BY THE NUMBERS
Heading into the busiest week of earnings season, U.S. stocks were tracking for a mixed open Monday. Nasdaq futures were stronger after the tech-heavy index stood out in a largely lower market Friday to close at another record high. Dow futures Monday were lower by more than 100 points. (CNBC)
Last week, the Nasdaq surged more than 4%; the S&P 500 gained nearly 2%; and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 0.5%. Despite Friday’s losses, the Dow and S&P remained less than 1% away from Thursday’s record high close. (CNBC)
GameStop (GME) shares, already up 245% in 2021, surged another 40% in Monday’s premarket trading. The stock initially jumped earlier this month after the video-game seller said Chewy co-founder Ryan Cohen was joining its board. The announcement triggered a so-called short squeeze, with hedge funds and other investors rushing to cover their bets against the stock. (CNBC)
There’s no economic data set for release today, although the rest of the week is quite busy for economic numbers and it will also see 2021’s first meeting of Fed policy makers on Tuesday and Wednesday. Monday’s earnings start off slow, but 107 S&P 500 companies will be out with their quarterly results by the end of the week. (CNBC)
IN THE NEWS TODAY
Dow stock Merck fell nearly 1% in premarket trading after the U.S. drug giant announced Monday that it’s discontinuing its Covid vaccine program. Merck said its two vaccine candidates generated immune responses that were inferior to those seen for other vaccines. The company said it will now focus its pandemic research on treatments. (Reuters)
* CDC director says federal government does not know how much Covid vaccine the U.S. has (CNBC)
* U.S. races to stay ahead of new Covid strains as virus mutates, Biden health officials say (CNBC)
* New model points to vaccines alone not being enough to end the pandemic (NY Times)
Pfizer (PFE) will be shipping fewer vaccine vials to fulfill its commitment to the federal government, according to the New York Times. The drug company successfully convinced the FDA to acknowledge that the vials contained six doses and not five as originally thought.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador became the latest world leader to get Covid-19, saying Sunday he tested positive. He also said his symptoms were light and he was receiving medical treatment. (NBC News)
President Joe Biden will sign a travel ban Monday on most noncitizens entering the country who were recently in South Africa, where a new strain of Covid has been identified, a person familiar with the situation told CNBC. Biden will also reinstate travel restrictions on the entry of noncitizens from the U.K. and Brazil, where new strains also emerged. (CNBC)
Top Biden aides spoke with a group of moderate Senate Republicans and Democrats on Sunday about the president’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief proposal….
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