Monday, April 27, 2020

ON THIS DAY WITH THE BREW AND HEADLINES

TOGETHER WITH
Magic Spoon
Good morning. Are you sitting down? No, really, you’re going to want to sit down for this. Morning Brew is hosting a star-studded online poker tournament next weekend, Chipping in for COVID. This isn’t just any poker tournament. This one will have…
  • A worthy cause. All proceeds will go to Frontline Foods, a grassroots organization that pays local restaurants to prepare meals for frontline workers.
  • Business legends, including power couple Jen Rubio (cofounder of Away) and Stewart Butterfield (CEO of Slack). 
$100 will get you a seat at the table, though any and all donations are welcome. Learn more here.

MARKETS YTD PERFORMANCE


NASDAQ
8,634.52
- 3.77%
S&P
2,836.74
- 12.20%
DJIA
23,775.27
- 16.69%
GOLD
1,745.70
+ 14.85%
10-YR
0.606%
- 131.40 bps
OIL
17.18
- 71.93%
*As of market close
  • Stimulus: Round two of the Paycheck Protection Program begins at 10:30am ET today. President Trump signed a bill last week that pours $320 billion back into the small business loan program.
  • Markets: Despite a collapsing economy, the S&P is up 29% since its March low and only 16% off a record high. Carl Icahn, for one, believes stocks are overvalued.
Kevin Cox/Getty Images
This week, many Americans will realize they can’t just end a conversation by clicking a red button. A handful states are allowing nonessential businesses to open for the first time in weeks. 

Where things stand

Georgia, which already allowed businesses including gyms and hair salons to reopen on Friday, is extending that privilege to movie theaters and restaurants for dine-in service today. Tennessee is also letting people eat at restaurants today, and retail stores can open on Wednesday. 
States including Montana, Colorado, and Minnesota are kicking off phased reopenings today, while stay-at-home restrictions expire for several other states this Thursday, April 30. Starting next Monday, “Almost every business in the state of Missouri will be able to open their doors," the governor said. 
This will not be business as usual. Let’s use Georgia’s restaurant restrictions as an example:
  • At least six feet in between tables and bar seats
  • 10 patrons per 500 sq. ft. of space
  • No more than six people per party, no presetting of tables, and no salad bar

Is this...a good idea? 

On the one hand you have an economy that’s deteriorating at a thunderous pace. 26 million Americans have filed for unemployment claims in the last five weeks, wiping out all of the job gains since the Great Recession. Business lobbying groups and some lawmakers are desperate to get people back to work.
Others, including many public health experts and big-city mayors, say these reopening plans are dangerous, arguing states don’t yet have the testing or contact tracing capabilities to prevent further outbreaks. Those outbreaks could force more shutdowns, so we end up in a maddening revolving door of self-isolation. 
The big, final question: If you reopen, will they come? It’s not clear whether a nervous public—given the opportunity—will resume going to restaurants, bars, and gyms. This week will tell us a lot. 
        

COVID-19

Snapshots From the Coronavirus Economy

Travel: Time to strike this word from the dictionary? Spending on travel this month fell 99% annually for Discover credit card holders. Over at AmEx, travel/leisure spend is down 95%.
Fitness: Last week, Peloton reported its largest streamed class ever with more than 23,000 participants. After a bumpy IPO last September, the at-home fitness company's stock is up over 60% since mid-March.  
Shopping: Online marketplace Etsy is trading near all-time highs while sellers pivot from craft quilts to face masks. 50,000 sellers have sold at least one mask on the platform, and 10,000 sellers have sold 100 or more, per the FT. 
Space: NASA is asking the Elon Musk posse to enjoy the May 27 launch of SpaceX’s first crewed mission from home instead of trekking to Florida. This will be NASA’s first crewed launch from U.S. soil in nearly a decade. 
Entertainment: A record 12.3 million concurrent players logged on to Fortnite to watch a Godzilla-sized Travis Scott perform a concert amid psychedelic explosions. Headphones on. 
        
Francis Scialabba
Boeing has walked away from a $4.2 billion deal with Embraer, accusing the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer of failing to meet the fine print. 
  • The deal: Boeing would've taken an 80% stake in Embraer’s commercial jet arm and gained access to engineering talent to build mid-size planes to stand up against Airbus. 
Embraer’s accusing Boeing of calling in with food poisoning just before the exam starts. It says Boeing repeatedly violated the agreement and is backing out because of financial strain from 737 Max groundings and *gestures at everything.*
  • Boeing needs at least $30 billion in external financing to limp through 2020, per Moody’s. It’s secured about half that with a loan but is still figuring out the rest.
  • Not paying $4+ billion for a slice of Embraer, a company that's now worth $1.1 billion, might be a good start. 
Boeing hasn’t detailed what conditions Embraer reportedly violated, and Embraer plans to talk to someone’s manager and make Boeing pay damages and a termination fee up to $100 million.
Big picture: Add this to the list of corporate deals crumbling in a pandemic economy.
        

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Magic Spoon
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INVESTING

United We Stand, Dividend We Fall

Dividends are like pre-cut fruit—they’re one of the first things to go when you’re faced with a cash crunch. 
As of last Friday, nine S&P companies (including bruised cruise operator Carnival Corp.) had suspended dividends in April, and a few others are reducing payouts, Barron’s reports
  • Dividends are one of the perks you can get by owning a company’s stock. Many corporations distribute them to shareholders each quarter.
  • Dividends can be remarkably lucrative for investors. In the 30 years until this March, the compounding effects of reinvested dividends would’ve accounted for almost half the return of an S&P 500 index fund, per Bloomberg. 
Big picture: After rising every year in the 2010’s, aggregate S&P dividends will fall 23% to $398 billion in 2020, Goldman Sachs projects. 
Looking ahead...all eyes on the energy sector, which is still shell-shocked from oil prices’ crazy ride into negative territory last week. ExxonMobil and Chevron are reporting earnings this Friday, and they have two of the top three dividend yields in the Dow. 
        

CALENDAR

The Week Ahead

Lots of earnings reports this week will show us the extent of the coronavirus damage in March. Make sure you're prepared for all the jargon with our guide to quarterly earnings.
Monday: SXSW virtual film festival launches on Amazon Prime Video 
Tuesday: Earnings (Alphabet, Starbucks, Caterpillar, Merck, Pfizer, UPS, PepsiCo, Southwest, UBS, AMD)
Wednesday: Q1 GDP; Fed meeting announcement; earnings (Boeing, Microsoft, Airbus, Facebook, Tesla, Qualcomm, GlaxoSmithKline, Mastercard, Anthem, Humana, Northrop Grumman, eBay, GE)
Thursday: Earnings (Amazon, Apple, Comcast, Gilead Sciences, Twitter, McDonald’s, MGM Resorts, Shell, Dunkin Brands, Cigna, Kraft Heinz, Kellogg, Molson Coors)
Friday: Take it away, Justin
Jive Records
It's gonna be May; oil supply cuts officially go into effect; ISM manufacturing survey; earnings (ExxonMobil, Chevron, Clorox, Honeywell)
        
Miramax
Thought so. If you're looking for a fun time and way to support frontline workers, sign up for Chipping in for COVID, Morning Brew's charity poker tournament. 
We left you hanging a little bit at the top so here are a few more details:
  • The qualifying round will begin Saturday afternoon.
  • The top players from Saturday will get to play in the final round Sunday with loads of business legends. This might be your only chance to say you beat the former COO of Twitter at hold 'em. 
How to get started: While any and all donations are welcome to the cause, $100 will get you a seat at the poker table. Sign up here

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

  • U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is going back to work today. He had been in the ICU a few weeks ago with coronavirus.
  • Italy, Spain, and France are taking measures to ease lockdown restrictions. Spanish children were allowed out of their homes for the first time in more than six weeks.
  • The NBA will allow teams to open practice facilities this Friday provided that doesn’t conflict with local restrictions, ESPN reports.
  • Kanye West’s stake in Yeezy does, in fact, make him a billionaire, Forbes confirms.
  • The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will give its "total attention" to the coronavirus pandemic, Bill told the FT.

BREW'S BETS

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BEYOND CROSSWORD


Columnists
What to Do About China And Its American Lackeys

Flynn's Lawyers Expose KGB-style Behavior At the DOJ and FBI

The Most Insane And Infuriating Inconsistencies Of The Coronavirus Era (Part I)

Media Defend ‘Essential’ Abortion during the Coronavirus: ‘Will This S*** Ever End?’

COVID-19 and International Best Practices for Free, Fair and Safe Elections

Bill Gates May Have Predicted COVID-19, But it Doesn’t Mean He’s Right About Specifics

Go East, then North, then North Again Young Man: Manifest Destiny Greenland

Congress Screwed Up Relief for The Middle Class Once. Let’s Not Do It Again.

Future Pandemics Require Better Access to Primary Care

ADVERTISEMENT
The Mask Has Slipped

What First Century Christians Could Teach Us Today


Video
Gov. Evers: Saying Abortionists 'Execute Babies' Is 'Blasphemy'
Trump blasts Schiff as 'political hack'

Pelosi's condescension offers some laughs
Pelosi open to border infrastructure
INVESTING
Christianity Today Editor Hard On Trump Voters, Easy On Adulterous Theologian

Defense Of U.S. Economy Starts In Taiwan


Tipsheet
China Has Lied About the Entire Coronavirus Pandemic. Why Should We Believe Their Latest Claims?

Even During Lockdown, Murder Soars in New York City

Border Patrol Intercepts Thousands of Counterfeit Masks

One of the Dems' Most Influential Political Operatives Is Under Investigation

Pelosi Quotes Bible as She Pushes Prison Release

Californians Defy Governor, Flock to the Beach

WATCH: Brad Pitt Just Made Dr. Fauci's Dream Come True

Double Standard: No Media Mentions of New Evidence in Biden Sexual Assault Allegation

'Squad' Member Is Now Encouraging People to Ignore Health Experts' Coronavirus Advice

Pelosi's Complete 180 on Trump Halting Flights from China

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Political Cartoons
Bearing Arms
D.C. Homicide Numbers Haven't Dropped During COVID-19 | Tom Knighton

California's Ammo Background Checks Reinstated For Now | Cam Edwards

 


ALSO BORN ON THIS DAY
1822
Ulysses S. Grant
president of United States
1927
Coretta Scott King
American civil-rights activist
1759
Mary Wollstonecraft
English author
1967
Willem-Alexander, king of the Netherlands
king of the Netherlands
1820
Herbert Spencer
British philosopher
1932
Casey Kasem
American disc jockey
SEE ALL BIOS ON THIS DAY
MORE EVENTS ON THIS DAY
John Paul II
2014: Pope John Paul II was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI. [Take our pope quiz.]
House of Commons
1992: British politician Betty Boothroyd became the first woman to be elected speaker of the House of Commons; she held the post until 2000. [ Test your knowledge of some famous firsts for women.]
Togo
1960: After several years as an autonomous republic in the French Union, the West African country of Togo became independent.
Grand Union Canal
1828: The London Zoo opened in Regent's Park.
Ulysses S. Grant
1822: Ulysses S. Grant, who commanded the Union armies during the late years (1864–65) of the American Civil War and later served as president of the United States (1869–77), was born. [ Can you identify where each president was born?]
Samuel F.B. Morse
1791: Samuel F.B. Morse, an American painter and the inventor of an electric telegraph and the Morse Code, was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts. [ Test your knowledge of inventors and their inventions quiz.]
SEE ALL EVENTS ON THIS DAY




April 27
Coretta Scott King
FEATURED BIOGRAPHY

Coretta Scott King

READ MORE
 
Sierra Leone
FEATURED EVENT
1961
Independence for Sierra Leone

April 27, 2020     Read in Browser

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