The BoE is widely expected to keep interest rates steady today, but could signal a need for a further cut in November when it provides an updated outlook for inflation. The central bank slashed its benchmark rate last month to 0.25%, the lowest level in its 322-year history, and expanded other measures to bolster the U.K. economy amid Brexit fears. Meanwhile, data overnight showed British retail sales remained resilient in August after a bumper July.

Economy

The U.K. government has given the green light to the £18B Hinkley Point nuclear power plant in Somerset, a joint project to be built and financed by France and China, which is expected to meet about 7% of domestic electricity demand. However, ministers will impose a new legal framework for future foreign investment in Britain's critical infrastructure, which will include nuclear energy and apply after Hinkley.

Switzerland's central bank has kept its expansive monetary policy intact, holding its deposit rate at -0.75%, stating the Brexit vote has clouded its view of the global economy. "The negative interest rate and the SNB's willingness to intervene in the foreign exchange market are intended to make Swiss franc investments less attractive, thereby easing upward pressure on the currency."

Jim Yong Kim is heading for another five-year stint as president of the World Bank after no other candidates emerged during a compressed nomination process pushed by the U.S. Despite his second term, some see the lack of contenders as a symptom of how many big emerging economies such as China are turning away from the Washington-based lender to focus on their own new institutions.

Resuming disbursements from the country's $17.5B bailout program, the IMF has approved a $1B aid tranche for Ukraine after a yearlong delay. While the latest payment was less than the roughly $1.7B anticipated, since some reforms required by the fund had stalled, the move unlocks international assistance, including a $1B U.S. loan guarantee and €600M from the EU.

President Obama is ready to lift U.S. economic sanctions against Myanmar in light of political reforms in the Southeast Asian nation. It's going to happen "soon," he declared, but did not indicate a specific timeline. Obama said he would also reinstate the nation to the Generalized System of Preferences, a tariff program that would provide Americans with duty-free access to Myanmar exports.

Busy day on the U.S. economic calendar. Data out today could provide clues on whether there is any chance the Fed could still consider raising rates next week after Governor Lael Brainard poured cold water on those expectations on Monday. What's on tap? August retail sales, industrial production figures, weekly jobless claims, the Philly Fed survey and business inventories. A final key piece of data - Consumer CPI - comes out tomorrow.

Stocks

Apple has confirmed initial quantities of the new iPhone 7 Plus have sold out in all colors. The brand new jet black shade of the smaller iPhone 7 has also sold out around the world. Speculation over strong sales out of the gate and impressive initial reviews sent shares in the tech titan sharply higher on Wednesday to log their best daily performance since July. AAPL +0.7% premarket.

Solidifying its position as market leader, Spotify (Private:MUSIC) has reached 40M paying subscribers, up a third from six months ago. Apple Music (NASDAQ:AAPL), Spotify's main competitor, is expanding at a much slower clip, although its growth is also impressive. Over the last seven months, the service grew from 13M to 17M paid subscribers.

Federal prosecutors are in the early stages of a Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) investigation, WSJ reports. The probe is focusing on figuring out whether a bigger fish directed employees to fraudulently open accounts or if poorly-performing employees were just "trying to save their jobs." Whether prosecutors decide they have a case, or whether that may be criminal or civil is still a ways off.

Monte dei Paschi has appointed Marco Morelli, CEO of BofA Merrill Lynch Italy, as its new chief executive, handing him the job of restoring confidence in the world's oldest bank. With a new captain at the helm, BMPS (OTCPK:BMDPY) chairman Massimo To-noni resigned in a dispute over a €5B cash call backed by JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) with the support of Italy's government.

Pimco has accused Bill Gross of leaking confidential bonus data and exercising "bad faith" in pursuing a $200M lawsuit over his sudden departure from the firm in September 2014. In his lawsuit filed last October, Gross claimed that Pimco (OTCQX:AZSEY) forced him to resign so it could distribute his bonus to others. Both sides will appear tomorrow in the California Superior Court in Santa Ana.

A serious warning on Pfizer's (NYSE:PFE) quit smoking drug should be removed, 10 of 19 independent panelists to the FDA recommended on Wednesday, after reviewing additional trial data of the controversial treatment. Chantix was approved about a decade ago, but thousands of reports of mental health problems in users led to the FDA imposing the "black box" warning - the most severe available - in 2009.

The American Beverage Association is suing to block Philadelphia's soft drinks tax, marking the latest clash between the soda industry and public officials seeking to boost revenue and combat health risks. In June, Philly became the largest U.S. city to approve a volume-based tax of 1.5%-per-ounce on sugar sweetened beverages. Voters in San Francisco and at least three other places will vote in November on whether to impose similar levies. Related stocks: KO, PEP, DPS, MNST, FIZZ, SBUX, UL, PG

Polish billionaire Sebastian Kulczyk could team up with private equity funds in a potential joint bid for SABMiller's (OTCPK:SBMRY) central and eastern European beer brands, according to the Puls Biznesu daily. The brewing businesses, based in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, are up for sale as part of AB InBev's (NYSE:BUD) takeover of SABMiller.

McDonald's has received final bids from at least three groups for its China and Hong Kong outlets, with Carlyle Group (NASDAQ:CG) and TPG Capital separately teaming up with Chinese partners for the business worth up to $3B. Real estate firm Sanpower Group also made an offer for the McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) assets, partnering with Beijing Tourism Group.

Target has "no intention" of becoming a full-service grocery store, even as it looks for new ways to draw in shoppers amid declining sales. "We're not a grocer," CEO Brian Cornell told reporters, swearing off rotisserie ovens and butchers. "We've been able to drive traffic without having a sushi chef." Grocery is still an important category for Target (NYSE:TGT), accounting for a fifth of its $74B of annual revenue.

Some security has been added to the new regime at Fox News (FOX, FOXA), as the channel locked up Jack Abernethy and Bill Shine in multi-year contracts. The network is having its best year ever heading into the presidential election, but a sexual harassment scandal that led to the ouster of Roger Ailes had threatened to derail momentum. In a statement, executive chairman Rupert Murdoch said the co-presidents would "help guide the network for years to come."

Brazilian prosecutors have charged ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva - probably still the country's most popular politician - with being the "top boss" of a vast corruption scheme at state oil company Petrobras (NYSE:PBR). The prosecutor said political kickbacks had caused 42B reais ($12.6B) in losses and he personally received 3.7M reais ($1.11M) in bribes; Lula's lawyers say the accusations are part of an effort to stop him running in the 2018 election.

Mitsubishi Motors continues to improperly test the fuel economy of its vehicles, according to Japan's transport ministry, months after first admitting to manipulating fuel-economy data to inflate mileage results. The announcement is the latest setback for Mitsubishi (OTC:MMTOY). In April, it confessed to altering figures on four car models - two of which were manufactured for Nissan (OTCPK:NSANY) - and last month, another eight of its vehicles were pulled from the market.

Mobileye severed ties with Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) in July since the automaker was "pushing the envelope in terms of safety" with Autopilot. "It is not designed to cover all possible crash situations in a safe manner," Mobileye's (NYSE:MBLY) Amnon Shashua told Reuters. "No matter how you spin it... It is a driver assistance system and not a driverless system." In response, a Tesla spokeswoman said the company had never described Autopilot with that capability.

While the strategy is likely to become a political season talking point, Ford (NYSE:F) has announced it will shift all of its small-car production to Mexico over the next two to three years. The move falls in line with a general trend in the automobile industry to send low-margin production to Mexico and increase the focus on SUV and truck output in the U.S.

Today's Markets

In Asia, Japan -1.3% to 16405. Hong Kong +0.6% to 23335. China +0.7% to 3002. India +0.1% to 28412.
In Europe, at midday, London +0.1%. Paris -0.1%. Frankfurt +0.1%.
Futures at 6:20, Dow +0.3%. S&P +0.3%. Nasdaq +0.3%. Crude +0.7% to $43.89. Gold -0.1% to $1324.30.
Ten-year Treasury Yield +1 bps to 1.7%

Today's Economic Calendar

8:30 Initial Jobless Claims
8:30 Producer Price Index
8:30 Retail Sales
8:30 Philly Fed Business Outlook
8:30 Empire State Mfg Survey
8:30 Current Account
9:15 Industrial Production
9:45 Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index
10:00 Business Inventories
10:30 EIA Natural Gas Inventory
4:30 PM Money Supply
4:30 PM Fed Balance Sheet