Marc Ross Daily | March 10
Marc Ross Daily is geopolitical business news + intelligence for senior executives + comms pros.
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Happy Monday.
Here’s today’s Marc Ross Daily:
*** Globalization + Geopolitics ***
Mark Carney wins race to replace Justin Trudeau: TS reports the Liberal party has elected Mark Carney as their new leader.
Mark Carney wins leadership of Canada’s Liberal Party revived by Trump: WSJ reports Carney will officially become Canada’s new leader in the coming days and take over his country’s response to President Trump’s trade war.
Canada’s Liberals pick ex-central banker Mark Carney to replace Trudeau: WP reports Carney cast himself during the campaign as an even-keeled political outsider with the economic bona fides to take on Donald Trump and manage a trade war.
+ Former Bank of Canada governor set to become country’s 24th prime minister
We are Canadian Jeff Douglas (Video)
Doug Ford, the defiant Canadian politician taking on Trump: As the US-Canada tariff war continues, the Ontario premier faces the defining challenge of his career. FT
TS: Mike Myers puts his ‘elbows up’ again in return to SNL episode featuring Trump tariffs on ‘sworn enemy Canada’
Canada is not the enemy Rich Lowry
What’s behind Trump’s love-hate relationship with Canada: Canada is one of the United States’ largest trading partners, but President Trump wants to either take it or leave it. NYT
How the Ukraine war increased US dominance of the global arms trade: WP reports US arms exports reached 43 percent of the worldwide total as Ukrainian imports skyrocketed following the Russian invasion, according to research by SIPRI.
Two-thirds of arms imports to NATO countries in Europe come from US: FT reports the continent’s deep reliance on American-made weapons underscored by SIPRI data.
The America-sized hole in Ukraine’s war effort: Defenders can hold out against Russians for now, but impact of US weapons and intelligence halt will ‘cascade and compound’ over time. WSJ
America and Ukraine prepare for brutal negotiations: To get a deal in Jeddah Ukraine must first make peace with Donald Trump. Economist
+ Donald Trump said Ukraine “may not survive” as the White House put pressure on Volodymyr Zelensky to give up territory seized by Russia.
Ukraine seeks to persuade US to resume aid in high-stakes talks: FT reports Zelenskyy in bid to persuade Trump he wants an end to war with Russia after freeze on military and intelligence aid.
Russia pushes Ukrainian forces back in Kursk after US halts support: WSJ reports Ukraine had hoped its toehold in the Russian territory would give it leverage in any peace talks.
After Ukraine, could Trump stop sharing intelligence with Britain too? All it takes is one directive for the Five Eyes alliance of anglophone countries to fall apart after 70 years. The spooks are spooked, but how likely is it? The Times
Britain takes key role to help Ukraine in peace talks: The Times reports the UK hopes President Trump can be persuaded to continue sharing intelligence with Ukraine before talks in Saudi Arabia.
It’s our moral duty to seize Russian assets to help Ukraine: Kyiv needs more resources and extra pressure must be put on the Kremlin. The legal and practical objections to putting frozen assets to good use can be overcome. Rishi Sunak
Who’ll take on JD Vance? Guess it has to be me: The bullies in the White House could do with a history lesson: Power will warp your logic. Jeremy Clarkson
Vance and Trump are Putin’s ‘useful idiots’, says US vice-president’s cousin: Nate Vance reportedly spent three years fighting to defend Ukraine from Russia’s invasion. Telegraph
Rupert Lowe, Reform and the civil war he says will tear it down: The Times reports the MP who lost the party whip over bullying allegations was starting to become a threat to Nigel Farage, insiders claim.
Make Liz Truss great again: Ex-PM seeks redemption from Republicans: Now a political pariah in Britain, the leader outlasted by a lettuce is setting her sights on Trump’s America. The Times
France’s ex-intelligence chief convicted in influence peddling trial involving LVMH: NYT reports Bernard Squarcini was found guilty of organizing a bizarre illegal surveillance operation on a gadfly journalist at the request of the luxury company, among other offenses.
Pope Francis set to miss Easter, the Church’s most ‘crucial moment’: The Times reports he is the main attraction for many pilgrims but his frailty will cast a shadow over events in the Vatican’s jubilee year.
What went wrong at Saudi Arabia’s futuristic metropolis in the desert: Neom executives shielded the crown prince from the challenges of his fantastical plans, including by engaging in ‘deliberate manipulation’ of financials, an internal report found. WSJ
India + the European Union hold the next round of talks on a trade agreement in Brussels from Monday to Friday as the two sides aim to conclude an ambitious deal by the end of this year.
Trump is carving up Ukraine with Putin. Taiwan is terrified it could be next: The island could be left at China’s mercy as America’s mercurial president upends the old world order. Telegraph
Chinese students flock to Japanese art colleges for permanent residency: Education becomes pathway to long-term settlement. Nikkei
China vows to spend more on 'heavy task' of creating jobs: Nikkei reports officials hail 'positive change' in property sector but deflationary pressure builds.
Zuckerberg’s Meta considered sharing user data with China, whistleblower alleges: Meta went to extreme lengths, including developing a censorship system, in a failed attempt to bring Facebook to millions of internet users in China, according to a whistleblower complaint. WP
Today: China's 10%-15% tariffs take effect on a host of US agricultural products, from soybeans and pork to corn and chicken. Beijing announced the retaliation just as US President Donald Trump's extra 10% blanket tariff on Chinese goods kicked in, on top of previous levies, ramping up the trade war between the world's two largest economies.
Tariff battle set to escalate this week with US levies on Canadian steel and aluminum: G+M reports the tariffs will take effect on Wednesday and will raise costs mostly for US consumers and businesses, where the market will find itself having to bear the 25-per-cent increase in the price of metal.
US trade deficit grew 34% in January: WSJ reports imports rose 10% to $401.2 billion, while exports climbed by 1.2% to $269.8 billion.
Reuters: Jack Daniel's maker says Canada pulling US alcohol off shelves 'worse than tariff'
‘America First’ policies are threatening American exceptionalism as the economy and markets flash warning signs Fortune
Trump’s economically illiterate bravado could do very serious damage: Fighting talk on tariffs may be a bluff, but the president should not toy with China. Liam Halligan
Trump’s tariffs face long odds in bid to bring factories home: The president’s tariff-first strategy could end a long stagnation in US manufacturing. But he is battling powerful long-term forces. WP
Trump does not know how to run an empire: Even if he doesn’t know it, Trump’s war on the bureaucracy is in direct conflict with his plans to exert power abroad. Robert D. Kaplan
+ Robert D. Kaplan is the author of 23 books, most recently, “Waste Land: A World in Permanent Crisis.” He holds the Robert Strausz-Hupé Chair in Geopolitics at the Foreign Policy Research Institute.
Only 36 companies account for half of global emissions, report estimates: State-owned companies made up 16 of the top 20 emitters in 2023. FT
*** US Politics + Elections ***
Axios: Trump brushes off CEOs' calls for clarity on tariffs
Tariffs are bad. Tariff uncertainty is even worse. A broad-based tax on imports would harm the US economy, but delays and exemptions for favored interests hurt US competitiveness. Matthew Yglesias
Trump won’t rule out a recession in 2025: Politico reports: “I hate to predict things like that,” Trump said when pressed about the possibility of a recession during a recorded interview that aired on “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo.”
Trump declines to rule out recession amid tariffs’ effects on markets: WP reports the president’s acknowledgment of economic turbulence was a reversal from previous cheering of his policies, and it contrasted with reassurances from his own advisers.
‘He finally shot the hostage’: Trump’s trade war is a brutal reality check: Trump imposing new tariffs on top of broader policy uncertainty will mean a hit to growth. The question is how large of a hit it will ultimately be. Politico
The president vowed to help the NC mountains rebuild after Helene. Frustration remains. WP reports the lingering frustration across parts of North Carolina’s Appalachian mountain region speaks to the complexity of rebuilding in a place dotted with FEMA centers — but people say they feel abandoned.
+ @jcroe: Let me get this straight, Putin is actually our ally, Zelensky is our enemy, Iran isn’t that bad, Canada is terrible, the Tate brothers are misunderstood, and Amy Coney Barrett is a traitorous liberal. Got it.
The populist vs. the billionaire: Bannon, Musk and the Battle Within MAGA: President Trump has made clear he wants to keep both men and their allies within his movement, but the tensions are growing. NYT
Inside the explosive meeting where Trump officials clashed with Elon Musk: Simmering anger at the billionaire’s unchecked power spilled out in a remarkable Cabinet Room meeting. The president quickly moved to rein in Musk. NYT
Chaos at the VA: Inside the DOGE cuts disrupting the veterans agency: Clinical trials have been delayed, contracts canceled and support staff fired. With deeper cuts coming, some are warning of potential harms to veterans. NYT
Companies warn investors that DOGE’s federal cuts might hurt business: WP reports as earnings season begins, filings to the SEC point to uncertainty from the current administration as potential trouble for business.
Democrats voice regret on scattered responses to Trump’s speech: NYT reports progressive and moderate Democrats criticized a protest by Representative Al Green as a distraction, and the party leadership tried to refocus attention on economic issues.
Ambitious Democrats have a new game plan: Yak it up about sports: Prominent leaders are flocking to sports radio shows and podcasts, an early sign of how the party is trying to reach apolitical young men who have tilted toward President Trump. NYT
A presidency of upheaval emboldens Trump: The velocity of his early moves has enthralled supporters but risks hurting the GOP in future elections. Molly Ball
People are paying millions to dine with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago: Business leaders are paying as much as $5 million to meet one-on-one with the president at his Florida compound, sources tell Wired, while others are paying $1 million apiece to dine with him in a group setting.
Fear of Trump has elite law firms in retreat: WSJ reports executive orders against Perkins Coie and Covington & Burling have chilled industry.
To win McConnell’s senate seat, Kentucky hopefuls run away from Mitch: WSJ reports as contest turns nasty, onetime allies now seek Trump’s endorsement in sign of how GOP politics have shifted.
Golf industry tees up fight to keep daylight saving time: FC reports the move is intended to stave off efforts to establish permanent standard time, which would leave less time for an evening on the links.
The Government knows AGI is coming Ezra Klein
Anthropic’s recommendations to OSTP for the US AI action plan Anthropic
CNBC: Scale AI announces multimillion-dollar defense deal, a major step in US military automation
+ Scale AI has partnered with the Department of Defense to use AI agents for US military planning and operations.
With Apple coming, is Houston the next big tech hub? City Cast Houston
Venture capital’s ‘blitzscaling’ obsession is warping the world: Catherine Bracy takes Silicon Valley monoculture to task in a new book. Bloomberg
A political reporter takes her scoops to YouTube: Most online political media stars traffic in highly partisan viewpoints. Tara Palmeri hopes that playing it straight will pay off. NYT
The future of news looks niche: The media entrepreneur Jessica Lessin chats with DealBook about the news landscape and her latest media bet. DealBook
Axios: Patch scales to 30,000 US communities with AI newsletters
*** Distribution + Innovation ***
How to build your own AI assistant Alexandra Samuel
How knowledge work will evolve in the AI era: AI is transforming our thinking skills—not replacing them. Rhea Purohit
AI Chatbots have telltale quirks. Researchers can spot them with 97% accuracy: A new study shows that different LLMs have distinct writing styles—making AI-generated text easier to detect. FC
OpenAI’s ex-policy lead accuses the company of ‘rewriting’ its AI safety history Fortune
Sony slams ‘unworkable’ AI plans as music theft: The government is proposing to change UK laws to provide an exemption from copyright rules to allow AI developers to mine video, audio and text content. The Times
Sam Altman’s other startup is building an app to compete with Elon Musk’s X: The CEO of OpenAI imagines a future where you’ll need to constantly demonstrate that you’re not a bot. His “everything app” is the answer—but first, he needs to look deep into your eyes. Christopher Mims
How Walmart built the biggest threat Amazon has faced: With thousands of stores, and an army of drivers, the giant retailer can make same-day deliveries to more than 90% of the country. WSJ
CVS’s new mini stores go all in on medicine and skip everything else: WSJ reports the national drugstore chain is preparing to open a dozen stores offering full-service pharmacies but very limited retail.
Hudson’s Bay anticipates closing about half its 80 stores in restructuring plan: G+M reports the country’s oldest retailer hopes it can survive with a smaller store footprint, if it can secure co-operation from landlords, sources say.
Bridgestone and Michelin test advances in puncture-free tyres: FT reports innovation by world’s biggest suppliers potentially smooths path for self-driving vehicles.
Bloomberg: JetBlue to revamp flagship terminal at New York’s JFK
*** Culture ***
Banksy artwork inspired by Jack Vettriano sells for $5.4 million at Sotheby’s. Artsy
Why Japan is the perfect place to turn 50: A significant birthday feels less so in a country that has become a global pioneer of ageing — for better and for worse. Leo Lewis
*** Sport ***
FIFA to consider expanding World Cup to 64 teams: NYT reports soccer’s governing body will look into another expansion of its marquee event, the most lucrative in sports, after a request by one of its 2030 co-hosts.
FIFA is set to give more than $1bn in prize money to clubs participating in the Club World Cup as the European Club Association (ECA), negotiating on behalf of clubs in Europe including Chelsea and Manchester City, closes in on a deal.
How United Soccer League plans to launch a new top division LAT
McLaren F1’s Zak Brown: From school dropout to speed king: The McLaren Racing boss reveals how he turned the British Formula One team around both on and off the track, after it flirted with collapse during the pandemic. The Times
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
Marc A. Ross | Chief Communications Strategist @ Caracal
Marc Ross Daily | March 10
