Pippa Stevens from CNBC.com brings you the top business news headlines of the day. In today’s show, Leslie Josephs looks at the recent increase in air travel and why shares of low-cost airlines like Spirit are outperforming large corporations like Delta and United. In addition, Dick’s Sporting Goods takes aim at Lululemon when it enters the modern and lucrative men’s athletics market.
Air travel increases as vaccinations increase holiday reservations, inventories increase
Travelers are returning to the skies, fueling the optimism among airline CEOs that the battered industry has finally taken a turn in the coronavirus pandemic. Airline shares rose to their highest levels of more than a year on Monday.
The Transportation Security Administration examined more than 1.34 million people on Sunday, 86,000 more than on the same day last year, shortly after the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic.
It is still 45% below 2019 levels, a sign that the industry still has a long way to go before recovering to pre-pandemic levels. But TSA’s exhibitions have surpassed 1 million every day since Thursday, the highest volume in a year.
‘The damage is done’: Europe’s caution about the AstraZeneca vaccine could have far-reaching consequences
LONDON – The decision by many European countries to suspend the use of the coronavirus vaccine at the University of Oxford-AstraZeneca could have far-reaching consequences, according to analysts, with the adoption of the vaccine and the extensive immunization program already lagging in the region.
Sweden and Latvia on Tuesday became the last countries to stop using the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine due to problems with blood clots. The measure follows Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Ireland, among other European nations, which have temporarily paused the use of the vaccine as a precaution while checking whether there is a link between the injection and an increased risk of blood clots.
The World Health Organization, drug regulators and the vaccine manufacturer itself have sought to minimize ongoing safety concerns, saying that there is currently no evidence to suggest a link between the injection and an increased risk of developing blood clots, which are a common occurrence among the population.
Dick’s Sporting Goods is launching its own line of men’s athletics, rivaling Lululemon
Dick’s Sporting Goods is entering a highly contested market for men’s sportswear with the launch of its own brand called VRST.
VRST debuts on Tuesday on Dick’s website and on an independent VRST.com, and will be launched at more than 400 Dick stores in the coming weeks, the company said. The line items, which include everything from shorts to t-shirts, zippers and hooded sweatshirts, cost between $ 30 and $ 120, which puts them in the most expensive segment of the market when it comes to price range.
After Dick’s success with its Calia line of athletics for women, the company said it saw a blank space in its stores to have a more sophisticated and lifestyle-oriented line for men. The line will not compete directly with the sweat-absorbing performance equipment sold by Under Armor and Nike. Instead, it is more similar to Lululemon.