The daily business briefing: May 5, 2020

1. Amazon executive resigns over protester firings

An Amazon vice president, Tim Bray, said Monday that he had quit his job at the online retail giant "in dismay" over the company's decision to fire some workers who protested workplace safety during the coronavirus pandemic. Bray, an engineer, was vice president of the company's cloud computing arm, and before that of Amazon Web Services. Bray criticized the firings of Staten Island warehouse protest leader Christian Smalls, and Maren Costa and Emily Cunningham, who circulated a petition in March calling on Amazon to expand sick leave. Smalls' case is being investigated by New York's attorney general. Bray said the fired workers were whistle-blowers, and that their dismissal was "evidence of a vein of toxicity running through the company culture."

The New York Times

2. Airline stocks drop after Buffett sells stakes

Airline shares plunged on Monday after famed investor Warren Buffett announced that he had sold his stock in four carriers at a loss. Air Canada contributed to the gloom by issuing a dim assessment of the industry's prospects during the coronavirus pandemic, although Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly said he thought the worst of the crisis was over. U.S. Global Jets exchange-traded fund JETS fell by as much as 10.1 percent and closed down by 4.3 percent. The four stocks Buffett sold all fell. American Airlines lost 7.7 percent, Delta fell by 6.4 percent, Southwest by 5.7 percent, and United Airlines by 5.1 percent.

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MarketWatch CNBC

3. Treasury says U.S. will borrow $3 trillion this quarter

The Treasury Department announced Monday that it will borrow a record $3 trillion in the April-June quarter due mostly to the cost of helping individuals and businesses get through the coronavirus crisis. First quarter borrowing reached $477 billion, and the third quarter total is expected to be around $677 billion. Congress has approved more than $2 trillion in stimulus spending, including checks to individuals and loans to help small businesses continue to pay employees during shutdowns. The money also has gone to increased spending on unemployment benefits as more than 30 million Americans filed new jobless claims. Since March 1, the national debt has grown by 6.4 percent to $24.9 trillion.

CNBC

4. L Brands, Sycamore Partners cancel deal for sale of Victoria's Secret

L Brands has dropped plans to sell Victoria's Secret to private equity investor Sycamore Partners. The two sides announced Monday that they had reached a mutual agreement to cancel the $525 million deal they reached in February. Sycamore backed out after Victoria's Secret, along with most retailers, closed stores and furloughed employees due to the coronavirus pandemic. Under the proposed sale, Bath & Body Works, also owned by L Brands, would have become a separate company. L Brands said Monday that it would move forward with plans to split the two brands into stand-alone companies. Leslie H. Wexner, the chief executive of L Brands, will stick to a plan to step down as the company's CEO and chairman.

The New York Times

5. Stock futures rise as more states let businesses reopen

U.S. stock index futures rose early Tuesday after Wall Street opened the week with gains on Monday. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq were up by more than 0.8 percent three hours before the opening bell. Investors were focusing on potential economic gains as dozens of states ease stay-at-home restrictions to allow some businesses to reopen, along with the threat that the renewed activity could result in a surge of new coronavirus cases. The S&P 500 has rebounded by 27 percent since hitting a low on March 23, after falling by nearly 34 percent from February highs after the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. hard, prompting business shutdowns.

CNBC The Associated Press