Monday Watch

Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:  

• U.K. Warns of Further Crackdown If Britons Ignore Virus Advice.
• Mnuchin Sees Emergency Package on Track for Monday Passage.  
• Italy Bans Movement Inside Country as Another 651 People Die.  
• Critical Medical Supplies Are Stuck in China With No Planes to Ship Them.
• Democrats Block Senate Economic Stimulus Bill as Talks Falter.  
• U.S. Stumbles on Aid; Olympics Postponement Mulled: Virus Update. 
• Hong Kong’s Economy Is in ‘Deep Water,’ Finance Chief Says.
• It’s Not The First Time OPEC Has Pulled Up a Chair for Texas. 
• Dire Dollar Shortage Shows World Failed to Fix Key Crisis Flaw.  
• U.S. Stock Futures Hit Limit Down; Treasuries Rise: Markets Wrap. U.S. equity futures tumbled at the start of trading Monday after a surge in the global death toll from the coronavirus and a failure as yet by Congress to agree on an aid plan. Treasury yields retreated. S&P 500 futures dropped 5% and hit limit down after the index lost more than 4% on Friday. Australian equities tumbled more than 8% at one point, while stocks in Tokyo fluctuated at the open. The dollar climbed against major peers. New Zealand’s dollar fell with the country’s bond yields after its central bank joined other countries in saying it will start buying bonds to stimulate the economy. As investors attempt to assess the severity of the upcoming downturn, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard predicted the U.S. unemployment rate may hit 30% in the second quarter because of shutdowns to combat the virus. Futures on the S&P 500 Index dropped 4.3% as of 9:15 a.m. in Tokyo. The gauge dropped 4.3% on Friday. Topix index rose 0.2%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index tumbled 5.7%. Kospi index declined 6.1%. Hang Seng Index futures lost 3.6% on Friday.
• Gulf Stocks Extend Drop Shrugging Off New Measures: Inside EM.  
• U.S. Aid Plan, N.Z. Turns to QE, China Set to Rebound: Eco Day.
• Oil Extends Declines as Prospects for OPEC-Texas Truce Fade.
• Bruised Hedge Funds Ask Clients for Fresh Cash to Buy the Dip.
• Sunday Strategist: The Sharing Economy May Never Be the Same.  
• Real Estate Billionaire Barrack Says Commercial Mortgages on Brink of Collapse.  
• Biden Says ‘No Need’ to Postpone November Vote Over Virus.  
• Bruised Hedge Funds Ask Clients for Fresh Cash to Buy the Dip.

Wall Street Journal:

• The Worst of the Selloff Isn’t Here Yet, Banks and Investors Warn.
• Why It’s So Difficult to Stop the Spread.
• How South Korea Solved Its Acute Hospital-Bed Shortage. 
• Marriott to Furlough Thousands of Corporate Jobs.
• Jails Release Prisoners, Fearing Coronavirus Outbreak.
• The CDC’s Restrictive Testing Guidelines Hid the Epidemic.
• Houses of Worship Rush to Go Online.
• Slowdown Tests the Mettle of China’s Shadow Banks.
• Early Convention Puts Pressure on Democrats.
• Virus and Oil-Price Plunge Buries Shale and Occidental’s Big Bet. 
• How Long Will the Coronavirus Lockdowns Go On?
• Marines Plan to Retool to Meet China Threat.

Fox News:

• #PresidentCuomo trends as Dem NY gov overshadows Biden, Sanders during virus outbreak.
• NEWT GINGRICH: Here’s how US can restore its economic health.
• Here’s No. 1 disinfectant to keep your car clean amid coronavirus.
• Aid talks at standstill as McConnell, Dems argue over sticking points in stalled spending bill.

CNBC:    

• NYSE readies itself for first ever all-electronic trading day.
• These charts show how fast coronavirus cases are spreading — and what it takes to flatten the curve.
• Breaking down this sell-off, among the most extreme Wall Street has ever seen
• Coronavirus live updates: Fed’s Bullard calls shutdown ‘massive investment in public health’
• Airlines tell Congress they need $29 billion of coronavirus aid in grants to avoid furloughs 
• Read the memo Jeff Bezos sent to Amazon employees about coronavirus safety at warehouses.
• Goldman makes bold call to upgrade Boeing(BA), saying it has enough cash.
• Trump activates National Guard in California, New York and Washington state: ‘This is a war’.
• Coronavirus stimulus bill fails in key Senate procedural vote.

Zero Hedge:        

• Rand Paul Tests Positive For COVID-19, Ohio, Louisiana & Delaware Issue 'Stay At Home' Orders: Live Updates.
• "Critical Medical Supply Shortage": The Moment US Woke Up To Disaster Of Always Outsourcing To China.
• TARP Failure Monday? Futures Crash As Coronavirus Bill Fails Key Procedural Vote.
• "Holy Shit, This Is Not The Flu": Medical Worker Describes Terrifying Lung Failure From COVID-19... Even In Young Patients.
• "Widespread Panic" Hits Commercial Property Markets: Deals Implode, Renters Disappear, Businesses Shut Down.
• "The Speed Of Business Erosion Is Unprecedented": Goldman Sees S&P Dropping To 2,000, Cuts EPS By 33%. 
• "No One Was Ready" – Europe's Desperate Doctors Use Trash Bags As Hazmat Suits.
• Equity Hedge Funds Suffer Their Worst Month Ever.
• Harvey Weinstein Tests Positive For COVID-19.
• Merkel In Quarantine After Contact With Infected Doctor: Italy Bans All Movement Inside The Country.  
• Mnuchin: Fed To Make $4 Trillion In Business Loans, Send $3,000 Checks To Family Of Four. 
• One Third Of All Coronavirus Cases Show No Symptoms, Classified China Data Reveals.
• Fed's Bullard Warns Unemployment May Soar To 30%, GDP Crash 50% In Q2.
• "Please Take This Seriously... It's Brutal" – COVID-19 Survivors Speak Out.
• Italian Virologist Says Concerns Over "Racism" Crippled Italy's Coronavirus Response.
• Turkey Arrests 64 For 'Provocative' Coronavirus-Related Social Media Posts.
• COVID-19 Shatters The Facade Of European 'Union'.
• Half Of Americans Don't Trust Mainstream Media's COVID-19 Coverage.
• A 'Made-In-China' Pandemic.
• Why Is CrowdStrike Confused On 11 Key Details About The DNC 'Hack'?
• Biden Plans 'Fireside Corona Chats' To Snipe At Trump Virus Response.

Business Insider:

• The coronavirus crisis is likely going to last for months. Here are 5 key business stories to watch.
• Jeff Bezos is asking laid-off restaurant and bar workers to come work for Amazon amid the coronavirus crisis.
• How the sports-betting industry is responding to the coronavirus pandemic that has halted most major sporting events.

John Hopkins University:

• Coronavirus Global Cases. (map)

BNO News:

• Tracking coronavirus: Map, data and timeline.

Google Docs:

• Coronavirus Testing by State.

Night Trading

• Asian indices are -7.5% to -5.5% on average.
• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 197.5 +3.0 basis points.
• China Sovereign CDS 70.0 +.5 basis point.
• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 57.91 -.50%.
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures -6.67%.
• S&P 500 futures -4.8%.
• NASDAQ 100 futures -4.5%.

Morning Preview Links

Earnings of Note

Company/Estimate

Before the Open:

• (REV)/-1.09

After the Close:

• None of note

Economic Releases
8:30 am EST

• The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for Feb.
  

Upcoming Splits

• None of note
  

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Eurozone Consumer Confidence report and the (EVBG) investor meeting could also impact trading today.

Market Hours
Normal:

• 9:30 am - 4:00 pm EST

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are sharply lower, weighed down by financial and commodity shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open sharply lower and to maintain losses into the afternoon.  The Portfolio is 25% net long heading into the week.