Turkey, Brexit, Mittelstand, Helmsman, Zucktown, LeBron James, Alliance of American Football

Marc Ross Daily
March 21, 2018
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross

Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia

Marc Ross Daily  = Global Business News at the Intersection of Politics + Policy + Profits

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TOP FIVE

✔️ Turkey is on a rampage

✔️ UK and EU agree terms for Brexit transition period

✔️ German Mittelstand faces generational crisis

✔️ China’s new ‘helmsman’ offers a strident nationalist message

✔️ Welcome to Zucktown.

ROSS RANT

Trump’s economic nationalism and mercantilism is gaining steam: Trump’s economic nationalism and mercantilism are gaining support with voters.

He has already added hefty tariffs on aluminum and steel imports, and reports indicate that by the end of the week he is setting his sights on China, a campaign trail favorite. 

With his move to block the takeover of an American chipmaker by a Singaporean rival, because of fears of Chinese technology leadership, Trump is poised to act against China over its theft of intellectual property and its trade surplus by adding billions in tariffs to Chinese made products.

Such moves are winning support with American voters, and it is hard to see how this rhetoric doesn't shape the 2018 and 2020 elections. 

Being tough on China makes American voters feel good. 

GEOECONOMICS

Turkey is on a rampage: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed Monday to send his invasion forces on from formerly Kurdish-held Afrin, Syria, toward the city of Manbij, where American troops are deployed in support of Kurdish fighters.

Turkey threatens to attack Syrian town held by US troops: Military.com reports, Turkey renewed threats Monday to attack a town in northeastern Syria where a small contingent of U.S. troops is based, raising the stunning possibility of a clash between NATO allies. 

BBC: The UK and EU agree terms for Brexit transition period

The UK and EU have agreed on a "large part" of the agreement that will lead to the "orderly withdrawal" of the UK.

The Times: Business hails breakthrough transition deal over Brexit

German Mittelstand faces generational crisis: FT reports, about 100,000 entrepreneurs due to retire in next 2 years yet to find successors.

African trade: Heads of state gather in Kigali today to sign Africa’s most ambitious integration initiative, the Continental Free-Trade Area, potentially involving all 55 of its countries. Few doubt the necessity. African states trade twice as much with Europe as with each other; an African firm selling goods on the continent faces an average levy of 8.7%, compared with 2.5% overseas. The aim of the CFTA is gradually to eliminate tariffs on 90% of products, potentially doubling intra-African trade.

In NAFTA talks, US tries to limit junk food warning labels: NYT reports, a Trump administration proposal would limit the ability of Mexico, Canada and the U.S. to warn consumers about the dangers of foods linked to obesity.

China vows to open its markets further in response to Trump’s tariff threats: WP reports, China responded to the threat of new tariffs from the United States by vowing Tuesday to further open its own markets to foreign trade and investment, while warning that a trade war between the two nations would hurt both sides.

"If the Trump administration follows through with plans to impose $60 billion worth of tariffs on Chinese imports, it could negate more than 20 percent of the annual benefits of the recently-enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA)." -- Tax Foundation

WP: Can Trump’s tariffs keep China from becoming the global technology leader?

No.

China’s new ‘helmsman’ offers a strident nationalist message: NYT reports, Xi Jinping, closing out a legislative meeting that took on the trappings of an extended coronation, struck a stridently nationalist note on Tuesday as he warned against challenges to China over Taiwan, Hong Kong or other regions where Beijing’s claims to sovereignty are contested. “All maneuvers and tricks to split the motherland are sure to fail,” Mr. Xi said. “Not one inch of the territory of the great motherland can be carved off from China.”

At G-20, Trump team shows no sign of backing off ‘America First’: WP reports, the US treasury secretary told global finance ministers Tuesday that the Trump administration would press ahead with a range of trade restrictions on numerous US allies, rebuffing calls to scale back the White House’s protectionist agenda despite intensifying resistance and threats of retaliation.

World economic leaders warn of trade war as Mnuchin defends policies: NYT reports, Trump’s plan to hit other countries with stiff tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum dominated a two-day gathering of global economic leaders, with foreign policymakers warning that the United States is on the cusp of triggering an international trade war as it put its “America First” policy into action.

FT - Shawn Donnan: Trump is about to launch a trade war with no way out: President believes he can prevail over China but seems to lack an exit strategy. https://goo.gl/3Ac7Wd

US 'shouting’ at China risks a spiraling trade war, Lew says: Bloomberg reports, the US should engage China on trade instead of having a “shouting match,” former US Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew said. “Conflict isn’t going to resolve a lot of those issues,” Lew said Wednesday in a Bloomberg Television interview from Beijing. There’s a risk that the rhetoric could spiral out of control into more serious conflict, and the US should work toward better outcomes instead of being an outlier on global trade, he said. 

AMERICAN POLITICS

WP: Bannon oversaw Cambridge Analytica’s collection of Facebook data, according to former employee

WP - Richard Cohen: Stormy Daniels — not Robert Mueller — might spell Trump’s doom

How Trump’s protectionism backfires: NYT reports, Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, designed to protect blue-collar workers, could instead undermine their livelihood. https://goo.gl/vPjHCN

Trump would demolish Kasich head-to-head in Ohio, according to a new poll: If the Republican presidential primary were held today, 62 percent of the Republicans polled would vote for Trump. Only 27 percent would vote for Kasich. 

ENTERPRISE

Skift: Alipay steps up push to cater to Chinese travelers in the US

Geely will target new-energy vehicles for 90 percent of total sales by 2020.

Amazon just passed Alphabet to become the world's second most valuable company.

NYT: Google pledges $300 million to clean up false news

Google’s campaign, which was announced at an event in New York on Tuesday, will be known as the Google News Initiative. Among the initiative’s goals are making it easier for Google users to subscribe to news publications, and giving publishers new tools to create fast-loading mobile pages. 

Facebook under fire: The social media company is struggling to respond to growing demands from Washington and European capitals to explain how millions of its users' personal data could be exploited by a consulting firm that allegedly helped Trump win the presidency.

FTC investigates "whether Facebook violated terms of a 2011 consent decree over its handling of personal user data." 

Welcome to Zucktown. Where everything is just zucky. In Menlo Park, Calif., Facebook is building a real community and testing the proposition: Do people love tech companies so much they will live inside them? https://goo.gl/Mt9P2i

Chipotle just snagged another former Taco Bell exec. Chris Brandt, Chipotle's new CMO, starts next month.

TRENDS

Gen Z is fleeing social, but marketers can get them back: Thirty-four percent of Generation Z in the US are quitting social media for good, 64% are putting their use on hold, and 41% report that social platforms make them feel depressed, anxious or sad, per Origin.

Chinese insurer stages blockchain chicken coup: FT reports, ZhongAn says use of ledger tech to track poultry can help improve country’s food safety.

FC: People were asked to name women tech leaders. They said “Alexa” and “Siri” https://goo.gl/irfj3h

12 things everyone should understand about tech https://goo.gl/YhMM6s

CULTURE

RIP Pete Peterson: Pete Peterson, co-founder of the Blackstone Group and former commerce secretary under Richard Nixon, passed away Tuesday at the age of 91. 

Black Panther is the most tweeted-about movie ever, Variety writes. It's been mentioned on the platform over 35 million times.

Damian Lewis on why Billions is "like a superhero show": When Billions returns for its third season, Damian Lewis ' Bobby Axelrod is in a very unfamiliar place: Under indictment, separated from his wife, and banished from the hedge fund company that bears his name. "It's a fun trajectory for the character," he says. https://goo.gl/teynzs

SOTD

Emmit Fenn - Lost In Space https://goo.gl/WrgpU3

SPORT

Alliance of American Football to kick off after Super Bowl: WP reports, A whole new football season will start right after the next Super Bowl. A spring professional league, the Alliance of American Football, will kick off its inaugural regular season Feb. 9, 2019, and will include a modest broadcast deal with CBS, league executives announced Tuesday.

Ebersol cooks up a spring football league to rival the XFL: AdAge reports, speaking to the press Tuesday morning from the Park Hyatt hotel in Manhattan, Ebersol and former Buffalo Bills GM and Indianapolis Colts President Bill Polian took the wraps off their blueprint for the AAF, a new spring football league that's slated to debut on Feb. 8, 2019—the Saturday following CBS's coverage of Super Bowl LIII

How LeBron James fixed his back and is on track to play all 82 games https://goo.gl/86jp9y