Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Americans keep quitting

Johnson & Johnson is splitting into two. The health-care behemoth will spin off its consumer division (which has been beset by lawsuits) as it follows other big drugmakers in choosing to focus on more-profitable pharmaceuticals. The decision underscores just how storied companies are being forced to rethink the bigger-is-better ethos that ruled corporate America for decades. —Margaret Sutherlin

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

A record 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs in September, underscoring how persistent turnover is undercutting employer efforts to fill a near-record level of vacancies. For every unemployed American in September, there were 1.4 openings—and a stubbornly low participation rate suggests hiring challenges aren’t going away. Here’s your markets wrap.

Global climate talks due to end on Friday look like they’re going to stretch into the weekend—with little substantive progress in sight. Countries are struggling to pinpoint how to best curb rising temperatures. But the true sticking point at COP26 is who will pick up the bill.

Vladimir Putin’s apparent message to western powers is that they cease attempts to bring Ukraine into the fold. As Russian forces continue to build up on the border—sparking fears of a repeat invasion—the Kremlin is signaling it may attack its neighbor if it gets more military support.  The high-stakes brinksmanship comes as Russia’s natural gas supply places European Union nations in a difficult position. The issue of energy supplies has also been tied to migrants trying to enter the EU—through (and allegedly with the help of) Russian ally Belarus.

A Ukrainian serviceman patrols at a position on the frontline with Russia-backed separatists on April 12. Photographer: STR/AFP

As the latest Covid-19 wave flares up around the globe, countries are starting to take a tougher stance toward those who refuse to be vaccinated.  In the U.S., early signs of yet another resurgence are emerging in the Northeast, with cases increasing in seven of the region’s nine states. Here’s the latest on the pandemic. 

The 1.4 million members of the Teamsters are choosing a new president. The leading contender, Sean O’Brien, says he can’t wait to slug it out with shipping giant UPS. Then he plans to go after Amazon. 

Sean O’Brien   Photographer: Tony Luong 

A former JPMorgan banker is betting right-wing Americans are mad about companies adopting progressive positions on social justice issues. He’s also betting they’re mad enough to buy shares of his company’s exchange-traded funds, which invest in companies that are “unwoke.”

After 16 months behind bars, Ghislaine Maxwell is about to stand trial. The onetime British socialite is accused of recruiting and grooming girls as young as 14 to be sexually assaulted by the late Jeffrey Epstein, and sometimes taking part herself. It all begins next week.

• Xi Jinping and Joe Biden meet virtually on Monday.
• Ex-Trump aide Steve Bannon indicted for contempt of Congress.
• Rivian is already spending the cash it made in its IPO this week. 
• These are the world’s richest—and greenest—billionaires. 
• Bloomberg Opinion: Americans need to live more like Europeans. 
• The Republican who lost the New Jersey governor race has conceded.
• Get ready for the costliest Thanksgiving ever—if you can find a turkey.

In an age of low-cost rocket launches and William Shatner space flights, putting boots on Mars feels closer and more attainable than ever—or at least as close as something requiring a six-month, 140 million-mile flight can. It’s led a growing group of urban planners, architects, designers, astrophysicists, entrepreneurs and philosophers to start rolling out renderings of what Martian cities would look like.

A rendering of a future Martian community. Photographer: Interstellar Lab

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