“It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.”
― Howard Marks

1. Pentagon to Mandate Covid-19 Vaccine for U.S. Service Members — Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said he would make Covid-19 vaccination mandatory for U.S. service members effective mid-September. The Covid-19 vaccine hasn’t been granted full approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but has been offered to Americans under an emergency authorization. That provisional status has hindered Mr. Austin’s ability to make it mandatory for U.S. troops.
2. Senate Democrats Outline $3.5 Trillion Antipoverty, Climate Plan — Senate Democrats released an outline of the $3.5 trillion antipoverty and climate plan, further detailing their ambitions for a major overhaul of the nation’s education and healthcare systems that they hope to advance alongside a bipartisan infrastructure bill. The antipoverty plan is set to offer universal prekindergarten, two free years of community college, and expanded Medicare to cover hearing, dental and vision care, among other provisions.To cover the cost, Democrats are seeking to raise taxes on corporations and high-income households. The plan outlined by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) on Monday also includes offering a pathway to lawful permanent status for certain migrants to the U.S. and lowering the price of prescription drugs. It calls for a federal paid leave benefit, a series of energy tax incentives and a program to push the U.S. to receive 80% of its electricity from clean sources by 2030.
3. Texas Hospitals Are Near Capacity as Covid-19 Surges Again — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott asked hospitals to delay elective medical procedures, as rising Covid-19 cases bring hospitals in many parts of the nation’s second-largest state to capacity. In Austin, city and county officials used an emergency alert system over the weekend to text and call residents with the warning that the hospital situation is critical, as the number of available intensive care unit beds in a metro area of more than two million residents dwindled to single digits. In Houston, hospitals are into surge capacity and local officials tracking the city’s wastewater system are finding evidence of higher-than-ever levels of Covid-19. In Arkansas, Gov. Asa Hutchinson said in a tweet late Monday afternoon the state had eight intensive-care beds available after the largest one-day increase in hospitalizations. “Vaccinations reduce hospitalizations,” the governor said. Roughly 43% of the state’s eligible population is fully immunized, according to Arkansas Department of Health data.
4. California Teachers Must Be Vaccinated or Tested Weekly for Covid-19 — California will require schoolteachers and staff to show proof of vaccination or submit to regular coronavirus testing, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced. Under California’s public-health order, public and private school personnel will need to prove they are fully inoculated by Oct. 15 or agree to weekly testing for the virus. Exceptions will be made for those who have medical reasons not to receive the shot.
Several local districts, including New York City, Oakland and San Francisco, have recently enacted similar rules.
5. Global ETF Assets Hit $9 Trillion — Investors poured $705 billion into exchange-traded funds through the first seven months of the year, pushing 2021’s world-wide tally to a record $9.1 trillion, according to data from Morningstar Inc. Net flows so far this year have nearly eclipsed the $736.5 billion investors had moved into ETFs globally in all of 2020. Most of the cash has gone into cheap, index-tracking funds, with large-cap and short-term bond ETFs, as well as products offering inflation protection, attracting significant investor interest, according to the data.

The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com: