Newsletter Mar 16, 2021

After one year of the coronavirus crisis, the U.S. is finally in a position to put the pandemic in the past -- if it has learned from its expensive lessons.

3 Things

The biggest dilemma in battling the year-long COVID-19 crisis has been balancing the health of Americans vs. the wealth of America.
Weighing the cost and benefits of lockdowns and strict regulations against the resulting impact on the economy has resulted in a bit of tug-o-war between reopening the country and protecting citizens. The roller-coaster ride of deaths and infections seem to indicate a direct correlation between relaxed restrictions and outbreak surges.
While former president Donald Trump preferred to err on the side of economic recovery, successor President Joe Biden subscribes to a different formula, one that says the U.S. can never fully recover economically until it wins the battle against the coronavirus. His stricter rules and stronger actions appear to be paying dividends.
The balancing act raises some key questions that the government and business must come to terms with -- what is the value of a human life. Assuming its possible to morally and accurately put a price tag on a human's worth, the formula is being used to answer questions about whether or not and when to fully return to normal.
FIND OUT THE HUMAN AND ECONOMIC COST OF THE CRISIS

Twisted sister: North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has a new weapon in his arsenal to launch threats at the U.S. -- his sister.
Ahead of President Joe Biden's visit to Asia, North Korea issued a stern warning to the commander-in-chief against interfering in the rogue nation's affairs. But this time it was Kim Yo-Jong, the sister of the dictator and a rising star in the regime, delivering the message.
"A word of advice to the new administration of the United States that is struggling to spread the smell of gunpowder on our land. ...If you wish to sleep well for the next four years, it would be better not to create work from the start that will make you lose sleep," she said.
Whether lost in translation or intended as a jab at the man Donald Trump often referred to as "Sleepy Joe," those are strong words for the new president. But they also represent the North Korean government's first acknowledgement of the Biden administration.
SEE WHAT'S BEHIND THE THINLY VEILED THREAT TO BIDEN

Kushy position: Biden also received some praise from an unlikely source -- former Trump administration advisor Jared Kushner.
In an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, Trump's son-in-law broke from the family position of painting Biden as an incompetent liberal. He praised Biden's offer to rejoin the Iran nuclear talks as a "smart diplomatic move" and crediting him for calling "Iran's bluff."
"t revealed to the Europeans that the JCPOA is dead and only a new framework can bring stability for the future," Kushner claimed in the op-ed. "When Iran asked for a reward merely for initiating negotiations, President Biden did the right thing and refused."
Despite reports of a rift between Kushner and Trump, he also had positive words for his father-in-law: "Mr. Trump has said that Iran has never won a war but never lost a negotiation.This negotiation is high-stakes and, thanks to his policies, America holds a strong hand."
Now it's easy to see why Kushner was appointed by Trump to solve the Middle East crisis. He knows how to kiss butts on both sides.
SEE WHAT KUSHNER HAD TO SAY IN HIS FIRST INTERVIEW

Markets

DJIA	32,825.95	-0.39%
S&P 500	3,962.71	-0.16%
Nasdaq Composite	13,471.57	0.09%
Japan: Nikkei 225	29,921.09	0.52%
UK: FTSE 100	6,803.61	0.80%
Crude Oil Futures	64.91	-0.73%
Gold Futures	1,730.20	0.06%
Yen	109.01	-0.10%
Euro	1.19	-0.23%
* As of market close

VW targets Tesla

There was a time when it was widely speculated that Volkswagon was interested in buying Tesla to launch its electric vehicle program. Now it appears VW is taking a different approach -- if you can't buy it, beat it.

VW CEO Herbert Diess shot down persistent rumors that he was in the market to merge with Tesla, saying the German automaker was not only pursuing its own EV program but also intends to dominate the market. He also issued a challenge to Tesla CEO Elon Musk and other EV makers.

â€œWe want to get close and then overtake," Diess said Tuesday. â€œWe think that we can. We need our own software stack, our own technology. And also, I think Tesla, or Elon, is very much thinking ... his way forward. So no, there are no talks between Elon Musk and myself regarding joining forces. ... No, we havenâ€™t considered [that], we are going our own way.â€

Volkswagen announced its plans Monday to develop six gigafactories in Europe by 2030 while establishing a charging infrastructure in Europe, North America, and China. As for his curious relationship with Musk, the two have exchanged friendly words on social media, with Diess recently tweeting that he was coming after Tesla's market share. Now it's game on.

FIND OUT VOLKSWAGON'S PLAN TO CORNER THE EV MARKET

Industrial chill

The winter storms that impacted much of the country in February also had a chilling effect on the economy as industrial production fell 2.2% for the month -- a worse-than-projected figure, according to the Federal Reserve.

The Fed said Tuesday blamed the decrease on the storms that knocked factories offline in parts of the country and created logistical nightmares. The state of Texas was the worst hit and attributed to many of the losses.

"The severe winter weather in the south central region of the country in mid-February accounted for the bulk of the declines in output for the month," the Federal Reserve said. "Most notably, some petroleum refineries, petrochemical facilities, and plastic resin plants suffered damage from the deep freeze and were offline for the rest of the month."

Manufacturing output fell 3.1% and mining lost 5.4% in February, but utilities output increased 7.4 percent compared to January. And overall production remains 4.2% below pre-pandemic levels on year earlier..

SEE WHAT OTHER FACTORS ARE DRIVING THESE NUMBERS

'Bachelor' blowback

The 25th season of ABC's hit reality-romance show "The Bachelor" didn't really yield any silver linings in Monday's finale. But there were several shades of grey in a controversial season that dealt with black and white.

Matt James, the first Black "Bachelor" in the show's history, seemed to find his soul mate in winner Rachael Kirkconnell, although he refused to take a knee and propose at the end as he had pledged from the start.

The two continued to date after the show until the emergence of photos of Kirkconnell from 2018 at an antebellum-themed party. The scandal over issues with racial sensitivity quickly became the central focus of the show, causing Matt to dump Rachael and millions of viewers booing their TVs.

The controversy even forced the exit of longtime host Chris Harrison, who defended the photos and also joined Rachael on a quest for wokeness. Viewers haven't been so understanding about the love story ending on a sour note, or the show turning into a matter of race rather than romance.

SEE WHY 'THE BACHELOR' FANS ARE UPSET ABOUT THE ENDING