Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Covid trials and tribulation

Wall Street firms are lining up to show their kinder, gentler side as a pandemic-fueled malaise weighs on employees. Following a mea culpa from Goldman Sachs Chief Executive Officer David Solomon, who after a group of junior bankers complained promised to at least give them Saturday off, others are following suit. Citigroup was the latest, with CEO Jane Fraser banning internal video calls on Fridays and encouraging staff to—yes—take vacations. Jefferies Financial Group said last week that it would reward its youngest workers with fitness perks, including Peloton bikes. So has a new day dawned? We’ll see. David E. Rovella

Bloomberg is tracking the progress of coronavirus vaccines while mapping the pandemic globally and across America

Here are today’s top stories  

AstraZeneca has run into vaccine trouble. Again. Foul-ups with earlier coronavirus vaccine trials and a blood clot controversy in Europe have now been followed by a public relations disaster in America. On Monday, the U.K. company said its drug fared better than expected in a U.S. clinical trial as the drugmaker plans to seek Food and Drug Administration clearance. But not long after, the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases said officials charged with ensuring the safety and accuracy of the trial indicated the company’s data may give an “incomplete” view of the shot’s efficacy. AstraZeneca said it will quickly update its trial data, but the damage may already be done. 

The AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine 

Photographer: Hannibal Hanschke/AFP/Getty Images

Asian stocks were poised to open weaker after a faltering recovery and high infection rates weighed on U.S. equities while driving haven trades into Treasuries and the dollar. The S&P 500 Index declined and the small-cap Russell 2000 dropped 3.6% as beneficiaries of the reopening trade tumbled. An index of airline shares fell the most since October. Futures pointed lower in Japan and Hong Kong and were steady in Australia. Here is your markets wrap.

From India to Greece and Norway to the Netherlands, Covid-19 infection rates are rising again. The U.S. rate, which had settled on a high plateau, is showing dangerous signs of heading back up. And the reluctance in some corners of America to get vaccinated may make matters worse, leading to 4.6 million more Covid-19 cases. With close to one-quarter of all infections and one-fifth of all deaths worldwide, there are 30 million Americans known to have had Covid-19, though the true number is likely much higher. Almost 544,000 of them have died. Here’s the latest on the pandemic.

Myanmar’s military junta has shot dead at least 260 of its own citizens. It has imprisoned 1,000 more along with scores of journalists after perpetrating a coup and detaining elected officials. Nevertheless, it expects investments from Asian countries to continue

Smoke rises from barricades erected by democracy protesters after agents of the military junta attacked them in Yangon on March 16.

Source: Getty Images/Getty Images

Testifying before Congress Tuesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said U.S. prices would rise this year as the pandemic recedes and Americans are able to go out and spend. He added however that it won’t get out of hand.

The Fed plans to make climate change a major part of its Wall Street oversight. The Financial Stability Climate Committee will identify and respond to dangers global warming poses to the financial system, the central bank said.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen pledged to work with Congress to ease the $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions that’s been a key complaint of New York and New Jersey lawmakers in recent years. Passed as part of the 2017 tax overhaul by Republicans, they contend it was intended by to punish residents in states that traditionally lean Democratic.

What you’ll need to know tomorrow 

What you’ll want to read in Bloomberg Pursuits

Electric Motorcycles Set to Take Charge in 2021

The Volcon Grunt isn’t your typical motorcycle. It has cartoonishly blown-up rubber tires and a single cyclops-like LED headlight. It’s not a cruiser or street racer. In fact, it’s not even legal for street riding. But with a top speed of 60 mph, and an electric motor that its maker says can go 100 miles on a charge, what it can do is take you deep into nature and back, almost silently. Says Andrew Leisner, the CEO of Austin, Texas-based Volcon: “This is a motorcycle not designed for motorcyclists.” And there are a lot more where that came from.

Source: Lightning Motorcycles; Background: Getty Images

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Infections are rising again

Monday, March 22, 2021

Bloomberg Follow Us Get the newsletter The financial services industry is bracing for a historic disruption, this time at the hands of the Federal Reserve. Banks, credit card companies and digital

Warning from Europe

Saturday, March 20, 2021

Bloomberg Follow Us Get the newsletter US President Joe Biden's administration said it has helped deliver 100 million Covid-19 shots six weeks ahead of his deadline as several states open vaccine

Citigroup’s $500 million blunder

Friday, March 19, 2021

Bloomberg Follow Us Get the newsletter The Federal Reserve is ending a pandemic policy giving a big capital break to Wall Street banks. In response to Covid-19, the Fed allowed lenders to load up on

Global rebound

Thursday, March 18, 2021

Bloomberg Follow Us Get the newsletter The global economy is poised for a solid rebound this year as vaccines and expansionary policies help repair damage from a pandemic that destroyed more than a

No inflation here

Wednesday, March 17, 2021

Bloomberg Follow Us Get the newsletter The Federal Reserve on Wednesday pushed aside predictions of looming inflation that have been emanating from some quarters. The central bank said it's

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