5 issues it is best to know earlier than the inventory market opens on March 16, 2021

Here are the top news, trends, and analysis investors need to get their trading day started:

1. Stock futures mixed after Dow, S&P 500 closed again at record highs

Traders work on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

NYSE

2. Fed to digest weak retail sales in February at this week’s meeting

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on December 1, 2020.

Al Drago | Pool | Reuters

The Federal Reserve, which begins its two-day March meeting on Tuesday, will monitor bond yields and the latest information on retail sales. The trade department said before the bell that retail sales fell 3% in February, a surprisingly weak number. It is estimated that an increase of 0.4% was required. However, the January figure was revised higher to a strong 7.6%, which had a negative impact on the December Covid package. Given the extraordinarily simple monetary policy action taken by the Fed during Covid’s review, the country’s central bank will release new economic and interest rate forecasts along with its policy statement on Wednesday afternoon.

3. Moderna investigates Covid vaccine in children; Other countries stop AstraZeneca

Moderna has started testing its Covid vaccine in children aged 6 months to under 12 years. The mid- to late-stage study plans to enroll approximately 6,750 children in the United States and Canada. In a separate study that began in December, Moderna is also testing its vaccine in teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18. The two-shot vaccine has already been approved for emergencies in Americans aged 18 and over.

Sweden and Latvia joined a rapidly growing list of European countries on Tuesday to stop using AstraZeneca’s Covid vaccine as health regulators re-examine their side effects after reports of blood clots. Germany, France, Italy and Spain announced on Monday that they would cease administration. However, the World Health Organization and the European Medicines Agency have recommended that countries continue to use AstraZeneca’s two-shot regimen.

4. Regulators Investigate “Violent” Tesla Crash; Autopilot not yet ruled out

A driver drives hands-free in a Tesla Motors Inc. Model S vehicle equipped with autopilot hardware and software in New York.

Christopher Goodney | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating a so-called “violent” accident involving a Tesla sedan and a tractor-trailer in Detroit last week. Authorities have yet to say whether the electric car maker’s autopilot, full self-driving, or FSD Beta may have contributed to the accident. The NHTSA has investigated more than a dozen accidents that are believed to have involved Tesla’s advanced driver assistance systems.

5. OxyContin maker Purdue proposes a $ 10 billion plan to end bankruptcy

OxyContin 80 mg pills.

Liz O. Baylen | Getty Images

OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma is proposing a $ 10 billion plan to get out of bankruptcy protection. Those efforts would include a significant boost of more than $ 4 billion from members of the Sackler family who own the Connecticut-based company. Court documents show that Purdue officials continued to press for OxyContin to continue selling despite it became clear that the drug had been misused. Complicated litigation is taking place in courts across the country to hold the pharmaceutical industry accountable for the country’s opioid crisis.

– Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Get the latest information on the pandemic on CNBC’s coronavirus blog.