Noah Zivitz

Managing Editor, BNN Bloomberg

Archive

U.S. stocks climbed to all-time highs yesterday after U.S. President Donald Trump signed off on the COVID-19 relief package; now, attention has turned to the prospects for raising individual stimulus cheques to US$2,000 from US$600. The House of Representatives approved that hike yesterday, but the outlook for approval in the Senate is murky. Nonetheless, futures are pointing to a higher open at 9:30 a.m. ET, when the TSX will also resume trading after the holiday long weekend.

VACCINE WATCH

The candidate developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford is reportedly on the verge of being approved for use in the United Kingdom, with our Bloomberg News partners reporting vaccinations could begin as early as this week. It would be yet another reminder of the miraculous speed that vaccines against COVID-19 have been developed and approved for use -- and it’s sending AstraZeneca shares up almost five per cent in London today. Closer to home, Retired General Rick Hillier, who’s overseeing the vaccination campaign in Ontario, faced the music yesterday after provincial health authorities were criticized for pausing jabs over the long weekend. “We’ve been slammed, we’ve been spanked,” he told CTV News. Hillier will deliver a formal update today.

DEBT AND INFLATION WEIGH ON CONSUMERS

No surprise to see that paying down debt remains the top priority among Canadians surveyed for CIBC’s annual year-end personal finance poll. And there’s some evidence of COVID-19’s scarring effect, too, as fear of a downturn and optimism for the year ahead slump. One finding that really stands out to me: 60 per cent of respondents said inflation and the rising cost of goods is their top concern for 2021. This should also stand out to Tiff Macklem and his team at the Bank of Canada.       

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

- Boeing’s 737 Max is scheduled to resume commercial service today in the United States with American Airlines flight 718’s departure from Miami, en route to Laguardia airport in New York, at 10:32 a.m. ET. The flight comes almost two years after a global grounding of the Max in the aftermath of two fatal crashes.

- Bitcoin traded above US$28,000 per coin over the weekend, last time I looked it was up 14% from where it was sitting before the holiday long weekend.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

- 11 a.m. ET: Retired General Rick Hillier provides update on Ontario’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution

Every morning BNN Bloomberg's Managing Editor Noah Zivitz writes a ‘chase note’ to BNN Bloomberg's editorial staff listing the stories and events that will be in the spotlight that day. Have it delivered to your inbox before the trading day begins by heading to www.bnnbloomberg.ca/subscribe.