Author: Vitaliy Dadalyan

U.S. Stock Futures Sink After Election Debate: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. equity-index futures dropped alongside most stock markets after an acrimonious American presidential debate highlighted the risk of a contested vote in November. A gauge of the dollar edged higher.S&P 500 futures fell as much as 1.3% in the hours after the chaotic sparring between Donald Trump and Democratic hopeful Joe Biden during which the president suggested vote-by-mail could be rife with fraud. In Europe, declines in industrial-goods and tech shares outweighed gains in utilities.“What we’ve seen from the debate is the reinforcement that if Biden wins, Trump is not going to accept that,” said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group Ltd. in Melbourne. “People positioned for an ugly contest afterwards have been validated.”Investment firms were also recalibrating positions on the final day of this quarter. Walt Disney Co. shares fell in pre-market trading after it said 28,000 workers will be let go in its slumping U.S....

Buffett-Backed BYD Says Demand Strong For Luxury Electric Sedan In China

Electric automaker BYD Auto Co. Ltd. a unit of BYD Company Limited (OTC: BYDDF), revealed there is strong demand for its latest luxury sedan at the Beijing auto show, CNBC reported Wednesday.What Happened: The Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE: BRK-A) (NYSE: BRK-B) Chairman Warren Buffett-backed electric vehicle company said orders for its "Han" electric cars crossed 40,000 within two months of launch, according to CNBC.The automaker reportedly delivered 4,000 sedans in August. The car is priced between $33,000 to $40,000. A hybrid version is available for nearly $32,000, as per CNBC.Rival automaker Xpeng Inc (NYSE: XPEV) told CNBC that demand for its P7 luxury sedan is also rising. The vehicle is said to have the longest range among electric cars sold in China at 438 miles (706 kilometers). "We continue to have strong expectations that P7 will grow in (the) coming months into next year," said Xpeng President Brian Gu.Xpeng will achieve...

InflaRx Pops 6% On ‘Promising’ Data From Covid-19 Therapeutic Trial

Shares in InflaRx closed 6% higher on Tuesday after Phase 2 data showed that its monoclonal antibody IFX-1 therapeutic tested in adults with Covid-19 induced pneumonia appears safe and has “promising” parameters.The exploratory Phase 2 results demonstrated that inhibition with InflaRx’s (IFRX) IFX-1 appears safe in adults with severe COVID-19, according to the data published in The Lancet.“FX-1 treatment had a positive, but not significant, effect on reversal of blood lymphocytopenia and reduction in lactate dehydrogenase concentrations - two parameters that have been reported as biomarkers for COVID-19 disease severity,” according to the data analysis.IFX-1 is a first-in-class monoclonal anti-human complement factor C5a antibody, which blocks the biological activity of C5a and demonstrates high selectivity towards its target in human blood. IFX-1 demonstrated to control the inflammatory response driven tissue and organ damage by specifically blocking C5a as a key “amplifier” of this response in pre-clinical studies.According to the Lancet report,...

Central Bank Gold-Buying Seen Climbing From Near Decade Low

(Bloomberg) -- Gold buying by central banks, an important driver of bullion’s advance in recent years, is forecast to pick up in 2021 after a slowdown this year.Citigroup Inc. sees demand from the official sector rising to about 450 tons after a drop to 375 tons this year, which would be the lowest in a decade. HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. expects a slight up-tick to 400 tons from an estimated 390 tons in 2020, potentially the second-lowest amount in 10 years.While the forecasts are far from the near-record purchases of more than 600 tons a year seen in both 2018 and 2019, increased central bank activity will help bolster bullion. Russia could return to the market next spring and China’s central bank may resume adding to reserves after the U.S. elections, Citi said in a report this month.This development may have a bigger impact on the market if exchange-traded funds --...