Dow gained 130, advancers over decliners 5-2 & NAZ added 80. The MLP index rose (along with oil) 3+ to the 193s & the REIT index was up 1 to the 448s. Junk bond funds did little & Treasuries are not traded today because of the holiday. Oil advanced 1+ to 81 & gold inched up 1 to 1758.
AMJ (Alerian MLP index tracking fund)
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Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has reiterated support for the global minimum tax as Congress continues to debate Pres Biden's titanic infrastructure bill. Biden has sought & won support from over 130 countries & territories
for a global minimum tax, which would tax companies at a minimum of 15% & enforce taxes based on where they conduct business rather than
where they are based. Yellen said Biden's bill will likely include the tax as part of his spending nitiatives. "I am confident that what we need to do to come into compliance with
the minimum tax will be included in a reconciliation package," Yellen added, calling it a "historic agreement." "I hope that it will be passed
and we will be able to reassure the world that the United States will do
its part." "We
should be competing on the basis of our strengths, of our people, of
our ability to innovate for our institutions and not a race to the
bottom that simply deprives all countries, the United States and other
countries that participate in this race of the resources we need to
invest in our people and our economies," Yellen argued. A group of 136 countries & territories on Fri agreed to set the minimum global corp tax rate of 15%. The US,
then, would vote on updating domestic tax law to reflect the change but
has yet to agree on a plan to raise the debt ceiling. Yellen – who is in favor of eliminating the debt ceiling entirely – remains confident that a deal will happen in time.
Yellen doubles down on need for global minimum tax and eliminating debt ceiling
Merck (MRK) asked federal health officials to greenlight its experimental pill against COVID-19 which could make history as the first oral antiviral medicine to treat the harrowing virus. The
drugmaker submitted an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) application to
the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for molnupiravir, according
to a joining announcement from MRK & its partner Ridgeback
Biotherapeutics (NWBO). The drug is said to treat mild-to-moderate cases
of the virus in adults who are most at risk for progressing to more
severe cases or being hospitalized, according to MRK. If
cleared by the FDA — a decision that could
come in a matter of weeks — it would be the first pill shown to treat
COVID-19. All other FDA-backed treatments against the disease require an
IV or injection. The company submitted for emergency approval following positive results
from a clinical trial evaluating nonhospitalized adult patients
considered high risk for severe disease because of health problems such
as obesity, diabetes or heart disease. MRK & NWBO said early results showed patients
who received the drug within 5 days of COVID-19 symptoms had about ½ the rate of hospitalization & death as those who received a dummy
pill. MRK stock fell 7¢ & NWBO was off 4¢ at 1.21.
If you would like to learn more about MRK, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/MRK?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Merck asks FDA to authorize anti-COVID pill for emergency use
Southwest (LUV) shares slipped after canceling more than 2000 flights since Sat, disrupting the travel plan of thousands of people. Southwest’s
operation improved since the weekend meltdown but cancellations
continued. It canceled 347 flights today, down from 1124 yesterday,
which was 30% of its schedule. The
airline has already said it would trim its fall schedules to avoid
cancellations & delays that plagued its operation during the summer.
Now the airline is weighing whether it needs to cut more. The pres, Mike Van de Ven told staff late Sun
that Southwest is still short-staffed & “we’ll need to continue to
adjust our schedules as this environment evolves.” “We’ve already
made significant reductions from our previously published November and
December schedules, and if we think we need to do more, we will,” Van de
Ven added. The stock was off 94¢.
If you would like to learn more about LUV, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/LUV?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Southwest shares slide after mass cancellations, carrier weighs more schedule cuts
There is modest trading with many players away on a semi-holiday. Bank earnings are due later this week which will be followed by corp earnings.
Dow Jones Industrials
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