Given widespread shock and horror at the Capitol mob last week, which could lead to Trump’s impeachment just days before he’s due to leave office, some companies clearly feel they have no choice but to take action.
But investors appear nervous about the consequences. Twitter’s shares dropped more than 6% on Monday, while Facebook shares lost 4%.
The platforms are increasingly unpopular with Republicans, who bristle at Trump’s muting, and Democrats, who think the sites should have acted sooner, according to Hargreaves Lansdown equity analyst Nicholas Hyett. With an eye toward their customer bases and ongoing regulatory pressure, that’s a difficult place to be.
“They are increasingly and unavoidably stuck in the middle of this political ping-pong, which is just not good,” Hyett said.
What’s left unsaid: roughly 74 million Americans voted for Trump.
In recent days, veteran investors Carl Icahn and Jeremy Grantham have warned of a Wall Street bubble, triggering another round of debates about asset prices that’s coincided with political instability in Washington.
Investors keep pumping money into health care stocks
Wall Street made big bets on health care stocks in 2020. Now, as the pandemic continues to rage, they’re doubling down.
See here: The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund, an exchange-traded fund that tracks the sector, is up nearly 4% this year, while the S&P 500 has gained a more modest 1.2% despite notching a string of record highs.
Some of those increases are tied to the Covid-19 vaccine rollout.
Investors are also keeping an eye on research that has nothing to do with the pandemic. Eli Lilly’s shares soared nearly 12% on Monday, making it the best-performing stock in the S&P 500, after the company released promising early results for its experimental Alzheimer’s drug.
On the radar: Bespoke Investment Group points out that JPMorgan’s annual health care conference, which often coincides with strong stock performances as companies pitch investors, is taking place virtually this week. That could open the door to additional gains.
Automakers’ next crisis is a global chip shortage
Details, details: The Louisville plant employs 3,800 hourly workers, who will receive about 75% of their normal pay during the one-week shutdown, my CNN Business colleague Chris Isidore reports. It assembles the Ford Escape and the Lincoln version of that SUV, the Corsair.
It’s the first shutdown to stem from an industry-wide problem that’s expected to persist for months.
Automakers cut back orders for computer chips early last year when Covid-19 slammed the brakes on auto sales and production because of temporary plant closings. When car sales bounced back sooner than expected, it left producers scrambling.
The problem has been exacerbated by skyrocketing demand for laptops and other home electronics during the lockdown era, according to Kristin Dziczek, vice president of research at the Center for Automotive Research.
The average car has between 50 to 150 chips in it, she said. All are needed to proceed with vehicle assembly.
UBS analysts expect all major automakers will be affected by the bottlenecks during the first three months of the year, with Volkswagen, Fiat Chrysler, Toyota and Nissan also calling out supply chain issues.
Up next
Tuesday’s data releases include the NFIB small business optimism index for December and job openings from November.
Coming tomorrow: US inflation data for December will reveal the state of consumer prices as policymakers prepare to discuss another round of stimulus spending.
