Paying
President Joe Biden is planning the first big federal tax hike since1993 to help pay for a long-term economic program, according to peoplefamiliar with the subject. Among the proposed measures are the increase in the rate ofcorporate tax to 28%, the increase in income tax on those who earnmore and a possible increase in capital gains tax. No date has been setstill for the announcement of the plan, although the White House said it would follow the signatureof the Covid-19 relief bill.
Fed and friends
With investors evaluating a strong economic recovery and Treasury yieldsrising, this week’s Fed meeting will be watched closely for any signs ofan increase in the pre-forecast rate. Economists consulted by Bloomberg seeincreases of two percentage points in 2023, although they also expect theUpdated points published on Wednesday do not indicate a policy change that year.Like the Fed this week, investors have the Bank of England on Thursday and theBank of Japan on Friday. Following last week’s pledge to increase the paceof securities purchases, Governing Council member Martins Kazaks warned that yieldstaller ones will not always stimulate a similar movement.
Vaccine limit
The Netherlands joined a list of about 12 places that have moved to suspend useAstraZeneca vaccine due to concerns about possible side effects. The companydefended his shot by saying in a statement yesterday that 17 million doses wereadministered in the UK and Europe, with no evidence of an increase in blood clotsblood. Overall, the latest data on the pandemic shows a mixed picture.While the United States continues to make great strides in its vaccination program andare seeing deaths and infections drop, on a global scale the number of new casesincreased for the third week.
Markets rise
Strong data from China and continued optimism about the progress of the economic recovery arecausing global stocks to continue to rise. Overnight, the MSCI Asia indexPacific remained virtually unchanged, while Japan’s Topix index closed with again of 0.9%. In Europe, the Stoxx 600 Index had added 0.5% at 6:50 am, trading timeBrasilia, with travel actions having the best performance. The S&P 500 futurespointed to a small gain at the opening, the 10-year Treasury yield was1.616%, oil was close to $ 66 a barrel and gold rose slightly.
Arriving
The manufacture of the US Empire for March is at 9:30 am. Data on total net cash flows fromJanuary ICTs are released at 5pm. Secretary of State Antony Blinken travels to Japantoday for talks, while the US seeks to contain China’s security threats. THEWorld Health Organization may release a report on the origins of the coronavirus.
