Coronavirus cases top 79,000 as outbreaks spread across the globe: CNN
US health officials preparing for coronavirus to become pandemic: USA Today
China eases curbs as new coronavirus infections in the country fall: Reuters
Coronavirus blowback threatens global supply chains: WSJ
German business sentiment steady despite coronavirus risk: Bloomberg
Former Putin advisor re: US election preference: “Our candidate is chaos”: GQ
JP Morgan economists: climate crisis threatens human race: The Guardian
What are the telltale signs of a bear market? Here’s a short list: CNBC
US Composite PMI survey data indicates economic contraction in Feb: IHS Markit

● The Wolf at the Door: The Menace of Economic Insecurity and How to Fight It
By Michael J. Graetz and Ian Shapiro
Q&A with co-author (Graetz) via Yale News
Q: Why prioritize economic insecurity over economic inequality?
A: There are several reasons. The first is that economic insecurity is rampant in the United States. About 40% of Americans say they couldn’t cover an unexpected $400 emergency expense with cash or a credit card charge they could pay off at the end of the month. Unless this insecurity is addressed, our politics will become increasingly ugly. You’ll see increased polarization and anti-immigration sentiment.
Second, as we learned from Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky’s critique of conventional economics, the prospect of loss is a more potent political motivator than the prospect of gain. Trump’s slogan “Make America Great Again” was effective because it implies that he would restore something that was taken away. It wasn’t about addressing inequality. He didn’t promise to make people rich or redistribute wealth. In fact, he bragged about his own wealth. Two-thirds of Trump’s primary voters earned above the U.S. median income of $50,000 for a family of four. These are not blue-collar folks, but they fear that they’re losing things. They’re worried about downward mobility — that their kids will be less successful than they are.
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The fear trade that’s animating Treasury buying is alive and well. Although you might have missed it by focusing on the soaring US equity market, the rush into safe-haven Treasuries has hardly missed a beat this year — a preference that’s pushed bond prices up and yields down.

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Coronavirus cases spike in South Korea: Time
Will the soaring US dollar create headwinds for US stocks? MW
Eurozone economic growth is still weak but pace picked up in Feb: IHS Markit
US Leading Economic Index rose sharply in January: MW
Jobless claims in US remain near post-recession low: MW
Philly Fed Mfg Index soars in Feb, suggesting US mfg recession is over: CNBC
Inverted 10-year/3-month Treasury yield curve dips to 4-month low:

The US economy’s slowdown in the second half of last year continues to show signs of mildly rebounding in early 2020 but a preliminary estimate for March suggests the revival is fading. There’s still no sign that recession risk is elevated, based on data published to date. Yet the revised outlook through next month (see third chart below) points to stabilization at a moderate pace of growth rather than a continuation of the recent rebound following a softer macro trend in late-2019.
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Wide-ranging attacks at Democratic debate with Bloomberg in the mix: Reuters
China’s manufacturing sector struggles to restart after virus outbreak: SCMP
White House admits that Trump’s trade policy slowed US economy: Bloomberg
Fed minutes suggest rates will remain unchanged for near term: CNBC
Gold rises to 7-year high: Bloomberg
Is soaring US stock market underestimating coronavirus risk? CNBC
Rebound in UK retail sales suggest firmer Q1 after economy stumbled: MNI
German consumer confidence expected to slightly ease in March: RTT
IMF mgr dir is wary but cautiously optimistic on global economic outlook: IMF
US wholesale inflation rose sharply in Jan, but gain may be temporary: MW
US housing starts eased in January but remain near post-recession high:

Looking at a select set of recent economic releases suggests the US economy is humming along, providing room for the Federal Reserve to let current monetary policy glide forward on autopilot. But a closer look at key trends in the Treasury market and the monetary base – along with the economic challenges roiling China and increasingly spilling out to the global economy – suggest the future may be more uncertain and risky than widely assumed with respect to evaluating the case for rate changes.

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China faces increased risk of an economic crisis: CNBC
Sanders leads by wide margin in new national poll: CNBC
Trump announces multiple pardons and commutations: Politico
China expels 3 Wall Street Journal reporters: NY Times
The global economy is closing its doors to China amid virus outbreak: WSJ
Hong Kong faces first back-to-back annual recession: Bloomberg
Is Bloomberg LP for sale? It is if Mike Bloomberg is elected president: WSJ
NY Fed manufacturing Index rises to 9-month high in February: MW
US home builder sentiment dipped in February but remains strong: NAHB

US economic activity is expected to ease in the first quarter, based on the median for a set of nowcasts compiled by The Capital Spectator. The current estimate reflects the softest quarterly gain in over a year, although the anticipated increase is still strong enough to keep the economic expansion alive in early 2020.
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China to grant tariff exemptions on 696 US goods: Reuters
How fast will China’s economy rebound from coronavirus outbreak? Bloomberg
Coronavirus blowback could impact 50,000 firms, new research estimates: CNBC
Despite Brexit turmoil, UK employment rose in fourth quarter: Bloomberg
HSBC, Europe’s biggest bank, plans to cut 35,000 jobs: WSJ
German economic sentiment fell sharply in Feb, driven by coronavirus risk: ZEW
Apple doesn’t expect to meet quarterly revenue target due to coronavirus: BBG
WTO’s trade barometer anticipates “further weakening” of trade in Q1: WTO