Katie Farmer, incoming CEO of BNSF Railway, told CNBC on Friday that her industry has clearly been impacted economically by the coronavirus pandemic, but there’s optimism on the horizon. “We have seen the economy start to pick up relative to rail loadings,” Farmer told “Squawk Box.”

By Steve Matthews (Bloomberg) — Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard, in the most upbeat comments by a central banker since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak, said the U.S. economy may surge at a 35% annualized rate in the third quarter and the nation may be close to a complete recovery by year-end. […]

By Vince Golle (Bloomberg) — U.S. business activity continued to expand at a solid clip in September, outpacing a stagnant Europe and capping a vigorous third-quarter rebound for the economy. The IHS Markit flash composite index of purchasing managers at manufacturers and service providers eased to 54.4 from a 17-month high of 54.6, the group reported Wednesday. Readings […]

(Bloomberg) — Johnson & Johnson has begun dosing up to 60,000 volunteers in a study of its Covid-19 vaccine, marking the first big U.S. trial of an inoculation that may work after just one shot. J&J became the fourth vaccine maker to move its candidate into late-stage human studies in the U.S. If enrollment goes as expected, the […]

By Robert Langreth Moderna, AstraZeneca plan to wait for more results to appear Vaccine protocols give detailed look at companies’ trials (Bloomberg) — The Covid-19 vaccine trial designed by Pfizer Inc. and its German partner BioNTech SE may allow them to find whether their shot works before their fastest-moving rivals. The companies plan a first look after a mere 32 […]

By Martin Z. Braun and Amanda Albright Revenue starting to rebound as nation emerges from lockdown Yet states still expect big shortfalls with Congress stalling (Bloomberg) — State tax revenues in some parts of the U.S. are rebounding as the economy emerges from the coronavirus lockdown, a positive sign for governors and mayors who had been bracing for […]

After a record-setting July, the housing market still shows no sign of cooling off. Sales of existing homes rose 2.4% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 6 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were 10.5% higher compared with August 2019. This is the highest sales pace since December 2006, before […]

The Conference Board leading economic indicator index shows that the economy may have recouped more than half of its lost output during the pandemic, which justifies the stock market rally to this point. From here, though, gains may be more challenging given the uncertainties of further fiscal stimulus and the upcoming presidential election. The recovery in the leading […]

By John Ainger Brighter U.S. inflation outlook is at odds with Europe, Japan Fed’s new target of 2% average price gains in traders’ focus (Bloomberg) — The U.S. is emerging as an early favorite in the all-out showdown to rekindle inflation in the world’s major economies. With the Federal Reserve planning to hold interest rates near […]

(Bloomberg) — In describing this year’s bifurcated stock market, pundits have often found it easier to offer labels than explanations. Tech is surging while banks fall. Growth is rising as value drops. Big companies thrive while small ones struggle. Each gets part of the story right. None quite names the organizing principle. Now, someone says […]