The road to long-term investment success runs through risk control more than through aggressiveness. — Howard Marks

1. Apple Seeing Strong iPhone 12 Pro Orders in All Markets — prominent analyst reported that wait times are longer for the iPhone 12 Pro than the flagship iPhone 12 in all markets, “fitting the pattern of higher-end users more likely to buy early in the launch cycle,” Cabral says. IPhone 12 Pro demand appears highest in Asia, he notes, where wait times exceed three weeks on most models in both Japan and Hong Kong, with waits of two to three weeks in China, one to three weeks in Europe, and less than two weeks in the U.S.
2. Intel’s (INTC) Sells Nand Memory-Chip Unit to South Korea’s SK Hynix — SK Hynix will pay $9 billion for Intel’s Nand memory and storage business. The purchase includes Intel’s Nand solid-state drive business, Nand component and wafer business, and memory-chip manufacturing facility in Dalian, China. Intel will retain its Optane business and invest proceeds from the transaction to grow that business. The Optane division develops next-generation, nonvolatile memory chips with data speeds faster than Nand.The combination of SK Hynix and the Intel Nand unit will create the second largest Nand memory-chip producer behind industry leader Samsung. After the transaction, SK Hynix will have nearly 20% market share in Nand chips, vs. 35% for Samsung.
3. Hospitals Across the U.S. Are Crammed With Covid-19 Patients — U.S. hospitalizations for Covid-19 hit the highest point since Aug. 22, with New York doubling its count from early September and at least 10 other states reporting records. The U.S. on Tuesday had 39,230 people in hospitals, according to the Covid Tracking Project. Of those, 8,178 were in intensive-care units; it’s been two months since the U.S. had more under such care. The number on ventilators, 1,889, reached its highest since Sept. 10. Across the country, 37 states are reporting increased hospitalizations, including 21 states that have recently reported new records or are approaching previous highs, according to Johns Hopkins University data. While the trend is national, the hardest-hit region is the Midwest, according to the university.
4. Judge Amy Coney Barrett One Step Closer to Supreme Court — the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 12-0 Thursday to recommend Judge Amy Coney Barrett for a full Senate vote on her nomination. The vote paves the way for Barrett to be confirmed in the Senate where Republicans hold a 53-47 majority.
If confirmed, Barrett would shift the balance of the Supreme Court to a solid conservative majority. As the fifth woman ever to join the high court, she would also become the sixth Catholic currently on the bench.
5. Remdesivir Gets FDA Approval — the antiviral drug remdesivir received marketing approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a Covid-19 treatment. The FDA gave Veklury a broad approval, allowing its use in patients over the age of 12 who are hospitalized with Covid-19. A study published in October in The New England Journal of Medicine found that the drug reduced recovery times for hospitalized patients from an average of 15 days to 10.

The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com: