Daily Briefing – 353

Post: Aug. 4, 2021

NAM Pushes for Historic Infrastructure Investment

The Senate’s $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill mirrors many of the NAM’s priorities. Many of the bill’s provisions are included in the NAM’s Building to Win infrastructure plan. The bill contains provisions in five broad areas that are critical to manufacturers:

Increased infrastructure investment like upgrading roads and rail and bridging the digital divide.
Smart policies to speed up projects like sustainable permitting.
Actions to tackle climate change like grid modernization, carbon capture and clean hydrogen investment.
Efforts to create cleaner communities through investments in drinking water and efficient manufacturing.
The retention of competitive tax gains that have helped manufacturers create jobs and invest in their businesses across the country.

Throughout the day yesterday, the NAM is encouraged organizations and company leaders to take to social media channels to demonstrate their support for the infrastructure bill.

Click here the top NAM priorities included in the bill.

Cuomo Update – Widespread Calls for Resignation, Albany County Criminal Investigation

Leaders of both Political Parties called on Governor Cuomo to resign after the release of a report from New York Attorney General Laticia James supporting allegations from 11 women against Cuomo and finding them to be credible.

Albany County District Attorney David Soares confirmed Tuesday that his office is opening a criminal investigation into Gov. Andrew Cuomo. “It’s pretty clear that we have an obligation here, and thus we reached out to the attorney general’s office seeking all the evidence upon which they uncovered and relied upon to offer their report.”

Automakers, Microsoft Respond to CDC Guidance with New Mandates

Roughly a week after the Centers for Disease Control updated its mask-wearing recommendations, manufacturers are again looking seriously at COVID-19 prevention tactics, including vaccine mandates. Microsoft is now the second major U.S. manufacturer to issue a mandate for employees to receive COVID-19 vaccines after Tyson Foods.

Other companies, including the three largest U.S. automotive manufacturers, are returning to previously-paused mask mandates. The COVID-19 Joint Task Force, made up of representatives from the United Auto Workers, General Motors, Ford Motors, and Stellantis, announced Tuesday that employees at those companies would have to wear face masks at all plants, offices and warehouses starting August 4, even vaccinated employees.

Two Strategies to Rebound from Pandemic Supply Chain Impacts

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on supply chains have forced organizations to reevaluate the way they obtain the products necessary for the survival of their business. Near-shoring is one method of addressing insecurity over the reliability of supply chains. Companies in the U.S. are looking to relocate some manufacturing to Mexico or Canada to avoid being cut off. This may lead to higher prices but would protect the industries from sudden shortages.

Automation in the shipping industry is another trend that will increase post-pandemic. Speeding up the rate at which products are transported is one benefit of automation. Another is the ability to keep track of shipping containers, so they are used more efficiently and do not sit idle while products wait to be transported.

US COVID Update – Daily Mortality, Hospitalizations and Cases

Despite considerable vaccination coverage at the national level, daily incidence continues to accelerate, mirroring the early stages of previous surges. At 72,790 reported cases per day on July 30, the current surge is the United States’ second largest to date, surpassing both the spring 2020 and spring 2021 peaks. The average daily incidence is the highest since February 17.

Daily mortality also continues to increase, up to 302 deaths per day on July 30, which is 76% higher than the most recent low on July 10 (172). Daily mortality does not appear to be increasing exponentially like daily incidence; however, this could change over the coming weeks as daily incidence increases.

NYS Vaccine and COVID Update

Vaccine Stats as of Wednesday August4th:

One Vaccine Dose

63.4% of all New Yorkers – 12,1204,784 (plus 29,196 from a day earlier)
In the Hudson Valley 1,296,384 (plus 3,393)

Fully Vaccinated

57.3% of all New Yorkers – 11,155,323 are fully vaccinated (Plus 16,067)
In the Hudson Valley – 1,169,142 (plus 2,020) are fully vaccinated.

The Governor updated COVID data through Tuesday August 3rd. There were 7 COVID related deaths for a total of 43,105.

Hospitalizations:

Patients Currently in Hospital statewide: 902

Seven Day Average Positivity Rate:

Statewide 2.70%
Mid-Hudson: 2.60%

Useful Websites:

Delta Waves in India and the U.K. Have Already Receded. Could the Same Happen in the U.S.?

Fortune reporters Grady McGregor, Biman Mukherji and Sophie Mellor report in this deep piece, that we still don’t know why the Delta-fueled waves in the U.K. and India suddenly dropped off. So, while everyone obviously hopes the same will happen in the U.S., nobody really knows if the country will be so lucky.

Covid-19 Hospitalizations are Crashing Into Patients Returning for Care Previously Delayed

Surgeries and treatments for cancer, heart disease and other common conditions have rebounded this year, filling beds at many hospitals. At the same time, other respiratory viruses, such as RSV, have re-emerged along with public gatherings, adding to hospital strain.

Now some hospitals are treating more Covid-19 patients than ever before as the highly contagious Delta variant spreads, particularly where vaccination rates are lower. This new chapter of the protracted pandemic has exhausted hospital staff.

Here’s What We Know About COVID Booster Shots Now

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recent study shows that vaccinated people can both contract the highly contagious delta variant and spread it. According to a widely reported internal CDC memo, the delta variant spreads as easily as chicken pox, which is considered more contagious than the flu and less contagious than measles.

To prepare for the possibility of a booster shot, the CDC said it’s weighing a third vaccine dose for people with compromised immune systems.

CDC Issues New Eviction Moratorium

Days after a national eviction moratorium expired, the Biden administration on Tuesday issued a new, more limited freeze that remains in effect through Oct. 3. the two-month moratorium issued Tuesday comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The new ban covers parts of the United States that are experiencing “substantial” and “high” spread of the coronavirus. As of Tuesday afternoon, that’s the vast majority of U.S. counties.

The administration previously said it didn’t have the legal authority to issue a such a measure. The new order could face legal challenges.

ADP: Private Companies Added Just 330,000 Jobs in July, Short of the 653,000 Estimate

Job creation at private companies tumbled in July as fears mounted over the spreading Covid-19 delta variant, payroll processing firm ADP reported Wednesday. July’s job growth was also the smallest gain since February.

Employers added 330,000 positions for the month, a sharp deceleration from the downwardly revised 680,000 in June. It’s also well below the 653,000 Dow Jones estimate. June’s final total fell from the initial estimate of 692,000. Goods-producing industries contributed 12,000 to the total, with manufacturing up 8,000.

What if Closing the Wage Gap Means Everyone Earns Less?

Companies, including Whole Foods, Starbucks, and the social media tool Buffer, have been touting their pay transparency policies as a means of ensuring fairness. But, as it turns out, pay transparency doesn’t necessarily increase workers’ wages.

Among more than 4 million people living in states with new transparency laws between 2000 and 2016. They found that a year after these laws were passed, wages dropped by 2.2 percent, and, three years following the change, they declined by 2.6 percent. The reason? The researchers note that managers who disclose salaries can credibly say to employees seeking a raise: “If I give you a higher salary, I will have to give everyone else a raise, too, and I just can’t afford that.”

GM Misses But Raises Guidance

General Motors on Wednesday missed Wall Street’s earnings expectations for the second quarter despite a record operating profit. It also raised its guidance for the year. GM’s second-quarter earnings were dragged down by some $1.3 billion in warranty recall costs, including $800 million related to the Chevrolet Bolt EV. The electric vehicle has been recalled twice in the past year due to fire risks, most recently last month.

The automaker raised its adjusted full-year guidance to between $11.5 billion and $13.5 billion, or $5.40 to $6.40 a share, up from $10 billion to $11 billion, or $4.50 to $5.25 a share.

JPMorgan Chase’s Dimon: “Celebrate the Growth”

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon argued that “We should celebrate the growth. We should celebrate the fact that we can grow at 6%, 7% and God knows in the next year,” in and interview with Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo. Gross domestic product grew at a 6.5% annual rate during the second quarter, according to an advance estimate released last week by the Commerce Department.

Dimon explained further that he believes interest rates are still low even as the economy is recovering “mostly because central banks around the world have bought $12 trillion of bonds.” He then explained the positive and negative outcomes of that policy.

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