One more push for $2,000 stimulus checks

US stocks closed at record highs on Monday after President Donald Trump signed a pandemic stimulus deal that includes $600 checks for Americans. There’s a chance that even bigger payments could be on the way.

The House of Representatives has passed a measure to increase the stimulus checks for people under a certain income level to $2,000. The bill now heads to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain future.

Trump has backed the idea of bigger checks, but some Republicans don’t think an increase is warranted given how much it would increase the overall price tag of the stimulus bill.

Rep. Kevin Brady, a Republican from Texas, laid out the rationale for opposing the larger payments in a post on Twitter. The checks, he argued, would “do nothing” to help local businesses and get people back to work.

“We can do better,” he said.

Not everyone agrees with Brady.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, for example, has repeatedly commented on the necessity of combining central bank stimulus with spending ordered by Congress.

The Fed, he explained in November, is using its lending programs to an “unprecedented extent.” But loans aren’t helpful in every case.

“Many borrowers are benefiting from these [lending] programs, as is the overall economy. But for many others, getting a loan that may be difficult to repay may not be the answer,” Powell said during a press conference.

“Direct fiscal support may be needed. Elected officials have the power to tax and spend and to make decisions about where we as a society should direct our collective resources,” he added. “The fiscal policy actions that have been taken thus far have made a critical difference to families, businesses, and communities across the country.”

Stimulus facts: How do we know the way stimulus checks might be spent? The US Census Bureau conducted a survey in June with some answers on how the first round of payments were used.

The majority of adults in households that received a stimulus check from the federal government say they used it or planned to use most of it on household expenses. That means the money is going back into the economy.

Meanwhile, 15.7% used their stimulus check to pay off debt and 14.1% planned to mostly save it.

Of those who spent their checks, 80% reported using the money for food, while 77.9% used it to their rent mortgage and/or utilities including gas, electricity and internet. About a fifth reported spending the money on clothing.

According to the Census Bureau, 8.1% of respondents said they spent or would spend the stimulus on household goods like TVs, electronics, furniture, and appliances or recreational goods like fitness equipment, toys and games.

The upshot: Economists see direct payments as a way to help protect the fragile recovery and prevent people from falling into poverty as the pandemic continues to rage across the United States.

The latest news on the virus is dire. The number of patients hospitalized across the country with Covid-19 is the highest it’s ever been, and at this rate health experts warn they may have to ration nurses, respirators and care.

The Boeing 737 Max is back

The Boeing 737 Max is set to carry US passengers for the first time in nearly two years on Tuesday, when American will use the jet on a round-trip route from Miami to New York.

It will be a pair of notable flights for the 737 Max, which was grounded from March 2019 through November 2020 after two crashes that killed 346 people. The flights come after the US Federal Aviation Administration last month approved changes Boeing made to the jet.

Not everyone is on board: A poll out Monday from Reuters/Ipsos found that 57% of Americans surveyed said they were not likely to fly in a Boeing 737 Max, when they were informed about the plane’s history. About 37% say they would be likely to fly in it once it has been in the air for six months or more.

American would not disclose how many seats it has sold on Tuesday’s flights, a 10:32 am ET route from Miami to New York’s LaGuardia Airport, and a return at 2:30 pm. But as of late morning Monday, the airline’s site showed only one main cabin ticket still available for the afternoon return.

Most other countries’ aviation authorities have yet to approve the use of the 737 Max. But Brazilian airline GOL became the first carrier to offer passenger flights earlier this month, and Aeromexico resumed flights with the plane last week between Mexico City and Cancun.

The trouble with the 737 Max helped make 2020 a year to forget for Boeing. Shares in the company have lost roughly a third of their value since Jan. 1.

Tesla may be coming to India

We’ve heard this one before, but 2021 may be the year that Tesla comes to the world’s fourth largest car market.

Indian transport minister Nitin Gadkari told CNN Business that Elon Musk’s electric car company will start selling vehicles there next year. Tesla will then look into manufacturing in the country, Gadkari added.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But Musk indicated on Twitter over the weekend that sales would start in 2021.

The backstory: The CEO said in 2017 that Tesla was planning to sell cars in the country as soon as that summer. But the delay may have been well timed.

Car sales in India dropped sharply in 2019 as new safety and emission regulations drove up prices, and troubles among India’s consumer finance providers hit lending.

Shares in Tesla, which are up nearly 700% so far this year, added another 0.5% in premarket trade on Tuesday.

Up next

The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index will be released at 9:00 a.m. ET.

Coming tomorrow: The US Energy Information Administration releases a report on crude oil inventories.