U.S. President Joe Biden had his first press conference on Thursday, promising to double the goal of 100 million Covid-19 shots during his first 100 days in office. He pledged to reach 200 million by the self-imposed deadline. Biden flashed anger when asked about a coordinated campaign by Republican officials across the country to restrict access to voting, calling the effort “un-American” and “sick.” He compared the GOP initiative to the race-based voting bars and codified segregation perpetrated for almost a century by the former Confederate states, known as Jim Crow laws. —David E. Rovella

Bloomberg is tracking the progress of coronavirus vaccines while mapping the pandemic globally and across America. 

Here are today’s top stories  

A specialized suction dredger and a vessel salvaging team arrived at the Suez Canal to try and re-float the giant Ever Given container ship. Unblocking the canal could take days or longer, intensifying a growing supply chain crisis. Meanwhile, some tankers and freighters not stuck in the massive traffic jam are taking the long way around. Here’s your Suez update.

U.S. coronavirus cases are rising again in earnest, reversing course after months of decline as more easily transmitted variants, premature loosening of restrictions and widely flouted precautions outpace a vaccination effort that lost precious months due to a botched rollout last year. Globally, vaccinations surpassed 500 million as AstraZeneca sought to put out a fire over its shot, submitting updated data behind its latest clinical trial. Infections are soaring in India while France widened its lockdown and the U.K. made plans to lift one. The unanswered question everywhere is how much damage will variants inflict on a deeply uneven global effort to crush the pathogen. Here’s the latest on the pandemic. 

The number of newly fired Americans looking for unemployment benefits last week was the lowest it’s been since the pandemic began. Still, that’s 684,000 more people out of work on top of millions who lost their jobs in the past year and have been unable to find new ones. Still, Wall Street gained on Thursday as traders cited progress in distributing vaccines and the outlook for economic growth and inflation. Here’s your markets wrap.

Automakers are expanding production cuts at some North American plants as they cope with a worsening global shortage of semiconductors. Chips for use in cars and trucks have been harder to come by. As with most things these days, the pandemic is to blame.

Twitter Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey said he takes some responsibility for online organizing that led to the deadly Jan. 6 attack on Congress by Donald Trump followers including white supremacist groups. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Google chief Sundar Pichai refused to accept any responsibility for the insurrection, which resulted in the death of a Capitol police officer and scores of injured members of law enforcement.

Sundar Pichai, Jack Dorsey and Mark Zuckerberg

Source: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Three current and former members of Taiwan’s central bank board are calling for an overhaul of its currency policy, saying efforts to tamp down the local dollar’s appreciation is having a negative effect on the economy.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has a big $8.3 billion plan to help Texas avoid a repeat of February’s blackouts.

What you’ll need to know tomorrow 

What you’ll want to read in Bloomberg Pursuits

The Best Beef? Try Snow-Aged Japanese Wagyu

Not so long ago, wagyu was a synonym for top-of-the-line beef. Now consumers can find as many types of wagyu as there are shows on a Netflix watchlist. Demand for the luscious Japanese original, which can come only from one of four breeds of exquisitely cared-for cattle, is growing. One of the newest, most extravagantly priced variations to arrive in the U.S., hailing from Niigata in western Japan, is something called snow-aged wagyu. 

Intense marbling and absolute tenderness is a signature of snow-aged Japanese wagyu beef. 

Photographer: Stephanie Noto for Bloomberg Businessweek

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