i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. up, ups ceo david abney joins us to explain his company third major deal with -- company's major deal with dubai and whether talk of protectionism could hurt shipping companies. from new york, this is bloomberg. ♪ scarlet: this is bloomberg markets. i am scarlet fu. julia: i am julia chatterley. makeet: tps is hoping to inroads in the middle east and asia as they hope to boost their presence. they have been chosen as lead the just expensive for expo dubai 2020. less toss it over to betty liu who is standing by with the ceo. betty: scholar, thank you so much. i'm with the ceo david abney. great to see you. david abney: great to be here. betty: pending announcement -- why is this partnership so important for you? sponsor of this great event -- they are convinced they will make this the greatest expo ever, and our expertise, our worldwide presence, and the fact that we have handled big events like palin in beijing and london. betty: where would you put this, by the way, on that scale? da

i'm mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. , of all theg up hurdles that stand in the way of tax reform legislation, the congressional calendar may be the hardest to overcome. this is bloomberg. ♪ scarlet: this is "bloomberg markets." trump not one to shy away from the questioning of acting attorney general sally yates. the president tweeted, "ask sally yates how she knows --ssified information how to how classified information got into the newspapers." this all has to do with the hiring of michael flynn and what and his meetings with russian officials. the scoop that we got is that the president, former president obama warned the president about michael flynn. tell us more. >> what we know is that president obama on november 10 shortly after the 2016 election, in a meeting with then president-elect donald trump had a conversation with him. trump,ng that obama told we are told and other outlets are also reporting is not to hire michael flynn. trump about him apparently. this was someone on president obama's

here's mark crumpton. the department of justice is wasting no time looking for interim fbi director to replace the fired james comey. the interim director will have the job until the senate confirms a permanent replacement. in washington, the senate has rejected an attempt to oil and gas companies a break from obama irritable targeting methane federal lands. several republicans are joined democrats in opposing the measure. you in secretary-general antonio guterres is in london where he is in london where he stressing the need to reform the agency. he said changes unless very in order to open oh overcome the lack of confidence expressed by the general public and it was his first major public speech in the u.k. there's been another airline altercation caught on camera, this time three passengers get into a brawl aboard a southwest airlines flight after it landed in burbank, california. one passenger was arrested and one suffered minor injuries. it is not clear what sparked the fight. news believes it has a a

i am mark crumpton. julia: let's go straight to jerusalem to kevin cirilli, our chief washington correspondent who has been traveling with the president. credible job so far tracking the president. you are only just beginning. give us a sense of what happened in the press conference. this was a president very much sticking to the script, minimal not to giveing hard journalists anymore a parent fodder to play with. apparent fodder to play with. kevin: julia, you are right. this is a very different president trump.what you noted in jerusalem , president -- the president making remarks, saying he made no mention of israel during the conversation he had privately with russian diplomats. while those conversations, which were revealing of highly classified intelligence, were legal given the president has the ability to do that, it landed him in political hot water from notches democrats but also republicans. that is why this has become such an important issue in israel. the president, choosing to go to saudi a

i'm mark crumpton, this is bloomberg.resident arrives in rome, a look ahead to what he hopes to accomplish on this part of his first trip overseas. this is bloomberg. ♪ >> this is bloomberg markets, the trump economy. president trump has wrapped up a two day visit to israel. he's now in rome, his schedule includes a meeting with the pope tomorrow at the vatican, also meetings with italian political leadership. he'll had to brussels then back to italy for the chief session in sicily. let's take a look at what the president hopes to accomplish. but start with the audience his schedule to have with the pope. mark crumpton has kept -- was up -- the disagreements that had the past. what do they hope to accomplish out of the meeting tomorrow? >> the two men will talk for about 20 minutes-30 minutes and private. we won't know perhaps all the details, but two things are certain. first, trump is hoping this meeting will lend him some sort of international credibility, especially given the troubles he has at home. that perhapsoping

let's check in with mark crumpton. mark: health care reform moves to the senate following yesterday's vote in the house. don't expect a vote in the upper chamber any time soon. senate republicans say the house bill cannot pass is they will rewrite their own measure. the administration is preparing for a long process with vice president pence, saying he hopes for a final bill by the end of the year. the president has asked a federal judge in kentucky to dismiss a lawsuit by two supporters. the two men blame mr. trump for inspiring violence against black protesters during one of his campaign rallies. the president's lawyer said the men are trying to pass blame unfairly and that mr. trump cannot be, quote, vicariously responsible for merely inspiring others. a deal to set up four safe zones for civilians of war torn syria goes into effect today. the deal between russia, turkey and iran would ban all military action in those areas. syrian rebel groups, those -- though, have expressed doubt the zones could work. the zones c

here is mark crumpton. mark: president trump in israel where he set conditions are right to repeat -- bjp still in the middle east. he told israelis they share a common cause with muslim nations when it comes to the dangers posed by iran. >> iran must never be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon, never ever. se's deadlya funding and training of the terrorists. it must cease immediately. mark: white house is trying to downplay expectations for significant progress on the middle east these process during the president's trip. newly reelected president is calling relations with the united states a curvy road, saying he hopes the trump administration will settle down enough for his nation to better understand it. alsodent rouhani criticized saudi arabia after it just hosted president trump's first foreign trip saying the kingdom has never seen a ballot box, while iran just hosted a successful presidential election in which over 40 million people voted. president rouhani scored a decisive victory in friday's ele

the first word news with mark crumpton. has claimedin victory in south korea's presidential election after his rivals conceded. -- heromised to leave promised to lead the country with printable to justice. this follows months of political turmoil caused by the ousted president's corruption scandal. the victory ended decades of conservative rule in south korea. more american troops could be on the way to afghanistan. white house officials say military advisers are urging president trump to send up to 5000 additional troops there. there are already 8400 u.s. troops backing afghan forces but taliban militants and islam it state have recently been gaining ground. french police are searching for three men suspected of plotting and islamic state inspired attack after authorities conducted a major operation at a paris train station. police say a ticket vendor thought she recognized one of the men listed on police wanted notices that prompted a police operation and the evacuation of the station. the operation came the day after a t

i'm mark crumpton. this is bloomberg.e will talk with fred crawford about his company's investment strategy, managing a negative rate environment and competition in the insurance sector. this is bloomberg. ♪ julia: this is bloomberg markets. i'm julia chatterley. scarlet: i'm scarlet fu. let's get a check on some notable movers with julie hyman. julie: i want to look at some of the down movers -- tesla shares getting hit after one analyst who has been a longtime bowl in the stock downgraded the shares to equal weight. competethe case will with the amazons of the world and perhaps the risks are not fully priced in at this point. harley davidson trading lower after wedbush said and expected lift in sales may not be coming anytime soon. those shares down 2.5%. sears down sharply, the ceo firing back at some of the suppliers of the company, saying they are trying to take it and it just sears, saying dire protections about the retailers future has hurt his addition with vendors. one hong kong-based company says it might sue se

here is mark crumpton. mark: an obama official warned about a key advisor's contacts with russia will be on capitol hill today. former acting attorney general sally yates testifies before a senate committee. yates hasn't spoken publicly about former national security advisor michael flynn before. white house officials said yates merely gave them a heads up about flynn's contacts with russia but yates is likely to testify her warning was stronger than that. there's also word today that two former obama administration officials say that during the transition president obama warned president-elect trump against hiring flynn as his national security advisor. in richmond, virginia, today, a federal appeals court hears arguments over president obama's revised travel ban. that executive order is aimed at temporarily halting travel to the u.s. of people from six mostly muslim countries. key parts of the ban were blocked by federal courts in march. former president obama is speaking out about the -- repealing the af

mark crumpton has the first word news. mark? mark: david, thank you. the european union committee says that the french president's pro european message is good news for the eu. however, the european union president had this morning. the 11hould not forget million votes. we should not forget -- we nothingonsider this as we don't have to continue. we have to continue to fight against extremism. already shown their support for mccrone after the first round of the elections and insisted that a marine le pen win would have been bad for the eu and friends. -- france. police firing tear gas in paris today after the mccrone election victory. 140 people were arrested overnight, primarily on vandalism charges. president trump will take another step toward his goal of shifting the nation's courts to the right. will announce five conservative nominees to the federal appeals courts. many of those being nominated the conservative federalist society. north korea has arrested a seco instructor at pyongyang university. both are u.s. citizens and use the onset -- unspec

mark crumpton has those.sh transport police say armed officers will be patrolling some trains for the first time, because of the increased threat of extremist attacks. the patrol began today. they will be patrolling the underground. this expands the security measure to provide services elsewhere in the country. the european union says they have had differences with president trump in a number of key areas. the union presidentpoke after meeting with president trump it >> i am not -- trump. >> i am not want to present sure -- 100% sure that we have a common vision or opinion about russia. mark: the eu does agree with the trump administration on many policies, he said, including counterterrorism. but he said some issues remain "open" such as trade and climate change. jacob zuma facing a key battle for his political survival. this weekend, senior members of his ruling party plan to push the decision-making national executive committee to order him to step down. he is facing an unprecedented level of opposition fr

let's check on first word news and mark crumpton has a much more.k: police have arrested a fifth a suspect in connection with this week's deadly terror attack in manchester. the suspect was reportedly arrested near the city and the ap said authorities are examining something the suspect was carrying. a day after britain race is terror level, the army is providing additional security at parliament and down it. and security will be stepped up at the soft targets like airports. prime minister theresa may ordered the military to guard landmarks and sporting events. house republicans are bracing for a new financial estimate under obamacare bill. if the budget office said the bill passes require bill targets, republicans could be forced into an a balancing do over on the measure is passed last month. are likely to meet rules that would allow a simple majority. asn is ready to continue part of the opec agreement at the same production agreed upon before according to the oil minister. he spoke to reporters outside his hotel in vienna ahead of the meeting. >

mark: i am mark crumpton. it is time for "first word" news.rsies running president trump, one democratic congressman from texas took to the house floor today and urged colleagues to take action. green: i live today, mr. speaker, to call for the impeachment of the president of the united states of america for obstruction of justice. i do not do this for political purposes, mr. speaker. i do this because i believe in the great ideals that this country stands for. greencongressman previewed his action on the house floor with an earlier tweet, saying it was the house's duty, as he put it, to take up impeachment. israel he officials are trying to downplay any damage caused by president trump's disclosure of classified information to senior russian officials reportedly provided by israel. defense minister lieberman tweeted today praising "the deep, meaningful, and unprecedented security relationship between israel and the united states." the president will be heading to israel next week. a senior white house official today telling bloomberg news the

mark: i'm mark crumpton.orts of multiple people at the austin campus of the university of texas. reports thatn medics are near the gregory gymnasium on campus. you're looking at a live picture from our abc affiliate there. people were taken to the hospital with potentially serious injuries. reports of multiple people being stabbed at the university of texas at austin. we will continue to follow this story and bring you the latest developments as soon as we get them. chief economic's adviser says he thinks republicans have enough votes in the house for the obamacare replacement bill. gary cohn told cbs news there could be a vote this week. the provisions of the health care bill still are not clear. letu.s. supreme court has stand a california law that bans licensed therapist from working with children to change their sexual orientation from gay to straight. the justice rejected an appeal that said the measure violates religious rights. today's decision

i'msts in 120 countries mark crumpton, this is bloomberg.t trump posted president erdogan at the white house today. now, let's get some more insight now from someone who knows firsthand about delicate diplomatic relationships. nicholas burns is a professor at the harvard university school of government and former under secretary of state and served as u.s. ambassador to nato and greece. and he was the director of soviet affairs under george h.w. bush. professor burns, thank you very much for joining us. a lot of news right now on the diplomatic international run, but let's start at what got a little bit ignored today, the business of the visit of president erdogan to the white house. what does trump do with the turkish relationship? nicholas: it's the second strongest military in nato, it's a big crisis in the middle east, the syrian civil war. the challenge from isis? turkey is right in the middle of that. turkey is going to, of course, be essential in the effort to bring a peace conference together to ultimately end that war. 12 million ho

i am mark crumpton, this is bloomberg.e falling today after j.p. morgan says revenue from their business has dropped 15% so far and the second quarter. the comparable break from last year, the latest on that next. this is bloomberg. ♪ ♪ julia: this is bloomberg markets. scarlet: we see stocks lower today as banks continue to weigh in on the indexes. in terms of sector group and individual performance and the doubt. financials as a group that are the worst performers in the s&p 500. then you have the individual banks that are weighing this heavily. they are down quite a bit today all of this following some comments on the banks at a couple of conferences today. talking about potentially double-digit decline in trading revenue in the current quarter. the bank of america and jpmorgan making some comments while they are talking about some weakening and lending. we are seeing a cool down with the rest of the pack. all this a concern to investors. goldman sachs investors also spoke at the conference and he is the worst performer

crumpton. ♪ julia: live from bloomberg's world headquarters, i am julie chatterley. scarlet: i'm scarlet fu. joe: i am joe weisenthal. the question is "what did you miss?" companies hit by global cyber attacks. is this an opportunity to buy's security stocks. new french president and angela merkel are pledging to work together in the face of a troubled eurozone. onomberg is drilling down what tax reform will look like and how it will impact business. clerics now let's look for the major averages. ins, the dow and nasdaq higher. .his means more records the s&p 500 is narrowly close to a new record close. the nasdaq seems to have it. they can maintain that potential new record close. gains, explaining some energy, the best sector for the s&p 500, up 2%. oil is up four days in a row. saudi arabia and russia favor extending oil cuts into the first quarter of next year. everybody is looking to see how it will come out at the opec meeting, but this could be an early tell of timing that could go right

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. ♪ julia: live from bloomberg's world headquarters in new york, i am julia chatterley. scarlet: i'm scarlet fu. joe: i'm joe weisenthal. we have 30 minutes from the close of trading in the u.s. julia: stocks rising for a 30 day compression 201-month high. joe: the question is, what you miss? scarlet: president donald trump meets with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu pursuing an agreement after a weekend of billion-dollar deals in riyadh. while president trump travels abroad, here at home, the white house preparing a formal budget request tomorrow. we analyzed spending cuts. and ford chairman bill ford replaces mark fields with jim hackett. we discussed were the automaker goes from here. joe: let's look at where the major averages stand as we head towards the close. abigail doolittle is standing by. looking at solid gains for the major averages heading to the close. the outcome s&p 500, and nasdaq all nicely higher. look at the nasdaq, really being helped by

now let's check in with mark crumpton. mark: in the aftermath of last night's terror attack in manchester, england, the chief constable says investigators have identified the suspected bomber. man isn confirm that the abeedee.ld salmon wish towant -- i do not comment further at this stage. priority for the police now is to establish was workingan abedi alone or part of a network. u.s. intelligence officials say they are not sure of the case. manchester held a vigil outside city hall for terror of last night's attack. queen elizabeth led a moment of silence outside buckingham palance -- buckingham palace. the committeeore today, there was concern that trump shared classified information with the russians during a meeting in the oval office on may 10. >> i don't know what was shared the reports in the press are true, that mr. trump decides to spontaneously share intelligence with russians, he will have basically violated to protocols. scarlet: on another -- mark: another topic, john brennan told congress that he warned again

i am mark crumpton crumpton. this is bloomberg.up, the attack that spread throughout the globe this week at an unprecedented pace. we will discuss in the week in tech. scarlet: this is bloomberg markets. the wannacry cyber attack started in the u.k. and affected more than 300,000 consumers in 100 50 countries. while the events are concerning, the payoff for the hackers have been less than impressive. emily chang joins us with more on that and other tech stories grabbing our attention this week. emily: i am joined by our executive editor for tech. the ransomtart with where hack attack. by the end of the week, 300,000 computers affected but only $92,000 in payments collected. that seems surprisingly low. >> it really did not go as far as i think they would have liked. what happened was people either the patch oroaded the ones who didn't learned a valuable, important lesson. other people were able to apply it later or maybe you just gave up your data. or you back it up. you had it in the cloud or somewhere else so you could ditch your

i mark crumpton, this is bloomberg. bonnie? vonnie: sprint and t-mobile talk in former mobile -- merger talks. that is next. this is bloomberg. ♪ vonnie: this is bloomberg markets, i'm vonnie quinn. shermang and alex joined me for deals report. stock just halted on the new york stock exchange. this thanks to alex chairman. he was your scoop. where reporting a company called globalstar, about a $2 million reported. with the ceo of the company a few months ago and he told us that he was thinking about potentially exploring all different options. the wirelessasing spectrum of the company. they own a swath of wireless spectrum that they got permission from the fcc to use. it used to be similar to what charlie ergen did with dish network. we are breaking the news yesterday, straight path was acquired by verizon. not directly comparable, but still the general world of wireless spectrum for 5g uses. globalstar is hiring financial advisors to seek a sale. that's company at about a $2 billion mark. vonnie: it jumped 23%, who might be in

mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. scarlet: do so much. coming up, public and senator mike rounds, -- republican senator mike rounds, a member of the senate banking committee, takes away his the shares is take away. what happens to tax reform? this is bloomberg. ♪ julia: -- scarlet: this is bloomberg markets. i'm scarlet fu. julia: i am julia chatterley. scarlet: steve mnuchin gave his first testimony since being named treasury secretary. here is what he said about the president's tax plan. : thetary steve mnuchin president does believe we need to create economic growth and we are willing to have lower tax revenues in the short-term if that will create economic growth. as i have said, the difference between 2% and 3% gdp is roughly $2 trillion over a 10-year third period of time. it is a lot of money, and economic growth will help us deal with a lot of other complicated issues we have. scarlet: that was his direct response to a question from republican senator my grounds from south dakota. he joins u

the firsta check on word news now with mark crumpton. mark: sweden's top prosecutor today dropped an investigation into a rape claim against wikileaks founder julian assange. refuge, who in 2012 took in ecuador's embassy in london to escape extradition to sweden, called the decision to drop the charges an important victory for himself and the u.n. human rights system, but said it has taken a toll. arrestrison, under house , and almost five years here in .his embassy without sunlight whileyears without charge my children grew up without me. that is not something that i can forgive. mark: he also said his legal battle is not over. he believes the united states wants an action guided and arrested in connection with wikileaks publication of classified u.s. documents. president trump leave today on his first overseas trip since taking office. the stakes are high given the growing controversy involving his campaign possible ties to russia. the president will make five stops in the middle east and europe including visits to saudi arabia, israel

here is mark crumpton. several key senate republicans say they will set aside the narrowly passed health care bill and write your own version instead. the decision will likely delay even further the prospect of any repeal bill reaching president trump's desk. french presidential candidate marine le pen was booed and pelted with objects during a visit to the cathedral of rams today. much of the protesters were supporters of le pen rival emmanuel macron. le pen was hustled out of the control by a backdoor but was spotted and boot again -- booed again. we will bring you special coverage of the french presidential runoff on sunday. the european union's chief negotiator on brexit says citizens rights take precedence in separation talks. he says before trade negotiations begin, he wants to ensure the rights of people living and working in the u.k. nti-e.u. -- and eu more than 3 million eu citizens live in the u.k. while more than one million brits live in eu countries. a team has begun investigating last month's

i'm mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. scarlet: thank you so much. julia: quite excited by the mention of james comey. kevin took my question regarding a possible leak as people concerned within the administration about president trump's handling of the situation. julia: every new -- scarlet: every new administers and has to grapple with that. -- administration has to grapple comingat carried -- with that. coming up, senate majority leader mitch mcconnell once less drama from the white house. julia: interviews from the animal salt conference tomorrow -- annual salt conference tomorrow. from new york, this is bloomberg. ♪ julia: this is "bloomberg markets." i'm julia chatterley, with scarlet fu. scarlet: the republican agenda faces another obstacle. earlier today, kevin cirilli spoke exclusively with senate majority leader mitch mcconnell about this latest white house controversy and more. sen. mcconnell: i read washington post story and i read general mcmaster's response, which tends to refute the story.

i'm mark crumpton, this is bloomberg.avid: the republican health care bill passed this chain by a razor thin margin earlier -- now faces the possibility of having to vote again on the controversial health measure. here's sahil kapur joining me on set. great to see you in person. edible piece by a colleague on capitol hill. looking at where this legislation is today, it is still the desk, has not moved over. why is that? sahil: house republicans are keeping it there in anticipation -- in this scenario does not has the rules for reconciliation under the newest cbo score exct to come out wednesday, may 24. under those rules the bill has to save at least $2 million in deficit reduction or doesn't pass. speaker run was asked about this on the radio and said out of an abundance of caution -- clearly they are considered policy and not to take it seriously. david: so they are waiting for ass cbo score, the senators well we sense. we have any indication when that might come to schumer >> is coming on wednesday, may 24. david: how

i'm mark crumpton, this is bloomberg. kevin? kevin: u.s.nd china reached a trade agreement promoting natural gas, and beef. wilbur ross spoke with bloomberg .aybreak earlier this morning let's take a look. you have a lot more issues to deal with with the people's republic of china. i believe that the fact that we have these long-standing aggravations out of the way so quickly, boasts well for the relationship pattern going forward. we have many more issues and the next task will be figuring out a one-year plan with some data points in between, deliverables in-between, and, once we get through the one-year plan with success, then we work into a longer term plan. should we expect a series of these sorts of deals coming out of the next year, or is it a different approach? wilbur: we hope to have deliverables. one of the historic problems with trade is that it has become a long-term debating site that's society where, rather than is something that is a result oriented area. both of the chinese government and we, have become a results oriented.

let's check in with the first word news now with mark crumpton. mark: there has been a great deal of trade talks between the united states and china. i'd agreement will allow more exports of u.s. natural gas. les, eran beef export first -- plus, american beef exporters will have more access to chinese markets. commerce secretary wilbur ross split to bloomberg television -- spoke to bloomberg television today. >>re are a lot more deals to make with the people's republic of china, and i believe that the fact that we got these long-standing aggravations out of the way so icy augurs well for the relationship pattern going forward. mark: the first negotiated trade deal for president trump, who on promised to get talk china. the pentagon is reassuring turkey of american support after agreeing to arm kurdish fighters that the turks consider terrort. mattis secretary james met with his turkish counterpart, the first face-to-face meeting yet. in china, president sheesh and at thell host 30 leaders world's first soft power porsche -- push. is belt and road

. ♪ >> i am mark crumpton. this is time for first word news. u.s.rs face more scrutiny over electronics larger than cell phones. the heightened screening, -- comes as the government considers banning such devices on u.s.-bound flights from europe. the tsa says passengers will be asked to store large electronics separately from carry-on bags. screening may be extended nationwide. british authorities are convinced the manchester suicide bomber had help. police have no arrested five suspects. -- have now arrested five suspects. the investigation continues. -- continues across greater manchester as we speak. >> the british government has raised the terrorist threat level from serious to critical. of that means another attack may be imminent. theresa may is taking unprecedented security steps. she has ordered the military to guard landmarks and sporting events. president trump is spending the night in brussels after talks with the belgian prime minister charles michelle. this is part of his first official overseas trip. he will attend a nato trip tomorro

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. julia: live from bloomberg world headquarters in new york, i'm julia chatterley. scarlet: i'm scarlet fu. joe: i'm joe weisenthal. we are 30 minutes from the u.s.. scarlet: the s&p 500 at age two months i. joe: the question is, "what'd you miss? --"what'd you miss?" scarlet: we dig into the jobs report. wtide ride for crude oil, falling overnight below $40 a barrel. and this weekend is the second and final round in the french presidential election. it is decision time, macron or le pen? joe: let's look for the major averages stand as we head toward the close. abigail doolittle is standing by. another day of unchanged, wishy-washy trading, we are looking at small gains thethe major averages and s&p 500 is on pace for its first record close since march 1. it can basically close above 2396. let's keep our eyes there. on the week, we are also looking at gains. a bit of a bullish stretcher. turning to the top stories on the week, tech and energy. in white, that is the s&p 500 tech index. o

mark crumpton has more.resident trump and postnl -- the palestinian authority president met last week at the white house. resident harbaughs says the two will meet again in bethlehem. president trump has accepted his invitation to join him in the west bank city during his visit to israel in two weeks. to 240 five refugees -- are feared dead after two shipwrecks in the mediterranean. through than 60 people were rescued. the u.s. has stashed says smugglers were operating the boats. russian president vladimir putin is urging countries to join in the fight against terrorism as he marks his 72nd anniversary of the allies winning world war ii. the and will victory day parade in red square -- featured thousand marching soldiers, as well as plenty of military hardware on display. massachusetts judge today to rates the murder conviction of hair -- aaron hernandez. the former nfl star killed himself in prison last month. there was a state law for vacating convictions when a defendant dies before appeal can be heard. g

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg.onnie: breaking news now. the senate intelligence committee has sent a new invitation to fired fbi director james comey to testify. the intelr saying chairman has invited comey to testify to give public or closed testimony. -- itr warner is saying looks like this request for testimony is broadening. anator david perdue, republican from georgia, had a lot to say about political distractions to president trump's agenda and the importance of completing tax reform. here he is speaking with david westin on "bloomberg daybreak: america's this morning. s" this >> we have to address it. knowing this president the way i know him and seeing how he has operated the last 4 month, would be hard to believe this thing will be substantiated so we will out.ow it turns i am interested get past all of this this week and move onto the agenda that people in america really want to focus on. david: there may be nothing to this ultimately, but how do we get to the point where we know there's nothing to it? ho

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. joe: u.s.g jobless claims making its lowest since november of 1988. btv 1227 p are talk about initial jobless claims a lot. this is continuing jobless claims. we virtually have never been lower in the history, except for a few weeks here and there at this level of low jobless claims. tasha crosses to in the 70's. it is pretty remarkable tightness seen a labor market. i want to bring a more thought pine bridge investments chief economist. thank you very much for joining us. is theis the economy firing on l cylinders or doing good? -- 2010, that is not particularly good. where the strength of the recovery has shown up is equity markets. you point to the jobless claims. they were thatt low, clearly a reflection of supply issues in the labor market. on monday, we have the small and one of the biggest issues right now is to fill open job positions. that is the highest level since 2000, at two recessions ago. fill hard for companies to the open position spared if you think about what we are trying to

i am mark crumpton.this is bloomberg. ♪ julia: live from bloomberg world headquarters in new york, i am julie chatterley. scarlet: i'm scarlet fu. joe: i'm joe weisenthal. we are 30 minutes from the close of trading in the u.s. stocks trading near record highs and the vix heading for the lowest close in a decade. joe: but the question is, what'd you miss? scarlet: landslide victory for new french president emmanuel macron, but can he get a parliamentary majority in june? cap president trump get anything done with the pipeline of legislation on the calendar? and frustrating trades -- david einhorn ratcheting up the rhetoric on 2 auto names. we will explain why. let's look at where the major averages stand as we head towards the close. abigail doolittle is standing by. abigail: not a lot happening for the major averages heading into the close. doubt, s&p 500, and the nasdaq .1%,own less than fluctuating between small gains and losses through the day. as you and scarlet and juliet were mentioning, look at t

mark crumpton has more. you.nk texas democratic congressman al green today became the first member of congress to take to the house r d call for president trump's in treatment, obstruction of justice and the circumstances under which fbi director james comey was fired. i do itman green: because, mr. speaker, there is a belief in this country that no , and thatve the law includes the president of the united states of america. mark: congressman greene previewed his action on the house floor with an earlier tweet, saying it was the house's duty to take up impeachment. the senate intelligence committee has invited former fbi director james comey to testify before the panel and has also requested copies of his memos of conversations with president trump. senator mark warner, the top democrat on the committee, would not say if comey had accepted the invitation but said he was confident comey would appear. the committee also sent a letter to acting fbi director andrew mccabe requesting any notes or memos of his talks wi

mark: i am mark crumpton in new york. you are watching "bloomberg technology." "the washington post" reports the investigation into potential collusion between russia and the trump campaign has identified a current senior white house official as a significant person of interest. that official has not been identified. that development comes as president trump heads on his first overseas trip since taking office. the president will make five stops in the middle east and europe, including visits to saudi arabia, israel, and the vatican. he will also attend two summits. the president did not name a new f.b.i. director before leaving. "the new york times" citing a document reports he said firing james comey relieved great pressure on him. mr. trump also reportedly called the former director "a real nut job." deputy attorney general rob rosenstein tells congress he stands by a memo that he wrote that preceded the firing of james comey. in remarks to congress, he says firing the f.b.i. director was appropriate and listed concerns over the handling of the clinton email

mark crumpton has more.uropean union president opened his address today with a swipe at burton and its -- with a swipe at britain. i made my choice, i will trust myself in french, because -- [applause] because slowly but surely, english is losing importance in europe. [laughter] juncker, who spoke ahead of formal talks on virgins exit from the block, says the eu will meet with the u.k. in full transparency. north korea is accusing the u.s. and south korea of conspiring to assassinate leader kim jong-un with biochemical weapons. north korean officials say it will ferret out mercilessly and destroy the terrorists in the cia and south. intelligence agency responsible for targeting its leader. president trump told bloomberg this week he would be prepared to meet with kim if the circumstances were right. puerto rico will close 184 schools to save millions. it is the largest mass closure of schools in puerto rico's history and will relocate approximately 27,000 students at the end of this month. the island financi

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. bestwyden: -- scarlet: buy jumped 21%, the most since 2001 on an unexpected gain of sales, which famous twins are behind the retailer's revival. from new york, this is bloomberg. ♪ ♪ scarlet: return to earnings ofs, yesterday -- shares best buy surging today after they reported a surprise gain in sales, the first quarter comparable sales one part 6% up -- 1.6% up. their earnings top estimates. what is behind the strong performance? we are joined by nick turner of bloomberg news. the nintendo switch plated big role, not just for best buy but also target but in best buy's case, it helped lift the numbers. >> best buy has been looking for electronic product, always the iphone and other parts of done well over time but this is one of those breakout hits that has benefited them. they have been waiting for that for a while. scarlet: is it sustainable for best buy because this is a one fad and people move along. >> you hope they come along often enough, things like fitbit and gopro have been

i'm mark crumpton. bloomberg. >> thanks so much. investigative team reporting that james comey publicly aboutfy his confrontation with the president on capitol hill. spoken privately with robert mueller to work out parameters for that testimony. been set as this final details are being hashed out. james comey the former directors fbi, agreeing to testify publicly about his confrontations with the as next week.arly white house is engulfed in controversies. weakness hope for policy changes. to matter.t seem investors are turning blind eye to chaos. here to meet with us is charles lieberman. what accounts what seems a disconnect between all that's andg on in washington d.c. wall street? there does seem to be a lot of chaos. a lot of chaos. it's making the news. we get reports everyday. you had another one a moment ago. but the fact of matter is, gets values from the company.lities of the >> you write about this in the piece, you say investors are the shocking news out of washington. it matters to equity evaluations only to the extent i

i'm mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. vonnie: coming up, we will have the latest on reports that the mulling but still may be leaning towards pulling out of the paris accord on climate change. what it could be for the u.s. and the global economy. this is bloomberg. ♪ "bloombergs is > markets." president trump is still considering whether to have the u.s. leave the landmark paris accord. apparently, he's leaning toward exiting the deal. jennings now is richard chatterton. -- joining us now is richard chatterton. on, someteasing going talking from white house officials and support hinting that he might leave the paris accord. let's say it were to happen. how easy is it for the u.s. to pull out? richard: there are a number of options available to the trump administration. the impact on the global framework going forward will depend on which path the ministration takes. they can withdraw from the paris accord itself, which will take a number of years. no country can apply to withdraw until three years after ratification. the

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. ♪ >> live from bloomberg's world headquarters in new york, i am julia. scarlet: i am scarlet fu. joe: i'm joe weisenthal. >> stocks to all-time highs. >> the question is, what did you miss? calledcratic lawmakers trump's spending budget. away, thosemonth negotiations. strong as markets hoped. it is time to be skeptical with third rate increases here. let's look at where the major averages stand as we head toward the close. abigail doolittle is standing by. lot happened. small games for the dow, s&p 500, and the nasdaq. if the down the s&p 500 can hang onto the gains, it will be the fourth day in a row, the first time that happened since february. not a lot happening. let's look at the big movers. a stock just took a leg lower right around 3:00 at a report. it is set to be interested in offering to buy the company. not in, so wes have the shares down. .p multiple days in a row they said they were kind of perplexed about this speculation in the shares giving some back

here's mark crumpton.k: with the controversy swirling around president trump, one democratic congressman took to the house floor and urged his colleagues to take action. >> i rise today, mr. speaker, to call for the impeachment of the president of the united states of america. for obstruction of justice. do this for political purposes, mr. speaker. i do this because i believe in the great ideals that this country stands for. mark: congressman green previewed his action on the house floor with an earlier tweet saying it was the house's duty to take up impeachment. two members of the judiciary committee are asking the fbi to provide memos from james comer -- james comey and for the white house to turn over any audio have they that might now fire director in them. two senators sent the letter to the justice department and the white house today. the letter came after the senate intelligence committee made a similar request for mr. comey's memos. israeli officials are tried to downplay any damage caused by disc

i am mark crumpton.loomberg. julia: thank you so much. president trump has been in brussels to pretend -- attend his new nato meeting. he will now be going to g7 tomorrow, but we have the press conference from the nato secretary-general, pretty bold statements today. he said donald trump talked about burden sharing. he was also blunt in expectations the what he has done is be clear in his commitment to nato which is crucial. underscoring a point, nato have decided to become a member of the anti-i.s. coalition. they will expand support to the coalition but won't engage in combat as part of it. a lot of headlines to make sense of your with perspective is that wadhams -- nick wadhams. let's start with the one about nato to become a member of the anti-islamic state coalition. what does it mean, and how would it work? we see much more information sharing and involvement in the militaries of other nato countries, whether it be airstrikes or intelligence sharing, things of that nature. there are contours that h

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. julia: live from world headquarters in new york, i am julia chatterley. scarlet: i'm scarlet fu. joe: i'm joe weisenthal. we are 30 mins away from the close of trading the u.s.. u.s. -- the s&p 500 approaching fresh records. dataet: should record low be explained for volatility? where to go in the french election now that the minimum account has inherited a slow-going economy, what will the new leader need to do to deliver on promises? himachal quarter for walt disney -- they report fiscal second-quarter earnings after the bell. we will bring in those numbers when they cross. joe: now let's take a look at what the major -- where the major averages stand. abigail doolittle is standing by. saying veryare not big moves for the major averages heading into the close. the dow the s&p 500 fractionally lower, and the nasdaq higher by more than one quarter of 1%. small moves, but nonetheless we are saying records. we saw a record earlier for the s&p 500, and if the s&p 500 can turn fractionall

here is mark crumpton. and government officials are meeting separately with the yuan envoy today. sixth round are the of talks. however, the gathering has been overshadowed by the u.s. state department accusations that the syrian government built a crematorium in one of its most the tory us prisons to cover up daily executions. former acting u.s. attorney yates underscored the testimony about michael flynn. at the congressional hearing, she testified she told the white house flynn was at risk of being blackmailed over his contact with russia. yates spoke to cnn. >> you wanted the white house to act? >> absolutely, yes. we expected them to act. >> did you expect them to act quickly? >> yes. >> there was urgency to the conversation? >> yes. and thee president turkish president will hold a meeting in the oval office before they give joint statements. we will bring you the remarks when they happen. vonnie: thank you for that and coming up, we will have that and excerpts from bloomberg's interview with senate ma

i am mark crumpton.the new issue of "bloomberg businessweek" looks at a murder in kansas and what it tells us about race, immigration, the technology industry, and america's future. from new york, this is bloomberg. ♪ >> this is "bloomberg markets." on julia chat lay. scarlet: i am scarlet fu. let's take a look at the consumer discretionary and retail sector. a lot of red. >> we have been talking a lot about retail, broadly the xly. today.f by 0.5% that is one of the worst performing groups on the s&p 500 today, really dragging it down. the specifically, the xrt, spider retail etf, down by more than 2%. this all has to do with retail store earnings, and it really, macy's is the biggest drag. look at that loss, 15.5%. that loss has been accelerating after macy's says same-store sales fell more than anticipated. this is an issue for mall-based retailers like macy's. nordstrom's reports after the close. it is down 6.5%. kohl's is reporting numbers that investors are saying were not as poor. those shares are

i am mark crumpton.rg. ♪ scarlet: we saw the s&p 500, tao, and nasdaq recover to close slightly higher. little change for equities. the big mover was a in oil prices, trading at a 45 handle. cbs, whichom recorded decline in sales because of tough comparisons. sales did beat analyst estimates, as did earnings per share. stock is up more than 1.5%. joe: the big loser after hours 8.5%.ke shack, falling the numbers beat expectations, but store sales have fallen when analysts expected a slight gain. they have seen zero store sales growth for the fiscal year versus expectations of 3% gain. scarlet: i think my family kept the shake shack comparable sales from falling further. [laughter] herbalife,ve on to soothing investor fear that u.s. regulators would hold them back in some way. they reported first-quarter adjusted eps on 124, the estimate is $.95. net sales for the first quarter beating estimates $1.10 versus billion.tation of $104 -- theyou this earlier have adjusted their full-year eps to the range we are

this is bloomberg. ♪ mark: i am mark crumpton. it is time for "first word" news. white house, president trump said there was a very simple reason he fired fbi director james comey. he was notrump: doing a good job, very similar. >> did it affect your meeting with the russians today? me?ident trump: excuse "rk: earlier, trump tweeted comey will be replaced by someone doing a far better job, bringing back the procedure of lost to thend " confidence of almost everyone in washington, republican and democrat alike. when things calm down, they will be thanking me!" russian president vladimir putin said his country had nothing to do with comey's firing. he was about to take the ice for a hockey game. wasaid president trump acting in accordance with the u.s. constitution when he fired director comey. the president met with russian foreign minister sergey lavrov in the white house today.

i am mark crumpton. this is bloomberg. vonnie: coming up, and opec committee meeting in vienna is said to have moved closer to a deal and extending production cuts, more on the energy manager of the united -- minister of the united arab it emirates -- arabic emirates. ♪ ♪ vonnie: this is bloomberg markets, i am vonnie quinn. now i look at the biggest business stories in the news. they have agreed on the blueprint other combination but the proposed deal is now in the hands of a linda supervisory board that remains divided on the transaction and has derailed the plan once before. it is up to the chairman to sell the deal. there is a potential for job losses but the board votes next week on the issue. democratic lawmakers want to know if deutsche bank loans made to president trump years before his run to the white house were guaranteed by the russian government or link to moscow. a copy of the letter asking the bank to hand over documents was reviewed by bloomberg news. government works is off to a good start as carl icahn, h