October promises not only rising coronavirus infection rates, but a new tsunami of job losses all over the globe. Airlines are preparing to lay off tens of thousands of workers starting Thursday unless they get additional federal aid. Walt Disney said it would slash 28,000 workers from its slumping resort business. Royal Dutch Shell is to cut as many as 9,000 employees while German auto-parts supplier Continental AG may layoff or move 30,000 jobs. In America, talks between Congressional Democrats and the White House on a second bailout that could help preserve airline jobs have resumed, but Wall Street didn’t seem all that optimistic about the prospects for a deal. —David E. Rovella

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Here are today’s top stories

The commission that runs U.S. presidential debates said it would change the formats of the remaining matchups after Tuesday’s chaotic clash between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden. During the debate, Trump repeatedly interrupted both Biden and the moderator while making false statements on a variety of issues. Biden hit back in response to personal attacks, leveling a few of his own while calling Trump a “clown” and telling him to “shut up.” On Wednesday, Trump tried to backpedal from his latest refusal to condemn white supremacists and his public encouragement for a violent neofascist group. Biden called the Republican a “national embarrassment” and announced a new ethics plan for the government, should he be elected on Nov. 3.

New Jersey reported a 27% positive rate for coronavirus tests in the town of Lakewood, contributing to the state’s overall 3% rate, its highest in months. U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he won’t hesitate to impose new restrictions as governments across Europe tighten measures to battle a Covid-19 resurgence. The Dutch government urged citizens to wear masks and the Czech Republic issued a 30-day state of emergency. The International Monetary Fund warned any economic recovery is threatened by a second wave of infections. Here is the latest on the pandemic.

A new Covid-19 test that returns results in 15 minutes has been cleared for use in some European countries.

There’s a saying in Hong Kong that if the city’s richest man is selling, you don’t want to be the buyer. Now, a group of investors who paid $5.2 billion for Li Ka-shing’s stake in the world’s most expensive skyscraper is finding out why.

Clare Bronfman, an heiress to the Seagram liquor fortune, was sentenced to 81 months in prison for her role in securing female victims for a sex cult.

Palantir Technologies debuted at $17 billion Wednesday, beginning its new life as a public company after 17 years of secrecy—a tradition for the software business co-founded by Peter Thiel.

Women helped pull the U.S. economy out of the last recession. This time around they are falling behind.

What you’ll need to know tomorrow

• Bloomberg Editorial: Dismal debate underlines case against Trump.
• How did undecided voters view the first presidential set-to?
• A banker skated on insider trading charges  after deleting WhatsApp.
• Bayer weighs asset sales as Covid-19 adds to its Roundup woes.
• Businessweek: Get ready for the vaccine mix-and-match dilemma.
• Clean energy “blank check financiers” are flooding the market.
• The math doesn’t work for New York City restaurant survival.

What you’ll want to read in Bloomberg Technology

Google Beats iPhone to the Debut With 5G Pixel

Google launched a pair of new 5G Android smartphones: the Pixel 5, its flagship model, and the Pixel 4a 5G, an entry-level device with faster cellular network speeds. While the Pixel 5’s display is in line with the latest top-end phones from Apple and Samsung, changes to its features and a lower price put it more directly in competition with their lower-end phones.

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