US MARKETS:

-S&P 500 futures up 0.2% to 2,795.50
-Brent futures up 0.8% to $67.10/bbl
-Gold spot up 0.2% to $1,295.95
-US Dollar Index down 0.2% to 97.00

GLOBAL NEWS:

Earnings season. In Europe, Amadeus, Aryzta, Chargeurs, Devoteam, Domino's Pizza, Geberit, GL Events, Maisons du Monde, Mediaset, Rothschild, Rubis, Salvatore Ferragamo and Spie are among companies reporting results. In the United States, there are not many names left on the agenda, but we can mention ZTO Express and Momo Inc.

Volkswagen moves towards electric. The German car manufacturer announced on Tuesday the launch of some 70 new electric models by 2028 and warned that it would also proceed to job cuts. It is planning to build 22 million cars on its electric vehicle platforms by 2028, against 15 million cars previously estimated. The VW brand is preparing to market a new electric car in 2020.

Important day for the Alliance. Carlos Ghosn is disappointed by the Japanese court's rejection of his request to participate in the Nissan Board of Directors scheduled today. This Tuesday, there is also a summit meeting between Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi to give the Alliance a new direction. The trio announced in a press release issued at 8:30 a.m. that a new Alliance Executive Board will be created to steer its operational management, under the chairmanship of Renault President Jean-Dominique Senard, with the presence of the CEOs of the three brands.

Tensions are rising. The battle between Vivendi and Elliott continues over Telecom Italia. "Elliott does not work in the interest of all shareholders, but only for itself. Its objectives are short-term and are not aligned with those of TIM's other shareholders," says the French company. However, the fund received the support of the shareholder advisory firm ISS, which recommended voting against replacing the five directors supported by Elliott.

Who will control the Oslo Stock Exchange? Euronext extends its offer for Oslo Bors until April 1, which still prefers the Nasdaq proposal. The two contenders are offering the same price, NOK 158 per share, but the American's proposal has the support of the target's board of directors. However, Euronext has theoretically secured more than 50% of the shares. A very interesting case study.

The B737 Max in the spotlight. The US Civil Aviation Authority (FAA) did not ground Boeing's B737 MAX after the Ethiopian Airlines crash, but requested modifications from the manufacturer, which will initially result in an update of the main software. However, several major airlines have stopped flying the aircraft as a precaution.

Banking consolidation. The German Government has confirmed the existence of discussions between Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank with a view to merge. DB is worth 16.7 billion euros on the stock market and its rival 8.9 billion euros. The duo has a combined market share of around 20% in retail banking in Germany.

No agreement. Elon Musk (Tesla) refutes the SEC's accusations that the leader violated the commitment he made a few months ago by publishing a tweet without the approval of his board of directors on February 19. On the contrary, the manager's lawyers believe that the agreement has been respected, and that the stock exchange police's grievances are unfounded. For those who know the file, it is the tweet on the production of 500,000 vehicles in 2019, quickly corrected to 400,000 by the manager. Musk and the SEC are now known to provoke each other. 

In other news. New disappointment for the results of Tod's. Apple has scheduled a meeting on March 25 to present its new services. Visa increases to 27% of Earthport by buying an additional 9.9%. The controversy is growing around Google, which has agreed to pay $135 million in exit tickets for two executives accused of sexual harassment.