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5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, Aug. 12

Here are the key news, trends, and analysis investors need to start their trading day:

1. Stock futures are unchanged one day after the S&P 500 and Dow posted new records

People walk past the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City on August 10, 2021.

Spencer Platt | Getty Images

US stock futures were little changed on Thursday after another record-breaking session for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average. S&P 500 futures rose marginally while Dow futures climbed 40 points, or 0.1%. The Nasdaq 100 futures also rose slightly. The S&P 500 and Dow closed on new all-time highs on Wednesday after investors shrugged at the latest US consumer price index readings. The index rose 5.4% year over year, which was roughly in line with expectations.

2. Unemployment claims are canceled for the third week in a row

A chef interviews a job seeker about hospitality employment during a job fair on June 23, 2021 in Torrance, California.

PATRICK T. FALLON | AFP | Getty Images

Initial jobless claims fell for the third week in a row and hit a new low in the pandemic era, the Ministry of Labor said on Thursday. In the week ending August 7, 375,000 claims were filed, which is an estimate by the Dow Jones. The value for the week ending July 31 has been revised up by 2,000 to 387,000. Meanwhile, the July value for the US producer price index rose 1%, beating a Dow Jones estimate of 0.5%.

3. Alaska Air is considering Covid vaccine mandates for employees

A Boeing Co. 737-9 aircraft during a Boeing Co. ecoDemonstrator program tour at Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) in Arlington, Virginia, the United States, on Wednesday, July 28, 2021.

Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Alaska Airlines is considering making Covid vaccinations mandatory for employees, a company memo viewed by CNBC said. The airline said if it made vaccines mandatory for its employees, it would do so after the Food and Drug Administration fully approved the vaccinations currently available. This policy change would make the airline the newest airline to require its employees to be vaccinated. United Airlines was the first major airline to do this last week.

4. Give Fed Chairman Powell “the benefit of the doubt” on inflation, Cramer says

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell testifies during a hearing of the U.S. House Oversight and Reform Selection Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis on Capitol Hill in Washington, United States, on June 22, 2021.

Graeme Jennings | Reuters

CNBC’s Jim Cramer urged investors to support the monetary policy approach of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell as inflationary pressures mount. “I say, give Jay Powell the benefit of the doubt. He has been right like rain since the beginning of the pandemic. His critics have been completely wrong for ages,” said Cramer on Wednesday at “Mad Money”. “Powell insisted we have to wait and see what happens to the Delta option before raising or even lowering rates.” Cramer also said the recent surge in inflation could be temporary.

5. Messi is partially paid in crypto

The Qatari President of Paris Saint-Germain, Nasser Al-Khelaifi (L) and the sporting director of Paris Saint-Germain, Leonardo Nascimento de Araujo (R), pose next to the Argentine soccer player Lionel Messi (C) while he is during a press Shirt with the number 30 held up August 2021 in the Parc des Princes stadium of the French football club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in Paris.

Stephane De Sakutin | AFP | Getty Images

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5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, July 29

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

1. Dow futures rise after Fed keeps rates near zero

A trader works behind plexiglass on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, New York, U.S., July 28, 2021.

Andrew Kelly | Reuters

Dow futures rose more than 100 points Thursday, one day after the 30-stock average and the S&P 500 dipped slightly and the Nasdaq rose modestly. All three benchmarks finished less than 1% away from Monday’s record closes after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said at his post-meeting news conference that substantial economic improvement would be needed for the central bank to start dialing back its easy-money policies. On the fiscal side, the Senate voted to advance a bipartisan infrastructure plan Wednesday evening, a critical step toward Democrats passing their sweeping economic agenda.

  • In stocks to watch: Dow stock Merck fell in the premarket after the drugmarker Thursday matched estimates with quarterly earnings and topped expectations on revenue. Amazon reports earnings after the bell Thursday.
  • Trevor Milton, founder of Nikola, has been charged with three counts of fraud by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan in connection with their investigation into the embattled electric vehicle start-up. Shares of Nikola, which lost more than half their value in the past 12 months, were down 6% in Thursday’s premarket trading.

2. Latest GDP, initial jobless claims weaker than expected

In the latest snapshot of the economic recovery from the Covid pandemic, the Commerce Department said Thursday morning that its first look at second-quarter gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 6.5%, a big miss compared to estimates for 8.4% growth.

The Labor Department also reported before the opening bell on Wall Street that initial jobless claims came in at 400,000 last week, slightly worse than expectations. The previous week’s level was revised up to 424,000. Initial claims for the week ended July 10 of 368,000 matched last month’s Covid-era low.

3. Robinhood to make its public debut after pricing IPO

Vlad Tenev, CEO and Co-Founder, Robinhood in his office on July 15, 2021 in Menlo Park, California.

Kimberly White | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images

Robinhood, whose stock trading app surged in popularity among retail investors, is expected to make its debut on the Nasdaq on Thursday. The initial public offering was priced Wednesday night at the low of the range at $38 each, raising about $2 billion and valuing the firm at about $32 billion. However, the company is not without controversy.

  • Earlier this year during the initial meme stock frenzy, Robinhood angered some investors and lawmakers when it restricted trading in some popular stocks following a 10-fold rise in deposit requirements at its clearinghouse.
  • The company this week disclosed that it’s received inquiries from U.S. regulators about whether its employees traded shares of GameStop and AMC Entertainment before trading curbs were placed at the end of January.
  • In June, Robinhood agreed to pay nearly $70 million to settle an investigation by Wall Street’s own regulator.

4. Facebook warns about growth, sets vaccine mandate

A giant digital sign is seen at Facebook’s corporate headquarters campus in Menlo Park, California, on October 23, 2019.

Josh Edelson | AFP | Getty Images

Facebook shares fell roughly 3.5% in Thursday’s premarket, the morning after the social network said revenue growth will slow during the second half of the year. Facebook cited a change in Apple’s privacy policies, which it said will hurt the social network’s ability to target ads. In its second quarter, Facebook reported earnings of $3.61 per share on revenue of $29.08 billion. Both topped estimates. Daily active users and monthly active users each matched expectations.

Facebook will require workers returning to its U.S. offices to be vaccinated, the company also announced Wednesday. “How we implement this policy will depend on local conditions and regulations,” Vice president of people Lori Goler said in a statement. Facebook will create processes for those who can’t be vaccinated for medical or other reasons, Goler said, adding the company will continue to evaluate its approach outside the U.S.

5. Disney, Apple bring Covid mask requirements back

Guests wear masks. as required. to attend the official re-opening day of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, on Saturday, July 11, 2020.

Joe Burbank | Orlando Sentinel | Getty Images

Disney has amended the mask policy at its U.S.-based theme parks in the wake of new guidance from health and government officials. Starting Friday, the company will require all guests, regardless of vaccination status, to masks in indoor locations at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and the Disneyland Resort in California. Children under the age of two are exempt from this mandate.

People walk past an Apple retail store on July 13, 2021 in New York City.

Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images

Apple will require both vaccinated and unvaccinated customers as well as staff members to wear masks in many of its U.S. retail stores starting Thursday, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC’s Josh Lipton. Earlier this week, Apple CEO Tim Cook told CNBC the company had pushed back its return to office plans for corporate workers from September to October and that it could be pushed back again.

— Reuters and CNBC Peter Schacknow contributed to this report. Follow all the market action like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with CNBC’s coronavirus coverage.

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5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, July 8

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

1. Dow to drop 500 points as Covid concerns resurface

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

Brendan McDermid | Reuters

Dow futures on Thursday fell nearly 500 points, or more than 1.3%, in a broad premarket decline as Japan declared a state of emergency in Tokyo for the upcoming Summer Olympics and as countries deal with a rebound in Covid cases due to variants. Futures tied to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also dropped about 1.3% each.

Thursday’s selling came one day after Wall Street’s rally had resumed, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finishing at record high closes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.3% shy of Friday’s record close.

2. 10-year Treasury yield falls on global economic growth worries

Investors rotated into the perceived safety of bonds Thursday, pushing the 10-year Treasury yield below 1.26% to the lowest since late February. Bond yields move inversely to prices.

  • Despite the strengthening economy and hotter inflation, the 10-year yield continues to decline.
  • It began July around 1.58%. It hit a then-14-month high of 1.78% in March.
  • It began 2021 at less than 1%.

In another look at the recovery in the labor market, the government Thursday morning said initial jobless claims for last week totaled a worse-than-expected 373,000. That’s up slightly from the upwardly revised pandemic-era low the previous week. The level of continuing claims decreased to 3.34 million, down 145,000 from the previous week’s revised level.

3. Tokyo to go under state of emergency ahead of Olympics

The logo of Tokyo 2020 is displayed near Odaiba Seaside Park in Tokyo on July 7, 2021, as reports said the Japanese government plans to impose a virus state of emergency in Tokyo during the Olympics.

Kazuhiro Nogi | AFP | Getty Images

Just two weeks before the Tokyo Olympics, Japan’s prime minister on Thursday announced the state of emergency for the capital city due to rising Covid infections. The order goes into effect this coming Monday and through Aug. 22. That means the Olympics, opening on July 23 and running through Aug. 8, will be held entirely under emergency measures. While fans from abroad were banned months ago, Olympics officials had recently set venue limits at 50% capacity for local spectators. However, the state of emergency could force another change in the fan policy.

4. Global coronavirus deaths top 4 million as delta variant spreads

Two women walk next to graves of people who passed away due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at the Parque Taruma cemetery in Manaus, Brazil May 20, 2021.

Bruno Kelly | Reuters

The global death toll from Covid exceeded 4 million late Wednesday as infections worldwide crossed 185 million, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. In recent months, many countries are battling a surge in Covid infections due to the spread of the more transmissible delta variant, which first emerged in India. The delta strain now accounts for more than half of new Covid cases in the U.S. The World Health Organization has said that delta is the “fastest and fittest” variant yet, and health experts have warned it could undermine efforts to contain Covid even as vaccination campaigns are underway around the globe.

5. States bring new antitrust suit against Google over app store

The logo of Google Play is seen on a screen.

Alexander Pohl | NurPhoto | Getty Images

State attorneys general are again going after Google with an antitrust lawsuit, this time alleging the Alphabet unit abused its power over app developers through its Play Store on Android. The case marks the fourth antitrust lawsuit lodged against the company by U.S. government enforcers in the past year. By focusing on the Play Store, the latest lawsuit touches on an aspect of Google’s business that is most similar to Apple’s App Store. The App Store has become embattled in legal challenges and drawn lawmaker questions over whether it unfairly charges developers for payments through their apps by customers and whether it favors its own apps over those of its rivals.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow all the market action like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with CNBC’s coronavirus coverage.

Disclosure: CNBC parent NBCUniversal owns NBC Sports and NBC Olympics. NBC Olympics is the U.S. broadcast rights holder to all Summer and Winter Games through 2032.

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‘Black Widow’ nabs $13.2 million in field workplace gross sales Thursday

Scarlett Johansson plays Natasha Romanoff, AKA Black Widow, in Marvel’s “Black Widow”.

Disney | wonder

“Black Widow” sold $ 13.2 million in preview tickets Thursday, raising the box office bar of the pandemic era.

The Marvel movie is expected to gross between $ 80 million and $ 110 million in box office revenue this weekend.

Universal’s “F9” grossed $ 7.1 million in its Thursday previews last month and $ 70 million on its debut weekend. Both were records for a film released in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The revenue for “Black Widow” on Thursday is equal to the $ 15.4 million raised from “Spider-Man: Homecoming” and the $ 14.5 million raised from “Thor: Ragnarok” . Both films were released in 2017. “Spider-Man” grossed $ 117 million on its three-day opening weekend and “Thor: Ragnarok,” according to Comscore, $ 123 million.

The strong preview numbers – coupled with pre-sales of tickets that keep pace with several Marvel films released before the pandemic – suggest fans will see this feature hit the big screen, despite it being available at Disney + for US $ 30 Dollar is available.

“This is the weekend Marvel fans have been waiting for, and their enthusiasm is reflected in Thursday’s preview figures, which point to what may well be the best pandemic-era opening weekend for Black Widow,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “Despite its availability on Disney +, ‘Black Widow’ is undeniably a big screen event and once again proves the essence of the cinematic experience.”

The number of cinemas open to the public is still below the level of 2019. Before the weekend, around 81% of the cinemas will sell tickets, reports Comscore.

Regardless, Black Widow is headed for the biggest opening of the pandemic, and the industry is likely to see the highest total weekend box office gross since March 2020. This will be a massive step up from the $ 901,000 domestic box office made during the same weekend last year.

Disclosure: NBCUniversal is the parent company of Universal Studios and CNBC.

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5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, July 1

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

1. Stock futures steady after turning in a strong first half of 2021

The New York Stock Exchange welcomes executives and guests of Clear Secure, Inc. (NYSE: YOU), on June 30, 2021, in celebration of its Initial Public Offering.

NYSE

U.S. stock futures were steady Thursday on the first day of the third quarter on Wall Street. Investors hope the second half of 2021 remains as strong as the first half. The Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday rose 210 points, moving within 0.8% of its latest record close in early May. Dow stock Walgreens Boots Alliance rose about 2% in the premarket after the drug store chain reported strong quarterly results and outlook. It also unveiled more details about its turnaround strategy. The S&P 500 on Wednesday ticked higher for its fifth-straight record close. The Nasdaq fell slightly from a record close in the prior session.

2. Wall Street’s June, second-quarter and year-to-date numbers

Wednesday was the last day of June, the second quarter, and the first half of the year.

  • Ahead of the new trading day, the S&P 500 was up 14.4% year to date. The Dow and Nasdaq were each up more than 12% so far in 2021. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq turned in gains for June. The Dow fell modestly. All three benchmarks were up solidly in the second quarter.
  • U.S. oil prices rose around 2.5% on Thursday to above $75 per barrel, the highest level since 2018. As of Wednesday’s settle, West Texas Intermediate crude was up strongly in June and in the second quarter. WTI has risen more than 51% for the year.
  • Bitcoin fell roughly 3% on Thursday but remained above $33,000. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency by market value, which saw an all-time high in April near $65,000 and recent lows below $29,000 last week, closed out the first half of the year down about 47% from its record.

3. Bond yields tick higher after new Covid-era low jobless claims

The 10-year Treasury yield, which began 2021 below 1% and spiked to 14-month highs above 1.77% in March, ticked higher Thursday to around 1.47%. Investors got another read on the U.S. labor market before the bell. After two straight weeks above 400,000, the government reported a lower-than-expected 364,000 new filings for unemployment benefits for last week, a new pandemic-era low. The government releases its June employment report Friday.

4. Krispy Kreme’s IPO prices below expected range, set to debut again

Krispy Kreme doughnuts go into production at the opening of the store at Harrods in London, Britain, October, 3, 2003.

David Bebber | Reuters

Krispy Kreme returns to the public markets Thursday, the morning after pricing 29.4 million initial public offering shares below the expected range at $17 per share. The IPO raised nearly $500 million, valuing the doughnut chain at $2.7 billion. Krispy Kreme, founded in 1937, was taken private by Keurig-owner JAB Holding in a $1.35 billion deal in 2016. It first went public in 2000. The company is set to begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “DNUT.”

In what was the biggest U.S. listing by a Chinese company since 2014, ride-hailing giant Didi started trading Wednesday morning and ended the day with a valuation of more than $68 billion. A slew of other firms, including Clear Secure and LegalZoom, popped in debuts Wednesday.

5. Trump Organization and its CFO indicted by Manhattan grand jury

Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg looks on as then-U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, May 31, 2016.

Carlo Allegri | Reuters

The Trump Organization’s chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, surrendered to the Manhattan district attorney’s office on Thursday after a grand jury indicted him and former President Donald Trump’s company in a criminal case over its business dealings. The indictments against the firm and Weisselberg, handed up by a New York grand jury, are expected to be unsealed in court Thursday afternoon in Manhattan, a Trump representative told NBC News. NBC previously reported the charges center around allegations of Weisselberg and other Trump Organization executives receiving benefits without reporting them properly on their tax returns.

— NBC News and Reuters contributed to this report. Follow all the market action like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with CNBC’s coronavirus coverage.

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5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, June 24

Here are the top news, trends, and analysis investors need to start their trading day:

1. Dow will jump according to economic data ahead of the infrastructure meeting

The New York Stock Exchange welcomes Sprinklr (NYSE: CXM) to celebrate its IPO on June 23, 2021.

NYSE

Dow futures surged more than 150 points after a string of economic data before the bell and renewed hopes for an infrastructure deal at a meeting at the White House later Thursday. The market’s comeback rally paused on Wednesday despite the fact that the Nasdaq managed to hit another all-time high and was expected to rise on Thursday. With a broad group of stocks jumping in pre-trading hours, the S&P 500 should open at new highs as well. The Dow was still climbing out of last week’s hole. Ahead of Thursday’s session, it was 2.6% off its most recent record high in early May.

Andreessen Horowitz announced a new cryptocurrency-focused fund worth $ 2.2 billion on Thursday. The venture capital firm from Silicon Valley, founded by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, launched its first crypto fund three years ago in the so-called “crypto winter”. This year, Bitcoin’s value is up about 80% from its 2017 highs. The latest fund also comes at another bearish moment for Bitcoin.

2. Three major government economic reports before the bell

3. Bipartisan senators are pushing for a $ 953 billion infrastructure plan

Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) speaks to news reporters before attending an infrastructure meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 23, 2021.

Tom Brenner | Reuters

A bipartisan group of senators see Biden’s support for a $ 953 billion infrastructure plan at Thursday’s session. Government officials and democratic leaders viewed the proposal as a positive development. The President’s latest offer was a $ 1.7 trillion package. With Republicans opposed to Biden’s proposed corporate tax rate hike, the bipartisan group is looking for other ways to increase revenue. Biden rejected her idea of ​​allowing gas taxes paid at the pump to rise with inflation.

4. Eli Lilly is aiming for accelerated FDA approval for Alzheimer’s drug in 2021

An Eli Lilly and Company pharmaceutical manufacturing facility is pictured on March 5, 2021 at 50 ImClone Drive in Branchburg, New Jersey.

Facebook Facebook logo Sign up on Facebook to connect with Mike Segar Reuters

Eli Lilly’s shares rose 8% in the premarket on Thursday after the US drug maker announced it would file a market application for its experimental Alzheimer’s treatment under the FDA’s accelerated approval process later this year. Lilly said, “The safety, tolerability and effectiveness of donanemab are also being investigated in an ongoing late-stage study.” Earlier this month, three members of a key FDA advisory panel resigned over the agency’s controversial decision to approve Biogen’s new Alzheimer’s drug.

5. Team members vote on a major drive to unionize Amazon workers

The Teamsters will vote on a resolution on Thursday to step up efforts to organize Amazon employees. The e-commerce giant has long been the target of large unions trying to organize warehouse and delivery workers. Amazon defeated a senior union campaign in a huge warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, in April. However, Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos recently admitted that the company needs to get better from its people. The pandemic, the explosion of protests against Black Lives Matter last summer, and mounting concerns about job security have further fueled interest in the organization of Amazon warehouses.

– Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow the whole market like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with coronavirus coverage from CNBC.

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N.Y. State of Emergency Ends Thursday. Booze to Go to Finish With It.

The state of emergency in New York will end on Thursday, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo said on Wednesday. And with that, the freedom restaurants and bars had to deliver and sell alcoholic take-away beverages disappears.

The official end of the state of emergency comes just over a week after Mr Cuomo eased most of the state’s remaining restrictions, welcome signs that the state is steadily returning to normal after more than 53,000 virus-related deaths. Suddenly stopping the freer selling of alcohol can be a boon to liquor stores as it amazes the bars and restaurants that have relied on the business they generated to weather the pandemic.

“Legislators have failed to codify the ability of restaurants to offer take-away alcohol,” the New York State Liquor Authority said in an emailed statement, referring to take-away liquor extension laws that were state lawmakers failed to respond before the end of their session this month. “With the state’s declaration of emergency expiring Thursday, all pandemic-related suspensions and instructions, including privileges that allow bars, restaurants, and manufacturers to sell take-away drinks, will end after June 24.”

(Bill Crowley, a spokesman for the agency, noted that bars and restaurants could continue to deliver and sell take-away beer, just as they did before the pandemic.)

The Distilled Spirits Council, a trade association promoting the sale of take-away alcohol, said 15 states had passed laws to make them permanent and that 12 had extended the deadline for such sales.

Lisa Hawkins, a council official, expressed dismay that New York had closed the practice. “It is shocking and utterly disappointing that this important source of revenue for New York’s hospitality industry is about to dry up,” she said in an email.

Andrew Rigie, the executive director of the New York City Hospitality Alliance, an association that represents restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, said many owners thought that take-away alcohol would be allowed at least until July 5, when the last in one A number of extensions to the free sale authorization have expired.

Customers who have become used to the convenience of takeaway tequila, daiquiris and walkaway wine may also be surprised, Mr Rigie said in an interview. “It’s a shame that state lawmakers have failed to continue to support local restaurants and continue to offer very popular politics to New Yorkers,” he said.

But with restaurants and bars back to full capacity and more than 70 percent of adults in the state having received at least one dose of a vaccine, some New York restaurateurs hailed the change, which they hope will continue to motivate customers to spend time and money on site.

“I want people to come in now, order food and enjoy the venue,” said Michael Trenk, managing partner of Baylander Steel Beach Bar and Restaurant, which is located on a decommissioned aircraft carrier docked at West Harlem Piers. “I don’t want you to just come in, buy a drink and leave.”

Mr Cuomo declared a state of emergency on March 7, 2020 as New York City became one of the hardest hit places in the world. In mid-March, when he restricted restaurants and bars to take-away and delivery, the New York State Liquor Authority granted “new privileges outside of the store”, ie drinks to take away.

Virus numbers in the city declined by the fall, but the state saw a new surge in cases around the holidays and was still reporting a high rate of new cases until relatively recently. Buffalo and other cities have also struggled to contain outbreaks. Vaccinations have helped radically increase the state’s case numbers.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Mr. Cuomo said, “The emergency is over. It’s a new chapter. “

He said federal guidelines advising people to continue wearing masks in many situations when not vaccinated and on public transportation and in facilities such as homeless shelters, even if vaccinated, would remain in place, and that state and local health authorities would be able to ensure that the precautions are followed. He urged New Yorkers to remain “cautious and vigilant” about the virus, noting that many still needed vaccination, especially young people.

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5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, June 17

Here are the top news, trends, and analysis investors need to start their trading day:

1. Stocks will slide after the Fed-driven Wall Street decline

Dow futures fell more than 50 points on Thursday, the day after the 30-stock average closed at 265 points, or nearly 0.8%, as the Federal Reserve raised its rate hike schedule. The Dow was down 382 points on Wednesday afternoon during Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s news conference that began at 2 p.m. ET 30 minutes after the central bank’s political statement and forecasts were released. Like the Dow, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hit their daily lows around the same time. But their lower closings were less strict. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were less than 1% off Monday’s record high. The Dow was more than 2% off its previous record high in early May.

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

Source: NYSE

2. Central bankers indicate two rate hikes for 2023, no QE change

The Fed left rates unchanged on Wednesday and made no mention of adjusting its massive quantitative easing program to buy Covid-era bonds. Looking ahead, central bankers announced two rate hikes for 2023. In March, they hadn’t expected any rate hikes until at least 2024. The Fed also raised its inflation expectation to 3.4% on Wednesday, a whole percentage point above the March forecast. The political statement following Wednesday’s session went on to say that inflationary pressures were “temporary”, although recent data on wholesale and consumer prices showed that inflation has not reached the pace it has seen in more than a decade. The yield on 10-year government bonds rose to around 1.57% on Thursday morning. It was just under 1.5% just before the Fed’s announcements.

3. Powell tells Jobs that inflation targets come a little faster

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell

Kevin Lamarque | Reuters

Powell said that progress toward the Fed’s dual employment and inflation targets was slightly faster than expected. Central bankers have raised their GDP expectations for this year from 6.5% previously to 7%. Their estimate of the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.5%. As further evidence that going back to business has helped get people back to work, the latest total number of initial government jobless claims is expected to drop to a new pandemic low of 360,000 for last week. The report will be issued Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET. Two weeks ago, new applications for unemployment benefit went below 400,000 for the first time since March 2020.

4. 11 Republican Senators support bipartisan infrastructure plan

Senator Mitt Romney, a Republican from Utah, arrives for lunch on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC on Wednesday, June 16, 2021.

Sarah Silberner | Bloomberg | Getty Images

A bipartisan senatorial group working on a $ 1 trillion infrastructure compromise has more than doubled to 21 members, a key threshold that gives momentum to its push as President Joe Biden comes at a crucial time for his huge overseas legislative priority returns. Eleven Republican senators joined the effort. In the equally divided Senate, the conservative West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin, who supports the bipartisan measure, has stressed that he wants to pass a package with GOP votes. Biden wants a bigger bill, more like he suggested in his $ 1.7 billion American job plan. Biden left Geneva after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, saying he has not seen the bipartisan law, but his chief of staff believes there is “some room” for a deal with the Republicans.

5. CureVac fuels almost 50% after disappointing Covid vaccine data

A volunteer receives a dose of CureVac vaccine or a placebo during a study by the German biotech company CureVac as part of a test for a new vaccine against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Brussels on March 2, 2021.

Yves Herman | Reuters

CureVac shares plunged nearly 50% in the US premarket on Thursday, the morning after the German biopharmaceutical company released disappointing preliminary results for its Covid vaccine candidate. It showed a preliminary effectiveness of 47% against “any severity” disease, missed the main target and challenged the potential delivery of hundreds of millions of doses to the European Union. While late studies were conducted with the more than 90% effective Pfizer BioNTech and Moderna vaccines when the original version of the coronavirus prevailed, real data so far only indicated slightly weaker protection against the new variants.

– Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report. Follow all market activity like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with coronavirus coverage from CNBC.

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Health

5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, June 3

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

1. AMC mania captivates Wall Street, company to sell more shares

Traders at the New York Stock Exchange, June 2, 2021.

Source: NYSE

U.S. stock futures fell Thursday after another muted day in the broader market belied the incredible trading in meme stock AMC Entertainment. In premarket trading, AMC initially jumped 20%, before going back and forth between much smaller gains and losses, after the movie theater chain filed to sell 11.55 million shares “from time to time.” AMC shares skyrocketed 95% on Wednesday, bringing their year-to-date gains to more than 2,800%.

Focusing on the link between inflationary pressures and the reopening of U.S. businesses after Covid, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted modest gains Wednesday. The Dow and S&P 500 were within 1% of their May record closes, while the Nasdaq was 2.7% away from its late April record close. However, on Thursday, Dow futures dropped about 200 points, or 0.6%. S&P futures saw similar declines. Nasdaq futures fell 1%.

2. Short sellers of AMC shares lost $2.8 billion in one day

Movie poster of current offerings are displayed on the front of an AMC theater on June 01, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. Mudrick Capital has agreed to purchase 8.5 million share of the theater chain for $230.5 million.

Scott Olson | Getty Images

The Reddit-fueled retail trader war on those betting against AMC, similar to January’s GameStop mania, cost short sellers $2.8 billion on Wednesday alone, according to S3 Partners. About 18% of the AMC shares available for trading were still sold short through Wednesday. Most Wall Street analysts still believe AMC shares will plummet eventually. The average 12-month target price was $5.11, according to FactSet. AMC closed out 2020 at $2.12 per share.

3. Bond yields inch higher after two jobs reports

A sign advertising job openings is seen outside of a Starbucks in Manhattan, New York City, New York, U.S., May 26, 2021.

Andrew Kelly | Reuters

4. Largest meat producer getting back online after cyberattack

The JBS meat placing plant is viewed in Plainwell, Michigan on June 2, 2021.

Jeff Kowalsky | AFP | Getty Images

Brazil’s JBS, the world’s largest meat processor, has resumed most production after a weekend cyberattack. However, experts warned that the vulnerabilities exposed by this breach and others are far from resolved. JBS blames hackers with ties to Russia. Last month, Colonial Pipeline, the largest U.S. fuel pipeline, paid ransomware demands after its operations were closed for nearly a week. Hackers with ties to Russia are also suspected in that attack. Following media reports Wednesday, New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority acknowledged a cyberattack in late April with suspected ties to China.

5. Activist firm Engine No. 1 claims third Exxon board seat

A view of the Exxon Mobil refinery in Baytown, Texas.

Jessica Rinaldi | Reuters

Engine No. 1 has won a third board seat at Exxon. The upstart activist firm has been targeting the oil giant since December, pushing the company to shift its focus away from fossil fuels. Engine No. 1, which has a miniscule 0.02% stake in Exxon, nominated four directors ahead of the firms’ annual shareholder meeting at the end of May, a move that garnered support from major state pension funds. Last week’s vote followed months of back-and-forth between Engine No. 1 and Exxon.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow all the market action like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with CNBC’s coronavirus coverage.

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5 issues to know earlier than the inventory market opens Thursday, Could 27

Here are the top news, trends, and analysis that investors need to get their trading day started:

1. The S&P 500 opens flat after it has been pushed back in the direction of the receptacle

The Wall Street sign can be seen near the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City on May 4, 2021.

Brendan McDermid | Reuters

US stock futures were relatively flat on Thursday and 10-year Treasury bond yields were up over 1.6% after a morning economic data burst. The market posted modest gains on Wednesday, helped by stocks tied to the economic reopening. The S&P 500 ended less than 1% after its record close on May 7th. With two trading days remaining in May, the Nasdaq rose nearly 2% over the course of the week, but rose 1.6% over the month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 rose for the week and month.

Acorns announced Thursday that it will merge with Pioneer Merger Corp., a publicly traded special-purpose acquisition company. The SPAC deal valued Acorns at around $ 2.2 billion, more than double the previous private valuation. When the transaction is complete, Acorns will trade on the Nasdaq under the symbol OAKS, a nod to the company’s motto and analogy of growing acorns into “mighty oaks.” Comcasts Venture Arm and NBCUniversal are investors in Acorns. Comcast also owns CNBC.

2. Three reports provide more insight into the economic recovery

The government released three key economic reports on Thursday morning, an hour before the opening bell on Wall Street.

  • Initial jobless claims for last week fell more-than-expected to 406,000, another pandemic-era low compared to the unrevised 444,000 new claims the previous week.
  • The second estimate of the gross domestic product in the first quarter remained constant with an annual growth rate of 6.4%. In the fourth quarter of 2020, GDP rose by 4.3%.
  • Durable goods orders were down 1.3% in April. Economists had called for an increase of 0.9% after an upwardly corrected March plus of 1.3%.

3. The meme stock rally will pause after a month of comeback profits

SELINSGROVE, PENNSYLVANIA, UNITED STATES – 2021/01/27: A woman walks past the GameStop store in the Susquehanna Valley Mall. An online group sent GameStop (GME) and AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (AMC) share prices soaring to squeeze short sellers.

Photo by Paul Weaver / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images

This week’s meme stock rally should pause on Thursday. GameStop and AMC Entertainment stocks, popular with Reddit traders, were under pressure on the pre-market. However, GameStop rose nearly 16% on Wednesday alone and nearly 44% last month. AMC rose 19% on Wednesday and 70% last month. GameStop is up nearly 1,200% this year, including epic gains in January. AMC has gained 822% since the beginning of the year. Strategists attribute the recent surge in these stocks to overselling.

4. Round 2 for bank managers after fireworks at the hearing on Wednesday

Jamie Dimon, chairman of the board of directors of JPMorgan Chase & Co., speaks virtually on a laptop during a Senate Committee hearing on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs held in Tiskilwa, Illinois, USA on Tuesday, May 25, 2021.

Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The CEOs of the big banks are facing a second round of barbecue by the legislature, as they testify before the House Financial Services Committee. Fireworks went off at Wednesday’s Senate Banking Committee hearing as progressive Senator Elizabeth Warren chased JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon. The Massachusetts Democrat called Dimon about the bank’s nearly $ 1.5 billion overdraft fees last year when borrowers struggled during Covid lockdowns. According to Dimon, JPMorgan waived overdraft fees for customers asking for relief. When asked if the bank would reimburse the fees to those who didn’t, Dimon said, “No.”

5. Biden orders a closer look at the origin of Covid, including a possible Wuhan lab leak

During the visit of the World Health Organization (WHO) team tasked with investigating the causes of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, on February 3, 2021, security guards will be on guard in front of the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

Thomas Peter | Reuters

President Joe Biden has ordered a closer scrutiny of the intelligence services, which he said are two equally plausible scenarios for the development of the coronavirus. Biden announced that earlier this year he asked the intelligence services to assess “whether it was human contact with an infected animal or a laboratory accident.” The hypothesis that the virus may have escaped a Chinese laboratory has grown in importance in recent months. CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said in a Senate testimony last week that a lab leak origin was “a possibility”. China has rejected the laboratory theory.

– Reuters contributed to this report. Follow all market action like a pro on CNBC Pro. With CNBC’s coronavirus coverage, you’ll get the latest information on the pandemic.