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Stranger Than Fiction
A brief daily note of things you might find interesting or useful
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TOP NEWS
Senate still cannot agree on terms for coronavirus rescue package. They continue to haggle over how funding gets distributed. Democrats blocking the bill want to make sure funds to corporations are not used for stock buybacks and executive compensation. They also want expanded relief for individuals and small businesses. Politico has an analysis of how the two bills differ.
U.S. coronavirus cases are over 46,000, a 10-fold increase from a week earlier. 13,000 new cases were reported in the U.S. yesterday. Coronavirus deaths world-wide surpassed 16,000 and the number of cases is over 360,000. The WSJ is providing a state-by-state guide to coronavirus lockdowns.
China is planning to end mass quarantine on Hubei, where the coronavirus pandemic first emerged, after a sustained decline in the number of new domestic cases. They will continue to block departures from Wuhan for two more weeks unless authorities certify their health status.
Financial systems are beginning to crack. Investment funds with large positions in mortgages are facing a cash crunch. As homeowners are unable to make payments on their mortgages, firms backing those mortgages will face mounting pressure to cover those debts.
Stock futures are up sharply. Futures linked to the S&P 500 index hit the upper premarket trading limit of 5%. The surge is likely fueled by an expectation that the Senate will finally come to a deal on a coronavirus rescue package sometime today. European and Asian markets were up as well, 5% and 7% respectively.
U.S. domestic passenger flights could virtually shut down. Major U.S. airlines are preparing plans for a voluntary shutdown of all passenger flights across the U.S. Airlines are struggling to keep flights moving with minimal passengers. TSA reports passenger flow is down 80% from the same time last year.
THE ELECTION
THE COMMENT
“Trump keeps saying that he’s a wartime president. Well, start to act like one,” Biden said, drawing attention to his own coronavirus response plan. “To paraphrase a frustrated President Lincoln writing to an inactive General McClellan during the Civil War, ‘if you don't want to use the army, may I borrow it?’”
THE STRANGEST
THE AV ROOM