- __[Musky](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/584AsHjh5TeKtgP50rjco/articles/36KAN7Gde6BNGFOScj0LQ8/):__ Elon and other billionaires balked at a proposed (now dead) “billionaires tax,” which would’ve taxed unrealized gains on unsold investments. 
- __[Cheesy](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/539Y2n8dEQ1Dq1nUhKhYql/articles/5gFcP4oLqF2pWyDl2grWoV):__ __[McDonald's](https://robinhood.com/stocks/MCD)__, __[Coke](https://robinhood.com/stocks/KO)__, and __[Kraft Heinz](https://robinhood.com/stocks/KHC)__ dished out strong earnings after hiking prices on American food staples, from Bagel Bites to Big Macs. Thank the “staple advantage.”
- __[Juicy](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/6fvWNlLj06lmuzw6LGoQJT/articles/4ADArtfh2xKfYOP5GrK3Ip/):__ __Hertz__ is splurging $4B+ for 100K __[Teslas](https://robinhood.com/stocks/TSLA)__ in a massive bet on large-scale EV rentals. The goal: appeal to enviro-conscious, commitment-phobic consumers.

ICYMI

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World

__Fly like a G20...__ or Air Force One over the Colosseum. Over the weekend, leaders of the world's 20 biggest economies met IRL for the first time in two years — *minus* Russia's Putin and China's Xi, who called in via video. The two-day summit was held in Rome, but it wasn't a breezy Roman holiday. Why it matters:

- __Econ impact:__ G20 countries account for more than 80% of the world's economic output, 75% of its trade, and 60% of its population.
- __Climate impact:__ The G20 — which includes the US, China, Germany, India, and Brazil — accounts for 80% of greenhouse-gas emissions.
- __Biz impact:__ G20 leaders [endorsed](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/10/31/g20-leaders-endorse-global-corporate-minimum-tax) a minimum global tax rate of 15% for multinational corporations, aiming to implement it in 2023.

__Climate vitals…__ Greenhouse-gas concentrations hit a record last year, and the planet is "way off track" in capping rising temperatures, the UN says. This exacerbates extreme weather and rising sea levels. Rich countries are lagging behind their $100B/year [pledge](https://www.wsj.com/articles/rich-nations-lag-behind-in-meeting-100-billion-climate-funding-pledge-in-blow-to-cop26-11635184234) to help developing nations transition to greener energy. 

__Covid checkup...__ While 70% of US adults are fully vaxxed, only half the world’s population has received a shot. The goal was to vaccinate at least 40% of each country's population by the end of 2021 — we’re still far from that. [Most](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-vaccinations-tracker.html) African countries have fully vaccinated less than 10% of their population.

__Recovery screening...__ Thanks to Delta surges, supply-chain backlogs, and rising prices, global economic recovery is in [danger](https://www.brookings.edu/research/october-2021-update-to-tiger-the-global-economic-recovery-is-in-danger-of-stalling/) of stalling. The US economy's growth [slowed](https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/28/us-gross-domestic-product-increases-at-2point0percent-annualized-pace-in-q3-vs-2point8percent-estimate.html) sharply last quarter — so did China's.

The G20’s colossal battle [Grant Faint/The Image Bank via Getty Images]

__With great power comes great responsibility…__ So the G20 is setting shared targets for the Earth’s biggest problems. On the Covid front, leaders committed to trying to vaccinate 70% of every country by mid-2022. The US plans to donate 1B+ doses by next fall. On climate, leaders [pledged](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/31/climate/g20-coal.html) to stop financing coal power plants abroad, and “pursue efforts” to limit the average global temp rise to 1.5 °C  by 2100.  At the UN climate summit this week, powerful nations have another chance to further their ambitious goal: global carbon neutrality by 2050.

Global checkup: The G20 summit tackles climate change, Covid, and the economy

__Post-Halloween scaries…__ shipping delays. Holiday spending is expected to smash records this year, but retailers are *sweating* to meet demand. Nearly everything is in short supply, and materials and labor costs are surging. Amazon paid the price last quarter when profit plunged by nearly half from last year. The ’Zon expects to face billions in extra costs *this* quarter to hire 310K seasonal staff, among other costs. Meanwhile, __[Target](https://robinhood.com/stocks/TGT)__, Amazon, __[Best Buy](https://robinhood.com/stocks/BBY)__, and __[Walmart](https://robinhood.com/stocks/WMT)__ launched Black Friday sales early to ease delays.

__Ask app not to track…__ Big Tech earnings are over, but fallout from Apple’s privacy change *isn’t*. Facebook’s ad-sales growth majorly [slowed](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/1jAVVspgAe5mlsMnz9NEph/articles/2Vosrdk3nhKReYL818wjC7/) from the previous quarter (33% growth vs. 56%). Facebook and __[Snap](https://robinhood.com/stocks/SNAP)__ blamed Apple’s iOS update — which lets users opt out of ad tracking — for the disappointing numbers. __[Google](https://robinhood.com/stocks/GOOGL)__, __[Twitter](https://robinhood.com/stocks/TWTR)__, and Amazon weren’t as affected. To position itself for growth, Facebook is becoming a “metaverse company” (new name: Meta). The metaverse could be a hub for virtual interaction and commerce, from VR shopping to games. Read: *less reliance on iPhone ad $$*.

Zoom Out

Stories we’re watching...

__Double shot…__ __[Moderna](https://robinhood.com/stocks/MRNA)__ and __[Pfizer](https://robinhood.com/stocks/PFE)__ drop earnings this week. 68% of Americans over the age of 12 are fully vaxxed — *and 92% of that group had either Moderna or Pfizer shots*. Unlike __J&J__, both have chosen to profit from Covid-vax sales. Last quarter, Moderna [revealed](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/7smONUNjrn1RF9LBhEgLe7/articles/4GUGqbhYGdsfyMcKDiqUuK/) a whopping $3B profit on $4.2B in vax sales. Meanwhile, Pfizer raised its yearly vaccine sales forecast to $33.5B, from $26B. The FDA just approved Pfizer’s vax for kids as young as 5, while nearly one in 10 Americans has received boosters of the three authorized vaccines.

__La Mer skincare routine…__ Now reach for the bronzer. Beauty giant __[Estée Lauder](https://robinhood.com/stocks/EL)__ owns brands like MAC, Clinique, Too Faced, and La Mer. The beauty industry lost $175B last year as masks replaced lip gloss and foundation. But matte is back: For fiscal year 2021, Estée’s sales and profits surpassed pre-pandemic levels. We’ll see whether the beauty boom is still accelerating when Estée unpacks earnings tomorrow. 

Events

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The G20’s global checkup, Big Tech’s Apple problem, plus more of today’s top Snacks stories

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