The daily business briefing: October 21, 2019

1. Johnson pushes for Brexit vote as deadline looms

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is pushing for a "meaningful vote" on his Brexit deal Monday afternoon, after Parliament denied one he asked for on Saturday. Johnson's government sent the European Union an unsigned letter as required under newly passed legislation requesting a delay on Britain's departure from the EU, currently scheduled for Oct. 31, but he also sent a signed letter presenting all of the reasons he sees for going ahead with Brexit as planned. One of Johnson's most senior ministers on Sunday reiterated that the government is still moving ahead with plans to leave the trading bloc without a delay. "We are going to leave by Oct. 31," said Michael Gove, the minister leading Brexit preparations. "We have the means and the ability to do so."

Reuters The Washington Post

2. Maleficent ends Joker's reign at top of box office

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil led the domestic box office over the weekend, knocking Joker out of the top spot it held for two weeks. The Walt Disney Co.'s new film, which stars Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning, took in an estimated $36 million in North America ticket sales in its first weekend in theaters. It also made $117 million internationally. The film had been expected to make even more. The first Maleficent film made nearly $70 million in its 2014 domestic debut. Joker remained strong despite its fall to No. 2, adding $29.2 million to bring its domestic gross to $247 million, and its worldwide haul to $737.5 million. Zombieland: Double Tap took the No. 3 spot, bringing in $26.7 million domestically in its opening weekend.

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The Associated Press

3. 1st federal opioid trial set to start

Four drug companies, including Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, reached a last-minute settlement ahead of the start of the first federal opioid trial, scheduled for Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported. Details were not immediately available, and it was not clear whether pharmacy chain Walgreens had also reached a deal. In this trial, Cuyahoga and Summit counties in Ohio are suing Teva, four distributors, and Walgreens, accusing them of contributing to the opioid epidemic by sidestepping a requirement to spot and report massive sales signaling illegal distribution of the highly addictive painkillers. Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson, and three other drug makers settled previously. In all, more than 2,300 lawsuits have been filed across the country by state and local governments against opioid producers and distributors.

The Wall Street Journal USA Today

4. Stocks edge higher after Chinese trade negotiator expresses optimism

U.S. stock index futures edged higher early Monday as investors continued to focus on global trade developments. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.1 percent, while those of the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were up by 0.2 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively. The three main U.S. indexes fell on Friday, but global shares mostly gained early Monday after China's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported that China's top trade negotiator, Vice Premier Liu He, said that recent U.S.-China trade talks had made "substantial progress" toward ending the trade war between the world's two biggest economies, and that Beijing and the Trump administration would work together to address each other's concerns.

CNBC The Associated Press

5. 1 in 3 Boeing employees felt 'undue pressure' on safety approvals

A Boeing internal report found that roughly a third of the aircraft maker's employees said in a three-year-old survey that they felt "potential undue pressure" from managers regarding federal safety approvals for commercial planes and other issues, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday, citing information gathered by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee investigators. The committee is stepping up its scrutiny of Boeing executives' actions relating to the design and certification of the 737 Max jet, which has been grounded since two deadly crashes. The company's shares fell by 6.8 percent on Friday and another 1.6 percent in Monday pre-market trading on the news that a Boeing test pilot had warned about problems with the 737 Max system and said he had "unknowingly" lied to regulators.

The Wall Street Journal CNBC