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Intelligence for the New World Economy
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The World at a Glance
Updated 5:40pm EST
1
US President Donald Trump told Iranians to “keep protesting” against the regime and promised that “help is on the way,” but declined to offer specifics.
2US inflation held steady in December, data showed, as the White House ramps up its affordability messaging.
3Donald Trump’s threat of 25% tariffs on Iran’s trading partners is already causing ripples in global commerce and threatens to reopens a rift with China.
4Microsoft vowed that its data centers would not raise energy prices, as tech firms’ AI buildout faces pushback from politicians and communities.
5Japanese stocks hit record highs on reports Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi would call a snap election, as investors bet on her expansionary fiscal policy.
6India and China stepped up scrutiny of delivery apps’ competitive practices including aggressive discounting and unsafe working conditions.
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.
Elizabeth Frantz/ReutersThree Trump Cabinet officials heading to Ohio and Michigan to talk auto affordability
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, and EPA chief Lee Zeldin will visit the Midwest.
Rachel Wisniewski/ReutersPowell 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.
Kevin Lamarque/ReutersAlphabet 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/ReutersAD
Pentagon’s $1B stake to shake up defense industry, CEO says
The stake in a new spinoff from defense contractor L3Harris is the first step to injecting some competition into the industry, the company’s CEO says.
Courtesy of L3HarrisMeta hires ex-Trump adviser to oversee AI buildout
Dina Powell McCormick, a Goldman Sachs veteran, is set to oversee Meta’s $600 billion infrastructure buildout over the next decade.
Courtesy of FIITrump’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 
Politics
Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersRachel Wisniewski/Reuters 
Markus Schreiber/Pool via Reuters
Trump’s economic pivot becomes a battle against his own party
As top Republicans openly dismissed the president’s credit card interest cap, another party lawmaker shrugged: “Let him say whatever he wants.”
Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersThree Trump Cabinet officials heading to Ohio and Michigan to talk auto affordability
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, and EPA chief Lee Zeldin will visit the Midwest.
Rachel Wisniewski/ReutersEurope 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.”
Senate 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.
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.
Business
Kevin Lamarque/File Photo/Reuters
Powell investigation has little financial or political upside
One question about the Trump administration’s criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell: Who is this for?
Kevin Lamarque/File Photo/ReutersPentagon’s $1B stake to shake up defense industry, CEO says
The stake in a new spinoff from defense contractor L3Harris is the first step to injecting some competition into the industry, the company’s CEO says.
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.
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.
Technology
Mohammed Benmansour/Reuters
Tommy Wang/AFP via Getty Images
Mideast venture deals hit record in 2025
The region bucked a wider slowdown in startup funding across other emerging markets, according to data provider Magnitt.
Mohammed Benmansour/ReutersChinese 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.
Why 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.
Energy
Brian Snyder/Reuters
Tom Little/Reuters
Shelby Tauber/Pool/Reuters
US emissions rise in 2025 after two-year decline
The main drivers of the emissions increases were commercial buildings and the power sector, according to estimates by the Rhodium Group, a research firm.
Brian Snyder/ReutersOrsted wins ruling to resume wind project halted by Trump
The project was 90% complete before the Interior Department ordered a pause on several offshore wind projects last month.
Tom Little/ReutersElectric grid transformer delays show no sign of easing
The CEO of the top global manufacturer of the equipment spoke to Semafor.
Shelby Tauber/Pool/ReutersGulfCourtesy of FII
Meta hires ex-Trump adviser to oversee AI buildout
Dina Powell McCormick, a Goldman Sachs veteran, is set to oversee Meta’s $600 billion infrastructure buildout over the next decade.
Courtesy of FIIGulf countries join rush to debt with new bond issuances
The coming year is expected to be another busy one for borrowing as Gulf nations forge ahead on ambitious diversification drives.
Abu Dhabi crown prince chairs new sovereign wealth fund
L’IMAD plans to invest in the UAE and internationally, targeting most sectors of the economy.
Mideast venture deals hit record in 2025
The region bucked a wider slowdown in startup funding across other emerging markets, according to data provider Magnitt.
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.
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