Dow opens above 23,000, powered by IBM (news: 18/10/17)

Today's press

• Dow opens above 23,000, powered by IBM

  (Reuters) - The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened above 23,000 for the first time on Wednesday, powered by IBM, which hinted at a revival in its growth after six years in retreat.

• Higher US yields push dollar up for a 5th day

  The dollar climbed for a fifth consecutive day on Wednesday as higher U.S. Treasury yields triggered a squeeze on investors who have been broadly bearish on the greenback in recent weeks.

• U.S. housing starts hit one-year low in September

  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. homebuilding fell to a one-year low in September as Hurricanes Harvey and Irma disrupted the construction of single-family homes in the South, suggesting housing probably remained a drag on economic growth in the third quarter.

• Sterling slips to six-day low after UK wages data

  LONDON (Reuters) - Sterling dipped to a six-day low on Wednesday after data showed British wage growth was still lagging well behind inflation.

• Healthy Pullback? Bitcoin Price Dips Back Below $5,300

  After having rallied more than 90 percent from a September low of $2,980, the bitcoin-US dollar (BTC/USD) exchange rate is trading at $5,240 today, a figure that, at press time, marks a new daily low. As per CoinMarketCap, the cryptocurrency has shed 7.37 percent in the last 24 hours. Week-on-week, BTC is up 9.9 percent, while month-on-month it is flashing 29 percent gains.

• Bitcoin Fork SegWit2x Makes Enemies In Brazil, Argentina As 50 Sign Opposition Letter

  A group of Latin American Bitcoin businesses and entities has issued a joint letter expressing “deepest concerns” over SegWit2x.