"We set a very clear marker, I think, not a quantitative marker, but a very clear marker that we want substantial further progress [on job market improvement] relative to where we were" during the period before the coronavirus pandemic took hold, Mr. Williams told reporters after a speech. "That's where I'm focused, clearly right now we have not achieved that," he said.
China's Monetary Policy Slips a Gear Into Neutral
China just trimmed the reserve requirement ratio for banks-one of its major monetary policy instruments-for the first time since the height of the pandemic. There is more: China's monthly lending data released Friday also showed economywide growth in debt and equity finance outstanding stabilizing at 11% year over year after months of sharp slowdowns, and bank lending ticking up. China's monetary policy has shifted from a tighter stance to neutral.
The question is why now, especially just a few months after regulators specifically told banks to curtail loan growth for the rest of the year, according to a Bloomberg report in April.
Virgin Galactic's Stock Has Worst Day in More Than a Year
Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc.'s shares had their worst performance in more than a year after the space-tourism company said it could sell as much as $500 million in stock.
The company's announcement came a day after its founder, British billionaire Richard Branson, and five other crew members flew to the edge of space.
Volvo Trucks Aims to Reopen Factory After Third Contract Rejection
Volvo Trucks North America says it plans to resume production at its truck manufacturing plant in Dublin, Va., despite a third vote by unionized workers rejecting a tentative contract settlement aimed at ending a monthlong walkout at the factory.
The division of Swedish vehicle maker Volvo AB said it was taking the action after hitting an impasse with negotiators for the United Auto Workers over new attempts to reach a contract settlement that the plant's roughly 2,900 UAW-represented workers would accept.
Fire in Coronavirus Hospital in Iraq Kills at Least 58 People
BAGHDAD-A fire caused by an exploding oxygen canister killed at least 58 people in a hospital treating Covid-19 patients in southern Iraq late Monday in the second lethal blaze in a coronavirus facility in the country in less than three months, according to Iraqi officials.
Videos of the incident reviewed by The Wall Street Journal showed flames and plumes of black smoke along with the sound of sirens at the Al-Hussein hospital in the city of Nasiriyah.
Israel Begins Pfizer Booster Shots for At-Risk Adults as Delta Cases Rise
TEL AVIV-Israel began administering a booster shot of Pfizer Inc.'s Covid-19 vaccine Monday to people with weak immune systems, as it confronts an outbreak of the virus's highly contagious Delta variant.
Israel's Health Ministry said a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine would be offered to immunocompromised individuals, such as those who have undergone organ transplants. The step follows evidence that the additional shot might increase such patients' antibody counts, according to a Health Ministry letter sent to Israeli healthcare providers.
U.K. Retail Sales Hit Record Growth in 2Q as Coronavirus Restrictions Eased
Retail sales in the U.K. rose to record levels in the second quarter of 2021 as pent-up demand was released with the easing of coronavirus restrictions, according to the latest report by KPMG and the British Retail Consortium.
British retail sales between May 30 and July 3 jumped 13.1%, or 17.0% on a like-for-like basis, compared with the same period two years earlier, the report found. For the second quarter overall, growth hit a record 10.4% when compared with 2019.
Boeing Faces New Dreamliner Production Problem
A new production problem has surfaced with Boeing Co.'s 787 Dreamliner, likely further delaying deliveries of the popular wide-body jets, people familiar with the matter said.
Boeing expects the newly discovered defect to take at least three weeks to address, according to some of these people. That means its customers may not get new Dreamliners for much of the traditionally busy summer travel season.
Microsoft to Buy Cybersecurity Firm RiskIQ
Microsoft Corp. agreed to buy cybersecurity provider RiskIQ Inc., the companies said Monday, a deal that would add to Microsoft's portfolio of security services amid a rise in high-profile online attacks.
San Francisco-based RiskIQ, founded in 2009, helps companies track their vulnerability to digital threats. That has become more important and more complicated as companies shift a growing share of their work online, both to reach customers and to connect employees remotely, Microsoft security executive Eric Doerr said in a blog post on Monday about the acquisition.
FDA Warns J&J Covid-19 Vaccine Raises Risk of Rare Neurological Condition
U.S. health regulators warned that the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine is linked to a very small incidence of cases of a rare neurological disorder associated with other shots.
The Food and Drug Administration added the warning language to the J&J shot's label on Monday, after finding a handful of cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome among the millions of people who have gotten the vaccine, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Write to sarka.halas@wsj.com
Expected Major Events for Tuesday
05:00/FIN: May Balance of Payments
06:00/ROM: Jun CPI
06:00/GER: Jun CPI
06:00/ROM: May Industrial production
06:30/SWI: Jun Import Price Index
06:30/SWI: Jun PPI
06:45/FRA: Jun CPI
07:00/CZE: Jun CPI
07:00/CZE: May Import & export price indices
07:00/TUR: May Industrial Production Index
08:00/FRA: Jul IEA Oil Market Report
08:00/BUL: Apr Trade with EU Member States - preliminary data
08:00/BUL: May Trade with third countries - preliminary data
16:59/GER: May Balance of Payments
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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
07-13-21 0016ET
