Uber buys Careem; Airbus' big win; US housing data

Careem was founded in 2012 and has since attracted 30 million users across 90 cities in the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan. It was valued at more than $2 billion in a funding round in October.

Based in Dubai, Careem will operate under its own brand as a subsidiary of Uber and continue to be led by CEO Mudassir Sheikha. In an email to Uber staff members seen by CNN Business, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said keeping the Careem brand and operations "has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands."

Uber is gearing up for an initial public offering that's expected to take place later this year. It's reportedly seeking a valuation of as much as $120 billion.

2. Big win for Airbus: Airbus has reached a deal to sell 300 passenger jets to Chinese airlines. The agreement was signed during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to France.

The announcement was yet another blow to Airbus' biggest rival Boeing, which is struggling with a major crisis. Its bestselling jetliner, the 737 Max, has been idled worldwide after being involved in two deadly crashes.

The Chinese order covers 290 planes from Airbus' A320 family and 10 from the A350 line, the company said in a statement.

Based on Airbus' list prices, the planes are worth roughly $35 billion altogether, but customers typically receive significant discounts from the list prices and can get bigger reductions for huge orders.

Shares in Airbus gained more than 1.5% in early European trading.

3. What next for Brexit?: The pound was volatile Tuesday following yet another twist in the Brexit saga.

UK lawmakers have voted to temporarily seize control of the process from Prime Minister Theresa May, clearing the way for a series of votes on alternatives to May's Brexit divorce agreement.

The basic options remain the same: leave the European Union with a negotiated deal, crash out of the bloc or seek another delay to the process.

Both the UK government and the Bank of England have warned of dire economic consequences if Britain leaves the European Union without a deal that protects trade.

4. Housing data: A series of reports on US real estate are expected Tuesday, giving investors another glimpse at the health of the US economy.

Building permits and housing starts data will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, with Federal Housing Finance Agency Housing Price Index and the S&P/Case-Shiller US home prices index set to be published at 9 a.m. ET.

US consumer confidence data will follow at 10 a.m. ET.

The number of warning signs about the US economy is rising. The yield on 3-month Treasuries rose above the rate on 10-year Treasuries for the first time since 2007 on Friday. A flattening yield curve, or the difference between short- and long-term rates, is typically seen as a sign that long-term economic confidence is dwindling.

5. Global market overview: US stock futures were edging higher.

European markets opened mixed. Stocks in Asia also struggled to find direction.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 0.1% on Monday. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq shed 0.1%.

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6. Earnings and economics: Carnival and McCormick will release earnings before the open.

A survey from GfK, Germany's largest market research institute, showed that consumer confidence is set to dip in April. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a small increase.

The European Parliament is set to vote Tuesday on new copyright rules. If passed, the measure will dramatically change the way big tech companies handle copyrighted material.

Google and other tech giants have been lobbying against the law. Content publishers like record labels are among its supporters.

7. Coming this week:Tuesday — US building permits; US housing starts; S&P/Case-Shiller home prices; McCormick and Carnival earningsWednesday — US balance of trade data; Lululemon earningsThursday — UK consumer confidence; US final estimate Q4 GDPFriday — Huawei earnings; Carmax earnings