The daily business briefing: December 21, 2023

1. Stocks drop, ending Dow's 9-day winning streak

U.S. stocks plunged on Wednesday after a two-month hot streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which had logged gains for nine straight trading sessions, dropped 475.92 points, or 1.3%. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq fell 1.5%. The pullback came after the major U.S. indexes got a boost from the Federal Reserve, which last week signaled it anticipated cutting interest rates three times next year now that inflation is cooling. Since then, Fed leaders have tried to douse expectations of a rate reduction in March. The Dow hit a string of record highs and the S&P 500 was nearing a record, too, before Wednesday's losses. U.S. stock futures rose slightly early Thursday. The Wall Street Journal, CNBC

2. ITC denies Apple request to delay sales ban on latest Apple Watches

The U.S. International Trade Commission on Wednesday denied Apple's request to delay a ban on sales of the latest versions of its Apple Watch while it appeals the ITC's decision. Apple said Monday it was removing its Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 from store shelves after the ITC ruled in October that the iPhone maker's SpO2 sensors in the smartwatches infringed on patents held by medical device maker Masimo. The last day for customers to buy these versions of the Apple Watch from Apple stores is Dec. 24. The import ban takes effect two days later. President Joe Biden has the authority to stop import bans, although presidents rarely do, Bloomberg reports. The Verge, Bloomberg

3. UK inflation unexpectedly drops to lowest since 2021

Britain's consumer prices rose 3.9% in November compared to a year earlier, the lowest inflation rate in more than two years, the U.K. Office for National Statistics reported Wednesday. The decline was unexpected — economists had forecast inflation to remain steady through the end of the year after a 4.6% annualized increase in October. Core inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food costs, dropped to 5.1% in November year-over-year, down from 5.7% a month earlier. Inflation peaked above 11% last year. Chris Hare, an economist at HSBC, wrote in a research note that the U.K. had not experienced the same "softer-than-expected inflation" as the United States and the eurozone, "but that could be changing." The New York Times

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4. Milei signs decree to deregulate Argentina's economy

Argentina's libertarian new president, Javier Milei, on Wednesday signed a sweeping decree aiming to deregulate the South American nation's struggling economy. The measures include privatizing state-owned companies and ending limits on exports. "This is only the first step," Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist, said in a televised address. "The objective is to return freedom and autonomy to individuals and start dismantling the enormous amount of regulations that have impeded, hindered and stopped economic growth." Milei took office on Dec. 10 promising "shock" therapy, including deep spending cuts, to contain triple-digit inflation. Reuters, AFP

5. Albuquerque Wells Fargo workers vote to join union

Wells Fargo employees at a branch in Albuquerque, New Mexico, voted to join a union on Wednesday, making the bank the first in the United States with unionized workers. Employees at a Bethel, Alaska, branch withdrew plans to hold a unionization vote on Thursday. Five of the Albuquerque branch's eight employees voted in favor of joining the union. Three voted in opposition, according to the National Labor Relations Board. Although the decision covered a tiny part of the bank's workforce of more than 200,000, it broadened recent labor-movement gains after successful efforts to unionize Starbucks coffee shops, some Apple stores, and an Amazon warehouse, The Wall Street Journal noted. Reuters, The Wall Street Journal