Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:
Facebook – The head of George Soros’s philanthropic foundation called for oversight of Facebook by lawmakers, following revelations that it had hired an opposition research firm to scrutinize the billionaire investor. Patrick Gaspard made his feelings known in a tweet, in which he accused Facebook of targeting Soros because he criticized the company’s business model.
Rockwell Collins – China regulators have given conditional approval for the buyout of the aviation systems company by United Technologies. United Technologies had announced the $30 billion cash-and-stock deal in September 2017, and the U.S. had given its approval last month
Nissan – The automaker’s board of directors voted unanimously to remove Carlos Ghosn as chairman, as he faces allegations of financial misconduct.
Visa, Mastercard – Visa and Mastercard have offered to trim merchant fees in Europe for card payments by tourists, according to a Reuters report. The payment networks are said to be trying to avoid fines related to an antitrust probe.
Walmart, Macy’s, Target, Best Buy – These and other retailers will be on watch as reports start to emerge on the pace of Black Friday shopping.
Sabre – The flight booking system company and Spanish rival Amadeus are the targets of a European Union probe, which is examining a possible breach of antitrust rules.
Overstock.com – Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne told The Wall Street Journal that he expects to wrap up a sale of Overstock’s retail business by February, although he did not name potential buyers. Overstock is planning to focus on tZero, a new blockchain trading system.
Nokia – Nokia head of mobile networks Marc Rouanne is leaving the Finnish company, to be replaced by Tommi Uitto, described by the company as a radio technologies expert. Rouanne is the second senior executive to leave Nokia within the past few weeks.
Tesla – The automaker is cutting the price of its Model X and Model S cars in China. The price cuts will range from 12 to 26 percent.
Apple – Apple is effectively cutting the price of its iPhone XR in Japan, according to the Wall Street Journal, by offering subsidies to mobile network operators in that country.
Novartis – Novartis received approval from European Union regulators for a new gene therapy treatment for patients with inherited retinal disease.
Comcast, Charter Communications, Altice, Dish Network – These and other cable and satellite operators will be in focus, as analysts wait to see how many subscribers are willing to pay $19.99 to watch today’s winner-take-all golf match between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.
(Disclosure: Comcast is parent of NBCUniversal and CNBC.)