Monday Evening Links

[Reuters] Trade optimism lifts stocks, but 2018 ends in red

[CNBC] House Democrats have reportedly prepared spending bills to end shutdown

[WSJ] Corporate Profit Crunch Looms as Stocks Slide

[WSJ] Great Retreat from Global Bank Lending Continues

[FT] Stock market rout in 2018 leaves investors bruised and wary

[FT] Franklin Square loan fund plunges after switch to KKR

Monday's News Links

[Reuters] Stocks pin hopes on U.S.-China trade talks after brutal year

[Reuters] Oil prices gain, but set for first yearly drop since 2015

[Reuters] GE drags premier U.S. corporate debt, which posts worst year since 2008

[Reuters] China's factory activity falls for first time in 2-1/2 years: official PMI

[Reuters] Fed Chair Powell's unscripted approach sets up for rocky 2019

[Reuters] U.S. companies repatriate over half a trillion dollars in 2018, but pace slows

[Reuters] China to kick off year of sensitive anniversaries with major speech on Taiwan

[NYT] Empty Homes and Protests: China’s Property Market Strains the World

[WSJ] U.S. Presses China on Trade Proposals

[WSJ] A Big Year for Deals—and Deal Makers

[FT] The Federal Reserve versus the markets: who has it wrong?

[FT] Record outflow from US junk bond funds in 2018

[FT] China to end the year as worst performing stock market