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The World at a Glance
Updated 7:37am EST
1
French opposition leader Marine Le Pen will appear in court today to appeal against her corruption conviction.
2Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she had a ‘very good’ talk with Donald Trump, as US-Mexico tensions simmer.
3Canadian leader Mark Carney will travel to China, as Ottawa seeks to diversify its trade partners following US tariffs.
4European leaders pushed for direct talks with Russia over Ukraine, as Europe seeks to maintain a voice in peace talks.
5Donald Trump is reportedly strongly considering launching airstrikes on Iran, after hundreds died in protests.
6Donald Trump’s criminal investigation into Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell prompted backlash from both allies and adversaries.
Alphabet joins $4 trillion club
Google’s parent company hit a $4 trillion market valuation on Monday after Apple picked Google’s Gemini to power its AI product.
Mike Blake/ReutersTrump’s Wall Street home-buying ban won’t fix housing shortage, exec says
“The notion that we are crowding out the individual homebuyer, I think, is an old view,” said Stephen Scherr, president of investment firm Pretium.
Mike Blake/Reuters Trump announces 25% tariff on countries doing business with Iran
Iran’s options appear increasingly limited as Trump also weighs military action over reports of hundreds of anti-government protesters being killed.
Stringer/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via ReutersSenate crypto bill moves forward but many issues still to solve
“We have just bent over backwards to accommodate the concerns that have been raised,” Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said.
Aaron Schwartz/Reuters AD
US Supreme Court to hear pivotal cases on trans athlete bans
The Supreme Court will consider West Virginia’s ban on transgender athletes playing on teams that match their current gender identity.
Becky Pepper-Jackson, the trans athlete at the center of the West Virginia case. Maxine Wallace/The Washington Post via Getty ImagesPeltola challenges Sullivan in Alaska
The former representative is a promising recruit for Senate Democrats.
Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersUS markets rise, looking past Powell probe
US markets climbed Monday despite the Trump administration’s renewed attacks on the Federal Reserve.
Kent Nishimura/File Photo/Reuters
Politics
Markus Schreiber/Pool via Reuters
Kent Nishimura/File Photo/ReutersAaron Schwartz/Reuters
Europe leaders push for talks with Russia on Ukraine
French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, both notably Atlanticist and strongly opposed to Moscow, are behind the push.
Markus Schreiber/Pool via ReutersInvestigation into Fed chair Jerome Powell sparks backlash
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reportedly told US President Donald Trump that the probe “made a mess.”
Kent Nishimura/File Photo/ReutersSenate crypto bill moves forward but many issues still to solve
“We have just bent over backwards to accommodate the concerns that have been raised,” Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said.
Aaron Schwartz/Reuters US Supreme Court to hear pivotal cases on trans athlete bans
The Supreme Court will consider West Virginia’s ban on transgender athletes playing on teams that match their current gender identity.
Progressive Democrats urge party to go populist in midterms
The senators used polling from both Democratic-aligned and GOP-aligned groups to argue that “bland policy proposals” won’t work.
Powell investigation backfires with Hill Republicans
The Trump administration has stepped on a proverbial rake with its party, where even the central bank chair’s detractors didn’t want to defend the probe.
Peltola challenges Sullivan in Alaska
The former representative is a promising recruit for Senate Democrats.
Senate whip backs Hageman in Wyoming Senate race
Rep. Harriet Hageman’s defeat of Liz Cheney in 2022 put her in pole position for the next Senate seat.
Inside the scramble to keep a divided America’s 250th birthday on track
Fittingly for 2026 America, two quite different groups are preparing for the same date.
Record number of Americans identify as independents
Forty-five percent of Americans now say they’re independents.
Congress braces for decisive week as shutdown nears
After this week, the Senate will go on recess for a week, with the House set to follow — leaving little time for cross-chamber coordination.
BusinessMike Blake/Reuters
Trump’s Wall Street home-buying ban won’t fix housing shortage, exec says
“The notion that we are crowding out the individual homebuyer, I think, is an old view,” said Stephen Scherr, president of investment firm Pretium.
Mike Blake/Reuters Blackstone invests $100M in elite marketing tech firm
Applecart has a leading place in an emerging but discreet cohort of companies and organizations aimed at reaching key figures in industry and government.
Youth projected to fare better than old over AI disruptions
Workers under 30 can switch career paths more easily, Goldman Sachs analysts said, while older workers may face the highest earnings losses.
How US traffic jams are driving Spain’s Ferrovial
CEO Ignacio Madridejos says a triple listing has drawn new investors to a European infrastructure powerhouse.
How Bob Jordan charted a new course for Southwest Airlines
The budget carrier’s CEO says communications and simulations helped it overhaul its business without killing its culture and business model.
Technology
Tommy Wang/AFP via Getty Images
Google Workspace/YouTube
Chinese AI leaders warn the US’ lead is widening
Some of China’s top minds in artificial intelligence publicly warned that the superpower has only a slim chance of catching up to the US in tech.
Tommy Wang/AFP via Getty ImagesGmail gets Gemini, but falls short of true agentic AI
Google announced Thursday it will integrate Gemini into Gmail, adding functionalities of a personal assistant, but it’s not quite as extensive as agentic AI.
Google Workspace/YouTubeWhy AI could mark the end of Big Tech’s invincibility
The outrage over Grok’s chatbot update that allowed the creation of sexually suggestive deepfakes could be the catalyst for tighter tech regulations.
Lego’s biggest new brick upgrade in decades divides fans
The “Smart Brick” looks similar to a traditional Lego block but includes a chip allowing it to flash, make sounds, and react to other so-called smart Lego pieces.
Big Tech set for relief on Europe’s digital rules overhaul
Regulators are reportedly expected to ease the Digital Networks Act, which aims to modernize and unify the EU’s telecom market.
Youth projected to fare better than old over AI disruptions
Workers under 30 can switch career paths more easily, Goldman Sachs analysts said, while older workers may face the highest earnings losses.
Energy
A worker smelts Lanthanum, a rare earth metal. David Gray/Reuters.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Aaron Schwartz/File Photo/Reuters.
Luc Gnago/File Photo/Reuters
Japan begins trial to explore mining deep-sea rare earths
The trial comes as Japan and the West move to diversify the supply and refining of rare earths away from China.
A worker smelts Lanthanum, a rare earth metal. David Gray/Reuters.US says it will ease sanctions on Venezuelan oil
The US Treasury Secretary’s remarks come as the US presses major oil companies to ramp up investments in the country.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Aaron Schwartz/File Photo/Reuters.Mining giants Glencore, Rio Tinto revive merger talks
The proposed merger would create the world’s largest mining company as global demand surges for metals and minerals.
Luc Gnago/File Photo/ReutersGulf
A platinum mine in South Africa. Nqobile Dludla/Reuters.
Gulf countries bet on African mining
The value of mining deals in Africa declined by 79% over the past five years, but some Gulf countries are looking to reverse that trend.
A platinum mine in South Africa. Nqobile Dludla/Reuters.Saudi developer unveils $827M Four Seasons hotel project
The developer, Midad Real Estate, is expanding its ambitions in the kingdom.
Qatar and UAE join Trump administration’s Pax Silica agreement
The US-led initiative aims to secure AI and semiconductor supply chains, including critical minerals, advanced manufacturing, and computing power.
Trump dents budget of Abu Dhabi-based renewable energy agency
Even before withdrawing from IRENA last week, the US has failed to honor funding commitments.
Eric Trump markets $10B in Saudi real estate projects
Rapid sales in the initial Trump-branded luxury development pushed the Trump Organization to launch more projects in the kingdom.
Africa
Adam Gray/Reuters
An offshore oil platform in Nigeria. Frédéric Soltan/Corbis via Getty Images.
The ‘single story’ of African credit ratings
African credit rating agencies say the “Big Three” overestimate the risk of sovereign debt on the continent because they lack a deep understanding of its economies.
Adam Gray/ReutersSenegal’s oil output enjoys bumper year in 2025
Senegal’s oil output comes from the offshore Sangomar oil and gas field, which began production in 2024.
An offshore oil platform in Nigeria. Frédéric Soltan/Corbis via Getty Images.US investors back Nigerian drone maker Terra Industries
CEO Nathan Nwachuku told Semafor that the company would expand output at its factory in Abuja and open a second one in East Africa this quarter.
Ramaphosa warns ANC must improve local services ahead of elections
The African National Congress risks losing control of key cities in crucial municipal elections this year.
Gulf countries bet on African mining
The value of mining deals in Africa declined by 79% over the past five years, but some Gulf countries are looking to reverse that trend.
The challenge of Uganda’s ‘forever president’
President Yoweri Museveni is in the running for his ninth term for a record 45 years.
Security
Piroschka Van De Wouw/Reuters
Danish military drills in Greenland. Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo/Reuters
Ludovic Marin/Pool via Reuters
Trump said to lean toward striking Iran over deadly protests
Many of the US president’s top officials and Tehran itself are pushing for negotiations over the Islamic Republic’s crackdown on protests.
Piroschka Van De Wouw/ReutersUK, Germany mull boosting NATO in Arctic amid Greenland controversy
The discussions are part of a bid to deter Russian aggression and fend off US President Donald Trump’s threat to take over Greenland.
Danish military drills in Greenland. Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo/ReutersEurope agrees to provide military support for Ukraine
Under the proposed peace deal, Britain and France would supply troops and weapons to Ukraine as part of US-backed security guarantees.
Ludovic Marin/Pool via ReutersMedia
Blackstone invests $100M in elite marketing tech firm
Applecart has a leading place in an emerging but discreet cohort of companies and organizations aimed at reaching key figures in industry and government.
Pro-Trump group to air Super Bowl ad touting Trump Accounts
It’s the latest move by a president and administration that have fully embraced professional sports as a prime venue to deliver their message.
The business of a viral Substack scandal isn’t as good as you think, Ryan Lizza says
“On the money part, not enough,” Lizza said on Semafor’s “Mixed Signals” podcast when asked about how much money he made off of the 25,000-word series.
Ryan Lizza on Olivia Nuzzi, RFK Jr., and the Substack-ification of a scandal
The media veteran joins Mixed Signals for a raw, sprawling conversation about why he chose to publish an eight-part (and counting) Substack series responding to the most personal and public crisis of his career.
New anchor Dokoupil sets the tone for ‘CBS Evening News’
In his opening monologue, Tony Dokoupil lamented that his colleagues in the news business had leaned too much into the perspectives of subject matter experts.
CEO Signal
Courtesy of Ferrovial/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Courtesy of Southwest/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
Courtesy of WPP/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor
How US traffic jams are driving Spain’s Ferrovial
CEO Ignacio Madridejos says a triple listing has drawn new investors to a European infrastructure powerhouse.
Courtesy of Ferrovial/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforHow Bob Jordan charted a new course for Southwest Airlines
The budget carrier’s CEO says communications and simulations helped it overhaul its business without killing its culture and business model.
Courtesy of Southwest/Joey Pfeifer/Semafor‘AI is going to automate the ordinary’: Cindy Rose’s plan for ad giant WPP
The admaker has fallen behind its peers, but the Microsoft veteran sees opportunity in disruption.
Courtesy of WPP/Joey Pfeifer/SemaforAD