☕ Inflation surprise

How inflation could lower your tax bill... October 20, 2022 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( TOGETHER WITH [Revela]( Good morning and Happy Sports Equinox! For only the 27th time ever, all “Big Four” North American pro sports leagues will be in action on the same day. While sports equinoxes used to be rare, they’ve increased in frequency thanks to the addition of Thursday Night Football, Axios’s Kendall Baker [notes](. Today’s equinox is the first of a record four sports equinoxes this year—with the last one falling on Halloween. And before all the MLS fans start yelling at us in the inbox: Yes, there are also MLS playoff games tonight. Go Union. —Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman, Matty Merritt MARKETS Nasdaq 10,680.51 -0.85% S&P 3,695.16 -0.67% Dow 30,423.81 -0.33% 10-Year 4.139% +12.8 bps Bitcoin $19,182.93 -0.58% Netflix $272.38 +13.09% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 2:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: It was a true hump day on Wall Street yesterday as stocks [closed]( lower, snapping two days of gains. Earnings season hasn’t been the bust many investors feared it would be, though, and companies with strong performances—like Netflix—are being rewarded.  HEALTH [FDA poised to pull only drug approved to prevent preterm births off the market]( [A woman cradles her pregnant stomach]( DisobeyArt/Getty Images A panel of experts advising the Food and Drug Administration [recommended]( yesterday that the agency stop allowing sales of Makena, a series of weekly hormone injections meant to stave off premature births. Why? Because they concluded it doesn’t work. So, how’d it get approved in the first place? Makena got the green light in 2011 under the FDA’s accelerated approval program, which permits pharma companies to start selling drugs before completing the clinical trials that prove their benefits. It’s not all that unusual: Almost 300 drugs have made it to market that way in the last 30 years, per the New York Times. Things looked promising for Makena…at first. - The 2003 study that won the drug approval found it reduced preterm births more than 30%. - But a larger 2019 follow-up study concluded it was no better than a placebo, kicking off efforts to get it off the market. The company that manufactures Makena, Covis Pharma, fought to keep selling the drug—currently the only approved treatment to prevent preterm births. Covis argues that taking Makena away will harm Black mothers, who are at higher risk for the complication. But the panel voted 14–1 to recommend revoking its approval. Members of the panel acknowledged the need for a drug to help avert early births, but they also had to weigh Makena’s potential side effects, including blood clots, against its effectiveness. What’s next? The FDA doesn’t always follow panel recommendations, but it usually does—and in the case of Makena, the agency’s been trying to get it off the market for years. An order yanking the drug is expected in a matter of months. If the FDA does pull Makena, it will be the first time the agency has done a 180 on a fast-tracked drug in over a decade. So, this is being viewed as a major test of the system.—AR �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=FDA%20poised%20to%20pull%20only%20drug%20approved%20to%20prevent%20preterm%20births%20off%20the%20market%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2F2022%2F10%2F19%2Ffda-poised-to-pull-Makena%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A TOGETHER WITH REVELA [Invest in your hair]( [Revela]( Sure, your investments may not be something you want to think about right now, but we’re here to remind you of an investment you can count on: ProCelinyl™, a groundbreaking ingredient that directly addresses hair thinning and fallout—and the key to Revela’s trending [Hair Revival Serums](. [Revela](’s team of Harvard scientists used AI to search for new molecules that get to the root of hair loss and target hair-follicle health. ProCelinyl™ was the clear winner, with 97% of clinical trial participants seeing improvement in their hair. Now that’s something worth investing in. And it won’t take until next quarter to see results, either. According to Dr. Daniel Sugai, a Harvard-trained, board-certified dermatologist, you can expect to see “game-changing” results in as little as 6 weeks. [Get 15% off your hair-growth investment here](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [Joe Biden drives past a discount gas station]Photo Illustration: Dianna “Mick” McDougall, Photos: Getty Images, Joe Biden Biden gets creative to bring down gas prices. The president unveiled a plan to [sell]( 15 million barrels of oil from the US strategic reserve to keep oil prices—and therefore gas prices—from going any higher. This unusual move follows a decision by OPEC+ nations to cut oil production (which was blasted by the US) and comes just three weeks before the midterm elections. Elon Musk gets good news and bad news. Tesla reported its highest ever quarterly [revenue]( yesterday of $21.5 billion. But that still fell short of analyst expectations, so shares fell about 5% after the announcement. Although Tesla stock has declined around 37% since the beginning of the year, Musk remained optimistic, saying he can see a future where the company ends up “worth more than Apple and Saudi Aramco combined.” Stay out of the floodwaters in Florida. Areas of Florida hit hard by Hurricane Ian now have another problem to deal with: They’re seeing a rise in infections from flesh-eating [bacteria](. Known as Vibrio vulnificus, it thrives in warm seawater and causes infection when it comes into contact with open wounds. An estimated seven people have died from recent infections, and public health officials have highlighted the importance of seeking treatment immediately after contact occurs. TAXES [How inflation could lower your taxes in 2023]( [Illustration of a tax form]( Illustration: Dianna "Mick" McDougall, Sources: Getty Images Rising inflation is an evil scourge that eats away at your income. But, like Tony Soprano, it’s a villain not entirely without sympathetic qualities. Americans whose earnings have not kept up with inflation could pay [less in taxes]( next year, thanks to cost-of-living adjustments to the tax code announced by the IRS on Tuesday. Here’s a quick roundup: Tax brackets will jump by 7%. The 37% top income tax rate will apply to individuals earning $578,125, up from $539,900 this year. So, the ~$40k that would have been taxed at a 37% rate in 2022 will be subject to a 35% tax next year. You can apply the same reasoning [across all tax brackets]( (though savings in $$$ amount will be more pronounced at the top end). The standard deduction is also getting a bump. Married couples filing jointly can claim a standard tax deduction of $27,700, up from $25,900. For single filers, it will increase to $13,850 from $12,950. Why is this happening? Parts of the US tax code have been adjusted for inflation every year dating back to 1985. But because inflation hasn’t been this high in 40 years, you probably didn’t even notice the changes because they were so small. 2023’s automatic cost-of-living adjustment is the biggest since this policy has been around, per the WSJ.—NF �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=How%20inflation%20could%20lower%20your%20taxes%20in%202023%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2F2022%2F10%2F19%2Fhow-inflation-could-lower-your-taxes-in-2023%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A FOOD & BEV [Philly residents are drowning in guac]( [Avocado with liberty bell as pit.]( Illustration: Grant Thomas, Photos: Kirby Lee/WireImage, Getty Images The typical Phillies tailgate tomorrow is going to consist of 10% beer, 10% Wawa hoagies, and 80% guacamole. A massive avocado surplus is forcing a Philadelphia nonprofit to give away [2,000+ pounds]( for free in an event it’s calling “Avogeddon.” The nonprofit, Sharing Excess, says the fruit-for-all is its largest food distribution ever, and explained that the overabundance is a result of too much supply from South America. The giveaway reflects a big shift from avocados’ skyrocketing cost and scarcity just seven months ago. A day before the Super Bowl in February, US authorities briefly [banned]( Mexican avocados—which make up 80% of US stock—over safety concerns. By May, a carton of 48 avocados cost nearly $79 compared to about $40 at the same time the year before, according to Produce IQ. But then, avocado prices tanked. By September, the cost of a carton was hovering around $25, according to Goldman Sachs. Big picture: A similar avocado glut appeared in Australia this summer, when low prices caused farmers to leave their massive avocado surplus to [rot]( in fields.—MM �  �  �  mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20Morning%20Brew%21&body=Philly%20residents%20are%20drowning%20in%20guac%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fstories%2Favocado-surplus-hits-philadelphia%3Futm_campaign%3Dmb%26utm_medium%3Dnewsletter%26utm_source%3Dmorning_brew%0A%0AWant%20more%20great%20content%3F%20Subscribe%20to%20Daily%20Brew%20%E2%80%94%20Delivering%20the%20latest%20business%20news%20from%20Wall%20St.%20to%20Silicon%20Valley%20daily.%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.morningbrew.com%2Fdaily%2Fr%2F%3Fkid%3Da905682a%26utm_source%3Demail_share%0A TOGETHER WITH SMARTSHEET [Smartsheet]( Is work feelin’ chaotic? Ever had a project come through with lots of assignments, assets, and flighting to figure out? No need to sweat. For smooth sailing, power up with Smartsheet’s intuitive capabilities. Wanna take their tools for a test drive? [Explore what the platform can do in our nifty interactive](. GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [Scene from La La Land of people dancing on their cars]La La Land/Lionsgate Stat: If it feels like working from home has given you so much of your life back, it has. Americans who WFH spend [60 million fewer hours]( commuting to work every day, according to research from the New York Fed. So what are we doing with all that newfound time? More sleeping and more enjoying life, the study shows. Younger Americans, especially, said they spend more time exercising and hanging out with friends at restaurants and bars. Quote: “Cars will become our next living rooms.” Uber’s head of advertising is bullish on turning your next ride to the bar into a nonstop commercial for Corona. Mark Grether spoke to the WSJ about the company’s [brand-new ad business](, which will use data from your ride history and current destination to try to sell you relevant products. The company expects to make $1 billion in revenue from advertising by 2024. Read: The story behind those “this is your brain on drugs” ads. ([JSTOR Daily]() WHAT ELSE IS BREWING - [Russian President Vladimir Putin]( has declared martial law in the four annexed regions of Ukraine. - [UK inflation]( rose 10.1% last month, climbing back up to a 40-year high as households there brace for winter amid soaring energy costs. That’s putting even more pressure on PM Liz Truss, who’s just barely hanging on to power. - [Circle K]( announced it would sell medical pot at some gas stations next year. - [The James Webb Telescope]( snapped a pic of the famed “Pillars of Creation” space landmark. FROM THE CREW [Learn the basics of financial forecasting](#) [Charlie in Always Sunny]It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia/FX Did you put “accounting” as a skill on your resume and now your boss wants help with the P&L? If your answer is “Yes pls help me,” we’ve got you. Morning Brew’s newest course, Financial Forecasting, is built to give you all the tools you need to create an effective 2023 business budget…in just one week. [Reserve your spot today](. BREW'S BETS Snickers salad and fluffernutters: A celebration of the varied, artery-clogging [regional cuisines]( of the US. Does your cat even like you? Here are the signs your feline is [feeling the love](. Physics majors: Please explain [what’s going on here](. Stories to impress your friends. On the Story of the Week podcast, journalist Joel Stein chooses an article that fascinates him, convinces the writer to tell him about it, and then promptly interrupts a good conversation by talking about himself. It’s a great time. [Listen now](. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Brew Mini: Good luck sleeping tonight after solving this spooky, scary Mini. [Play it here](. Three headlines and a lie Three of these headlines are real and one is faker than the cheese powder in blue box mac and cheese. Can you spot the odd one out? - World’s 64th richest man [gives away]( enough money to be world’s 69th richest man for internet clout - Man [holds]( 150 lit candles in his mouth for Guinness World Record - Oreo, Microsoft 365 collaborate on [cookie snack break]( - Servers [dressed as Power Rangers]( fight attacker at Oakland restaurant If you love playing Three Headlines and a Lie, check out [The Refresh]( from Insider to dive deeper into these weird news stories. AROUND THE BREW [Work more efficiently]( [Work more efficiently]( Excel Dictionary’s NEW Excel Digital Guides + Dictionaries will make your workday much more efficient. [Shop now]( for a true corporate life hack. SoFi’s Head of Investment Strategy joins Katie to break down the bewildering economy—and make a few predictions about what’s in store for 2023. [Listen]( or [watch]( here. On Imposters: A Harvard psychologist discusses “emotional agility” and how we can implement it in our own lives. [Listen here](. Are you a marketer needing inspo for new branding strategies? We’ve got just the event for you: [The Brief](. ANSWER Our mind is in the gutter. We made up the story about a rich person giving away money for an internet joke. � � � � � Written by [Neal Freyman](, [Abigail Rubenstein](, and [Matty Merritt]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. WANT MORE BREW? 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