Morning Brief

What to watch today: Dow set to bounce after Friday's 730-point plunge

BY THE NUMBERS

U.S. stock futures were pointing to a bounce after the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 730 points, or 2.8%, on Friday, knocking blue chips down 3.3% last week. Following initial declines overnight, stock futures turned higher early Monday despite surging U.S. coronavirus cases. The Dow, with two days left in June, could break its two-month winning streak. However, the benchmark, as of Friday's close, was up just over 14% for the second quarter. (CNBC)

The holiday-shortened week ahead on Wall Street includes House testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday. One day early, on Thursday, the government reports its June employment report. The stock market is closed Friday, July 3, in observance of Independence Day. (CNBC)

Shares of Boeing, which have been slammed over 45% in 2020, were rising more than 3% in Monday's premarket as Reuters reports that pilots and test crew members from the Federal Aviation Administration and the aircraft maker are scheduled to begin a three-day certification test campaign for the 737 Max on Monday.

Shares of Facebook (FB) were off another 3% in the premarket after Starbucks (SBUX) on Sunday became the latest company to pause social media advertising during an national outcry over how the platforms handle hate speech. Facebook stock lost more than 9% last week as Coca-Cola (KO) and Unilever (UL) took similar steps on Friday. (CNBC)

Shares of Gilead, up 14% this year as of Friday's close, were rising more than 2% in Monday's premarket trading after the biopharmaceutical giant set pricing for its remdesivir anti-viral Covid-19 treatment. Developed world governments will pay $390 per dose, with privately insured patients charged $520 per dose. (CNBC)

IN THE NEWS TODAY

With more than half the states across the U.S. reporting spikes in coronavirus cases, Florida saw a record-breaking 9,636 new infections on Saturday, with another 8,577 on Sunday. Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Sunday blamed interactions among young people. Miami-Dade and Broward counties are closing their beaches for the July 4 weekend. (CNBC)

Vice President Mike Pence met on Sunday with GOP Texas Gov. Greg Abbott who said the rising infections in his state have taken a "very swift and very dangerous turn" over the past few weeks. On Friday, Texas again shut down bars and limited restaurant dining, a day after reporting a state record high confirmed positive tests of 5,996. (AP)

The U.S. reported more than 45,000 cases of coronavirus on Friday, a record-breaking daily increase. Saturday saw over 42,600 new cases and Sunday saw more than 38,800 new cases. Total U.S. cases climbed to nearly 2.55 million, according to data from Johns Hopkins University on Monday.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told NBC News on Sunday that the "window is closing" for the United States to halt the Covid-19 spikes, particularly in Southern and Western states. Total global cases approached 10.2 million.

* Nancy Pelosi calls for CDC to mandate Americans wear masks (CNBC)

President Donald Trump said on Sunday he was never briefed about the reported Russian efforts to pay bounties to Taliban-linked militants to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan, blasting a New York Times report on the bounties. In a separate tweet late on Sunday, Trump added: "Intel just reported to me that they did not find this info credible, and therefore did not report it to me or @VP." (Reuters)

Trump on Sunday tweeted approvingly of a video showing one of his supporters chanting "white power," a racist slogan associated with white supremacists. He later deleted the tweet and the White House said the president had not heard "the one statement" on the video. (AP)

* Mississippi legislators vote to remove Confederate battle emblem from state flag (CNBC)

Chesapeake Energy, a pioneer in the U.S. shale revolution, filed for bankruptcy protection Sunday as the company and industry more broadly has been rocked by a drop in oil and gas prices during the coronavirus pandemic. At its peak, Chesapeake had 175 operating rigs, with operations across the U.S. including in Texas, Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Ohio. (CNBC)

Under Armour (UAA) said it would end the 15-year, $280 million apparel partnership with the University of California, Los Angeles, that it signed with the university in 2016, saying it had not received the expected marketing benefits for an extended period of time. UCLA said it would fight the move to end the partnership. (LA Times)

Coty (COTY), the cosmetics maker, will pay $200 million for a 20% stake in Kim Kardashian West's makeup brand. Coty had said earlier this month that it was talking to Kardashian West about a possible collaboration. It's the second deal Coty has struck with the Kardashian/Jenner family this year, having already taken a 51% stake in Kylie Jenner's brands. The stock was surging 16% in the premarket. (CNBC)

STOCKS TO WATCH

The Food and Drug Administration did not approve Intercept Pharmaceuticals' (ICPT) treatment for obesity-linked liver disease. Intercept said it would meet with the FDA to discuss possible paths to approval. The stock was losing over a third of its value in Monday's premarket trading.

Novartis (NVS) pulled its application for European approval of its dry-eye drug Xiidra after regulators said its effectiveness had not been demonstrated. The drug is already approved in the U.S.

Singapore's Temasek and other investors are injecting $250 million into German biotech BioNTech (BNTX), through the purchase of stock and convertible securities. BioNTech has a Covid-19 vaccine candidate in development and has said it expects the first clinical data on the vaccine this month or in July.

Restaurant Brands (QSR) said demand is picking up as economies reopen in its major markets. Restaurant Brands said Burger King comparable sales are now trending about flat, compared to declines in the 30% range in mid-March. Comparable sales at its Tim Hortons brand are in the negative high teens now, compared to the negative mid-40s in March.

Delta Air Lines (DAL) will send out warnings of possible furloughs to about 2,500 pilots, due to the severe drop in travel demand. Delta is also offering some pilots voluntary early retirement.

BP (BP) announced the sale of its petrochemicals business to privately held U.K. chemicals company Ineos for $5 billion. BP said the move means it has met its $15 billion divestments target a year ahead of schedule.

Amazon (AMZN) and Japan's SoftBank have both approached Russian conglomerate Sistema about a possible buyout of the conglomerate's online retail unit Ozon, according to Sistema's majority owner.

General Motors (GM) is pushing back on a judge's order to resolve a legal dispute with rival Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) by having the CEOs of the two companies meet. GM is seeking to have that order tossed out, and continue to pursue its racketeering charge against its rival. GM had accused Fiat Chrysler of bribing union officials to gain a labor cost advantage.

WATERCOOLER

The U.S. Open is returning to NBC starting this year at Winged Foot after Fox Sports has asked to end its 12-year contract with the United States Golf Association, multiple people told The Associated Press last night. The U.S. Open, originally scheduled to be played last week, was postponed to Sept. 17-20 due to the coronavirus.

Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, parent company of CNBC.