5 Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day

Good morning. X’s value more than halves, China’s economy remains fragile and the Bank of Japan tweaks policy. Here’s what’s moving markets. [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Good morning. X’s value more than halves, China’s economy remains fragile and the Bank of Japan tweaks policy. Here’s what’s moving markets. — [Sam Unsted]( Value of X X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, [is now worth less than half of what Elon Musk paid for it a year ago](. Restricted stock units awarded to employees value the business at $19 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, compared with the $44 billion Musk paid for the company a year ago. Since the takeover was completed, a majority of Twitter staff have been laid off or have resigned, it was renamed X, it changed some content rules and it has seen more than half its advertising revenue disappear. Fragile China Chinese factory activity [fell back into contraction during October]( and expansion in the services sector unexpectedly eased, indicating that the economy remains fragile and in need of support from authorities. That weaker-than-anticipated data will bolster calls for yet more stimulus from Beijing, following the series of measures announced earlier this month. Soft consumer confidence, declining export demand and the ongoing turmoil in the country’s property sector have all weighed. BoJ tweak The Bank of Japan has further loosened its grip on government bond yields while also sticking to its position as the final global central bank with negative rates. It said it would take a [more flexible approach on controlling bond yields](, though the relatively minor tweaks to its policy disappointed some investors and sent the yen lower. “We decided that it’s appropriate to increase flexibility so that long-term yields can be smoothly shaped, according to different future scenarios,” said Governor Kazuo Ueda. Futures higher S&P 500 futures are higher heading into the session, with Nasdaq 100 futures about flat. Treasury yields are lower and the dollar is weaker against most major currencies, except the yen. Oil prices are edging higher after dropping in the prior session. Samsung Electronics profit beat expectations and it pointed toward a [memory chip recovery](, AB InBev also [outpaced estimates]( and the performance of its peers, while Vans and North Face owner VFC is sliding in premarket trading after [pulling its guidance](. Israel [stepped up ground operations]( in Gaza and struck more targets in Lebanon and Syria overnight. Coming up… Conference Board consumer confidence data will top the economic data agenda, though eyes are likely to remain firmly trained on the Federal Reserve decision due on Wednesday. Drugmaker Pfizer and construction machinery manufacturer Caterpillar top the earnings calendar for the day, with dating app firm Match and chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices due after the close. What We’ve Been Reading This is what’s caught our eye over the past 24 hours. - An analyst raises [governance concerns]( at Morgan Stanley. - [Apple unveils]( laptops, the new iMac and more powerful chips. - Climate change drives gentrification [in Florida](. - Sam Bankman-Fried admits to a [bigger role at Alameda](. - Senate Democrats move to [subpoena Harlan Crow](. - [$11,000 meals]( from celebrity chefs at F1 in Las Vegas. - Kamala Harris set to unveil [$200 million AI fund](. And finally, here's what Joe’s interested in this morning Yesterday was my favorite day of the month. Specifically it was the day that the Dallas Fed's [Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey]( came out. Of course, I always go straight to the [anecdotal comments](, which are always vivid and colorful. Unfortunately they were not good, by and large. While regional manufacturing surveys have been in the gutter for a while, I can't remember a time when the commentary from survey respondents was this negative. Here's a sampling of quotes. Each one is from a regional manufacturer. The parenthetical indicates what industry the respondent comes from: - "We are seeing a pronounced slowdown in owners going forward with new projects. There is too much uncertainty in the economy and globally." (Fabricated metal product manufacturing) - "Reduction in government grants, cash flow issues with customers and the uncertainty created by the lack of border controls [are issues affecting our business]." (Food manufacturing) - "Food service demand is soft. Retail (grocery) demand has remained steady. Our premium pet food business has fallen off significantly." (Food manufacturing) - "Business has slowed down significantly; we see no signs of improvement in business activity." (Machinery manufacturing) - "Six months from now is actually quite scary. The economy is uncertain, and customers cannot predict with any certainty what they see. Political pressure and the wars are now forcing customers to reevaluate their business activities and reduce their outlook. It’s very uncertain." (Machinery manufacturing) - "Oh, how we long for the days of a stable market. We just lost another long-time customer to China where the pricing for the finished product was what we pay for the raw material. With the inflation we have being imposed on us here in the U.S., we won't ever see those customers come back." (Machinery manufacturing) - "In a consumer business, we are hearing a lot more "I can't afford this" than we ever have before." (Miscellaneous manufacturing) - "Activity is definitely slowing down. We remain optimistic at this point for a turnaround, but cautiously." (Paper manufacturing) - "The economy is slowing." (Primary metal manufacturing) - "We anticipate that business conditions will remain constant or decline over the next three to four months, based on the rate that we are receiving orders. Oil and gas orders have been weak all year, which is strange since oil prices have been high and are anticipated to continue to increase with the uncertainty in the world order." (Primary metal manufacturing) - "We are currently forecasting a 20 percent drop in 2024 versus 2023 (previously planned for a 13 percent drop), so the market forecast has worsened month over month." (Transportation equipment manufacturing) - "Order and sales volume have slightly increased month over month from September. We have seen longer delivery times and lead/wait times at the Los Angeles port, causing slight delays with inventory shipments. Overall uncertainty as to demand is high. The general consensus among other manufacturers/sellers is that demand/sales are weak, and no one is sure what the short-term future holds." (Textile product mills) It's just one survey. And these are just anonymous comments. But they are definitely among the gloomiest set I've seen in a while. Also notable is that there's not a single comment in the whole thing related to having a hard time finding workers, which says a lot about the normalization of the labor market. Follow Bloomberg's Joe Weisenthal on Twitter [@TheStalwart]( Like Bloomberg's Five Things? [Subscribe for unlimited access]( to trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and gain expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? 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