Monday Watch

Today's Headlines

Bloomberg:              

• U.S. Sees ‘Acute’ ISIS Threat at Kabul Airport, Biden Aide Says.
• G7 to Convene; Pentagon Drafts Airlines: Afghanistan Update.  
• German Exporters Face Rising Pressure From China in Home Market.    
• Xi Doubles Mentions of ‘Common Prosperity,’ Warning China’s Rich.
• China Plays the Long Game in Shift to ‘Cross-Cyclical’ Strategy.
• China Huarong Remains on CreditWatch at S&P Despite Bailout Deal. 
• Stocks Set to Climb After U.S. Rally on Dip Buying: Markets Wrap.
• Dubai Stocks Lead Mideast Gains; Saudi Shares Drop: Inside EM.   
• Brent Oil Edges Higher Following Worst Losing Streak Since 2018.  
• Powell Confronts Fed’s Taper Ambitions at Symposium: Eco Week.
• The Vaccinated Are Worried and Scientists Don’t Have Answers.
• Beating Back Delta Will Take Extra Covid Shot for Privileged Few.
• Southern New England Ports Shut as Hurricane Henri Approaches.  
• Small-Cap Biotech Stocks Play Catch Up With Industry Leaders.   
• Education Sector Sees Cyber Attacks Jump, Check Point Says.  
• Bitcoin Knocks on Door of $50,000 After Rising Above Resistance.   
• Dividends Roar Back With Janus Predicting Near-Record Payouts.  
• Powell’s Second-Term Chances Rise With Key Yellen Endorsement.

Wall Street Journal:

• What We Still Don’t Know About the Fed’s Bond-Buying Spree.
• Unemployment Benefits Forever?
• Cryptocurrency Miners Move Out of China.
• Remote Work May Last for Two Years, Worrying Some Bosses.
• Why Grocery Stores Don’t Have Everything You Want.
• For Buy Now, Pay Later, Investors Need to Shop For Best Deals.
• Solar Power Booms in Georgia, Where It Isn’t Mandated.
• Tropical Storm Henri Leaves Thousands Without Power.
• Dancing to the Taliban Timetable.
• All the President’s Yes-Men.
• America Looks More Like Europe All the Time.

Fox News:

• DAVIS HANSON: Amid mounting crises, there's only one reason this president hasn't been impeached yet.
• How this large veterans group is guiding interpreters around Taliban to safety.

NY Post: 

• US companies riddled with members of Chinese Communist Party: Devine. Boeing(BA), Qualcomm(QCOM) and Pfizer(PFE) are just three US companies that have employed dozens of CCP members in their Chinese facilities, the database reveals.

CNBC:

• President Biden’s job approval ratings drop as Covid cases rise and crisis in Afghanistan mounts.

Zero Hedge: 

• Biden Stands By Kabul Evacuation, Laughs When Confronted With Poll Suggesting Majority No Longer See Him As "Competent Or Effective".
• Taliban Reportedly Sets Woman On Fire Because They Were "Dissatisfied With Her Cooking".
• Connecticut Allows Patients, Their Doctors, & Local Health Officials To Access COVID-19 Vaccination Records.
• Australia Rethinks Covid Strategy After Cases Hit Record Despite Draconian Lockdowns.
• Taiwan Says China Is Trying To "Emulate" What The Taliban Did In Afghanistan.
• Sen. Joe Manchin Dares To Admit: "The Coal Industry Has To Be Saved".
• Biden Security Advisor Warns Of "Acute" Terror Risk At Kabul Airport As Blinken Says Americans On Their Own Getting There.
• "Ultimate Insult": Taliban Mocks Historic Iwo Jima Flag Raising Moment With Own Photo. 
• What If Everyone Actually Had To Work To Get Paid?
• US Warns American Citizens To Avoid Kabul Airport One Day After Biden Reassures That All Is Well.
• "Get Out Now" - Tropical Storm Henri To Make Imminent Landfall In Northeast.
• Delta Variant Fear-Mongering Begins To Dent Travel Industry.
• Luongo Warns "What Leverage Giveth On The Way Up, It Takes Away 10x Faster On The Way Down".
• The Dollar's Debt Trap.
• School Board Recall Attempts Surge in 2021 Amid COVID Closures & CRT Fears.
• Snyder: What Is America Going To Look Like If This Continues?
• LA Times Dubs CA Recall Frontrunner Larry Elder "The Black Face Of White Supremacy".
• Pentagon Confirms Americans Have Been Beaten In Afghanistan.
• Canadian Mortgage Debt Rises Fastest Since 2007.
• US Travel Agencies' Air Ticket Sales Again Surpass $4 Billion Despite Delta Fears.

MarketWatch.com:          

• Opinion: American consumers’ gray mood could put the S&P 500 in the green over the next 6 months.
  

NewsMax:

• Pentagon Drafts US Airlines to Help With Afghanistan Evacuees.
• 'Imbecilic': Ex-UK Leader Slams Biden's Afghan Withdrawal.
• Pompeo: Biden Creating 'Debacle of Significant Proportions'.

TheGatewayPundit.com: 

• Kamala Harris Laughs When Reporter Starts to Ask Her About Americans Trapped in Afghanistan (VIDEO).
• UPDATE: Only the Servants Wear Masks at Pelosi’s Chi-chi Napa Brunch (VIDEO).
• ‘Why is Biden Misleading Americans?’ – CNN’s Brianna Keilar Confronts Joe Biden’s Inept NatSec Advisor (VIDEO).
• Destroying the Economy – Democrat’s Hope to Pass $5.4 Trillion in New Spending And Yet the Debt Limit Is Not Addressed.
• Taliban Terrorists Take 20 Children Hostage — Give Fathers 4 Hours to Surrender or the Children Will Be Killed (VIDEO).
• “Utterly Horrendous… People Who Have Done Multiple Tours Say It’s the Worst Thing They Have Ever Seen – People Dying Outside Airport Gate” – Sky Reporter Tells of Horror Outside Airport (VIDEO).
• Former British Prime Minister Blasts Joe Biden for “Imbecilic” Withdrawal from Afghanistan – A “Tragic, Dangerous and Unnecessary” Plan.
• As Biden Continues Obama’s Plan to Close Gitmo, Hundreds of Former Detainees Have Returned to Terrorism and are Killing Americans Again.
• “A Failure Almost Impossible to Understand” – Actress Angelina Jolie Launches Instagram Account to Rip Joe Biden and Share Powerful Letter from Afghan Girl.
• More Election Fraud In the California Recall Election – Man Arrested with a Firearm, Drugs and Thousands of Ballots.

The Epoch Times:

• US Will Heighten Efforts to Counter China in Wake of Afghanistan, Experts Say.

Covid-19(Data, Maps, Graphs):

• Our World in Data:  New Global Covid-19 Cases(7-day rolling average graphs). New US Covid Hospital Admissions/ICU Admissions/Deaths
  
• FT.com:  Fully Vaccinated by Country(graph). Global Lockdown Stringency Index(map).
• Bloomberg.com:  International Travel Restrictions.  Case Graphs by State.
  
• NYTimes.com:  County Trends and Clusters. Local ICU Occupancy.
  
• Brown School of Public Health:  Covid Severity by State/County(map).  US Hospital Capacity(region).
  
• CovidActNow:  Covid Severity/Infection Rate by Metro Area.
  
• KFF:  US Vaccinations by Race/Ethnicity.
  
• Carnegie Mellon: Covid-Like Symptoms in Community. Covid Symptom Searches on Google. Covid-Related Dr.Visits.  Restaurant Visits. Wearing Masks. (graphs)
  
• Safegraph.com:  Commerce Patterns(graphs).

Night Trading

• Asian indices are +.5% to +1.0% on average.
• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 73.25 -.5 basis point.
• China Sovereign CDS 35.0 -.5 basis point.
• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 59.21 -.01%.
• Bloomberg Global Risk-On/Risk Off Index 2,448.0 +53.0 points.
• Volatility Index(VIX) futures 20.5 -.4%. 
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures +.35%.
• S&P 500 futures +.09%.
• NASDAQ 100 futures +.15%

Morning Preview Links

Earnings of Note

Company/Estimate

Before the Open:

• (JD)/2.23
• (TAL)/-.02
  

After the Close:

• (PANW)/1.44
  

Economic Releases

8:30 am EST

• The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for July.
  

9:45 am EST

• The Markit US Manufacturing PMI for August is estimated to fall to 62.5 versus 63.4 in July.
• The Markit US Services PMI for August is estimated to fall to 59.0 versus 59.9 in July.
  

10:00 am EST

• Existing Home Sales for July is estimated to fall to 5.83M versus 5.86M in June.

Upcoming Splits

• None of note
  

Other Potential Market Movers

• The Eurozone PMI report and the Eurozone IFO report could also impact trading today.

US Equity Market Hours

• 9:30 am - 4:00 pm EST

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are higher, boosted by technology and consumer shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to rally into the afternoon, finishing modestly higher.  The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the week.