Earnings season. LVMH, Abbott Laboratories, L'Oréal, BlackRock, Christian Dior, Intuitive Surgical, bioMérieux, Zalando, Barry Callebaut and Hansen are among companies reporting their earnings today.

The Empire Strikes Back. An independent commission validates the procedure of attribution to Microsoft of the giant cloud contract of the Pentagon (known as "JEDI"), disputed by Amazon.com, its unfortunate rival. The investigation found that the White House did not break any rules. This case is not over yet, however, since other proceedings are underway.

Timid automotive recovery. Volkswagen will reopen its first plant in Germany, the Audi site in Zwickau, on April 20. Toyota has agreed with its trade unions for a "very gradual" resumption of production in the north of France. Volkswagen is not in a position to provide forecasts for 2020 because of the coronavirus crisis, the German carmaker said in the margins of its first-quarter accounts. Ford's sales fell by 35% in the 1st quarter.

Less than $400. Apple is going to market an iPhone SE at $399, for the group's first foray into this price range, for emerging countries. This price is $50 less than the model that had been sold the least expensive by the company until then, the iPhone 8: "The first iPhone SE was a success with many customers who liked its unique combination of a small size with top performance and an affordable price," according to Apple's marketing manager, who wanted to apply the same recipe.

Interest is still outstanding. Difficulties are confirmed for J. C. Penney Company, which has suspended interest payments on part of its debt. The distributor will use the 30-day grace period to "evaluate certain strategic alternatives, none of which have yet been deployed at this stage". The company, which has been negotiating a rescheduling of its debt since mid-2019, has been even more vulnerable since the arrival of the coronavirus. Yesterday, rumors were circulating of a possible placement under the protection of the American bankruptcy law.

Down, as expected. Morgan Stanley's quarterly earnings were down 30%, the bank said mid-day. Like its peers, it had to build in provisions in anticipation of credit defaults.

M&A in pharmaceuticals? Gilead's reportedly discussed an investment in Arcus Biosciences. After the rumor spread by Bloomberg, the stock was soaring by more than 50% after the session.

In other news. Royal Dutch Shell strengthens its environmental commitments. Costco Wholesale increases its dividend. Bed Bath & Beyond sells One King Lane. The United States investigates British American Tobacco Plc for a possible embargo violation. Occidental Petroleum will honor the dividend promised to Berkshire Hathaway in shares rather than cash. British Antitrust opens an investigation into the acquisitions of Viagogo and Stubhub by eBay. Lalique and Zur Rose have published their accounts. Siemens is reportedly negotiating €3bn in credit lines with its banks, Bloomberg has learned. Abbott exceeds expectations in Q1 but abandons its 2020 targets.