Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Shrinking tax hikes

China is experiencing yet another Covid-19 outbreak caused by the delta variant, with dozens of infections detected in the southeastern province of Fujian less than a month after the nation’s last flare-up was contained. Hospitals in Australia’s most populous state risk being overwhelmed by cases by the end of the year if the government’s reopening plan is executed. And in Germany, officials have kicked off a vaccination “action week” to try to convince more people to get inoculated. But the World Health Organization warns that variants capable of evading existing vaccines are probably coming. Here’s the latest on the pandemic. —David E. Rovella

Bloomberg is tracking the coronavirus pandemic and the progress of global vaccination efforts.

In the U.S., House Democrats have drafted a package of tax increases on corporations and the rich that falls short of those supported by President Joe Biden. Their move is aimed at mollifying members in swing districts worried that the size of the White House’s $3.5 trillion economic agenda will dim some reelection prospects. Under the latest framework, proposed increases in the corporate tax rate and capital gains taxes have shrunk significantly. Also, a change in the $10,000 limit for the federal deduction for state and local taxes is in the offing, with Democrats pledging to “undo” the cap—a part of the Republican 2017 tax law that largely landed on Democratic-leaning states.

Covid inflation is everywhere, but among advanced economies the U.S. is looking like an outlier, thanks in part to its massive financial bailout. The American recovery is outpacing others and the consensus is that high inflation won’t last long. But even so, its current elevated level has the potential to cause some interesting problems.

Europe’s energy crunch is deepening, with gas and power prices hitting fresh records after the U.S. warned the continent isn’t doing enough to prepare for what could be potentially a dire winter.

A controversial project to mine the Pacific Ocean floor suffered a rocky start when investors withheld funding. TMC The Metals Company— formerly known as DeepGreen—went public last week after merging with Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corporation, a special purpose acquisition company. But it was an underwhelming debut as shares sank 11% on Friday, Chris Bryant writes in Bloomberg Opinion. Some $500 million of SPAC cash, it seems, vanished under the sea.

Coinbase Global, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., said it’s looking to raise $1.5 billion in a debut bond offering. Cathie Wood’s Ark Investment Management is allowing one of its funds to invest in Canadian Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, as the money manager seeks fresh ways to bet on digital assets.

The non-fungible token company Recur reached a $333 million valuation after a funding round led by an investment platform backed by billionaire Steve Cohen’s family office.

Steven Cohen Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg

Shares in eyewear maker Safilo Group soared as much as 14% on Monday after top fashion and Instagram “influencer” Chiara Ferragni signed a deal with the Italian company.

• Here’s what the next six months of the pandemic will bring.
• Walmart denies Litecoin pact after hoax jolts crypto market.
• Israel eyes a second booster round; New study says they’re unneeded.
• Prominent female Afghan leaders have fled or are in hiding.
• Cracks in China’s growth are endangering the risk-market rally.
• Dan Wang explains what China’s tech crackdown is really all about.
• Men need not apply to the world’s largest e-scooter factory.

Facebook and Twitter have long faced criticism for taking too long to screen out racist abuse on their platforms, Bloomberg Businessweek reports. Despite spending years developing algorithms to analyze harmful language, the two social media companies often don’t have effective strategies for stopping the spread of misinformation and hate speech. One of the more prominent stumbling blocks have been, of all things, emojis.

Photographer: Aaron Fernandez Photographer: Aaron Fernandez

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