Trump Steps Up Attacks on Fed Chairman – Wall Street Journal (subscription)

President Trump escalated his attacks on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, saying the head of the nation’s central bank threatened US economic growth and appeared to enjoy raising interest rates.

EU Rejects Italian Budget in Unprecedented Rebuke – Financial Times (subscription)

Brussels has rejected Italy’s draft budget in an unprecedented move that threatens to deepen rifts between the European Commission and the populist government in Rome.

Research Paper Finds Fix Tracking Error Increased Post-Reform – Profit & Loss

A new research paper that looks at trading around the WM Reuters benchmark fix between 2012 and 2017 argues that while the mechanism has been made more robust and less open to manipulation, the shift to a five minute window has made actually achieving the benchmark harder for some market participants.

Fed’s Bostic Comfortable with Fourth Rate Hike Following Strong Data – Reuters

Falling stock prices, uncertainty around global trade and other possible “headwinds” are not enough yet to throw the US economy off course or force the Fed to alter its intent for continued gradual rate increases, Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic said.

ASIC to Investigate Last Look – Profit & Loss

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is to further investigate the use of last look in foreign exchange markets.

Forex Traders Wrap Up Defence in Price Fixing Trial – Financial Times  (Subscription)

Three traders on trial in New York over allegations they fixed prices in the global foreign exchange market were on Tuesday wrapping up their defence, which their lawyers kept short after deciding the government’s star witness had done most of their job for them.

Brexit Transition Period Could Last for Years, Cabinet Warned – The Times (subscription)

Theresa May’s Brexit plan could leave Britain in a “long-running” multi-year transition period despite her promise that it would last only a few months, according to leaked cabinet papers seen by The Times.

Prospects for Trump-Xi Deal Fade Even With G-20 Meeting Confirmed – Bloomberg

Expectations for a one-on-one meeting between President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping are already being lowered with officials from both sides increasingly pessimistic about prospects for a resolution to their deepening trade war.

October is a Frightful Month for Global Investors – Financial Times (subscription)

Global markets have suffered a frightful October, with Tuesday’s tumble taking the FTSE All-World index’s loss this month so far to a whopping 7 per cent — its worst performance since the peak of the eurozone crisis in 2012.

Regulatory News

MEPs Whittle EU Banking Supervisor Race Down to Two Candidates – Financial Times(subscription)
Sharon Donnery, Ireland’s central bank deputy governor, and European Banking Authority chair Andrea Enria of Italy are the remaining candidates in the race to head the eurozone’s banking supervisor, after securing the backing of European lawmakers to lead the Single Supervisory Mechanism.

Auckland Foreign Exchange Trader Accused of Running Ponzi Scheme – New Zealand Herald

Auckland foreign exchange broker has been charged with fraud after 18 investors in an alleged Ponzi scheme lost at least $7 million.

FSB Reviews Financial Vulnerabilities and Deliverables For G20 Summit

A Plenary discussed market developments and vulnerabilities in the global financial system. Members considered that, while global growth remained solid, it has become more uneven across economies, and some downside risks have begun to materialise.

Don’t Bank on Euribor Surviving 2020 – Euromoney
Euribor’s administrator is confident that its reforms to the benchmark will make it eligible to be published and used after the Benchmark Regulation’s transition period ends. But don’t bank on it.

Crypto News

The Fintech Files: The End of the Hype Cycle? – Financial News

Don’t you love it when people bang on about “the end of a hype cycle”? There are so many things reaching the end of their hype cycle these days: blockchain, AI, regtech. And the latest one seems to be crypto.  

Blockchain startup Setl Picks New Boss – Financial News

The London blockchain firm Setl has hired a senior partner from the Boston Consulting Group as its next chief executive, following co-founder Peter Randall’s decision to step aside.

Coinbase Gets Approval to Offer Crypto Custody Services in New York State – Coin Telegraph

New York state regulators have approved Coinbase Custody Trust Company LLC to roll out their cryptocurrency custody services in the state, according to an official announcement.

Crypto Exchanges And ICOs Are Evolving Into New Entities – Forbes

Today, the initial coin offering market is in turmoil with some ICOs closing down. Others are prolonging their capital raising with the hope that the market will pick up. However, this is unlikely to happen soon as new patterns are beginning to emerge from the rubble.

How a Math Teacher From Iceland is Changing the Crypto Mining Game – Bitcoin Australia

Iceland is in the spotlight this week following its innovative methods to power the crypto mining network. Proposed by maths teacher Krista Hannesdóttir, the Scandinavian country is utilising its plentiful geothermal resources to power the mammoth network.

Company News

Star Hedge-Fund Manager Suffers Rare Setback – Wall Street Journal (subscription)

An Asian hedge-fund firm with a strong record has experienced a surprising loss from a small fund that made mistimed bets on stocks and currencies.

AmEx Discloses Probes Into Currency Pricing – Wall Street Journal (subscription)

American Express Co. acknowledged that government agencies are investigating how its foreign-exchange unit priced currency conversions, but said it doesn’t believe the probes will affect its operations or results.

US Deal Makers Back Away From Chinese Investors – South China Morning Post

Just two months after the US moved to tighten controls on foreign investment, citing national security concerns, American deal makers are losing their appetite for selling assets to Chinese buyers – who had proven to be a gold mine because of their penchant for outbidding other suitors.

Philips Earnings Fall Short of Expectations Amid Currency Headwinds – CNBC

Dutch health care technology company Philips reported weaker-than-expected third-quarter net income on Monday, citing subdued growth in key markets and foreign currency headwinds.

Market Savvy 

For Fed, Sell-Off Could Point to Fading Trump Stimulus – Reuters

A three-week stock market sell-off may signal concerns that the massive stimulus from US tax cuts and government spending will fade sooner than expected, a central issue for the Federal Reserve as it considers when to halt interest rate hikes.

China Market Falls: What the Fund Managers are Saying – Financial News

Fund managers investing in China are expecting no quick resolution of the country’s trade war with the US, and bracing for a bumpy ride in stocks — but hold steady to the view that the country’s long-term prospects are good.

Rising Costs at US Manufacturers Unnerve Investors – Financial Times (subscription)

US industrial companies unnerved investors on Tuesday with reports of rising prices and costs for products ranging from earthmoving equipment to Post-it notes, raising concerns about tariffs squeezing profits and adding to pressure on global inflation.