This is what you need to know before the bell:
1. European stocks are likely to slip modestly at the opening bell as markets around the world retreat from record highs following Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) gala iPhone launch in California which rippled through the global tech industry.
2. Britain's FTSE 100 is once again expected to be held down by the surging pound, which traded at a near one-year high of 1.3302 against the U.S. dollar overnight after faster-than-expected August inflation data Tuesday increased bets on possible intervention at the Bank of England's next rate meeting Thursday.
3. Shares of Apple Inc. fell 0.4% to $160.82 on Tuesday after the tech giant said its high-end 10th anniversary iPhone X would ship Nov. 3. Pre-orders for the phone, which starts at $999, begin on Oct. 27.
4. Toshiba Corp. (TOSYY) said Wednesday that it has signed a letter of agreement to sell its prized memory chip unit to a group of bidders led by Bain Capital LLC, potentially marking the end to the prolonged sale process that looks to eliminate Western Digital Corp. (WDC)
5. Bitcoin prices fell below the $3,000 mark for the first time in a month Wednesday as investors continue to dump the cryptocurrency following a crackdown on fund raising in China and accusations of fraud from Jamie Dimon, JP Morgan's CEO & one of Wall Street's most influential leaders.
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