Good morning! Here’s what you need to know in markets on Wednesday.
1. Oil prices extended a slide on Wednesday on the back of worries about weakening world demand and oversupply, while global shares sagged as energy sector strains heightened anxiety about a slow down in the global economy. US crude futures dived 7% the previous day, suffering their biggest one-day loss in more than three years. Brent crude futures lost 0.3% to $65.28 a barrel as of 7:40 a.m. in London.
2. Theresa May’s proposed Brexit deal has the potential to break up the United Kingdom because it will treat Northern Ireland differently, lawmaker Jeffrey Donaldson told BBC Radio. The comments come after the UK government confirmed reports that May’s most senior ministers would read the details of a Brexit withdrawal deal on Tuesday evening before a special Cabinet meeting at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
3. US President Donald Trump’s top trade advisers appear to be on wildly different pages as the China trade war hits a critical stretch. The cracks come as President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit at the end of the month.
4. Martin Sorrell said he's no longer a "prisoner of history" after leaving ad giant WPP. Sorrell quit under fire last spring as the CEO of the world's most powerful marketing juggernaut.
5. The death toll from California's fires has risen to 50, with thousands of homes destroyed in Malibu and Northern California. The Camp Fire in northern California destroyed an entire town in less than a day and has killed at least 48 people, making it the deadliest fire in the state's history. The two other fatalities occurred in the Woolsey Fire in the Los Angeles area.
6. The US aviation regulator has launched a high-priority probe of the safety analyses performed over the years by Boeing, following the crash of a Lion Air jet in Indonesia last month. The Federal Aviation Administration said it was reviewing details surrounding the safety data and conclusions the company previously provided to it.
7. A former CIA officer claimed the White House is helping cover up Jamal Khashoggi's murder."The chances that Mohammed bin Salman ordered this, we're hitting 100%," said former CIA officer Bob Baer.
8. An official Google account on Twitter was hacked by cryptocurrency scammers trying to convince people to send them bitcoin. Many verified Twitter accounts have been hacked to promote similar cryptocurrency scams - the hackers will commonly impersonate Elon Musk.
9. NATO is looking to 3D-print parts for weapons and deliver them by drone in its quest to retain a competitive edge.It is also looking into areas such as artificial intelligence, connectivity, quantum computing, big data, and hypervelocity.
10. The US Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission have subpoenaed Snap for information about its March 2017 initial public offering. The company described the lawsuit as "meritless."