| Welcome to your morning markets update, delivered every weekday before the European open. Good morning. Trade talks creep forward, the U.K. election is falling into old habits and the Federal Reserve chairman is upbeat. Here's what's moving markets. Inching Forward U.S. and Chinese negotiators held a phone call and reached a degree of consensus about resolving the issues standing in the way of a phase one trade deal between the two, in addition to committing to remaining in touch as they continue working through their disagreements. That's helped to create a little further optimism that a deal is going to get done, albeit the progress has been piecemeal. Good timing, too, as trade momentum rose in September for the first time in four months, according to the CPB World Trade Monitor. Attack Lines The manifestos have been published so voters in the U.K. know what they'll be voting for, or at least what's being promised to them. Now the old attack lines are starting to flow, with the Conservatives warning about a possible Labour-Scottish National Party coalition and Labour claiming the Tories can't be trusted to look after the elderly. More problematically for Labour, the U.K.'s chief rabbi has suggested voters should avoid the party, once more bringing the specter of anti-Semitism to the campaign. Within the minutiae, one question will be how individual big names fare within their respective constituencies. Note for example Dominic Raab, the former Brexit Secretary, who is now facing serious competition for his seat. More Than Half Full Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell struck an upbeat tone in a speech Monday, saying that even at the current point in the economic cycle he sees the glass "as much more than half full." In combination with the extra optimism about trade, his words could lift the mood, as he also indicated he is confident on policymakers' ability to extend the U.S. expansion and as he signaled interest rates are likely to remain on hold. Market watchers also see scope for a steeper yield curve, predicting 2020 will mark a return to normality after the inversion this year. Revoked There is likely to be plenty more talk about the impact of Uber Technologies Inc. having its license revoked in London, most notably as to what the company intends to do to remedy the concerns regulators have in order get its business in the U.K. capital back on a firm footing. Analysts covering the company were not overly concerned, however, because Uber gets to appeal the decision and the company has faced similar problems in London before, though they cautioned that losing its biggest European business would be a seismic blow to the ride-sharing giant. Coming Up… Asian stocks were mixed and European stock futures are pointing to a slightly positive open after closing at the highest since May 2015 on Monday. WTI crude continues to hover near the $58-a-barrel level amid the trade optimism and a forecast for the first U.S. crude inventories drop in five weeks. German consumer confidence data will arrive later in the morning and we'll have earnings from catering giant Compass Group Plc and Irish building materials firm CRH Plc. What We've Been Reading This is what's caught our eye over the past 24 hours. And finally, here's what Cormac Mullen is interested in this morning Apple Inc.'s near-40% rise from its August low has brought the tech giant's market capitalization back above 4% of the S&P 500 Index, a level which has often triggered a period of underperformance, according to Leuthold Group LLC. In previous "breaches" since 2012, Apple has fallen about 2% on average over the following year and lagged the benchmark stock gauge by almost 9%, wrote analyst Phil Segner in a note. "With history as a guide, its most recent climb into the 4% Club looks like another selling opportunity," he said. The stock is a whisker away from its all-time-high -- well, a $3 billion-sized whisker for the $1.18 trillion behemoth. And while the company is dealing with plateauing iPhone demand in a mature smartphone market, the majority of analysts remain bullish. Twenty-seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg rate it as a buy, with 14 holds and just 7 sells. Still, with an average price target of just over $258 - about 3% below current levels - you wouldn't rule out history at least rhyming.  Cormac Mullen is a cross-asset reporter and editor for Bloomberg News in Tokyo. Like Bloomberg's Five Things? Subscribe for unlimited access to trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and gain expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. Before it's here, it's on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can't find anywhere else. Learn more. | 
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