Daily Briefing – 187

Post: Nov. 8, 2020

Joe Biden Is the 46th President of the United States – Trump to Challenge Results

A day after clinching the U.S. presidency, Democrat Joe Biden and his advisers were working on Sunday on how to address the nation’s coronavirus crisis while reinforcing his intention to bridge America’s gaping political divisions. Biden on Saturday made clear that tackling the pandemic was a top priority. Biden plans to launch a coronavirus task force on Monday to plot the way forward, led by former surgeon general Vivek Murthy and former Food and Drug Administration commissioner David Kessler.

President Donald Trump said on Saturday his campaign would begin challenging U.S. election results in court next week after media outlets called the race for Democrat Joe Biden, saying “this election is far from over.”

A Letter to Members on the Election from Council President Harold King

The vote counts are clear enough that news organizations have confidently projected a winner in the Presidential election. Though many races remain to be called it looks as though both parties have some reason to celebrate as Joe Biden will be President, and Republicans will have a good chance to maintain control of the Senate and have made gains in the House in in State elections.

We acknowledge the poll workers and volunteers who worked tirelessly through the pandemic to handle record turnout and make sure the process worked. Recounts and litigation are also part of our democratic process, and we trust they will run their course and that the election is accurate and there are no valid questions about its legitimacy.

COVID and Cluster Update

Governor Cuomo issued a press release Sunday detailing New York’s COVID-19 tracking data from Saturday November 7th. Tracking data for the hotspots and the rest of the State are below. The Governor also

Hotspot Zones: 3.72%
Rockland Hot Zone: 2.43%
Orange Orange Zone: 1.47%
Statewide: 2.35%
Statewide excluding hotspots: 2.23%
Statewide hospitalizations: 1,396 (295 in ICU)

Here are some useful websites:

“Great Day for Science and Humanity”’ Pfizer, BioNTech Say Covid Vaccine is More Than 90% Effective

U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and German biotech firm BioNTech announced Monday their coronavirus vaccine was more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 among those without evidence of prior infection, hailing the development as “a great day for science and humanity.” Scientists are hoping for a coronavirus vaccine that is at least 75% effective, while White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci has previously said one that is 50% or 60% effective would be acceptable.

U.S. stock futures skyrocketed on the news. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1,458 points, implying an opening gain of more than 1,400 points.

What Joe Biden’s Win Means for New York: 5 Things to Know

New York leaders are hoping former Vice President Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 presidential election Saturday will mean the start of a more collegial relationship with the White House, which has been at odds with the Empire State on issues big and small over the last four years.

It means you could see a federal government that’s more amenable to New York’s infrastructure needs, including a key rail tunnel project between New York and New Jersey that has languished during Trump’s presidency. It’s also possible some New York Democrats could find themselves with a job in the Biden administration, which could trigger vacancies in elected office here.

Here are five potential impacts Biden’s win could have on New York From the Rochester Democrat & Chronical

Drop in Jobless Rate Shows Healing U.S. Labor Market

Employers added 638,000 jobs last month—the sixth straight monthly gain—and the jobless rate fell a percentage point to 6.9%, the Labor Department said Friday. The job market has now recovered 12.1 million of the 22 million jobs lost in March and April, when the shutdown of businesses led the jobless rate to soar to a post-World War II high of 14.7%.

October’s job gain would have been higher without the release of temporary census workers from public payrolls. Private-sector employers added 906,000 jobs last month, a pickup from September, more than offsetting a drop of 268,000 jobs in the public sector. Industries that hired the most workers last month included leisure and hospitality—particularly restaurants—retail and construction.

Manufacturing Adds 38,000 Jobs

Manufacturing added 38,000 new jobs, fewer than the 60,000 added in September. Manufacturing still employs several thousand fewer people than it did before the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Durable goods manufacturing added 21,000 jobs: fabricated metal products added 7,200 jobs, primary metals added 6,000, and wood products added 4,400. Machinery manufacturers hired 3,900 more people, Computer and electronics manufacturers hired 3,500, and miscellaneous durable goods manufacturing added 2,100. Nonmetallic mineral products, electrical equipment and appliances, transportation equipment, and furniture all lost jobs.

Manufacturers Fare Better Than Many Service Providers in Covid-19 Economy

Months into the crisis, a clear divide between survivors and casualties is emerging. Countries, workers and industries that rely on making stuff—from computers to furniture to toys—are getting by, or even thriving, amid the economic maelstrom.

Meanwhile, those who provide the sort of face-to-face services that people avoid out of fear of infection—traveling, eating out, going to the movies and some child care—are struggling. Services that don’t require physical proximity—such as many financial services, software and telecommunications—have been less badly hit, as have construction and farming. This divide between manufacturing and services means the pain has fallen especially heavily on female and immigrant workers and on economies with large informal sectors or with heavy exposure to tourism, entertainment and travel.

Grant Thornton Survey: Pandemic Supply Chain Changes

There’s no doubt the pandemic had a disruptive impact on many manufacturing companies and in many areas of activity. But while three quarters of survey respondents reported some level of supply chain disruption, the majority (60%) now consider that level of disruption as only minor. Nevertheless, it meant around half had to rapidly reforecast demand, almost a third had to reduce production and two in five began to identify new suppliers as their existing global networks tried to cope with the initial disruption.

Regardless, this research also suggests the pandemic has called attention to some areas of improvement in manufacturing supply chain operations such as mitigation of future risks, streamlining operations, and minimizing potential vulnerabilities.

Review some results and download the report at Grant Thornton.

Toyota More Than Doubles Profit Outlook as China Sales Rebound

Japan’s top automaker said it now expects an operating profit of 1.3 trillion yen ($12.6 billion) for the year through March, 2021, up from the 500 billion it predicted previously. Operating profit for the previous financial year was 2.47 trillion yen. That topped the 1.25 trillion yen average estimate for full-year profit from 26 analysts polled by Refinitiv.

For the second quarter, from July to September, operating profit fell to 506 billion yen from 662.4 billion in the same period a year earlier, according to Reuters’ calculations, as sales dipped amid the coronavirus impact globally.

The WHO is Hunting for the Coronavirus’s Origins – Here are the New Details

Ten months have passed since health officials cited Wuhan’s Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market as ground zero for the COVID-19 pandemic—and a global debate over how the pandemic began has existed for nearly as long. But the public may soon learn answers as the World Health Organization embarks on the final stages of a search for the coronavirus’s origins.

Disease detectives who have worked on similar hunts say this is business as usual. The WHO lacks the staffing—with 7,000 employees spread across 150 countries—to conduct a full-scale investigation on its own and always relies on national teams or international volunteers for field work.

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