1. Trump asking for the ‘sale’

The world has seen few sellers greater than Donald Trump — how else would he be the 45^th President of the USA? And as the polls tell him that he needs more customers/voters, he’s out ‘asking for the business’, which is the hallmark of great sellers and entrepreneurs. CNN says he’s in Omaha, Nebraska “ending his re-election bid in a frenzied cross-country push for votes in states he won (some handily) four years ago. But he is not pretending to be happy about it.”

How does CNN know that?

Well, this is what he said to a crowd of hearty souls who’d been standing for hours in persistent drizzle to hear him speak: “I probably wouldn't be standing out here in the freezing rain with you…I'd be home in the White House, doing whatever the hell I was doing. I wouldn't be out here."

2. France shuts down again

With Covid deaths in France at their highest level since April, the country will undergo its second national lockdown for at least the month of November.

Under the new measures, French people will only be allowed to leave home for essential work or medical reasons. Restaurants and bars will close, but schools and factories will remain open. Covid daily deaths in France are at the highest level since April. On Tuesday, 33,000 new cases were confirmed. President Macron said the country risked being "overwhelmed by a second wave that no doubt will be harder than the first".

3. US coronavirus cases surge again

The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and White House coronavirus advisor, Dr. Anthony Fauci, has declared that the US is in a “bad position” as coronavirus cases and hospitalisations surge across the country. New cases surged to 70,000 cases a day in July before plateauing at around about 40,000 in September. They’ve surged again and are now reaching record levels, Fauci said. “We should have been way down in baseline and daily cases and we’re not,” he said. Average new US cases this week hit an all-time high of 71,832, according to a CNBC analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University. Hospitalisations are also on the rise, with 15 states hitting record highs. Medical experts warn that the increase in hospitalisations could escalate further as flu season approaches.

4. Trump will win!

Don’t you hate experts after the event who tell you they tipped a Trump win in 2016 but you don’t recall it. Well, here’s a US billionaire who did tip Donald Trump in 2016 and thinks he’ll win again!

Financial Advisor magazine in the States says “Bond King” and head of DoubleLine Capital, Jeffrey Gundlach, thinks Trump will win and “he expects a widening economic inequality to bring about some sort of revolution by 2027, with the 2024 presidential election directly in the path of massive social, economic and political change.” (marketwatch.com)

“Mind you, my conviction is way lower than it was four years ago,” he explained. “But back in [that period], when Trump was little more than an asterisk in the betting odds, I predicted he was going to win. This one is much more murky, but in my eyes, it favours a Trump win.” He's also tipping a big slide for stocks! “I actually think owning 25% gold isn’t crazy right now. Nor do I think owning 25% cash is crazy,” he said.

5. Wall Street's worst day since June

The Dow Jones closed lower for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday to close 943.24 points or 3.43% lower to 26,519.95, and the S&P 500 was also down 119.65 points or 3.53% to 3,271.03. It was the worst day for both indexes since June 11 according to CNBC. After a positive day on Tuesday, the Nasdaq sunk overnight with a fall of 426.48 points or 3.73% to 11,004.87.