Public Trust, Shutdown, Modi, Davos, Brooklynite, Amazon, Expert-generalist

Caracal Insider Daily
January 22, 2018
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross

Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia

Caracal Insider = Global Business News at the Intersection of Politics + Policy + Profits

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TOP FIVE

✔️ The public’s trust in all institutions has taken a nosedive in the US

✔️ World Economic Forum kicks off today

✔️ Modi to Davos - No Indian PM has attended the WEF since 1997

✔️ Workweek begins as shutdown rolls into the third day

✔️ Amazon's cashierless 'Go' convenience store set to open
 

GEOECONOMICS

Edelman TRUST BAROMETER: The public’s trust in all institutions—government, business, media and non-government organizations—has taken a nosedive in the US in the last year, according to the annual Edelman Trust survey, released this morning in advance of the World Economic Forum in Davos. The decline in trust in government was greatest, falling 14 percentage points, while trust in business fell 10 points, NGOs 9 points, and media 5 points. Worth noting is the survey was done before the government shutdown, which likely will deepen the public’s mistrust. The root cause of the fall, says Edelman: lack of objective facts and rational discourse in the U.S. You can read the full report here: https://goo.gl/bQGwSA

The annual World Economic Forum globalization party in Davos, Switzerland kicks off today.

No Indian PM has attended the WEF since 1997. What does Modi hope to achieve there? https://goo.gl/DHqrYZ

India's PM Narendra Modi to hardsell country at World Economic Forum: ST reports, "In recent years, India's engagement with the outside world has become truly and effectively multi-dimensional covering the political, economic, people to people, security and other spheres," Modi said in a statement on Sundayahead of his visit.

WSJ: Canada and Mexico seek to head off US exit from NAFTA at Montreal talks

Ahead of new NAFTA talks, US is angry and frustrated with Canada for being obstructionist: NP reports, the Trump administration is making known its displeasure about Canada's contributions to date and demanding progress over the marathon 10-day session.

The sixth round of NAFTA negotiations kicked off yesterday in Montreal.

Globe and Mail: Trudeau to play down NAFTA worries, push for Canadian investment on Davos trip

En route to Davos, Macron makes Versailles the place to be: Reuters reports, French President Emmanuel Macron will host dozens of the world’s most powerful business executives at the gilded Palace of Versailles to pitch France Inc before the global elite’s annual gathering at Davos.

“Monday, in the global business world, France will be the place to be.”

China’s Pacific push: Bloomberg reports, with the Trump administration warning of a possible war with North Korea, U.S. allies in Asia are sounding the alarm on another risk: a clash with China in the western Pacific. China’s increased air and naval patrols in disputed areas are prompting Taiwan and Japan to strengthen their defenses, boosting the odds of a confrontation.

Security fears spark crackdown on Chinese tech: The Hill reports, the federal government is taking steps to reduce the presence of some Chinese technology firms in American markets. Earlier this month, AT&T scrapped a deal with Chinese phone maker Huawei, reportedly as a result of pressure from anonymous US lawmakers who cited national security concerns.

Bloomberg: Trump-China trade clash fears flare anew one year later https://goo.gl/fMDkF1

China is already gene-editing lots of humans: A new report says that at least 86 people have had their genes edited in China. The Wall Street Journal reports CRISPR gene-editing has been used in Chinese hospitals to treat human diseases like cancer since 2015.

India will showcase 'Act East' policy on Republic Day: Defence Minister: NDTV reports, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today said, "The prime minister's intention that the 'Look East' policy should now be the 'Act East' policy is really taking shape."

Germany: Social Democrats voted to enter formal coalition talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, ending four months of political uncertainty.

It’s impossible for the UK to win Brexit negotiations: BI reports, this is what Theresa May should do, according to Yanis Varoufakis. 
https://goo.gl/jGvoix

Rex in London Town: US Secretary of State Tillerson has made a discreet visit to the new US embassy in London after Trump ditched plans to open it himself.

6 minutes: Aggregate amount of sunshine Moscow recorded in the entire month of December, the lowest ever.

A Bitcoin is ditry: The computation to “produce” a new Bitcoin uses as much energy as an American household consumes in two years.

Why Canada is poised to become a prime destination for Bitcoin mining https://goo.gl/EkVqPM

AMERICAN POLITICS

WSJ: Agencies implement shutdown plans

NYT: Shutdown goes into Monday as Senate inches toward deal

WP: Workweek begins as shutdown rolls into the third day

Stephen Miller, a hard-liner on immigration, is at the center of the fight over ‘dreamers’: WP reports, an adviser to Trump, Miller holds an influential yet delicate role — a true believer in restrictionist immigration policies attempting to broker a deal on behalf of a president with hawkish, but flexible, positions.

Lawmakers face a new vote as US shutdown drags on: FT reports, Trump marks year in office with federal agencies closed over spending battle. 

A national security group, the Alliance for Securing Democracy, found that #SchumerShutdown has become the top trending hashtag promoted by Russian bots on Twitter.

Trump to Davos? With the government shutdown, it is unlikely DJT will make the trip. Trump was scheduled to leave for Davos on Wednesday, speak on Thursday and return on Friday. 

“Trump is as loathed by the elites of Western Europe as he is by the elites of Manhattan.” --Niall Ferguson, a senior fellow of the Hoover Institution

The decline and fall of Wilbur Ross https://goo.gl/Qum8cw

Jared Kushner is China’s Trump card: How the President’s son-in-law, despite his inexperience in diplomacy, became Beijing’s primary point of interest.
New Yorker

ENTERPRISE

ADM has made a takeover approach to the agriculture trader Bunge.

Twitter said it is notifying 677,775 US users who followed, retweeted or liked tweets from accounts of the Internet Research Agency, a Russian government-linked troll farm.

Facebook announced that it plans to allow users to rank the media outlets that they believe are the most trustworthy in an effort to prioritize high-quality news on the social media platform. 

NYT: Facebook to let users rank credibility of news

This is dumb.

WSJ: Amazon's cashierless 'Go' convenience store set to open

This is smart.

"no lines, no checkouts, no registers"

Amazon is to launch Amazon Prime Music in India in the coming weeks.

Fortune: World's most admired companies:

1. Apple
2. Amazon
3. Alphabet
4. Berkshire Hathaway insurance
5. Starbucks
6. Walt Disney
7. Microsoft
8. Southwest Airlines
9. FedEx
10. JPMorgan Chase

Full report here: https://goo.gl/HJzwZY

How to win founder and influence everybody: Wired reports, an operating partner at Andreessen Horowitz, Margit Wennmachers is among the most skilled spin masters in Silicon Valley. https://goo.gl/yebiLa

The good, the bad and the ugly of NRF's Big Show 2018: While the conference showcased plenty of "cool tech," overall "felt stuck in a time warp" and needs to innovate faster.
RetailDrive - Christopher Walton

TRENDS

How Warren Buffett’s billionaire deputy became an “expert-generalist” https://goo.gl/NryiBb

“It’s more profound than, I don’t know, electricity or fire.” – Google CEO Sundar Pichai explains how important he thinks AI is. 

Beyond the Bitcoin bubble: Yes, it’s driven by greed — but the mania for cryptocurrency could wind up building something much more important than wealth. https://goo.gl/ir1EgV

CULTURE

A day in the life of a 12- (almost 13!) year-old Brooklynitehttps://goo.gl/iEoiXY