Reuters/Dominic Ebenbichler Here is what you need to know. CHINA'S STOCKS WERE HALTED AFTER GETTING SMOKED. China's Shanghai Composite had an awful start to 2016. Stocks came under heavy selling pressure at the open after disappointing manufacturing data and a weaker yuan. The index sank to a loss of 5%, triggering a 30-minute halt, and then reopened to further weakness before being halted for the remainder of the session, down 7%. CHINESE MANUFACTURING DISAPPOINTED. China's Caixin-Markit Manufacturing PMI fell to 48.2 in December. The reading was down from the previous look of 48.6 and shy of the 49.0 that economists were expecting. China's manufacturing sector has been in contraction for 10 consecutive months, and it is now at its lowest level since September. The Chinese yuan fell 0.7% to 6.5359 per dollar, the weakest it has been since April 2011. STOCK MARKETS ALL OVER THE WORLD ARE IN THE RED. Aside from the bloodbath in China, Japan's Nikkei (-3%) was the worst performer in Asia. In Europe, Germany's DAX (-3.8%) leads markets lower. S&P 500 futures are down 35.00 points at 2,000.50. SAUDI ARABIA HAS BROKEN OFF TIES WITH IRAN. On Sunday, Saudi Arabia gave Iranian diplomats 48 hours to leave the country. The announcement came in response to Iranian protesters who, upset over the execution of a prominent Shiite cleric and 46 others, attacked Saudi Arabia's embassy in Tehran. On Monday, Bahrain announced it too would be severing ties with Iran. CRUDE OIL IS BID. The breakdown of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia has put a bid into oil. Early strength ran West Texas Intermediate up to $38.32 a barrel. Most of the strength has dissipated, however, and the energy component is now higher by 0.5% at $37.24. EUROPE'S ENTIRE MANUFACTURING SECTOR IS EXPANDING. Eurozone Final Manufacturing PMI ticked up to 53.2 for December, a tad better than the preliminary look of 53.1. Italy and Greece saw the biggest improvements, as their readings jumped to 55.6 and 50.2, respectively. The entire region saw PMIs above the 50 mark, which is the line between expansion and contraction. SHIRE WANTS TO BUY BAXALTA. Bloomberg reports that Shire in closing in on a deal to buy its rival Baxalta for about $32 billion in stock and cash, excluding debt. Two people familiar with the talks told Bloomberg the deal was likely to be for $46.50 to $48 a share. The merger would give the new company $20 billion in sales within five years and a pipeline of more than 30 new drugs, according to Shire. TESLA DELIVERED MORE THAN 50,000 VEHICLES IN 2015. Tesla delivered 50,580 vehicles in 2015. While impressive, the number was on the low end of the 50,000-to-55,000 range the company had forecast in the middle of 2015, and it was well short of the 55,000 it was projecting at the beginning of the year. According to a statement released by Tesla, "Model X deliveries are in line with the very early stages of our Model X production ramp as we prioritize quality above all else." SAMSUNG SEES A WEAK 2016. The electronics maker says 2016 will most likely be a difficult year for the company. Reuters reports that Samsung CEO Kwon Oh-hyun gave a New Year's address, saying weak global growth and increased competition in key businesses will be problematic for the company in 2016. Samsung did not offer any new guidance. US ECONOMIC DATA IS LIGHT. Construction spending and ISM Index are both due out at 10 a.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is down 5 basis points at 2.22%. NOW WATCH: JIM CRAMER: These are the best and worst stocks for 2016
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