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About The Bulletin. (Bend, OR) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 26, 2021)
A11 B USINESS THE BULLETIN • TUESDAY, JANUARY 26, 2021 q DOW 30,960.00 -36.98 BRIEFING Janet Yellen OK’d as treasury secretary The Senate on Mon- day approved President Joe Biden’s nomination of Janet Yellen to be the na- tion’s 78th treasury secre- tary, making her the first woman to hold the job in the department’s 232- year history. Yellen, a former chair of the Federal Reserve, was approved by the Sen- ate on a 84-15 vote, be- coming the third member of Biden’s Cabinet to win confirmation. She is expected to play a key role in gaining congressional approval of Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief pack- age, which is running into stiff opposition from Republicans who believe the price tag is too high. Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer noted the former Federal Reserve chairwoman had bipartisan support. Schumer said Yellen has a “breathtaking range of experience” and sup- port for her nomination reflected “just how well suited she is to manage the economic challenges of our time … particu- larly during this moment of economic crisis.” Radio stations file bankruptcy The Portland-based parent company of local radio stations KXL-FM, KINK and KUPL, as well as 200 other stations around the country, has filed bankruptcy. Alpha Media Holdings said none of its stations will go off the air. The company said it will use the protection afforded by the Chapter 11 bank- ruptcy statutes to reduce its debt and find addi- tional capital. In bankruptcy docu- ments filed in the Eastern District of Virginia, Alpha told the court that it has already reached prelimi- nary agreement to accom- plish that restructuring. Alpha owns properties in 44 markets across the country. Endeavour Cap- ital, a Portland-based pri- vate equity firm, invested in Alpha, is helping fund its growth. California lifts curfew, restrictions Gov. Gavin Newsom lifted stay-at-home orders across the state Monday in response to improving coronavirus conditions, a surprising move hailed by beleaguered businesses. But some local health officials worried it could undo the recent sharp drop in cases and hospi- talizations. “We’re seeing a flatten- ing of the curve — every- thing that should be up is up; everything that should be down is down — case rates, positivity rates, hos- pitalizations, ICUs,” New- som told reporters. The turnaround came about a month after hos- pitals crafted emergency plans for rationing care and as intensive care unit capacity in the vast Southern California re- gion currently stands at 0%. State data models forecast that the region’s ICU capacity will rise to 33% by Feb. 21. The lifting of the stay- at-home order allows restaurants and churches to resume outdoor op- erations and hair and nail salons to reopen in many areas, though lo- cal officials could choose to impose stricter rules. The state is also lifting a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew. — Bulletin wire reports p bendbulletin.com/business NASDAQ 13,635.99 +92.93 p S&P 500 3,855.36 +13.89 q 30-YR T-BOND 1.80% -.05 p CRUDE OIL $52.77 +.50 q GOLD $1,854.90 -.80 q SILVER $25.46 -.06 Biden more bullish on vaccines, open to 1.5M daily shot goal BY JOSH BOAK AND ZEKE MILLER The Associated Press WASHINGTON — Pres- ident Joe Biden on Monday appeared to boost his goal for coronavirus vaccinations in his first 100 days in office, suggesting the nation could soon be injecting 1.5 million shots on an average per day. Biden signaled his increas- ing bullishness on the pace of vaccinations after signing an executive order to boost gov- ernment purchases from U.S. manufacturers. It was among a flurry of moves by Biden during his first full week to show he’s taking swift action to heal an ailing economy as talks with Congress over a $1.9 trillion stimulus package showed few signs of progress. Biden reiterated that he be- lieves the country is in a pre- carious spot and that relief is urgently needed, even as he dismissed the possibility of embracing a scaled-down bill to secure passage faster. Among the features of the stimulus plan are a national vaccination program, aid to reopen schools, direct pay- ments of $1,400 to individuals and financial relief for state and local governments. “Time is of the essence,” Biden said. “I am reluctant to cherry-pick and take out one or two items here.” Biden’s new vaccination tar- get comes after he and his aides faced criticism for the 100 mil- lion goal in his first 100 days in office. The U.S. has exceeded a pace of 1 million doses per day over the last week. “I think we may be able to get that to … 1.5 million a day, rather than 1 million a day,” Biden said, “but we have to meet that goal of a million a day.” Biden added that he expects widespread availability of the vaccines for Americans by spring, with the U.S. “well on our way to herd immunity” necessary to end the pan- demic by summer. Even so, he warned the nation was going to be “in this for a while, and could see between “600,000 and 660,000 deaths before we begin to turn the corner in a major way.” CHERRY SALES POINT TO A ‘PANDEMIC POWERHOUSE’ BY DAN WHEAT For the Capital Press YAKIMA, Wash. — The coronavirus pandemic factored into the Pacific Northwest cherry industry grossing more than $1 billion for the first time last year, but the little cherry disease and China tariffs remain key concerns. As the coronavirus shut down restaurants, grocery store shopping increased 20% and online promo- tions championing health benefits of cherries reso- nated with consumers re- sulting in “the strongest demand in the past de- cade,” B.J. Thurlby, presi- dent of Northwest Cherry Growers, in Yakima, told the association’s 78th an- nual Cherry Institute last week. “When we talk to re- tailers this spring, we will say cherries were amaz- ing last year. They were a pandemic powerhouse. They had the single most dollar growth, 86.5%, be- tween March and Septem- ber of any produce item,” Thurlby said. “We have great data as a powerful kick-starter coming into the 2021 season.” Washington typically is 80% to 85% of the Pa- cific Northwest crop that includes Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Utah. Wash- ington makes up about 60% of the national crop. The late May to early September Northwest crop totaled 19.8 million 20-pound boxes, down 15% from 23.3 million the year prior and well below the record of 26.4 million in 2017. Cherries decrease in- flammation and boost the immune system. Texas A&M University research is ongoing relative to ef- fects on the body from the gut to the brain and on breast cancer. “We have established ourselves as a super fruit and will continue down that road with stronger messages,” Thurlby said. The industry’s No. 1 is- sue, he said, is little cherry disease that cost 2 million to 2.5 million boxes of lost production due to orchard removal to fight the dis- ease. It has no cure, robs trees of energy, reduces produc- tion and results in small bitter-tasting fruit that is unmarketable. It spreads tree-to-tree in roots and via apple and grape mealy- bugs and leafhoppers. “If we’re going to be here 20 years from now, we re- ally have to start focusing on this issue,” Thurlby said. Research has been un- derway for several years. Western X Phytoplasma, a bacterial-like strain of the disease, has increased dramatically in the last couple of years from The Dalles to Omak, Washing- ton, said Tianna DuPont, a Washington State Univer- sity tree fruit specialist in Wenatchee. Based on a 23% re- sponse to a grower survey, she said more than 145,000 trees and 685 acres have been removed. She esti- mates lost revenue and orchard re establishment costs at $81 million over seven years. She urged growers to keep removing infected trees. q EURO $1.2139 -.0028 Budweiser joins big brands in sitting out Super Bowl BY MAE ANDERSON AND DEE-ANN DURBIN The Associated Press NEW YORK — For the first time since 1983, when An- heuser-Busch used all of its ad time to introduce a beer called Bud Light, the beer giant isn’t advertising its iconic Bud- weiser brand during the Super Bowl. Instead, it’s donating the money it would have spent on the ad to coronavirus vaccina- tion awareness efforts. Anheuser-Busch still has four minutes of advertising during the game for its other brands including Bud Light, Bud Light Seltzer Lemonade, Michelob Ultra and Michelob Ultra Organic Seltzer. But the decision to not do an anthemic Budweiser ad show- cases the caution with which some advertisers are approach- ing the first COVID-19-era Su- per Bowl. “We have a pandemic that is casting a pall over just about everything,” said Paul Argenti, Dartmouth College professor of corporate communication. “It’s hard to feel the exuberance and excitement people nor- mally would.” The Anheuser-Busch move follows a similar announce- ment from PepsiCo., which won’t be advertising its biggest brand, Pepsi, in order to fo- cus on its sponsorship of the halftime show. It will be ad- vertising Mountain Dew and Frito-Lay products. Other vet- eran Super Bowl advertisers like Coke, Audi and Avocados from Mexico are sitting out the game altogether. The pandemic has cut sharply into sales for many Super Bowl advertisers. With pricey ads costing an estimated $5.5 million for 30 seconds during the Feb. 7 broadcast on CBS, some may have decided it’s not worth it this year. Coca- Cola, for example, has been hard hit since half of its sales come from stadiums, movie theaters and other usually crowded places that have been closed during the pandemic. It announced layoffs in Decem- ber and said it said it wouldn’t advertise this year to ensure it’s “investing in the right re- sources during these unprece- dented times.” To fill the void, newcomers like the TikTok rival Triller, online freelance marketplace Fiverr and online car seller Vroom are rushing in to take their place. Returning brands include M&M’s, Pringles, Toy- ota and others. Effort to put Tubman on $20 bill restarted under Biden BY MARTIN CRUTSINGER The Associated Press WASHINGTON — With a change of administrations, it looks like Harriet Tubman is once again headed to the front of the $20 bill. Biden press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday that the Treasury Department is taking steps to resume efforts to put the 19th century abolitionist leader on the $20 bill. Obama administration Trea- sury Secretary Jack Lew had selected Tubman to replace Andrew Jackson, the nation’s seventh president, on the $20 bill. But Tubman’s fate had been in doubt since the 2016 pres- idential campaign based on critical comments by then- candidate Donald Trump, who branded the move “pure politi- cal correctness.” Trump administration Trea- sury Secretary Steven Mnuchin did not move forward with the decision by the Obama admin- istration. Instead, Mnuchin in 2019 announced a delay in re- designing the $20 bill in order to redesign the $10 and $50 bills first to improve security features to thwart counterfeit- ers. The unveiling of the rede- signed $20 bill featuring Tub- man, famous for her efforts spiriting slaves to freedom on the Underground Railroad, had been timed by the Obama administration to coincide with the 100th anniversary of passage of the 19th Amend- ment giving women the right to vote. Under the schedule Mnuchin announced in May 2019, the redesigned $20 bill would not have come out until 2028 with final designs for the bill not announced until 2026. But Psaki told reporters during a briefing Monday that she and other officials were surprised to hear of the delays in putting Tubman on the $20 bill. With a change in adminis- trations, she said the Treasury Department was taking steps to resume efforts to put Tub- man on the $20 bill. “It is important that our … money reflect the history and diversity of our country and Harriet Tubman’s image grac- ing the new $20 note would certainly reflect that,” Psaki said. “We are exploring ways to speed up that effort.” Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP file A wax likeness of the renowned abolitionist and conductor of the Un- derground Railroad Harriet Ross Tubman is on display at the Presi- dents Gallery by Madame Tussauds in Washington. With a change of administrations, it looks like Harriet Tubman is once again headed to the front of the $20 bill.