Daily business briefing

Boeing halts production of grounded 737 MAX jet, Tyson Foods approved to resume poultry exports to China, and more 1. Boeing to suspend production of grounded 737 MAX plane 2. Tyson Foods cleared to resume chicken exports to Chi Daily business briefing 1. [Boeing to suspend production of grounded 737 MAX plane]( Boeing has decided to [temporarily halt production of its 737 MAX jet]( which has been grounded since March after the second of two fatal crashes. The accidents, which occurred in Indonesia and Ethiopia, killed 346 people. Boeing has continued to build the planes since the grounding, and now has a backlog of 400 of the aircraft with no planned date for the planes to return to the skies. Airlines and government officials expect the planes to be cleared to fly in February or later. Boeing is aiming to suspend production in January, although it has no immediate plan to lay off any of workers. Boeing's 737 assembly plant in Washington employs 12,000 people with thousands more jobs in its supply chain. [[The Wall Street Journal]( mailto:?Subject=Boeing+to+suspend+production+of+grounded+737+MAX+plane%0A&body=Read the story here: 2. [Tyson Foods cleared to resume chicken exports to China]( Tyson Foods has received approval to export poultry to China from its 36 U.S. processing plants, Reuters reported Monday, citing a chief supply chain officer for the company. Beijing banned imports of U.S. poultry and eggs in January 2015 due to an avian flu outbreak. At the time, U.S. producers were selling about $500 million worth of poultry products to China annually. U.S. chicken producers have been hoping to get the sales going again since Beijing last month lifted a five-year ban on imports as the country seeks alternatives to pork after a deadly hog disease drove up prices. Sales of chicken feet, wing tips, and legs could boost U.S. agricultural exports to China, a priority for the Trump administration in its trade negotiations with Beijing. [[Reuters]( mailto:?Subject=Tyson+Foods+cleared+to+resume+chicken+exports+to+China%0A&body=Read the story here: 3. [U.S. stocks hit record highs, lifted by trade deal]( U.S. stocks climbed to record highs on Monday, buoyed by rising optimism about a U.S.-China trade deal and strong economic data from China, the world's second largest economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up by 0.4 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq gained 0.7 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq have set records in three straight days. The "phase one" U.S.-China trade deal came in time to head off new tariffs that would have affected consumer products, including Apple's iPhone. Apple shares rose by 1.7 percent, helping to lift the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. Chipmakers also gained. U.S. stock index futures struggled for footing early Tuesday, fluctuating between slight gains and losses before the opening bell. [[Reuters]( CNBC]( mailto:?Subject=U.S.+stocks+hit+record+highs%2C+lifted+by+trade+deal%0A&body=Read the story here: 4. [Congress hammers out $1.37 trillion spending bill]( Congressional negotiators on Monday [unveiled a $1.37 trillion federal spending bill]( aiming to avert a partial government shutdown. Congress is expected to pass the compromise, with the House voting Tuesday and the Senate later in the week. The proposal includes $25 million for federal gun violence research, a 3.1 percent pay raise for civilian federal employees, and the repeal of several Affordable Care Act taxes, The Washington Post reports. President Trump's border wall will receive $1.375 billion in funding, but the administration will have the ability to take funds from other accounts. The legislation includes $7.6 billion in funding for the 2020 Census, $425 million in election security grants, and a $22 billion boost in Pentagon funding, while also increasing the age for purchasing tobacco products from 18 to 21. [[The Washington Post]( mailto:?Subject=Congress+hammers+out+%241.37+trillion+spending+bill%0A&body=Read the story here: 5. [European stocks, British pound lose ground on renewed hard-Brexit concerns]( European stocks retreated from record highs on Tuesday and the British pound fell by more than 1 percent due partly to renewed fears of a possible hard Brexit. The losses followed reports by local media that the government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, newly strengthened by last week's election landslide, was preparing a bill that would rule out extending the transition period for the country's departure from the European Union past 2020. The U.K. is heading for a Jan. 31 departure from the EU. That would leave just 11 months to finalize terms under the new Brexit bill, raising the likelihood of a harder Brexit. [[MarketWatch]( CNBC]( mailto:?Subject=European+stocks%2C+British+pound+lose+ground+on+renewed+hard-Brexit+concerns%0A&body=Read the story here: MOST POPULAR [How the fall of Elizabeth Warren has shaken up the 2020 race]( David Faris [Rudy Giuliani stunningly admits he 'needed Yovanovitch out of the way']( Tim O'Donnell [Rep. Jeff Van Drew is quitting the Democrats over Trump's impeachment. The Democrat next door is voting yes.]( Peter Weber [Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers seem pretty sure Senate Republicans will break their impeachment oaths]( Peter Weber [Judge dismisses Michael Flynn's Justice Department allegations, schedules his sentencing date]( Peter Weber [Rep. Jeff Van Drew is quitting the Democrats over Trump's impeachment. The Democrat next door is voting yes.]( December 17, 2019 [Judge dismisses Michael Flynn's Justice Department allegations, schedules his sentencing date]( December 17, 2019 [Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers seem pretty sure Senate Republicans will break their impeachment oaths]( December 17, 2019 [Giuliani shares details on what he told Trump about ex-ambassador Marie Yovanovitch]( December 17, 2019 [Is this email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser.]( [Unsubscribe from this list |]( [Update subscription preferences |]( [Privacy Policy]( © 2015 THE WEEK PUBLICATIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THE WEEK ® IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OWNED BY FELIX DENNIS. Get 4 issues of The Week for only $8 [TRY IT OUT]( [TRY IT OUT]( [Subscribe]( [Subscriber login]( [Give a gift]( [Classroom subscriptions]( [Newsletters]( [Privacy policy]( [Terms & conditions]( [The Week UK]( [Contact Us]( [Ad info]( [RSS](