TOP NEWS
* E-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc. said it has been monitoring "closely" reports of lung illnesses possibly associated with the use of vaping products and reiterated that its products do not include THC, any cannabis-derived compound or vitamin E compounds like those found in cannabis-related products. The company, which has been under fire over its alleged link to vaping-related diseases, said it is confident that the U.S. public health authorities "will get to the bottom of this issue."
* Amazon.com Inc. CEO Jeff Bezos announced the company's new climate pledge, with plans to become carbon neutral by 2040 and meet the goals of the 2016 Paris Agreement on climate change a decade early. As part of its pledge, Amazon also said it has committed to relying on 80% renewable energy across all business operations by 2024, and 100% renewable energy sources by 2030. The Whole Foods Market Inc. owner is also ordering 100,000 electric delivery vehicles from startup Rivian Automotive LLC.
FOOD RETAIL & DISTRIBUTION
* Casino Guichard-Perrachon SA is in talks to sell its discount chain Leader Price to the French arm of German supermarket operator Aldi Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG. The companies entered into discussions after Casino received an expression of interest from Aldi France, which is expected to submit a binding offer. The offer terms will be disclosed to the market if the French grocer accepts the bid.
* Food delivery company Postmates Inc. raised an additional $225 million in funding from private equity firm GPI Capital, valuing the company at $2.4 billion, up from $1.85 billion in January, Forbes reported. The company reportedly had confidentially filed for the proposed listing of its common stock in February.
* Kroger Co.'s board declared a quarterly dividend of 16 cents per share, payable Dec. 1.
* Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc.-owned Flipkart Online Services Pvt. Ltd. still have some vaping products listed on its platforms in India, while other websites discontinued their sales after the country banned the production and import of e-cigarettes, Reuters reported. An Amazon India spokesperson reportedly said the company would provide a comment in due course, while Flipkart said it is aware of the ordinance and is working with sellers to take the products off the platform.
* Russian food retailer X5 Retail Group NV opened its first new-concept Pyaterochka store in Moscow. The 360-square-meter store, which focuses on the fresh category, offers shopping baskets from recycled plastics and reusable bags. The company will roll out the concept to all new and revamped stores beginning in 2020.
BEVERAGES
* Swire Pacific Holdings Inc., which does business as Swire Coca-Cola USA, has installed reverse vending machines, located at different locations in Hong Kong, that will add 20 Hong Kong cents to Octopus contactless smart cards for every plastic bottle accepted, the South China Morning Post reported.
TOBACCO & SMOKING PRODUCTS
* U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and eight of his colleagues in the U.S. Senate introduced the Tobacco Tax Equity Act, a new federal bill to set a tax on e-cigarettes. The Senate bill would establish the first federal e-cigarettes tax and increase the tobacco tax rate for the first time in a decade, according to a press release from Durbin's office.
* Officials from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the number of cases of people with a vaping-related lung illness has reached 530, up from 380 confirmed and possible cases reported last week, Bloomberg News reported. Seven people have died from the illness across 38 states, but the agency could not find any common product or substance in all instances.
PACKAGED FOODS
* Impossible Foods Inc.'s plant-based burger is set to make its grocery store debut at Gelson's Markets outlets in California on Sept. 20. The company will launch the burger in more grocery stores later this month, and the product will be rolled out in key regions across the U.S. throughout the fourth quarter and in early 2020.
* Beyond Meat Inc. has appointed Sanjay Shah as COO, effective Sept. 18. Shah was the senior vice president of energy operations at EV-maker Tesla Inc.
* Brazilian sugar and ethanol producer Grupo Moreno has filed for bankruptcy protection, the law firm advising the company told Reuters.
RESTAURANTS
* Olive Garden owner Darden Restaurants Inc. said adjusted diluted EPS for the first fiscal quarter increased to $1.38 from $1.34, beating the S&P Global Market Intelligence consensus normalized EPS estimate of $1.36. The company also reaffirmed its fiscal 2020 earnings outlook. Darden's board also declared a quarterly cash dividend of 88 cents, payable Nov. 1 to shareholders of record on Oct. 10.
* McDonald's Corp. increased its quarterly dividend to $1.25 per share from $1.16, payable Dec. 16.
INDUSTRY NEWS
* Japan will lower tariffs imposed on approximately 90% of American beef shipped into the country as part of negotiations with the U.S. over an imminent trade deal, the Nikkei Asian Review reported. The 38.5% tariff rate currently in place for an estimated 240,000 tons of beef imported from the U.S. would gradually decline to 9% by fiscal 2033, while the volume of beef imports covered by the tariff would also increase to 290,000 tons, the report said.
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The day ahead
Early morning futures indicators pointed to a higher opening for the U.S. market.
In Asia, the Hang Seng declined 0.13% to 26,435.67, while the Nikkei 225 rose 0.16% to 22,079.09.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 was up 0.20% to 7,371.36, and the Euronext 100 was up 0.47% to 1,099.32.
On the macro front
The Baker-Hughes Rig Count report is due out today.
Click here to read about today's financial markets, setting out the factors driving stocks, bonds and currencies around the world ahead of the New York open.
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