The daily business briefing: December 9, 2019

1.

Democrats, White House agree to trade Space Force for parental leave

Democratic lawmakers and the White House have reached a tentative deal exchanging the creation of the Space Force — a top priority for President Trump — for new parental-leave benefits for federal workers, The Washington Post reported Sunday, citing two people familiar with the negotiations. The agreement still has to be approved by negotiators and Congress, where it might not win the approval of enough Republicans to pass in the Senate. If it passes, it will mark a victory for federal employees after three years of Trump administration efforts to trim their benefits. Some Democratic aides estimated the cost of the added benefits to be $3 billion over the next five or 10 years, the Post reported. [The Washington Post]

2.

Frozen 2 dominates box office for 3rd week

Frozen 2 held onto the top spot at the domestic box for the third straight weekend with $34.7 million in ticket sales, according to Sunday studio estimates. The Disney animated sequel brought its global total to $919.7 million, putting it on track to become the sixth Disney movie to hit the $1 billion mark in 2019, with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker expected to push the studio's record to seven after its release this month. Despite Frozen 2's success, the box office overall was down 5.6 percent compared to the same point last year, according to Comscore data. The popular whodunit Knives Out remained in the No. 2 spot for the second straight weekend at $14.2 million. Playmobil: The Movie flopped in its debut, grossing just $668,000. [The Associated Press]

3.

U.S. stock futures lower ahead of opening bell

U.S. stock index futures inched lower early Monday after a U.S. jobs report far exceeded expectations and helped lift Wall Street to near-record highs on Friday. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq were all down by less than 0.1 percent several hours before the opening bell. The Labor Department reported on Friday that U.S. employers added 266,000 nonfarm jobs in November. Economists at Dow Jones had expected a gain of 187,000 jobs. Investors continued to closely monitor developments on the U.S.-China trade front. Larry Kudlow, director of the White House National Economic Council, said Friday that Washington and Beijing were "close" to a trade deal but that President Trump was ready to "walk away" if China doesn't agree to certain demands. [CNBC]

4.

Sanofi to buy biotech Synthorx for $2.5 billion

French pharmaceutical company Sanofi SA said Monday that it would acquire biotechnology company Synthorx Inc. for $2.5 billion, nearly three times its market value. The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2020, will speed up Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson's push into the expanding and lucrative market for cancer drugs. The Synthorx acquisition is "aligned with our goal to build our oncology franchise with potentially practice-changing medicines and novel combinations," Hudson said. Drugmakers including Roche Holding AG, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., and Merck & Co. have been leading the push into the field, often paying big premiums on biotech startups working on potential new blockbuster cancer medicines. [Bloomberg, MarketWatch]

5.

France's nationwide strike enters fourth day

France's transportation strike entered a new work week on Monday, with most French trains and subways halted for a fourth day. Unions called for more workers to join the nationwide strike over the government's plan to revamp France's retirement system. French President Emmanuel Macron called together top officials in his government to come up with a strategy for dealing with the protest. Macron, a centrist former investment banker, wants to make the country's pension system more fair and sustainable. French employees who worked from home in the first days of the strike are facing decisions about what to do as it drags on. "On Dec. 9, stay home or find another means of locomotion," the state-owned SNCF railway company warned travelers. [The Associated Press]