Costco, Sam's Club and Best Buy are closed New Year's Day. But here is when Target, Walmart, Macy's are open Friday - Yahoo Finance

If you're looking to make your first purchase of 2021 in a store, take note of holiday store hours.

Many stores will operate with reduced hours Friday, which is typical for New Year's Day. Costco and Sam's Club wholesale clubs are both closed.

Unlike past years, Best Buy stores are closed for the hobut curbside pickup is open.

Semi-annual sales, many of which kicked off after Christmas, continue at Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, Tory Burch and several other stores, including luxury brands. Christmas clearance sales continue at other stores while supplies last.

But amid the coronavirus pandemic, expect stores to limit the number of shoppers allowed inside and require masks.

Here are New Year’s Day store hours for department stores, discount retailers and other major chains.

Store closings 2021: These are the most vulnerable major retailers of 2021 as pandemic continues

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New Year's Day store hours 2021

Check with your closest location to confirm hours, as they may vary. In most cases, store names below link to retailers' websites.

Academy Sports + Outdoors: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Apple: Special store hours are listed at www.apple.com/retail.

Athleta: Varies.

Banana Republic: Varies.

Barnes & Noble: Varies.

Bass Pro Shops: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Bath & Body Works: Varies.

Bealls Florida: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Bed Bath & Beyond: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Belk: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Best Buy: Stores closed but open for curbside pickup from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Big Lots: Regular hours.

BJ's Wholesale Club: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., but has a senior hour from 9 to 10 a.m.

Boscov’s: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Burlington: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

buybuy Baby: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Cabela’s: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Conn's HomePlus: 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Costco: Closed.

CVS: Most stores open regular hours New Year's Day, but several have special hours. Most pharmacies are closed.

Dick's Sporting Goods: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Dillard's: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Dollar General: Hours vary, most open regular hours.

Dollar Tree: Varies.

DSW: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Dunham’s Sports: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., mall stores follow mall hours.

Family Dollar: Varies.

Five Below: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Fleet Farm: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

GameStop: Closed.

Gap: Varies.

Guitar Center: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Hobby Lobby: 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Home Depot: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Home Goods: 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

IKEA: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

J.C. Penney: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Joann Stores: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Kirkland's: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Kohl's: Many stores close at 9 p.m. and open regular hours.

Lowe's: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Macy's: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Marshalls: 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Menards: 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Michaels: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack: Hours vary and posted at www.nordstrom.com.

Office Depot: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Old Navy: Hours vary, but many stores close at 6 or 7 p.m.

Party City: Noon to 5 p.m.

Petco: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

PetSmart: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Raymour & Flanigan: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

REI: Varies.

Rite-Aid: Hours vary.

Ross: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

rue21: Closes at 6 p.m.

Sally Beauty: Stores close at 6 p.m.

Sam's Club: Closed.

Shoe Carnival: Many stores close at 7 p.m.

Staples: Varies, most stores open Sunday hours for the holiday.

Target: Most open regular hours, which vary.

TJ Maxx: 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Ulta: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Walgreens: Most stores open regular hours New Year's Day, but several have special hours and most pharmacies are closed.

Walmart: Most open regular hours, which vary.

World Market: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Convenience stores open New Year's

The following chains have locations open Friday. Hours can vary.

Restaurants open New Year's Day 2021: Starbucks, McDonald's, Red Lobster, Taco Bell among chains open Friday

Got a gift card for Christmas?: Here's how to easily check the balance, protect it and other gift card tips

Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: New Year's Day 2021 store hours: Best Buy closed; Marshalls, Ross open

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NYSE to delist 3 biggest Chinese telecoms to comply with Trump executive order - MarketWatch

The New York Stock Exchange announced late Thursday it has begun delisting proceedings the three largest Chinese telecommunications companies in order to comply with an executive order by President Donald Trump targeting companies affiliated with China’s military.

Trading of American depositary shares of China Mobile Ltd. CHL, China Telecom Corp. Ltd. CHA and China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. CHU will be suspended Jan. 7, unless it can be confirmed that trades executed Jan. 7 and Jan. 8 will be executed, in which case trading...

The New York Stock Exchange announced late Thursday it has begun delisting proceedings the three largest Chinese telecommunications companies in order to comply with an executive order by President Donald Trump targeting companies affiliated with China’s military.

Trading of American depositary shares of China Mobile Ltd. CHL , China Telecom Corp. Ltd. CHA and China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. CHU will be suspended Jan. 7, unless it can be confirmed that trades executed Jan. 7 and Jan. 8 will be executed, in which case trading will be suspended Jan. 11, the NYSE said. The NYSE said it will provide further information as available.

The NYSE said it will apply to the Securities and Exchange Commission to delist the stocks upon completion of the proceedings, including any potential appeals.

Trump signed the order Nov. 12, banning Americans from investing in a handful of Chinese companies that the U.S. claim support or supply the Chinese military.

The three companies dominate China’s mobile business. China Mobile is China’s largest telecom company, and has a market cap of about $116 billion. It has been listed on the NYSE since its blockbuster, $4.2 billion IPO in 1997. China Telecom has been listed on the NYSE since 2002, and has a market cap of about $22.5 billion. China Unicom has been listed by the NYSE since 2000, with a current market cap of about $18 billion.

All three companies are also listed in Hong Kong.

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NYSE to Delist Chinese Telco Giants on U.S. Executive Order - Bloomberg

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg

The New York Stock Exchange said it will delist three Chinese corporations to comply with a U.S. executive order that imposed restrictions on companies identified as affiliated with the Chinese military.

China Mobile Ltd., China Telecom Corp Ltd., China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd. will be suspended from trading between Jan. 7 and Jan. 11, and proceedings to delist them have started, according to a statement by the exchange.

Quantitative hedge fund managers including Renaissance Technologies LLC, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP and Two Sigma Investments LP were among the largest holders in these U.S. listings but the stakes they held at the end of September were small, 13F filings show.

The three Chinese companies have separate listings in Hong Kong. All generate the entirety of their revenue in China and have no meaningful presence in the U.S. except for their listings there. Their shares are also thinly traded on the New York Stock Exchange compared to their primary listings in Hong Kong, making this NYSE delisting more of a symbolic blow amid heightened geopolitical friction between the U.S. and China.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order in November barring American investments in Chinese firms owned or controlled by the military, in a bid to pressure Beijing over what it views as abusive business practices. The order prohibited U.S. investors from buying and selling shares in a list of Chinese companies designated by the Pentagon as having military ties.

Vowed to Protect

The Chinese Foreign Ministry later accused the U.S. of “viciously slandering” its military-civilian integration policies and vowed to protect the country’s companies. Chinese officials have also threatened to respond to previous Trump administration actions with their own blacklist of U.S. companies.

The executive order has resulted in a series of companies being removed from indexes compiled by MSCI Inc., S&P Dow Jones Global Indices and FTSE Russell.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission in May barred China Mobile from operating in the U.S. In December, it ordered carriers to remove equipment made by Huawei Technologies Co., and begun looking into whether China Telecom should be allowed to operate in the country. China Telecom’s U.S. unit told the FCC in a June 8 filing that it’s an independent business based in the U.S. and not subject to Chinese government control.

FCC Moves Against China Telecom and Huawei, Citing Security

Global exchanges, including NYSE and Nasdaq Inc., courted Chinese companies during the past decade as they attempted to expand their IPO business, particularly in the internet sector. In response, Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd. changed its rules in recent years to lure back listings, including allowing share sales by companies with weighted voting rights -- strengthening the power of company founders at the expense of weaker protections for minority investors.

Companies including e-commerce giants Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and JD.Com Inc., which already had listings in New York, conducted secondary listings in Hong Kong in the past two years as tensions between the U.S. and China intensified on a range of issues including trade and the novel coronavirus.

(Adds context throughout.)

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New Year’s Day 2021: What’s open, what’s closed on Friday? Banks, UPS, mail delivery, stock markets, stores, - NJ.com

New Year’s Day 2021 is on Friday, Jan. 1.

Traditions include attending parties (socially distanced this year), watching fireworks and college football bowl games, and making resolutions for the new year.

In 46 B.C., emperor Julius Caesar initiated Jan. 1 as the first day of the year. It was partly to honor the month’s namesake, Janus, the Roman god of beginnings. Pope Gregory XIII reestablished Jan. 1 as New Year’s Day in 1582.

Here is everything you need to know about what’s open and what’s closed on New Year’s Day 2021.

Is New Year’s Day a federal holiday?

New Year’s Day is the first federal and state holiday of the year.

Is there mail delivery on New Year’s Day 2021? Will the mail run?

There will be no regular mail delivered on New Year’s Day, nor will there be UPS or FedEx delivery (except FedEx Custom Critical and UPS Express Critical).

However, the United States Postal Service website notes that Priority Mail Express mail will be delivered on New Year’s Day.

Is the post office open on New Year’s Day 2021?

United States Postal Service offices will be closed, though self-service kiosks are still available at some locations for drop-offs.

Are banks open on New Year’s Day 2021?

No. The following banks are scheduled to be closed for New Year’s Day:

Are the stock markets open on New Year’s Day 2021?

No. Stock markets will be closed on New Year’s Day. Nasdaq trading and bond markets will also be closed.

What stores are open on New Year’s Day 2021? When do stores close?

Here is a list of many popular retailers that are confirmed to be open on New Year’s Day 2021, along with their stores hours, according to Offers.com, Good Housekeeping, Country Living and USA Today:

• Apple (varies by store)
• Barnes and Noble (varies by store)
• Bass Pro Shops (9 a.m. - 9 p.m.)
• Bed Bath & Beyond (10 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Best Buy (10 a.m. - 8 p.m.)
• BJ’s Wholesale Club (10 a.m. - 7 p.m.)
• Boscov’s (10 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• CVS (varies by store/pharmacy)
• Dick’s Sporting Goods (9 a.m. - 7 p.m.)
• Dollar Tree (varies by store)
• Gap (varies by store)
• Hobby Lobby (9 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.)
• Home Depot (9 a.m. - 8 p.m.)
• Ikea (10 a.m. - 9 p.m.)
• JCPenney (11 a.m. - 7 p.m.)
• Kohl’s (9 a.m. - 10 p.m.; may vary by store)
• Lowe’s (9 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Macy’s (11 a.m. - 9 p.m.)
• Marshalls (9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Michaels (10 a.m. - 7 p.m.)
• Nordstrom (10 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Office Depot (11 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Old Navy (varies by store)
• Petco (10 a.m. - 7 p.m.)
• PetSmart (10 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Rite Aid (varies by store/pharmacy)
• Starbucks (varies by location)
• Target (8 a.m. - 10 p.m.)
• TJ Maxx (9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Ulta (10 a.m. - 6 p.m.)
• Walgreens (varies by store/pharmacy)
• Walmart (closes at 10 p.m. or 11 p.m.; may vary by store)

Are there any online shopping sales for New Year’s Day 2021?

Yes, there are still tons of deals being offered online as the holiday season starts to officially come to an end. Many online retailers are marketing the deals as end-of-2020 or beginning-of-2021 clearance sales.

Here are just a few of the more popular ones out there right now:

Will grocery stores be open on New Year’s Day 2021?

Many supermarkets will be open, while some will be closed. Shoppers should ultimately check with their local supermarket for specific information.

The following major supermarkets will be open on New Year’s Day:

• Acme (8 a.m. - 9 p.m.)
• BJ’s Wholesale Club (10 a.m. - 7 p.m.)
• Foodtown (varies by store)
• ShopRite (varies by store)
• Stop & Shop (regular hours)
• Target (8 a.m. - 10 p.m.)
• Walmart (regular hours)
• Wegmans (regular hours)
• Whole Foods (9 a.m. – 8 p.m.)

The following major supermarkets will be closed on New Year’s Day:

Are restaurants open on New Year’s Day 2021? Is McDonald’s open? Is Starbucks open?

Many local and chain restaurants should be open on New Year’s Day if you want to grab some takeout.

McDonald’s hours will vary by location on New Year’s Day, according to a report by Good Housekeeping. Dunkin’, Denny’s, Starbucks, IHOP, Panda Express and Sonic restaurants will also be open, the report says.

Are malls open on New Year’s Day 2021?

All malls should be open, along with most major shopping centers, according to HolidayShoppingHours.com.

Are New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission locations open on New Year’s Day 2021?

Motor Vehicle Commission offices will not be open on New Year’s Day. Online processing of some documents are available on Motor Vehicle Commission’s website.

Additionally, all New Jersey state offices and courts will be closed.

Does NJ Transit, PATH and SEPTA operate on a normal schedule?

NJ Transit will operate on a Sunday schedule, while PATH will operate on a Saturday schedule. SEPTA will operate on a Sunday schedule. For NJ Transit, riders should use NJ Transit’s online trip planner to double-check arrival and departure times.

When is the next federal holiday?

The next federal holiday is Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 18.

For more information about the history of New Year’s Day, check out the video below:

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Nicolette Accardi can be reached at naccardi@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter: @N_Accardi. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips

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Federal government reverses course on charging distilleries $14,000 for making emergency hand sanitizers - Fox Business

FOX Business’ Kristina Partsinevelos reports on how the alcohol industry and small craft distilleries are being hit by the coronavirus outbreak and potential increased prices next year.

Distilleries that made hand sanitizer amid a shortage earlier this year were shocked to learn this week that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was slapping them with a $14,060 fee, but in a reversal Thursday night, the Department of Health and Human Services directed the FDA to cease enforcement of the fees.

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"Small businesses who stepped up to fight COVID-19 should be applauded by their government, not taxed for doing so," HHS Chief of Staff Brian Harrison said in a statement.

"I’m pleased to announce we have directed FDA to cease enforcement of these arbitrary, surprise user fees. Happy New Year, distilleries, and cheers to you for helping keep us safe!”

CEO OF BREWDOG OFFERING BARS AS COVID-19 VACCINATION VENUES

Workers bottle hand sanitizer produced by J. Rieger and Co., a Kansas City, Mo. distillery, March 20. People waited as long as two hours to buy the sanitizer, made from overproof gin, in response to the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

The coronavirus pandemic caused a shortage of hand sanitizer earlier this year, so hundreds of distilleries across the country stepped up and transitioned their production lines to hand sanitizer to fill the gaps.

But on Tuesday, the FDA announced those companies must pay a $14,060 fee for making the hand sanitizer under a newly rolled out “OTC monograph drug user fee program," which was established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act in March.

30 DAY FUND FOUNDERS PLEDGE $1 MILLION TO BARSTOOL FUND FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

"This unexpected fee serves to punish already struggling distilleries who jumped in at a time of need to do the right thing,” Distilled Spirits Council President and CEO Chris Swonger said before the reversal.

A spokesperson for the FDA told Fox News earlier Thursday that these "user fees will provide additional resources to help the agency conduct our important regulatory activities in a timelier manner and ultimately help provide the public with access to innovative OTC monograph drugs."

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But distillery owners couldn't believe the surprise fee after an already tough year that has crushed the bottom line.

“After all of that, you’re coming to us and telling us we owe you money? And it’s the same for the folks that made hundreds of thousands of bottles as the folks that made 100? There’s small distilleries that didn’t even make $15,000 in revenue this year," Jason Barrett, owner of Black Button Distilling in New York, told WXXI.

Fox News' Constance McDonough contributed to this report. 

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Dow, S&P 500 close out historic 2020 at records; Nasdaq Composite clinches best annual return in 11 years - MarketWatch

Microsoft Says SolarWinds Hackers Also Broke Into Its Source Code - Gizmodo

Photo: Jeenah Moon (Getty Images)

The hackers behind the massive SolarWinds cyberattack, an operation allegedly backed by Russia that compromised networks at many U.S. agencies and Fortune 500 corporations, also broke into Microsoft’s internal systems and accessed one of the company’s most closely guarded secrets: its source code.

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“We detected unusual activity with a small number of internal accounts and upon review, we discovered one account had been used to view source code in a number of source code repositories,” said the Microsoft Security Response Center team in a blog post on Thursday.

Microsoft had previously confirmed that it, like the scores of other cyberattack victims, unknowingly downloaded malicious code hidden in SolarWinds’ popular network management tool Orion Platform. But Thursday’s disclosure is its first admission that hackers accessed internal company systems.

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Exactly what portions of Microsoft’s source code repositories the hackers managed to get their hands on remains unclear. Three people briefed on the matter told Reuters that Microsoft has known for days that its source code was breached. When reached for comment on the matter, a Microsoft spokesperson told the outlet that its security team was working “around the clock” and that “when there is actionable information to share, they have published and shared it.”

The company said Thursday that the compromised account was only able to view Microsoft’s source code as it did not have the necessary permissions to tamper with it. While its internal investigation is still ongoing, Microsoft said it has so far found “no evidence of access to production services or customer data” and “no indications that our systems were used to attack others.”

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While hackers may not have been able to change Microsoft’s source code, even just sneaking a peek at the company’s secret sauce could have disastrous consequences. Bad actors could use that kind of insight into the inner workings of Microsoft’s services to help them circumvent its security measures in future attacks. The hackers essentially scored blueprints on how to potentially hack Microsoft products.

Experts believe that the state-sponsored Russian group known as ATP 29 infiltrated SolarWinds as early as 2019, but the attack went under the radar until earlier this month. The team of highly sophisticated hackers reportedly used malware tucked away on the Texas-based software company’s product that could quietly harvest user data such as internal correspondence, keystrokes, and credentials.

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According to SolarWinds, more than half of its 33,000 Orion customers may have been infected. Its clientele includes the Departments of Homeland Security, State, and Treasury among dozens of other federal agencies as well as three-fourths of the corporations on the Fortune 500 list. Federal investigations remain ongoing and the scope of the attack is still being uncovered, as Microsoft’s latest disclosure illustrates.

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5 things to know before the stock market opens Thursday - CNBC

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

• Last trading day of 2020 on Wall Street
• Jobless claims come in below estimates
• Europe shares post yearly losses of 3.8%
• California has identified first case of new Covid strain found in U.K.
• U.S. slaps tariffs on French and German wines, aircraft parts

1. Last trading day of 2020 on Wall Street

Ornaments on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) holiday tree at Wall Street on December 9, 2020 in New York City.

Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images

The stock market is poised to wrap up a tumultuous 2020 that showed surprisingly strong gains.

Stock futures were mixed Thursday. Heading into the final session of 2020, the S&P 500 has risen 15.5% after soaring 70% from its March pandemic low. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 6.6% year to date, while the Nasdaq Composite has rallied more than 43% as investors favored high-growth technology companies during the pandemic.

2. Jobless claims come in below estimates

A help wanted sign is posted at a taco stand in Solana Beach, California.

Mike Blake | Reuters

The number of first-time unemployment-benefits filers totaled 787,000 for the week ending Dec. 26, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists polled by Dow Jones were expecting 828,000.

Still, the number remained well above pre-pandemic levels. Those receiving benefits under all unemployment programs dropped by nearly 800,000 to 19.6 million, but that compares with 1.8 million a year ago.

3. Europe shares post yearly losses of 3.8%

A European Union (EU) flies alongside a British Union flag, also known as a Union Jack in London.

Jason Alden | Bloomberg Creative Photos | Getty Images

European markets, which closed early on Thursday, logged modest losses for 2020. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed 0.14% lower on New Year's Eve after a shorter trading session, bringing its 2020 losses to 3.8%. The worst-performing market in the region has been Spain's IBEX, down 15% this year.

4. California has identified its first case of mutant Covid strain found in U.K.

Gavin Newsom, governor of California, speaks during a news conference in Sacramento, California

Rich Pedroncelli | Bloomberg | Getty Images

California health officials have identified the state's first case of a new and more infectious strain of Covid-19 that was initially discovered in the United Kingdom. The patient is a 30-year-old man in San Diego County who began showing symptoms on Sunday, county officials confirmed Wednesday.

"I don't think that the Californians should feel that this is something odd. This is something that's expected," White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday during a live Q&A session with California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Fauci said other states will likely soon identify their own cases of the new strain. The first confirmed case of the strain in the United States was found in Colorado, the state announced Tuesday.

5. U.S. slaps tariffs on French and German wines, aircraft parts

Qantas A380 taking off on runway in Saxony, Dresden on Aug. 21, 2020

Tino Plunert | picture alliance | Getty Images

U.S. trade officials said Wednesday they were hiking tariffs on certain European Union products, including aircraft-related parts and wines from France and Germany.

The move came amid a 16-year U.S.-EU dispute over civil aviation subsidies involving European aircraft company Airbus and its U.S.-based rival Boeing.

In a statement, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said the EU had unfairly calculated tariffs against the U.S. that are allowed by a September World Trade Organization ruling in the ongoing dispute: "The EU needs to take some measure to compensate for this unfairness."

— Follow all the developments on Wall Street in real time with CNBC Pro's live markets blog. Get the latest on the pandemic with our coronavirus blog.

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Unemployment benefit claims unexpectedly fall as coronavirus lockdowns widen - Fox Business

Trump economic adviser and FreedomWorks economist Stephen Moore shares his take on the latest stimulus package.

The number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits fell last week amid a rise in COVID-19 infections and new restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the disease.

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Data released Thursday by the Labor Department showed 787,000 Americans filed first-time jobless claims in the week ended Dec. 26, fewer than the 833,000 that analysts surveyed by Refinitiv were expecting. The prior week's reading was revised higher by 3,000 to 806,000.

LAST-MINUTE STIMULUS CHECKS SET TO JUICE US ECONOMY: GOLDMAN SACHS

The number of new claims, which fell to the lowest level in a month, is almost four times pre-crisis levels, but well below the nearly 7 million filings that were recorded when lockdowns were first ordered in March. About 70 million Americans, or 40% of the labor force, have filed for unemployment benefits at some point during the pandemic.

The number of people continuing to receive unemployment benefits fell to 5.219 million versus the 5.39 million that analysts were anticipating. A downwardly revised 5.322 million Americans remained on unemployment benefits in the week ended Dec. 19.

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Thursday's report comes days after President Trump signed a $900 billion aid package that through March extends an additional $300 per week in unemployment benefits. The deal also provides Paycheck Protection Program loans to small businesses and a $600 direct payment to most Americans, among other things.

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Weekly jobless claims fall for a second straight week - CNBC

The number of people filing for unemployment benefits for the first time unexpectedly fell last week, marking its second straight decline.

Initial jobless claims declined by 19,000 to 787,000 in the week ended Dec. 26, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected initial jobless claims to rise to 828,000. The previous week's total for initial claims was upwardly revised by 3,000 to 806,000.

Continuing claims, which include those who have received unemployment benefits for at least two straight weeks, fell by 103,000 to 5.219 million for the week of Dec. 19. Data on continuing claims runs on a one-week lag to the initial claims numbers.

The number of people receiving benefits across all unemployment programs dropped by 800,000 to 19.6 million.

The four-week moving average for first-time filers rose by 17,750 to 836,750, signaling the labor market is still under pressure as the coronavirus pandemic rages on.

"There is no real improvement in the data," John Ryding, an economic advisor at Brean Capital, told CNBC's "Squawk Box." "What we're seeing is a very difficult time in the economy with the virus pickup that we have seen and the slow rollout of the vaccination."

The U.S. is recording at least 181,998 new coronavirus cases each day, based on a seven-day average calculated by CNBC using Johns Hopkins University data. The country's Covid hospitalization rate has also shot up, topping 125,000 for the first time.

"There is good news ahead, but you can't see it in these numbers," said Ryding. "That good news is going to come at the point where there are enough [vaccine] shots in people's arms and we approach something like herd immunity. That's not going to be, unfortunately, until the summer."

U.S. lawmakers recently approved a $900 billion Covid stimulus package that includes direct payments of $600 to most Americans. This week, the House passed a measure that would hike those payments to $2,000, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked it.

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U.K. health service pushes back interval for delivering second Pfizer coronavirus vaccine to a duration company says is untested - MarketWatch

Hedge fund Alden Global offers to buy Tribune Publishing - CNBC

A Chicago Tribune newspaper vending machine or "honor box" sits on a sidewalk in Chicago, Illinois.

Christopher Dilts | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Tribune Publishing's largest shareholder, Alden Global Capital, said on Thursday it had offered to take full control of the owner of the Chicago Tribune in a deal that values the company at $520.6 million.

Alden, known for its hostile takeover bids of publishing companies, has a stake of 32% stake in Tribune.

The hedge fund's offer valued the newspaper chain at $14.25 per share, representing a premium of 11.4% to the company's shares last closing price.

The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the potential deal, said the hedge fund grabbed a third seat on the Chicago Tribune publisher's board in July in exchange for an agreement to extend a standstill deal preventing Alden from increasing its stake or making a hostile bid for Tribune until after June 2021.

Tribune did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The newspaper chain, owner of the New York Daily News and the Baltimore Sun, has seen a decline in revenue this year as the Covid-19 pandemic hammers the publishing industry.

A study published last month found that print newspapers saw a decline in their overall consumer reach amid the health crisis.

Commercial news media are the hardest hit by the pandemic, especially those that are advertising-based, as well as newspapers and local media, according to the findings of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, a research center at the University of Oxford that tracks media trends.

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Low-wage workers in 20 states will see a pay raise on New Year's Day - CBS News

Workers in 20 states will get a pay hike on January 1 when the minimum wage increases, thanks to cost-of-living adjustments and other scheduled increases. Later in the year, another four states and Washington, D.C. will raise their baseline pay, which means that low-wage workers in almost half the nation could see higher pay next year. 

The pay hikes come as the federal minimum wage, which hasn't seen an increase for more than 11 years, remains mired at $7.25 an hour — the longest span the baseline wage has gone without an increase since it began in 1938. At the same time, workers across the nation are struggling amid an economic recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic, which continues to spread unabated.

A higher minimum wage could help those workers regain their financial footing, especially so-called essential workers such as grocery clerks and home health aides, whose jobs have helped keep the economy humming during the crisis yet whose earnings are among the lowest. Critics claim higher minimum wages can hurt the labor market by depressing job creation — yet recent economic research hasn't found support for that claim. Instead, advocates say a higher minimum wage helps the economy by putting more money in the pockets of workers who tend to spend it on local businesses and and services.

The wage hikes in 2021 "are an indication that people understand how much the $7.25 federal minimum wage keeps people in poverty," said Holly Sklar, the CEO of Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, a network of business owners and organizations that advocates for a higher minimum wage. 

Sklar added, "Consumer spending drives our economy, and boosting the minimum wage is a powerful way to boost the economy."

$600 is also 83 hours working min wage full-time. Try surviving on that.

The $7.25 min wage hasn't grown since 2009. Cost of living since then is up 21%.

In 1980, the minimum wage equaled $10.37 in today's dollars.

It's not hard to stimulate the economy. Pay people more.

— Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) December 24, 2020

Some businesses say higher wages pay off long-term by decreasing turnover and creating higher satisfaction on the job. 

"The direct costs of turnover are obvious — recruitment, interviewing, training," Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks, the CEO of ECOS, which makes ecological cleaning products, told CBS MoneyWatch. "The indirect costs are less obvious, but they're significant, and I think highly underestimated."

After her company boosted its starting wage to $17 an hour in 2014, its voluntary turnover decreased 50% from 3% to 1.5%, she noted. "We have employees who have been with our company 20, even 30 years," Vlahakis-Hanks added.

Lost buying power

Since the last federal minimum wage hike — to $7.25 an hour, starting July 24, 2009 — the cost of living has increased more than 20%, while the price of essentials such as housing and health care have increased even faster. That's created financial pain for many low-paid workers, who increasingly are paying a bigger share of their earnings toward housing and other expenses. 

About half of all renters are "cost burdened," meaning they pay more than 30% of their income toward housing, according to Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies. After paying their rent, people who earn less than $15,000 a year have about $410 left each month for food, transportation, health care and other essentials, the study noted.

The minimum wage "came into being to help us recover from the Great Depression," Sklar noted. "It has a dual purpose: mitigating poverty for workers and boosting consumer spending." 

Which states are raising the minimum wage in 2021?

Michigan is expected to keep its minimum wage at $9.65 on January 1, according to the National Federation of Independent Businesses, a trade group. That's because of a law that prohibits wage increases if the state's annual unemployment rate for the preceding calendar year is higher than 8.5%. 

Through October, the jobless rate in the state has averaged 10.2%, which means it's unlikely to drop below 8.5% before the end of the year, the trade group noted. Michigan otherwise would have increased its minimum wage to $9.87. 

Below are the names and new pay rates of states boosting their minimum wage in 2021:

• Alaska, to $10.34 an hour on January 1
• Arizona, to $12.15 an hour on January 1
• Arkansas, to $11 an hour on January 1
• California, to $14 on January 1
• Colorado, to $12.32 on January 1
  
• Connecticut, to $13 on August 1
  
• Florida, to $8.65 on January 1
  
• Illinois, to $11 on January 1
• Maine, to $12.15
• Maryland, to $11.75 on January 1 
• Massachusetts, to $13.50 on January 1
• Minnesota, to $10.08 for employers with an annual gross revenue of at least $500,000 and $8.21 for employers with less than $500,000, on January 1
  
• Missouri, to $10.30 on January 1
• Montana, to $8.75 on January 1
• Nevada, to either $8.75 or $9.75 on July 1, with the higher rate effective for employers who don't provide health insurance to workers
• New Jersey, to $12 on January 1
• New Mexico, to $10.50 on January 1
• New York State, to $12.50 on December 31, 2020, while Long Island and Westchester will increase to $14 on December 31, 2020
• Ohio, to $8.80 on January 1
  
• Oregon, to $12 on July 1, although it will increase to $13.25 for the Portland region and to $11.50 in non-urban counties
• South Dakota, to $9.45 on January 1
• Vermont, to $11.75 on January 1
• Virginia, to $9.50 on May 1
• Washington state, to $13.69 on January 1
• Washington, D.C. will increase its $15 per-hour minimum wage in July to adjust for the change in the cost of living for the previous 12 months

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These 20 states are increasing their minimum wage by Jan. 1 - The Denver Channel

Employees in 20 states are about to see a pay increase as minimum wage rates are set to increase by Friday.

The bump in pay comes as part of a previously-scheduled effort to adjust for cost-of-living gains -- or to ratchet up toward goals like $15 an hour minimum wage, CNN reported.

According to payroll experts at Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory U.S., Connecticut, Florida, Nevada, Oregon, and Virginia will raise their minimum wage later in the year.

On Thursday, New York is slated to increase its minimum wage by 70 cents to $12.50.

In California, employees who work at a company that has 26 or more employees will see their rate rise from $13 to $14 an hour.

In New Mexico, the minimum wage will increase from $9 an hour to $10.50.

In Minnesota, the minimum wage is gaining 8 cents to $10.08.

According to Paycor, Georgia and Wyoming are the two states with the lowest minimum wage with $5.15. But since employers in those states are subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act, Georgia and Wyoming must still pay their employees the $7.25 Federal minimum wage.

The federal minimum wage became effective July 24, 2009, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

The state with the highest minimum wage applying to all companies is Washington at $13.69.

Below is the complete list of all 24 states who are set to increase minimum wage in their state effective Jan. 1 (unless otherwise noted):

Alaska - $10.34
Arizona - $12.15
Arkansas - $11
California - $14
Colorado - $12.32
Connecticut - $12 to $13 effective August 1, 2021
Florida - $8.56 to $8.65 by Jan. 1. $8.65 to $10 effective September 30, 2021
Illinois - $11
Maine - $12.15
Maryland - $11.75
Massachusetts - $13.50
Minnesota - $10.08
Missouri - $10.30
Montana - $8.75
Nevada - $9 to $9.75 effective July 1, 2021
New Jersey - $12
New Mexico - $10.50
New York - $11.80 to $12.50 effective Dec. 31, 2020
Ohio - $8.80
Oregon - $13.25 to $14 effective July 1, 2021
South Dakota - $9.45
Vermont - $11.75
Virginia - $7.25 to $9.50 effective May 1, 2021
Washington - $13.69

According to President-elect Joe Biden's Empower Worker initiative, he will try to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.

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Chinese Tech Stocks Are in Hot Water. It May Not Last. - Barron's

A worker collects a package delivered by an automated conveyer belt at a JD.com distribution center in Beijing on July 16, 2020.

GREG BAKER/AFP/Getty Images

It’s not just Jack Ma’s problem. China’s regulatory salvos at the Chinese billionaire’s companies, Alibaba Group Holding (ticker: BABA) and Ant Group, may look like a personal vendetta after Ma likened the state banking establishment to pawn brokers.

But they likely mark the start of a broader campaign to rein in China’s e-commerce and fintech industries, home to many of the biggest and hottest emerging markets stocks. Investor favorites like social media giant Tencent Holdings (700:Hong Kong) and food delivery hero Meituan (3690:Hong Kong) could be in for a wing clipping in 2021.

“There are a lot of unknown unknowns,” says Zoe Zuo, a global equity analyst at Ivy Investments. “It could take a few quarters to understand what the government’s new tack really means.”

The tack in question was signaled in November, when authorities issued Guidelines for Anti-Monopoly in the Platform Economy.  The vague principles therein took some shape last week with an investigation of Alibaba for leaning on merchants to sell exclusively through its sites. 

Also in November, China’s bosses slammed the brakes on the fintechs growing out of the internet platform companies. They canceled Ant Group’s IPO days before it was poised to become the world’s most valuable financial company.  

Tencent founder Pony Ma (no relation to Jack) has avoided his rival’s lese majeste. But his firm’s financial services arm is nearly as big as Ant, and likely to attract its own official scrutiny, says Vivian Lin Thurston, portfolio manager of the China A shares growth strategy at William Blair.

Meituan, whose threefold stock surge this year has made it the No. 5 name in global emerging markets, may draw regulators’ ire for gaining customers at loss-making prices, another practice regulators have flagged as monopolistic, says Brian Bandsma, an emerging markets portfolio manager at Vontobel Quality Growth. “It sounds like they may put limits on companies using their balance sheets to compete,” he says.     

Markets are also picking some winners from China’s crackdown on the platform economy, namely Alibaba’s smaller e-commerce competitors JD.com (JD) and Pinduoduo (PDD). Both stocks have surged while Alibaba’s slid 7% over the past week. That’s a shaky bet, Zuo thinks. “What’s happening will have implications for every company,” she says.

All the more so as China’s online growth juggernaut shows signs of decelerating. China’s apparent quelling of Covid-19 has been (relatively) bad for internet business. Goods sales, which were surging near 25% year-on-year over the summer, have subsided to 16% since August. With Chinese online sales approaching one quarter of all retail, the curve will flatten further, Thurston predicts. “E-commerce growth is peaking,” she says. “The bigger opportunity was online financial services.” Until it wasn’t. 

The good news is investors have a rough playbook at this point for Chinese regulatory offensives.  Beijing overhauled the rules on internet gaming in 2018 and online education in 2019, stunting some stocks’ growth but leaving flourishing industries basically intact. 

The Communist Party’s fear of Alibaba or Tencent’s power is tempered by pride in their achievements, Thurston says. “They want to use the industry to leapfrog in financial services, but the Ant Group IPO made them realize how huge it had gotten,” she says. “It’s a balancing act.”

There should still be juice left in the stocks, too. “We’ve seen this happen before in different shapes and forms,” says Danton Goei, global portfolio manager at Davis Advisors. “The shares are still attractive.” Just mind the bumps.

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