After a powerful start to the year, global equity markets appear to lack clear direction this week, with stocks across Europe and Asia trading largely lower ahead of today’s New York open, just a day after Wall Street’s S&P 500 index scored a new all-time record peak.

In the early hours of this morning, investors reacted to renewed weakness in China’s economy following Alphabet’s worse-than-expected financial results, just after Korean tech-titan Samsung Electronics posted profits that missed analysts’ recently reduced estimates.

Asia’s overnight session saw equities in Hong Kong, South Korea and Australia all drop lower as Alphabet’s and Samsung’s drag on corporate sentiment was coupled with a weaker-than-expected reading for activity in China’s manufacturing sector, which continues to expand, but at a very modest pace.

The world’s second largest economy’s Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index dropped to 50.1 this month, holding just above the 50-mark that separates expansion from contraction, suggesting that Beijing’s recent stimulus attempt measures, aimed at reviving its economy, haven’t been entirely successful thus far.

These developments follow suit to Monday’s trading, where Wall Street equities rose to a new record high, after muted inflation data and reports of robust Consumer Spending further supported the Federal Reserve’s dovish stance, increasing widespread risk appetite for high-growth stocks.

The S&P 500 climbed +0.16%, having struck a fresh intraday higher earlier in the session, ticking above the previous historic intraday high set in September 2018. Amongst yesterday’s market leading sectors were Financial (+1.01%) and Communications Service (+0.91%) shares, whose gains were offset by declines in Real Estate (-0.96%) and Utilities (-0.58%).

Ahead, in today’s economic calendar, Tuesday includes; Employment Cost Index data for Q1 2019 at 8:30am EST, Chicago PMI for April at 9:45am EST, followed by Consumer Confidence for April and Pending Home Sales data for March both at 10:00am EST.

In corporate news; Apple (AAPL), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), General Electric (GE), McDonald’s (MCD), Pfizer (PFE), General Motors (GM), Eli Lilly (LLY), ConocoPhillips (COP), Merck & Co (MRK), Phillips 66 (PSX), Amgen (AMGN), Sprint (S), Charter Communications (CHTR), Corning (GLW), Kraft Heinz (KHC), Mastercard (MA), Groupon (GRPN), Twilio (TWLO) and Seagate Technology (STX) are amongst the major companies scheduled to release their latest financials today.

TODAY’S TOP HEADLINES:

North Korea: North Korea warns of ‘undesired’ outcome if no change in US nuclear stance. (CNBC) North Korea’s vice foreign minister said on Tuesday that the United States will face undesired consequences if it fails to present a new position in denuclearization talks by the end of the year, state media reported.

Economics: The Fed Has a Problem at the Heart of Its Battle to Spark Inflation. (Bloomberg) There’s a flaw at the heart of central banking’s approach to inflation targeting that’s become a hot issue for the Federal Reserve as it takes a long, hard look at its strategy.

ECONOMIC CALENDAR: Today’s Economical Announcements.

08:30AM – ★★☆ – Employment Cost (QoQ) (Q1) (Previous: 0.7%) 09:45AM – ★★☆ – Chicago PMI (Apr) (Previous: 58.7) 10:00AM – ★★★ – CB Consumer Confide. (Apr) (Previous: 124.1) 10:00AM – ★★★ – P. Home Sales (MoM) (Mar) (Previous: -1.0%)

STOCKS IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Pre-Market Movers & News Related Stocks.

Alphabet (GOOGL): [EARNINGS] Reported revenue that fell below analyst estimates for its first-quarter 2019. The company was also hit with a $1.7 billion fine from the European Commission in the quarter.

General Electric (GE): [EARNINGS] Posted quarterly earnings per share of 59 cents 13 cents a shares vs. an expected 9 cents a share. GE’s first-quarter revenue remained steady even as the company continued to burn cash.

Yum China (YUMC): [EARNINGS] Posted quarterly earnings per share of 59 cents on revenue of $2.30 billion. Analysts estimated earnings per share of 54 cents on revenue of $2.26 billion, according to Refinitiv consensus estimates. Same-store sales increased 4%, compared to the expected increase of 1.8%.

Eli Lilly (LLY): [EARNINGS] Posted first-quarter financial results of $1.33 per share on revenue of $5.09 billion. Analysts had expected earnings of $1.31 a share on revenue of $5.12 billion. The pharmaceutical company also raised its full-year guidance.

MGM Resorts (MGM): [EARNINGS] Posted first-quarter earnings per share of 5 cents, compared to the 21 cents forecast by analysts. The hospitality company earned $3.18 billion in revenue, topping estimates of $3.13 billion surveyed by Refinitiv.

AK Steel (AKS): [EARNINGS] Reported first-quarter results of 23 cents earnings per share, beating expectations by 10 cents. Revenue came in at $1.70 billion, lower than the $1.74 billion estimated on the Street.

Western Digital (WDC): [EARNINGS] Posted third-quarter earnings that missed estimates on the top and bottom lines. It earned $3.67 billion in revenue, missing estimates of $3.68 billion. Earnings per share were 17 cents, lower than the expected 46 cents.

McDonalds (MCD): [EARNINGS] Posted quarterly earnings and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations. Global same-store sales grew 5.4% in the first quarter, more than the 3.4% increase analysts expected, as the burger chain ramped up its promotion programs.

MGM Resorts International (MGM): [EARNINGS] Posted a profit of 5 cents per share, while analysts polled by Refinitiv expected earnings of 21 cents per share.

Western Digital (WDC): [EARNINGS] Shares fell after the company reported weaker-than-expected fiscal third quarter results. Western Digital posted adjusted earnings per share of 17 cents on revenue of $3.67 billion. Analysts expected a profit of 46 cents per share on sales of $3.68 billion.

MasterCard (MA): [EARNINGS] Posted quarterly earnings and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations, reported earnings per share of $1.78 on revenue of $3.899 billion.

MOMENTUM STOCKS:

GAINERS: GDI, TTD, CADE DECLINERS: CHRW, INTC, WWE

TODAY’S IPOs:

None.