Russell Okung becomes first NFL player to be paid in Bitcoin
Gold Futures Up Slightly As Dollar Weakens
Gold futures are swinging between gains and losses Tuesday morning, with traders looking for direction.
Traders are looking ahead to the U.S. Senate vote on a proposal by President Donald Trump who demands to increase the amount of coronavirus relief checks from $600 to $2,000. The House of Representatives voted in favor of the proposal on Monday. It now goes to the Republican-dominated Senate for approval.
The dollar’s weakness in contributing a bit to gold’s slight uptick. The dollar index, which slid to 89.98, is now at 90.05, down 0.32% from previous close.
Gold futures for February are up $1.60 or about 0.1% at 1,882.00 after advancing to a high of 1,887.80.
The volume of business is rather thin once again, due to upcoming holidays.
On the economic front, data on homp price index for the month of October is due out at 9:00 AM ET. The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index for September came in with a reading of 226.80.
French fashion designer Pierre Cardin dies at 98
PARIS (REUTERS) – French designer Pierre Cardin, who upended fashion styles in the 1960s and 70s with futuristic looks, has died at the age of 98, France’s Fine Arts Academy said in a statement on Twitter.
Cardin was also known for overhauling the fashion industry by successfully licensing his brand name and making savvy business moves.
Kuwait Aims to Vaccinate 80% of Population by September 2021
Kuwait aims to vaccinate 80% of its population against Covid-19 by September next year after starting an inoculation campaign last week with the shot developed by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE, a Health Ministry official said.
As of Monday, 2,500 people were vaccinated and second doses will be administered from Jan. 14, said Dr. Ghada Ebrahim, director for public relations and media at Kuwait’s Health Ministry. The prime minister was the first to receive the vaccine on December 24, “to encourage people to register online and vaccinate,” she said.
Dubai Aims to Vaccinate 70% of Population by End 2021: Reuters
Kuwait is home to about 4.8 million people, including more than 3 million expatriates, and has signed agreements to procure vaccines through the World Health Organization’s COVAX program.
In addition to the Pfizer contract, the country will soon sign a deal for the vaccine produced by AstraZeneca Plc and the University of Oxford, according to Ebrahim.
New shipments of the Pfizer shot will be delivered on a monthly basis. Pfizer and BioNTech have said their vaccine is 95% effective in preventing the illness.
Christmas Lull Takes Economic Activity Back to Covid Lows
Activity in several of the world’s largest advanced economies plummeted over the Christmas holidays, according to Bloomberg Economics gauges that integrate data such as mobility, energy consumption and public transport usage. An increase in Covid-19 infections and stricter containment measures in November and early December, exacerbated the slide. A decline in mobility and other alternative data indicators often occurs over the Christmas and New Year holidays, but in some countries, such as Germany and Italy, very strict containment measures imposed shortly before Christmas added to the weakness.
How Covid derailed Olive Garden's success
When you think of free breadsticks, unlimited salad and pounds of pasta, one name comes to mind — Olive Garden.
But the Italian eatery, known for its $5 take-home meal, has fallen on hard times as the coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on the restaurant industry. In December, Darden Restaurants reported Olive Garden's fiscal second-quarter same-store sales fell 19% from a year earlier.
According to the National Restaurant Association, more than 110,000 bars and restaurants in the U.S have closed permanently or long-term due to Covid-19. Lost sales are expected to reach $240 billion in 2020.
In response to the pandemic, Olive Garden has trimmed its menu, pivoted to takeout and cut costs. Are those changes enough for Olive Garden to regain its momentum and offset the overall decline of the dine-in restaurant experience? Watch the above video to find out more.
Watch more:
Why US hospitals are closing
What airlines are doing to clean their planes
Russell Okung becomes first NFL player to be paid in Bitcoin
More On:
bitcoin
Elon Musk calls Bitcoin ‘bs,’ sends rival Dogecoin up 20 percent
Bitcoin soars past $20,000 mark to new all-time high
Facebook’s crypto boss wants ‘benefit of the doubt’ from regulators
Bitcoin surges to all-time high as it nears $20,000
Bitcoin is going pro.
Carolina Panthers tackle Russell Okung will receive half of his $13 million salary in the form of the volatile cryptocurrency, a payments startup announced Tuesday.
The move makes him the first player from any of the big four US sports leagues to be paid with a cryptocurrency, CoinDesk reported, adding that the NFL and NFL Players Association had to approve the move. Okung will receive the bitcoin through Zap, a startup that converts traditional paychecks into bitcoin.
Okung tweeted in May 2019 that he wanted to be paid with the digital token.
The 32-year-old Texas native likely won’t be the last professional athlete to be paid via digital currency. Zap founder Jack Mallers told CoinDesk that unnamed players on both the Yankees and Brooklyn Nets have joined the program.
Bitcoin has been on a tear as of late, surging past the $20,000 mark for the first time earlier this month and recently trading as high as $28,387 per coin.
