THIS PHASE 1 DOSE ESCALATION STUDY COMPLETED IN DECEMBER 2016. THE SECOND COHORT, RECEIVING 6 MG OF IMP321, IS UNDERWAY AND ALREADY 4 OUT OF 6 PATIENTS HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFULLY TREATED NO DOSE LIMITING TOXICITY HAS YET BEEN REACHED. FINANCIALS AS A RESULT OF CAREFUL FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, PRIMA REMAINS IN A SOLID FINANCIAL POSITION WITH 15.5 MLN CASH AS OF MID-FEBRUARY 2017. BASED ON OUR FORECAST, THE CURRENT OPERATIONAL CASH REACH HAS BEEN EXTENDED TO END OF FIRST QUARTER CALENDAR YEAR 2018. 3:24 AM ON THE WIRES (:WIRES). THE AUTOMOTIVE INFORMATION SHARING AND ANALYSIS CENTER (AUTO-ISAC) WELCOMES BOSCH, COOPER STANDARD, HONEYWELL (HON), HYUNDAI MOBIS, LEAR CORP (LEA), LG ELECTRONICS (LGEAF) AND NXP SEMICONDUCTORS (NXPI) AS ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT SUPPLIER MEMBERS. THE INCLUSION OF THESE COMPANIES EXEMPLIFIES AUTO-ISACS CONTINUED EFFORTS TO PROMOTE COLLABORATION BETWEEN TIER 1 SUPPLIERS AND AUTOMOBILE MANUFACTURERS AROUND VEHICLE CYBERSECURITY. THE COURT OF QUEENS BENCH OF NEW BRUNSWICK HAS APPROVED MARINE HARVEST (MHG) AS THE PURCHASER OF THE ASSETS OWNED BY THE GRAY AQUA GROUP OF COMPANIES. MARINE HARVEST IS PLEASED WITH THE DECISION AND LOOKS FORWARD TO DETAIL A PRODUCTION PLAN AND INVESTMENT FRAMEWORK FOR THE EAST COAST OF CANADA. 3:22 AM PLAINS GP UPSIZES OFFERING BY 8 MLN SHARES AND PRICES 42 MLN SHARES OF CLASS A SHARES FOR GROSS PROCEEDS OF 1.3 BLN ( PAGP ). 3:21 am Accelerate DiagnosticsAccelerate Pheno System and Accelerate PhenoTest BC Kit receives FDA Marketing Authorization ( AXDX ) : Co announced that the FDA has granted the de novo request to market the Accelerate Pheno system and Accelerate PhenoTest BC kit for identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing of pathogens directly from positive blood culture samples. The blood culture kit is indicated for susceptibility testing of specific pathogenic bacteria commonly associated with bacteremia, the leading cause of sepsis. The Accelerate clinical study included more than 39,000 tests conducted on 1,850 samples across 13 trial sites and exceeded the requirements of the FDA for identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. The study showed overall sensitivity of 97.4 and specificity of 99.3 for identification. For susceptibility, overall essential and categorical agreement versus standard broth microdilution was 96.3 and 96.4 respectively 3:16 am South Jersey Industries beats by 0.01 ( SJI ). Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of 0.42 per share, 0.01 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of 0.41.Customer additions remain a strong driver of margin growth, and we expect this growth to continue as we strategically target marketing and sales resources where co has the greatest opportunities for conversions. For the year ended December 31, 2016, our customer count increased by 4,525, bringing our total number of customers served to 377,625.
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