Business
Pfizer, Moderna shares fall on report that Trump officials will link child deaths to Covid shots
Vials with Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine labels are seen in this illustration picture taken March 19, 2021.
Dado Ruvic | Reuters
Shares of Pfizer and Moderna fell on Friday after a report that Trump administration health officials plan to link Covid vaccines to the deaths of 25 children.
The report from the Washington Post said officials plan to include the claim in a presentation next week to a key vaccine panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.That committee plays a critical role in determining vaccine access, as it reviews immunization data and makes recommendations on who is eligible for shots and whether insurers should cover them, among other duties.
But the presentation to that panel is not final, the Post reported.
“FDA and CDC staff routinely analyze VAERS and other safety monitoring data, and those reviews are being shared publicly through the established ACIP process,” a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement, referring to the panel, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.
“Until that is shared publicly, any this should be considered pure speculation,” the spokesperson added.
Pfizer’s stock fell more than 3% on Friday, while shares of Moderna dropped more than 7%. Novavax, which creates protein-based Covid shots, slid more than 4%.
The report comes as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. moves to change vaccine policy in the U.S. He has dropped Covid shot recommendations for healthy kids and pregnant women and set new limits on the approval of new jabs against the virus.
In a statement, Moderna said the safety of its vaccine is “rigorously monitored” by the company, the FDA and regulators in more than 90 countries. Systems across the U.S., Australia, Canada and Europe have not identified “any new or undisclosed safety concerns in children or in pregnant women,” Moderna added.
Pfizer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Numerous studies have demonstrated that shots using mRNA technology, including Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, are safe and effective, and serious side effects have happened in extremely rare cases.
Researchers have noted an elevated but rare risk of myocarditis, or inflamed heart muscle, in young men in particular. But there is no evidence that the vaccines in use now cause any other major safety risks, including pediatric deaths. Global surveillance data also continue to generally show that the benefits of Covid vaccination outweigh the risks in pediatric populations.
The Washington Post said the claim appears to be based on information submitted to the federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, which monitors the safety of shots approved or authorized by the Food and Drug Administration. The system contains unverified reports of side effects, including from patients, doctors and pharmacists.
Only scientists and public health officials can determine, after thorough investigation, whether a vaccine caused or contributed to a side effect submitted to the system, according to the CDC website.
Last week, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary told CNN the agency is conducting an “intense investigation” into whether Covid shots have caused deaths in children. He did not share specific data linking pediatric deaths to the vaccine, but pointed to self-reported incidents in the safety system database.
The FDA plans to release a report in the coming weeks, Makary added.
“We do know at the FDA, because we’ve been looking into the [vaccine safety] database of self reports, that there have been children who have died from the Covid vaccine,” Makary told CNN.
During a Senate hearing last week, Kennedy said he supports a statement made by a newly appointed member of a key government vaccine panel that mRNA vaccines pose a dangerous risk to people.
The UK must not “cut ourselves off” from trade opportunities in China despite security and business risks, the head of the Confederation for British Industry has warned.
CBI chief Rain Newton-Smith highlighted that British businesses see increased trade with Chinese firms as an opportunity to drive growth.
Her remarks came as business leaders were questioned by MPs on Parliament’s Business and Trade Select Committee regarding the UK’s economic relationship with China.
Last December, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer admitted China poses security threats to the UK but urged for greater business ties.
Ms Newton-Smith, chief executive of one of the UK’s largest business groups, was positive about the Government’s engagement with China.
“You can’t have a growth strategy without a strategy for China,” she said.
“China has the biggest contribution to global growth, is the third largest trading partner, and the world’s largest consumer market.
“The UK is second largest exporter of trade and services.
“We are mindful as all businesses are of security risks but it is really important that we have a strategy towards China.
“This Government has increased the economic engagement with China and including business within this does help us as a country.”
She added: “If we think about the future economy, there is a huge market in China and I think we mustn’t cut ourselves off from some of the opportunities there, even if in some areas there are difficult conversations and negotiations that need to be had.”
Peter Burnett, chief executive of the China-Britain Business Council, told the committee: “There are risks associated with technology advancement, AI, industrial development that they need to assess.
“Increasingly you will find them saying that they need to engage more in China to understand those risks and to develop some of the technologies along some of those risks themselves.”
Business
Trump says he’d be disappointed if Fed pick doesn’t cut rates; Warsh vows to be ‘independent actor’ – The Times of India
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would be disappointed if his nominee for Federal Reserve chair, Kevin Warsh, does not cut interest rates right away after taking office if confirmed by the Senate. Trump, during an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” also said “we have to find out” about the construction costs of the new Federal Reserve building.Warsh, a former Federal Reserve official and financier, is currently facing Senate confirmation hearings where he has stressed his independence from political pressure.“The president never once asked me to commit to any particular interest rate decision, and nor would I agree to it if he had,” Kevin Warsh said under questioning by the Senate Banking Committee, as quoted by LA Times. “I will be an independent actor if confirmed as chair of the Federal Reserve.”Warsh told lawmakers that fighting inflation would be one of his main priorities if confirmed.“Congress tasked the Fed with the mission to ensure price stability, without excuse or equivocation, argument or anguish,” Warsh said. “Inflation is a choice, and the Fed must take responsibility for it.”The comments come as investors closely watch his confirmation hearing, with inflation remaining at 3.3% annually and global tensions, including the war in Iran pushing up gas prices, adding pressure on the economy. Higher inflation typically leads the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates steady or raise them rather than cut them, as rate changes affect mortgages, auto loans, and business borrowing.Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee accused Warsh of shifting his stance on interest rates over time, supporting higher rates under Democratic presidents and lower rates during Trump’s presidency.Warsh, if confirmed, would take over at a time when inflation pressures make it difficult for the Federal Reserve to cut rates, even as Trump continues to push for lower borrowing costs. Trump has repeatedly urged rate cuts and has long clashed with current Fed chair Jerome Powell over monetary policy. Powell has also been the subject of a Department of Justice criminal probe after refusing Trump’s requests for faster rate cuts. Trump told CNBC that he does not plan to pressure the Justice Department to end that probe.
The consultancy Teneo says airspace restrictions caused by the conflict have forced airlines to reroute many flights.
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