— The Trump administration is using the threat of tariffs selectively to boost business investment in the U.S. among other goals; Saudi Arabia committed to investing $100 billion in U.S. data centers.
— Sales of existing U.S. homes in 2024 sank to 4.1 million, the lowest annual level since 1995, on high prices and mortgages rates (now above 7%).
— U.S. manufacturing activity is just barely expanding while activity in the services sector was down significantly, in the latest purchasing managers survey in January.
— China challenged U.S. dominance in AI by unveiling Deep Seek, a competitor to the AI programs OpenAI, Google and Meta that costs much less to operate.
— Global issuance of bonds to fund sustainability projects is expected to remain around $1 trillion, with the private sector in the U.S. offsetting the pullback in government issuance.
