February 13, 2021 | Daily JAM |
Today’s vote to acquit former President Donald Trump on the impeachment charge will result in a flurry of budget activity from Democrats to push forward President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus/relief package. House and Senate committees will pass budget bills this week to pave the way for votes under the reconciliation process in the Senate to pass the proposal into law on full House and Senate votes next week. Also expect the White House to move forward on its proposal for a $2 trillion infrastructure package that would follow quickly on the heels of the coronavirus package.
January 31, 2021 | Daily JAM, Short Term |
Let’s start with the macro picture first: On Friday the the government will report January jobs numbers. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg are projecting a slight uptick in jobs with the economy expected to show job adds in the month instead of the 140,000 lost jobs of December. But the increase, if it happens, isn’t expected to be enough to move the official unemployment rate from its current 6.7% level. The figures are expected to show significant job losses in sectors such as hospitality, leisure, and restaurants that have been hit heavily by the coronavirus and shutdowns designed to slow the spread of the infection. The jobs numbers are certain to affect the prospects for the $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus/relief package proposed by the Biden administration.
January 25, 2021 | Daily JAM, Morning Briefing |
On days when Wall Street focuses on the likelihood of Congress passing a new $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus/relief package, stocks rally. Why not? What’s not to like, in the short term, about putting $1.9 trillion into the economy? On days when Wall Street focuses on all the heavy lifting that it take to pass such as bill and on Republican opposition to the package stocks waver as they did last Friday. And on days like today when Wall Street can’t decide what it thinks about the prospects for the Biden administration’s coronavirus package, stocks dither
December 3, 2020 | Daily JAM, Short Term |
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke Thursday about a new coronavirus relief and stimulus package and about funding the government after the current stop-gap authorization expires on December 11. It’s the first time the leader of the Senate Republicans and the House Democrats have talked since November 3.
December 1, 2020 | Daily JAM, Morning Briefing, Short Term |
It may be just talk, but even talk is a step forward for the stalled plan for a new round of coronavirus stimulus and aid. One of the most positive signs is the Republicans in the Senate and House are talking to the White House this time. The window for any action is very narrow since Congress needs to pass something to continue funding the government by December 12 or risk another shutdown. All of the Cares Act provisions for extended unemployment or expanded unemployment as well as those for eviction protection expire at the end of December.
October 2, 2020 | Daily JAM, Morning Briefing |
Every investor and trader has spent much of today speculating (either in words or dollars) on what President Donald Trump's positive coronavirus test might mean for stocks. The Standard & Poor's 500 closed the day, October 2, down 0.96% and the Dow Jones...
August 13, 2020 | Daily JAM |
The Senate officially adjourned today through Labor Day, September 7. The House of Representatives had already been out of season, but now Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has announced that she will return to California next week. In the negotiations that collapsed on...
