Iran strike ordered, "phase one" of China trade deal to be signed in two weeks

Catch up on the top industries and stocks that were impacted, or were predicted to be impacted, by the comments, actions and policies of President Donald Trump and his administration with this weekly recap compiled by The Fly:

1. IRAN AIRSTRIKE: The major stock averages slid on Friday following news that President Trump ordered a U.S. airstrike that killed a key Iranian general, after which Iran promised "harsh retaliation." A number of oil and gas explorers' stocks outperformed as oil prices spiked following the news. W&T Offshore (WTI), Whiting Petroleum (WLL), Oasis Petroleum (OAS), Diamond Offshore (DO), Hess Corp. (HES), Cimarex Energy (XEC) and Apache (APA) were just a few of the many energy names that rose on Friday.

Citi analyst Jonathan Raviv said that, "as is always the unfortunate case," defense stocks tend to benefit from perceptions of higher risk and the U.S. confirming it has killed a top Iranian military commander in an airstrike in Iraq could make it harder for Democratic presidential candidates to argue against a stronger defense budget in 2020. Building tensions in the Middle East could contribute to removing a sentiment overhang on the defense industry, Raviv added in his note to investors. Publicly traded military contractors include BAE Systems (BAESY), Boeing (BA), General Dynamics (GD), Lockheed Martin (LMT), Northrop Grumman (NOC), Raytheon (RTN) and United Technologies (UTX).

2. U.S.-CHINA TRADE DEAL: President Trump tweeted earlier this week that, "I will be signing our very large and comprehensive Phase One Trade Deal with China on January 15. The ceremony will take place at the White House. High level representatives of China will be present. At a later date I will be going to Beijing where talks will begin on Phase Two!"

3. FRUITY E-CIGARETTE BAN: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a policy prioritizing enforcement against certain unauthorized flavored e-cigarette products that appeal to kids, including fruit and mint flavors. Under this policy, companies that do not cease manufacture, distribution and sale of unauthorized flavored cartridge-based e-cigarettes - other than tobacco or menthol - within 30 days risk FDA enforcement actions.

The final guidance outlining the agency's enforcement priorities for electronic nicotine delivery systems, or ENDS, such as e-cigarettes and e-liquids, comes as the 2019 National Youth Tobacco Survey results on e-cigarette use show that more than 5M U.S. middle and high school students are current e-cigarette users - with a majority reporting cartridge-based products as their usual brand.

The move is viewed as a compromise between Trump administration officials who want to address a rise in teen vaping and those concerned about the impact on small businesses and the possible political fallout for President Trump, according to The Wall Street Journal's Jennifer Maloney and Thomas Burton, citing people familiar with the matter. Publicly traded companies in the tobacco space include Altria Group (MO), British American Tobacco (BTI), Imperial Brands (IMBBY) and Philip Morris (PM).

4. CHANGES AT AT&T: On Wednesday, President Trump tweeted that he "Can't believe @ATT keeps the management after yet another @CNN ratings dive. Nobody watching, NO CREDIBILITY! Maybe they should make changes at AT&T?" (T).