COVID-19 and the Economy

Hawaiian Airlines said members in its loyalty program can use 14,000 miles to order a mail-in test kit by Vault Health. The program is “for a limited time only.”

The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1,500 points, or 5.4%, in early trading Monday and the S&P 500 jumped 3.7% after drugmaker Pfizer said early data show its coronavirus vaccine looks highly effective.

Trader Joe's has disclosed the COVID-19 infection rate among its employees, addressing rising concern over a recent survey that revealed a number of grocery store workers at a Boston market had the disease without showing symptoms.

The United States has recorded more than 120,000 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Saturday, breaking the previous single-day record, and the fourth consecutive day for new cases over 100,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., promised that approval of a new coronavirus relief package by the end of the year can be reached as lawmakers are set to return to work following Tuesday’s elections.

The Office of Small Business Administration (SBA) Inspector General Michael Ware found that it may have distributed billions of dollars to fraudulent businesses claiming financial distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report.

The British government says a new national lockdown in England may have to last longer than the planned four weeks if coronavirus infection rates don’t fall quickly enough.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced that the government is putting all of England under a monthlong lockdown next week after being warned that a resurgent coronavirus outbreak will overwhelm hospitals in weeks without tough action.

Austria has announced a partial shutdown that will see restaurants and bars closed for four weeks, cultural, sports and leisure activities canceled, and residents asked to stay home after 8 p.m.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week to 751,000, the lowest since March but a figure that remains historically high and indicates the viral pandemic is still forcing many employers to cut jobs.

The U.S. economy grew at a 33.1% annual rate in the July-September quarter — by far the largest quarterly gain on record — rebounding from an epic plunge in the spring.

Despite failing on Monday to come to an agreement on a coronavirus stimulus package, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi "remains optimistic" that a deal with the White House can be reached before Election Day.

The stock market had its worst day in a month as virus cases surge and help for the economy from Washington remains nowhere in sight.

About half of U.S. states have seen their highest daily coronavirus infection numbers so far at some point in October, and the country as a whole came very close to back-to-back record daily infection rates on Friday and Saturday.

Here are answers to some common questions about personal finance during the coronavirus pandemic.