5 things to start your day

[Bloomberg]( More growth warnings, stimulus slow progress, and Bitcoin is a currency. Outlook Last week’s [disappointing jobs data]( was the latest in a series of recent data pointing to a possible [slowdown in global growth](. Meanwhile, there appears to be little to stop the [rise in inflation](, with increasing energy prices the latest [threat to output](. In the U.S., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. [cut its forecast for 2021 growth](, citing a reduction in consumer spending and the resilience of the delta variant of the virus. Speaking of the American consumer, many will have seen their enhanced [unemployment benefits expire]( yesterday. Stimulus The signs of slowing growth, plus President Joe Biden’s need for a [political boost]( in the wake of the Afghanistan controversy, is increasing the pressure on Democrats in Congress to [make progress on his $4 trillion economic agenda](. While work at committee level gets underway, it is starting to look likely that a deal this month will be impossible as [infighting seems set to delay agreement](. Adding to the legislative headaches is the impending need to [raise the debt ceiling](, something which will almost inevitably lead to a battle with Senate Republicans. Sponsored Content Professional Venture Portfolios, Built for You Still think venture investing is only for the ultra-wealthy? While traditional VC firms were built for them, [Alumni Ventures was built for individuals like you to provide easy access to professional, diversified venture portfolios. Get into highly competitive deals backed by the “who’s who” of VC firms. Check out Alumni Ventures to learn more.]( Alumni Ventures It’s a currency El Salvador officially [adopts Bitcoin as legal tender]( from today. The rollout will get a boost from the government giving citizens who register $30 worth of the cryptocurrency. The country, which also uses the U.S. dollar, [purchased 400 Bitcoin]( ahead of the introduction. Hopes for a [bump in the price of the coin]( to mark today’s introduction seem to have fallen flat with Bitcoin trading at $50,900 by 5:50 a.m. Eastern time, down from as high as $52,900 overnight. Markets quiet Global markets are lacking their usual coordination today with Asia rallying on Chinese data while European indexes are dominated by concerns about [Thursday’s ECB meeting](. Overnight the MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.2% while Japan’s Topix index closed 1.1% higher. In Europe the Stoxx 600 Index had slipped 0.3% by 5:50 a.m. S&P 500 futures pointed to a [quiet return from the long weekend](, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 1.365%, [oil was lower]( and gold was down.. Coming up... There is very little on the economic calendar for today, adding to the generally slow start to the short week. In the U.K., Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to announce a [$14 billion increase in taxes](. The U.S. is selling $58 billion of 3-year notes at 1:00 p.m. UiPath Inc. and Coupa Software Inc. are among the companies reporting results. What we've been reading Here's what caught our eye over the weekend. - Odd Lots: Patrick O’Shaughnessy on the [next big thing in passive investing](. - [Overwhelmed morgues]( belie U.S. illusion of a defanged pandemic. - Soros calls [Blackrock’s China investment]( a “tragic mistake.” - China trade [surges to new records]( on strong U.S., EU demand. - Actor Michael K. Williams, Omar on “The Wire,” [dead at 54](. - [Merkel confidant dies]( days after becoming China ambassador. - Wildlife “[red list](” a grim tally of extinction threat. And finally, here’s what Joe’s interested in this morning At some point in the last month or so, it feels like everyone on Twitter changed their profile pic to an ape or a monkey or a pixelated punk [as part of the general craze for NFTs](. Numerous people are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars and in some cases millions of dollars for a token that proves they own a certain digital image. The explanations for this are like the Galaxy Brain Olympics. Everyone has some theory for why this is all rational, and there's long threads on Twitter about how NFTs are a form of signaling, or a new kind of social networking, and how if it makes sense to pay hundreds of thousands for a one-of-a-kind diamond, then it also makes sense to pay hundreds of thousands for a one-of-a-kind drawing of a rock. It's all so new and weird, so everyone is excited to show off their multi-disciplinary understanding of behavioral economics and markets and McLuhan and art history and sociology and all that. It's all in good fun I guess, but there is one persistent "take" that goes too far, which is to imply that rather than [being new and weird](, buying memes is normal and ancient and that everything is just a meme and that everything is just the price you can sell it for. A stock is just a meme! Berkshire Hathaway is a meme! And Berkshire Hathaway is a meme that's selling for over $424,000 per share right now! But this is nonsense. Yes, part of the reason you can buy Berkshire for $424,000 is because you can probably expect to sell it for the same amount. But Berkshire also owns numerous businesses that make profits and theoretically could pay dividends. And if the stock never traded again, then those dividends could be given to shareholders and there's nothing meme-ish about that. You don't need belief or scarcity to get the profits from a candy company distributed to you. You just get the profits. Now of course people might go further, and say all business is a meme. The candy company is a meme itself. And the money people use to buy the candy is a meme because it represents faith in the dollar or the U.S. -- these are all just stories we tell each other. Fine. Sure. OK. Whatever. You can say all that. But then you've just tortured the word meme so much it no longer means anything of substance and analytically we're back to square one. Yes, we're always telling each other stories. That doesn't mean that buying a drawing of a rock is the same as buying a company that mines rocks. Follow Bloomberg's Joe Weisenthal on Twitter at [@TheStalwart]( Like Bloomberg's Five Things? [Subscribe for unlimited access]( to trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and gain expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. Follow Us Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Five Things - Americas newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022