Sam Boughedda

Investing.com – Stocks eased off their lows on Monday but still closed down after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank could move faster to raise interest rates and tame inflation.

Powell suggested that the Fed might raise rates by half a percentage point instead of at quarter percent. Inflation is running at 40-year highs and the central bank is anxious to get it tamed so it won’t hit the economic recovery.

Oil continued to gain, however, something that has exacerbated inflation, especially since the outbreak of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Reuters reports that Russia’s foreign minister summoned the U.S. John Sullivan was summoned to Moscow by Reuters to explain to him President Joe Biden’s comments about Vladimir Putin had pushed bilateral ties towards the edge of collapse.

Biden is set to travel to Europe later this week to meet with members of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to discuss the West’s response to Russia’s attack on Ukraine. The EU is reportedly considering banning Russian oil imports. However, the region, which relies more on Russian energy than the U.S. has banned, may be interested in this ban.

Three things could impact the markets in tomorrow’s future:

1. Berkshire deal machine

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Alleghany Corporation will be purchased by (NYSE 🙂 for approximately $11.6 billion. It ends a long drought in large deals made by the conglomerate. The company has $140 Billion of cash ready to go.

TransRe’s owner, Berkshire, will receive $848.02 per share of cash from Berkshire. It is likely that people will speculate as to what Buffett may have planned for the future.

2. Nike Earnings

Nike Inc. shares rose 4.9% Monday morning after closing after reporting earnings that exceeded analysts’ expectations. On revenue of $10.9 trillion, the company reported earnings per share at 87 cents. The analysts polled by Investing.comFor $10.63 Billion in revenue, the anticipated earnings per share (EPS) is 71c.

Nike’s direct sales rose 17% but its revenue from China, a big source of growth for the athletic apparel maker, fell 5%, to $2.16 billion.

3. The oil price outlook remains unchanged

European Union countries are meeting Monday ahead of U.S. President Joe Biden’s arrival later this week to take part in a series of summits that aim to harden the West’s response to Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. After briefly falling below $100 last week, oil prices rose by 7% to $110 per barrel on Monday.

–This report was co-authored by Reuters and staff at Investing.com