US retail sales increase despite supply chain woes - October 18, 2021

Retail sales increased by 0.7% in September, defying expectations for a pullback amid supply chain issues, the Census Bureau reported. Compared with a year ago, sales were up 13.9% on the headline number. Experts attribute the uptick to students heading back to school and workers returning to the office. Facebook on Track for Holiday Ad Surge Despite Supply Chain Woes - Bloomberg Why Levi's is opening 100 new stores even as pandemic online sales boom keeps growing - CNBC Grocery store shelves bare? These products may be hard to find due to supply chain issues - USA Today China’s gross domestic product growth slowed to 4.9% in the third quarter after industrial activity in the country increased by a smaller-than-expected margin last month. Power shortages and wobbles in the property sector contributed to the Chinese economy’s slowest pace of growth in a year. Global stocks and U.S. futures wobble on China growth fears - Fortune China Faces Slower Growth Path as It Pursues Longer-Term Reforms - The Wall Street Journal @dlacalle_IA: China GDP disappoints. Grew 4.9% in the third quarter from a year ago. That missed expectations for a 5.2% expansion, according to Reuters. Industrial production rose by 3.1% in September, below the 4.5% expected by Reuters. Countries are rushing to place orders for the twice-daily antiviral pill called molnupiravir that has been shown to reduce the risk of hospitalization and death among those infected with COVID-19, but obstacles remain for broad access to poorer nations. Pharmaceutical giant Merck, which recently submitted data to the Food and Drug Administration, was criticized two decades ago for selling its H.I.V. drugs at prices unaffordable to Africa. Fact check: Merck's molnupiravir and ivermectin are not the same drug - USA Today The success of Merck's antiviral — and other COVID-19 pills in development — may depend on how quickly people start taking them - MarketWatch @daniel_kraft: #Molnupiravir in trial of 775 high-risk, unvaccinated people cut the risk o