Week InReview
Friday | Jan 8, 2021
Hope for grounded fliers?
Photo: John Kuczala/WSJ
We can’t know the one thing we all want to know about travel in 2021: When can we confidently start traveling again safely? As we’ve seen lately, uncertainty continues with developments like the new variant of Covid-19 and slower vaccine distribution. But there’s a lot we can know about travel in the new year. Here are some predictions:

1. Get ready for prices to zigzag
2. Health records a standard part of flying
3. The frequent-flier free-for-all
4. The mask mandate arrives
5. Recovery starts closer to home

— The Wall Street Journal
let's recap...
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is proceeding with a plan to delist three major Chinese telecommunications firms, its second about-face this week, after U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin disagreed with its shock decision to give the companies a reprieve. The pivot comes after the exchange’s earlier move caught U.S. officials off guard. (Bloomberg Markets | Jan 7) see also NYSE's second-guessing on China delisting sows confusion (Bloomberg Markets | Jan 6)

A recent rise in U.S. bond yields and market inflation expectations has bolstered Federal Reserve officials’ hopes that the central bank’s new monetary policy approach is taking hold and could be further buoyed if a Democratic-led Congress rolls out more spending. (Reuters | Jan 7)

The U.S leveraged loan market made a strong comeback in the second half of 2020 with returns and prices rebounding, paving the way for companies to capitalize on ultra-low funding costs and an investor hunt for yield to sell over $475 billion of debt. Total returns ended the year at 3.12% after losses mounted to as much as 20% in March when panic about the spread of the coronavirus and its impact on businesses and the economy hit fever pitch. (Bloomberg Law | Jan 4)

Central banks are set to spend 2021 maintaining their ultra-easy monetary policies even with the global economy expected to accelerate away from last year’s coronavirus-inflicted recession. In Bloomberg’s quarterly review of monetary policy that covers 90% of the world economy, no major western central bank is expected to hike interest rates this year. (Bloomberg Economics | Jan 4)

Traders see U.S. inflation averaging at least 2% per year over the coming decade, the first time expectations have climbed that high since 2018. The move came as real yields plumbed record lows. The 10-year breakeven rate – a measure that draws on pricing for inflation-linked Treasuries – rose as high as 2.017% Monday, a level last seen more than two years ago, data compiled by Bloomberg show. (Bloomberg Markets | Jan 4)
the cyber cafe
Illustration: Klawe Rzeczy/HBR
Cybersecurity is not (just) a tech problem
Remote work during the pandemic has meant that organizations had to quickly ramp up their cybersecurity efforts. But securing remote work isn’t just the job of the IT team: Ultimately companies need to make security part of every job description. And the key ingredient to make that happen is trust. 

The temptation for cyber attackers to become short-sellers
Cyber attacks frequently cause the share price of companies to fall. That has long made criminals salivate at the prospect of cyber attacks accompanied by short selling. Now they may be getting their chance. Cyber weapons — often deployed by hostile states — are becoming extremely sophisticated, and governments struggle to contain them. Shorting accompanied by hacking is a now real threat to business.
— Financial Times (opinion)

CISA updates SolarWinds directive
CISA has released Emergency Directive (ED) 21-01 Supplemental Guidance version 3: Mitigate SolarWinds Orion Code Compromise, providing guidance that supersedes Required Action 4 of ED 21-01 and Supplemental Guidance versions 1 and 2.
MORE CYBER SECURITY NEWS HERE:
binge reading disorder
Photo: Michela Buttignol/NYT
Pandemic dressing takes a dark turn
This past year has been strange and terrible in so many different ways. Everyone has had a different pandemic, as the disease shattered our social compacts and laid bare the infrastructure of our lives. As we start another year, still in isolation, our clothing choices are getting increasingly weird.

Airlines try ultra-cheap fares to get the world flying again
2021 is shaping up to be a transition year for an enterprise that takes passengers on the equivalent of 208 million annual trips around the globe. At best, the path ahead will be bumpy, with progress toward a return to travel dependent on the pace of vaccine roll-outs, access to capital, government policies and the unpredictability of a virus that’s not yet fully understood. Still, there will be leaps, including the first commercial flights to near-space.

We found a bubble — but it may not be what you think it is
The pace at which investors are adding to their debt. It’s up about 50% from its spring low, and that kind of surge has happened only six times since 1960.
— Barron's
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