Biden talks to corporate leaders, calls for co-operation on recovery

WILMINGTON, Del. - President-elect Joe Biden consulted the CEOs of top U.S. companies and labor leaders on Monday before a planned speech on fixing the pandemic-battered economy and welcomed further progress in COVID-19 vaccine development.

Biden and Vice Presidentelect Kamala Harris held a midday conference call with several chief executives including General Motors Co’s Mary Barra, Microsoft Corp’s Satya Nadella, Target Corp’s Brian Cornell and Gap Inc’s Sonia Syngal.

Also taking part, according to Biden’s transition team, were AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka and the heads of the Service Employees International Union, the United Auto Workers and two other large unions.

“We have a lot of problems facing us,” the Democratic president-elect told participants at the beginning of a videoconference from his home state of Delaware seen by reporters. “It’s going to take all of us working together.”

Biden started the meeting speaking about his love of Corvettes with the head of GM and the auto workers union that represents some of the automaker’s employees. Biden then switched to a more somber tone as he addressed the “pretty dark” state of the economy because of the coronavirus.

“We all agree on these common goals,” Biden told the participants, before using a campaign slogan. “We agree that we can’t just build back the economy ... We have to build back better.”

Biden earlier on Monday said Moderna Inc’s announcement that its experimental COVID-19 vaccine was 94.5 per cent effective based on interim data from a late-stage trial provided fresh hope for beating the novel coronavirus. Coupled with positive results last week on a rival Pfizer Inc shot, Moderna’s news added to optimism that widespread vaccination in the coming months could help tame the pandemic.

Biden moved ahead with economic planning even as Republican President Donald Trump on Monday again refused to accept his election loss.