- Businesses’ bid to enforce Covid safety rules stymied by Texas governor’s decision to scrap mask mandate (NBC News) – “This could put people in danger,” a security expert says.
- China announces ‘over 6%’ economic growth target, tech plans (Associated Press) – China vowed to make the nation self-reliant in technology and announced plans to tighten control over Hong Kong by reducing the public’s role in government.
- Stock futures dip after a steep sell-off on Wall Street amid surging bond yields (CNBC) – All eyes will be on the February jobs report, which is set to be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect 210,000 payrolls were added in February, compared to just 49,000 in January, according to Dow Jones.
- US debt projected to balloon to more than double GDP by 2051 (Bloomberg) – The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office warned that by 2051, the United States’ debt will skyrocket to 202 percent of its gross domestic product, up from 102 percent this year.
- Google’s approach to historically Black schools helps explain why there are few Black engineers in Big Tech (Washington Post) – The company tried to recruit engineers by partnering with HBCUs. Critics say the program exposed how the search giant fell short.
- Costco Sales Rise 15% in Latest Quarter (Wall Street Journal) – E-commerce sales for the warehouse chain rose nearly 75%.
