China GDP surprise; PepsiCo reports; EU strikes back
London(CNN Business) 1. China surprise: China's economy is showing renewed signs of life in 2019.
The world's second-biggest economy grew slightly more than expected in the first quarter of 2019, official data showed Wednesday. It expanded by 6.4% compared to a year ago, beating economists' forecasts of 6.3%.
"The big picture is that policy stimulus is clearly working and should help to shore up China's economy in the coming quarters," said Julian Evans-Pritchard, Senior China Economist at Capital Economics.
The prospect of a deeper slowdown in China has been one of the biggest concerns for the global economy this year.
China's growth has been hit by a trade war with the United States and government efforts to rein in a huge amount of debt in China's financial system.
2. PepsiCo earnings: PepsiCo (PEP) is set to report its first quarter earnings before the opening bell. Investors are hoping for continued signs of a revival under new CEO Ramon Laguarta.
Laguarta stepped into the role in October, and was able to share good news during the company's fourth quarter earnings call, saying the company exceeded all of the financial targets.
He has pledged to accelerate revenue growth by strengthening and expanding PepsiCo's portfolio and packaging. Investors seem to be pleased so far. The company's stock is up more than 10% in 2019.
3. More tariff threats: The European Union is expected to unveil a list of American goods that could be targeted with tariffs because of a controversy over Boeing (BA) subsidies.
The EU-US dispute over aircraft subsidies has been going on for 15 years, with both sides accusing each other of illegally propping up their plane manufacturers.
The move by Brussels follows a step taken by the Trump administration last week, when it threatened to impose tariffs on as much as $11 billion worth of European imports over subsidies for Airbus (EADSF).
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4. Global market overview: US stock futures were pointing higher.
European markets opened mixed. Stocks in the United Kingdom and Spain were lower, while markets in Germany, France and Italy posted gains.
Stocks in Asia closed mostly higher.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 0.3% on Tuesday. The S&P 500 edged up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq gained 0.3%.
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5. Earnings and economics: Morgan Stanley (MS) will release earnings before the open. E*TRADE (ETFC), Las Vegas Sands (LVS) and Pier 1 Imports (PIR) will follow after the close.
The US Energy Information Administration will publish a report on crude inventories at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Chip maker Qualcomm (QCOM) closed 23% higher on Tuesday, after it announced it reached a settlement and license agreement with Apple (AAPL) over patents.
The governors of the Bank of England and the Bank of France are set to speak in Paris at 9:00 a.m. ET.
6. Coming this week:
Wednesday — PepsiCo, Morgan Stanley earnings; Fed Beige Book
Thursday — American Express (AXP), Skechers (SKX) earnings; US retail sales
Friday — US markets are closed
