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The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were down slightly in early New York trading, with new cases threatening to further dampen the economy and investors awaiting progress in ongoing negotiations for a fresh COVID-19 relief package.
Nationwide in the United States, COVID-19 infections are at their peak, with an average of 193,863 new cases reported each day over the past week, according to a Reuters tally of official data.
Danish investment bank Saxo Bank has released its annual list of βoutrageous predictions,β trying to assess some unlikely β but not impossible β events that could shake up the global financial markets after the trauma of 2020.
While the bank says the list is merely βa warning against the potential misallocation of risk among investors,β Chief Investment Officer Steen Jakobsen noted that there is one βnot-so-outrageous predictionβ for 2021. According to him, next year may become βa reality check to the idea that βextend and pretendβ can stretch to infinity and beyond.β
Notably, last year Saxo Bank was partly right about this year’s US elections, as it expected the Democrats to take control of the presidency and both houses of Congress. It also warned about the possible demise of the US dollar, which has seen a decline in 2020.
https://www.rt.com/business/508987-saxo-bank-predictions-2021/
With the first Covid-19 vaccines handed out in the UK and approval pending in the US, officials in both countries have been patting themselves on the back. However, their lofty promises of mass vaccination are looking unlikely.
A 90-year-old grandmother was given a Covid-19 vaccine early on Tuesday morning, becoming the first Briton to receive a jab against the deadly coronavirus. Some 800,000 doses are expected to be delivered by the end of the week, and the first shot was celebrated by the government, with Health Secretary Matt Hancock declaring.Β βWe will look back on today, V-day, as a key moment in our fightback against this terrible disease.β
Ontario is reporting 1,676 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday with nearly 39,200 tests completed.
This marks a drop in cases after the province reported a record-high the previous three days. Itβs the first time in more than a week that Ontario has reported less than 1,700 new cases.
The decrease in cases comes with less completed tests. The province reported nearly 39,200 completed tests after reporting almost 60,000 for two straight days over the weekend. Nearly 45,300 completed tests were reported on Monday.
The rolling seven day average of cases stay over 1,800.
Ontario reports 10 new deaths on Tuesday compared to 26 one day ago.
DUBAI (Reuters) -Iran said on Tuesday its Supreme Court had upheld a death sentence against a high-profile dissident journalist who was captured last year in what Tehran calls an intelligence operation, after years in exile in France.
Ruhollah Zam, whose Amadnews social media feed had more than 1 million followers, was convicted of fomenting violence during anti-government protests in 2017.
WASHINGTON/NAIROBI (Reuters) – The United States believes Eritrean soldiers have crossed into Ethiopia, despite denials from both nations, a U.S. government source and five regional diplomats said, as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmedβs government battles a rebellious northern force.
Police in southern Russia are investigating after the cargo hatch of a highly secret Ilyushin Il-80 βdoomsday planeβ was found to be open, and electronic equipment reportedly stolen. The contents of the aircraft are classified.
The Il-80, which was undergoing maintenance in the city of Taganrog, is one of Russiaβs most mysterious military jets, known for its ability to survive a nuclear attack. Developed during the Soviet Eva, it was created in case the countryβs top leadership needed to evacuate by air. Its sensitive nature means that nobody quite knows whatβs onboard the plane β except, perhaps, the thieves who managed to get on board.
https://www.rt.com/russia/508998-doomsday-plane-electronic-equipment-stolen/
