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U.S. stock futures are pointing to a higher open on Wall Street, following positive comments on U.S.-China trade talks by White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow.

Wall Street vs. Elizabeth Warren heats up

The former Goldman Sachs C.E.O. Lloyd Blankfein and the billionaire investor Leon Cooperman, both targets of Senator Elizabeth Warren’s new campaign ad about her planned wealth tax, struck back yesterday, Bloomberg News reports.

Ms. Warren’s ad singled out the two men. It referenced, for instance, Mr. Blankfein’s $70 million payday at the height of the financial crisis.

Vilifying the rich is bad for the country, Mr. Blankfein wrote on Twitter.

•  “Maybe tribalism is just in her DNA,” he wrote. His comment was seen as a reference to the controversy over Ms. Warren’s taking a genealogy test to prove she’s part Native American. She later apologized to the Cherokee Nation

“We don’t need another fabricator in the White House,” Mr. Cooperman said on CNBC.

Ms. Warren has recently faced criticism from other Wall Street leaders, including Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, Ray Dalio of Bridgewater and Stephen Schwarzman of Blackstone, the FT reports.

How the Democratic candidates view wealth is becoming a central issue in the primary race. “The likes of Blankfein and Cooperman may think that they’re fighting their corner by lashing out at Warren, but they could be miscalculating where the public’s sympathies lie,” according to a separate analysis by the FT’s Due Diligence.

Amazon fights back over the Pentagon’s cloud contract

The company yesterday announced that it planned to officially challenge the Pentagon’s surprise decision last month to award a $10 billion cloud-computing contract to Microsoft, Kate Conger of the NYT writes.

Amazon suggested that political motivations clouded the decision over the contract for the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure project, known as JEDI. Drew Herdener, an Amazon spokesman, said in a statement:

• “It’s critical for our country that the government and its elected leaders administer procurements objectively and in a manner that is free from political influence.”

• "Numerous aspects of the JEDI evaluation process contained clear deficiencies, errors and unmistakable bias — and it’s important that these matters be examined and rectified.”

Amazon had broadly been considered the favorite, as the country’s biggest cloud provider and the builder of the C.I.A.’s cloud services. But President Trump, who has openly criticized Amazon and its C.E.O., Jeff Bezos, said publicly that other “great companies” should have a chance at the contract.

Amazon’s protest should prompt an internal Pentagon review of the procurement decision, Daniel Ives, the managing director of Wedbush Securities, told the NYT. He said it should take 45 to 60 days and would delay the beginning of work by Microsoft. “The decision is likely to be taken to court by the loser, but work should begin on the cloud contract as the court battle plays out,” Ms. Conger adds.

Bloomberg will spend $100 million on anti-Trump ads

The billionaire businessman Michael Bloomberg still has not declared whether he is running for president in 2020 — but he is about to become the single-biggest spender in the presidential race anyway, Shane Goldmacher of the NYT reports.

Mr. Bloomberg is “beginning a $100 million digital campaign designed to attack and define President Trump in the top battleground states seen as likely to decide the 2020 election,” Mr. Goldmacher writes.

• “The ads will go online on Friday in four states — Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — and run through the end of the primary season, even if Mr. Bloomberg is not in the race.”

• •“Mr. Bloomberg himself will not be featured in the ads beyond legally required disclaimers, even as he actively lays the groundwork for a campaign.”

• “The $100 million ad buy will be in addition to whatever Mr. Bloomberg may spend on efforts to promote himself to become the Democratic nominee.”

It “is an unprecedented financial show of force and a pre-emptive strike to undercut the expected Democratic complaints that Mr. Bloomberg’s money would be best spent on Democratic priorities, rather than his own presidential ambitions,” Mr. Goldmacher writes. “It also delivers the unsubtle message that if Democrats were to nominate Mr. Bloomberg, his immense wealth could tilt the financial playing field of 2020 in their favor.”

Stocks to Watch

Nvidia (NVDA) reported better-than-expected adjusted quarterly earnings and revenue. However, Nvidia said its gaming chip business will be impacted by seasonal weakness during the current quarter.Nike (NKE) announced an 11% increase in its quarterly dividend, raising it to 24.5 cents per share from the prior 22 cents. The athletic footwear and apparel maker has increased its dividend in 18 consecutive years.Aurora Cannabis (ACB) reported a 23% decline in revenue for its latest quarter, and the Canada-based cannabis producer said it would slow expansion plans both in its home country and abroad.Under Armour (UAA) executives were pushed to meet aggressive sales targets, The Wall Street Journal reports. The athletic apparel maker is under investigation for allegedly borrowing revenue from future quarters to mask slowing demand.