What we’re reading (11/18)
“What We Must Do To Rebuild” (Deutsche Bank Research). In a new report, Deutsche Bank proffers that governments should tax employees that work from home: “People who can WFH and disconnect themselves from face-to-face society have gained many benefits during the pandemic. A five per cent tax for each WFH day would leave the average person no worse off than if they worked in the office. It could raise $49bn per year in the US, €20bn in Germany, and £7bn in the UK. That can fund subsidies for the lowest-paid workers who usually cannot work from home.”
“Americans’ Mortgage Debt Soars To A Record $10 Trillion” (CNN Business). “Low interest rates have helped fuel a boom in the US housing market: Last quarter Americans' mortgage debt climbed to a record high of nearly $10 trillion, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported Tuesday. Homebuyers are leveraging the near-constant new lows in rates. At the beginning of this month mortgage rates fell to a record low -- the 12th record low in 2020.”
“Boeing 737 Max Is Cleared By F.A.A. To Fly Again” (New York Times). “The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday cleared the way for Boeing’s 737 Max to resume flying, 20 months after it was grounded following two fatal crashes blamed on faulty software and a host of company and government failures.”
“Tesla To Join S&P 500, Spark Epic Index Fund Trade” (Reuters). “Tesla Inc is set to join the S&P 500 in December, a major win for Chief Executive Elon Musk that boosted the electric car maker’s shares 14% on Monday in anticipation of a $51 billion trade by index funds adjusting their holdings. S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that the company would join the S&P 500 index prior to the opening of trading on Dec. 21, potentially in two tranches making it easier for investment funds to digest. ‘(Tesla) will be one of the largest weight additions to the S&P 500 in the last decade, and consequently will generate one of the largest funding trades in S&P 500 history,’ S&P Dow Jones Indices said.”
“If Congress Doesn’t Act, 12 Million Americans Could Lose Unemployment Aid By The End Of The Year” (Washington Post). “Deadlines set by Congress early in the pandemic will result in about 12 million Americans losing unemployment insurance by the year’s end, according to a report released Wednesday — a warning about the sharp toll that inaction in Washington could exact on the economic health of both individual households and the economy at large.”
