MORNING BID EUROPE-Global bull run slows under darker monetary skies

* A look at the day ahead from EMEA markets editor Mike Dolan. The views expressed are his own.

LONDON, Oct (Shenzhen: 000069.SZ - news) 26 (Reuters) - World equity markets finally pulled back on Wednesday after another relentless series of new records as investors closely monitor the risk of two things that could halt one of the longest bull markets in the history – aggressive monetary tightening from the central banks and/or a rollover of corporate earnings growth.

The S&P500 clocked its biggest one-day fall in six weeks last night and is on course for its worst week since August on a mix of underwhelming corporate earnings, darkening monetary policy clouds and persistent doubts over the likelihood of U.S. corporate tax cuts.

That said, some of the steeper intraday losses were clawed back by the close and even though the Vix volatility gauge closed at its highest since Sept 8, that was just marginally above 11 percent and well off the 13+ percent seen at one point earlier in the day.

S&P500 futures are flat this morning. Global stocks fell in sympathy on Wednesday however, with the Stoxx600 of European stocks at its lowest in four weeks and MSCI’s index of world stock markets staging its biggest fall in a month too. The mood in Asia overnight was calmer and more mixed and eurostocks have opened higher.

Many argue Wednesday’s retreat is quite healthy for markets that had looked overcooked, but there are some big hurdles to jump over the coming week or so. The monetary tightening rounds are set to begin today as the European Central Bank is set to flag a tapering of its bond buying programme to 30 billion euros from 60 billion at present, albeit coupled with a likely 9-month extension of those purchase through September. Euro/dollar nudged higher ahead of the decision on Thursday. Faster-than-forecast UK Q3 GDP, reported on Wednesday, seemed to bake in expectations of a Bank of England interest rate rise next week and sent sterling up more than 1 percent at one point and above $1.32. And while next week’s Federal Reserve meeting is unlikely to see another hike there, a move in December is now seen as a virtual certainty.

Perhaps as important for the Fed is U.S. President Trump’s pick for Fed chair from next February, with reports of a swing towards relative hawk and Stanford economist John Taylor spooking Treasury markets somewhat this week as 10-year yields climbed to their highest since March. The only additional news overnight was an administration official saying White House economic adviser Cohn was unlikely to make the cut along with Fed chair Yellen, Taylor and Fed governor Powell.

The tone was slightly softer outside the G4 central banks, however, as Brazil cut rates again as expected, and the Bank of Canada held the line after a two straight hikes in July and September. The Canadian dollar fell sharply on the latter but the real managed to push higher.

Although the ebb and flow of U.S. tax cut expectations this year has had more impact on the dollar than the equity market, the latest splutter this week has helped neither, as Trump rows with Senate Republicans as well as battling over the status of pension contributions.

The earnings front has been a mixed bag on both sides of the Atlantic (Shanghai: 600558.SS - news) so far in this season, though profits are still coming in ahead of forecasts on aggregate with a third of the S&P500 now reported.

Thursday and next week will be critical, however, as the big tech and internet stocks that have driven the broader market surge this year are all due. Amazon and Google parent Alphabet (Swiss: GOOGL-USD.SW - news) are due to report today, along with Microsoft (Euronext: MSF.NX - news) and Intel (Euronext: INCO.NX - news) , and Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL - news) and Facebook (NasdaqGS: FB - news) are out next week.

In Europe, a heavy earnings day is dominated by big financials, with Deutsche Bank (IOB: 0H7D.IL - news) beating estimates but Barclays (Swiss: BARC.SW - news) coming up short due to a weak performance of its markets division.

Swedish and Norwegian central banks also meet. Both expected to keep rates on hold, but Riksbank could sound dovish in comparison to its peers. Canadian dollar slid 1 percent overnight to a three-month low of C$1.2816 per dollar after the Bank of Canada sounded more dovish in its policy statement. Turkey’s central bank also meets, but is expected to hold rates too.

* Europe corp events: Deutsche Bank, Deutsche Boerse (IOB: 0H3T.IL - news) , KPN (Amsterdam: KPN.AS - news) , Nordea, ABB (LSE: 0NX2.L - news) , Anheuser Busch, Nokia (Milan: 23568.MI - news) , Statoil (LSE: 0M2Z.L - news) , Bayer (IOB: 0P6S.IL - news) , DNB ASA (LSE: 0O84.L - news) , Schneider Electric (EUREX: SND1.EX - news) , Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) , Beiersdorf (IOB: 0DQ7.IL - news) , Fortum (EUREX: 899736.EX - news) , Neste Oyj (LSE: 0O46.L - news) , Santander, STMicro

* Italy Oct consumer/business confidence

* Spain Q3 jobless

* EZ Sept lending and money supply

* Kenya presidential election re-run

* Italian Senate holds final vote on new electoral law

* SAfrica’s finance minister Gigaba testifies to parliamentary committee after mid-term budget

* Riksbank and Norges Bank policy decisions

* Turkey, Ukraine, Fiji central bank policy decisions

* ECB policy decision and press conference

* US Q3 earnings: Amazon, Alphabet (Xetra: ABEA.DE - news) , Intel, Microsoft, Mohawk, Ford, Xerox (Swiss: XRX.SW - news) , CME, Expedia (Frankfurt: A1JRLJ - news) , Chubb, Eastman Chemical, Invesco (Frankfurt: 3IW.F - news) , Boston Scientific, Raytheon, Franklin Resources (NYSE: BEN - news) , Hilton, Bristol Myers Squibb, Valero, UPS, Marathon, McKesson, BorgWarner (Frankfurt: 887320 - news) , Marsh & McLennan, Hershey, Newmont Mining (Swiss: NEM-USD.SW - news) , Comcast (Swiss: CMCSA.SW - news)

* US Sept pending homes sales, weekly jobless claims

* US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin meets Israel PM Natanyahu in Jereusalem

* Minneapolis Fed chief Kashkari speaks in Minneapolis

* US Treasury auctions 7-year note (Editing by Robin Pomeroy)