- The US expects to begin Covid-19 vaccinations by December 11
- Biden will reveal part of his cabinet members tomorrow
- US economy forecast from J.P.Morgan
THE US Expects of Begin Covid-19 Vaccinations by December 11
In the news, it was stated that the coronavirus vaccine developed by the Pfizer company with German BionTech is expected to be approved in less than a week.
In the USA, the coronavirus vaccination could be started on December 11. Dr. Moncef Slaoui told CNN television that they plan to move the vaccine to the areas where it will be used within 24 hours after the vaccine is approved. It was announced that the government plans to begin the the vaccination by December 11, and to vaccinate all adults in the country by April. It was stated that the vaccination first is planned to be used for elderly and employees in the risk group. Afterwards, it will be used for people between the ages of 18 to 50.
On Friday, an application was filed with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the approval of the Covid-19 vaccine produced by Pfizer and BionTech companies, which should be injected in two doses.
The vaccine, which is stated to be 95 percent effective, is aimed to produce 50 million doses by the end of the year. Speaking to CNN, Dr. Moncef Slaoui said that within 1-2 days after approval they can start using vaccinations. He also added that that the vaccine will be distributed according to the population of each state, and that each state will decide who should be vaccinated in the first place.
It is expected that priority will be given to those at greatest risk, such as the elderly and healthcare workers.
The company called Moderna also announced that the vaccine they developed was 95 percent effective, and stated that they expect to get approval for the vaccine in the coming weeks.
Biden Will Reveal Part of His Cabinet Members Tomorrow
It was stated that Joe Biden, who was elected as the next President of the United States, in the November 3rd election, will announce the election of a cabinet member on Tuesday.
The statement came from Ron Klain, who will serve as the General Secretary of the White House during the Biden term.
He said that: “You will see the first cabinet elections on Tuesday. But you will have to wait until Tuesday’s announcement by the elected president to find out which units and who they are.”
Biden had stated that he would create an administration reflecting the diversity of the country.
Joe Biden even said last week that he had named the Minister of Finance.
At the press conference where Biden made his statement on the topic, he said, “We made that decision, I think he is someone who will be accepted by all the elements of the Democratic Party, including the innovative and moderates.
For the Ministry of Finance, former Central Bank Governor Janet Yellen, Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard and Atlanta Central Bank Governor Raphael Bostic are mentioned.
Bloomberg and The New York Times report that Biden will appoint longtime foreign policy adviser Antony Blinken as foreign minister. To be mentioned that, Blinken was the deputy foreign minister under the former US president Barack Obama.
Jake Sullivan, a former deputy of the former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton, is expected to be announced as Biden’s national security advisor.
The US Economy Forecast from J.P.Morgan
JPMorgan became the first major bank to forecast the US economy to contract in the first quarter of 2021 due to the increase in coronavirus cases and related restrictions being imposed by states and cities.
Expecting 2.8 percent growth in the 4th quarter of 2020, JPMorgan predicted that the US economy would contract by 1% in the first quarter, depending on the increase in the number of cases and the measures implemented. Forecasting a 4.5% growth in the second quarter of 2021, JPMorgan revealed its expectation of 6.5% growth for the third quarter. These expectations are based on the positive vaccine developments.
JPMorgan economists also stated that they expect a coronavirus aid package of around $1 trillion in the US to be activated towards the end of the first quarter of 2021.
The economists talked about the issue: “One thing that is unlikely to change between 2020 and 2021 is that the virus will continue to dominate the economic outlook. Case counts in the latest wave are easily surpassing the March and July waves.”
They noted that the economy was helped through the July outbreak by the economic reopenings.
added that: “The economy no longer has that tailwind; instead it now faces the headwind of increasing restrictions on activity. The holiday season — from Thanksgiving through New Year’s — threatens a further increase in cases.”
