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WASHINGTON — With prices soaring across the economy and a new strain of coronavirus threatening another wave of pandemics, President Biden stepped onto the White House microphone and tried to convey a sense of normalcy.
“We’re looking at a brighter and happier December,” Mr Biden said on Wednesday. He ticked off a list of actions his administration had taken, which he said would help ensure full shelves at grocery stores and retailers throughout the holiday.
When asked by journalists if he was concerned that the Omicron variant, which officials said had been detected in California later in the day, would threaten that progress, the president was undeterred.
“I’m optimistic,” he said.
It can be a long and anxious December for many Americans. inflation at its highest level in recent years, global delivery delays are limiting the availability of some products and Omicron’s uncertainty is currently stop the recovery from the recession. On Wednesday, the stock market fell for the second consecutive session as the S&P 500 closed down 1.2 percent. Omicron news free. The Nasdaq composite lost 1.8 percent.
Mr. Biden has tried to reassure Americans that this holiday season will be better than last year.
He filled the day with policy statements about supply chains and World AIDS Day, and finished off with a White House ceremony for the fourth night of Hanukkah, a throwback to pre-pandemic celebrations in Washington. He emphasized the positive aspects of the country’s economy.
The top infectious disease expert said it’s okay for Americans to drink an unmasked glass of eggnog at a cocktail party this month – at least under certain circumstances.
This was the president’s latest attempt to balance the nation’s desire to return to something akin to a normal life with the exhilarating reality that the virus persists. killing nearly 1,000 Americans a dayand it still disrupts economic activity.
Biden noted that global supply chains have been overwhelmed by the pandemic recession and recovery, causing many Americans to fear they won’t be able to find the food or toys they want for their celebration.
The president said those fears would be largely unfounded, arguing that at a time when Black Friday sales have increased by almost a third from the previous year, his administration has made progress in clearing backlogs at the port and facilitating more deliveries to the market.
He cited comments and commitments from a wide variety of retail executives he met at the White House on Monday to discuss inflation and supply issues, and said both physical and online retailers had assured him they were well-prepared for a quick spend.
“These shelves will be filled,” said Mr. Biden.
Mr Biden also highlighted the slight improvement in price hikes, including increases in food, appliances and gasoline, which lowered consumer confidence and approval scores. He said last week’s decision to release 50 million barrels of oil from the country’s emergency reserves has begun to drive down oil prices worldwide and will soon provide relief at the pump.
The massive drop in prices in recent days was not due to the release of reserves in coordination with several other countries, but to fears that Omicron would once again drive and suppress demand for other oil as the world economy crumbles.
Businesses continue to struggle to overcome supply chain delays. Shipping times from Asia to the United States and from Asia to Europe are at or near record levels – and double what they were in March 2019, according to a new index published by Flexport, a global shipping company.
An increase in the Omicron variant could cause further delays if ports and factory shutters, warehouses and trucking companies struggle to find people to work with. China this year close some of the most active ports After minor outbreaks of the virus, he tried to quickly contain its spread.
Health experts have yet to identify answers to key questions about how the variant might act; including whether this will make it more adept at avoiding vaccines that will determine how much it will squeeze growth or affect inflation. Analysts have warned that it has brought new uncertainty to its forecasts in recent days.
BNP Paribas researchers wrote on Wednesday He noted that the variant presents a variety of possible scenarios for the global economy, ranging from a relatively minor blow that passes quickly to a “significant short-term hit in economic activity”. Analysts at Moody’s wrote that “businesses’ plans for a gradual return to the new normal post-pandemic are now uncertain.”
Mr Biden sided with the brighter view and told reporters that “what we’ve seen so far does not guarantee that the variant will make supply chain problems worse”.
The country’s leading infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci told reporters at a subsequent White House briefing that this variant is not a reason for Americans who are already vaccinated and encouraged to change their behavior beyond current guidance from federal officials. When asked if Americans are free to attend holiday parties and drink without masks, Dr. Fauci said it depends on the size of the meeting.
“In a holiday season, you can feel safe at the reception without wearing a mask and eating, in closed-type environments with people you know who are vaccinated,” he said. But in larger public settings where it’s unclear whether everyone is vaccinated, he said, people should wear masks except when eating or drinking.
Biden and other Democrats sprinkled holiday reminders with only brief references to Omicron for the rest of the day. The president spoke at a ceremony Wednesday evening to light the menorah in a packed ceremony that included the first Jewish majority leader of the assembly, Senator Chuck Schumer from New York.
Mr. Schumer said earlier in the day, in a more somber tone than the president, that the season “reminds us that we cannot lose faith in God’s providence in the face of dire tribulations.” In the face of darkness, Hanukkah teaches that instead of cursing the darkness, we should light a candle.”
Mr. Biden held the World AIDS Day celebration in the East Room, which was decorated with several Christmas trees and garlands over his mirrors. The supply chain began its statements by stating that it will light the National Christmas Tree on Thursday evening in the South Court Auditorium, which is decorated with flags rather than tinsel.
Even when Mr. Biden talked about global shipping, he couldn’t resist a holiday reference. Mr. Biden recalled runs with hot toys like Cabbage Patch Kids in the 1980s and Beanie Babies in the 1990s in “past years when there was no supply chain issue.”
Mr. Biden said shipping companies like UPS and FedEx are on track to deliver more packages than ever before this year. But he did warn the kids: “I can’t promise everyone will get every gift they want on time. Only Santa Claus can keep that promise.”
Ana Swanson contributing reporting.
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