Israel is planning to agree to a ceasefire and a hostage agreement with Hamas. The security cabinet and the government are yet to give final confirmation. The ceasefire, which was brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the USA, is intended to usher in a six-week pause during which Israeli troops will gradually withdraw and numerous hostages and Palestinian prisoners will be exchanged. Despite the announcement of the ceasefire, air strikes continue in Gaza. There is resistance from hardliners within the Israeli government, but a majority of ministers are expected to approve the agreement. The agreement could pave the way for humanitarian aid after the conflict has already claimed over 46,000 lives and displaced most of Gaza's residents.
China's economy reached the growth target of 5% in 2024, but many are feeling a deterioration in living standards. Growth is heavily based on industry and exports, while domestic consumption is weakening. This is exacerbating structural problems such as deflation, falling incomes and unemployment. Impending US tariff increases and high debts are an additional burden. Critics question the official figures, as stimulus measures and excess production capacity are only supporting the economy in the short term. Analysts expect the situation to become more difficult in 2025, while confidence in China's economy continues to decline.
The US plans to ban TikTok from Sunday unless the company is sold to a US investor or the Supreme Court intervenes. This ban, based on a law signed in April 2024, aims to make TikTok inaccessible by blocking its infrastructure partners such as Apple, Google and Oracle. The app will be removed from app stores, there will be no more updates, and TikTok plans to shut down the service and offer users to download their data. VPNs could help enable access to the web version of TikTok, but this offers limited features and personalization. Workarounds such as changing a smartphone's country settings are complicated and often ineffective.
In the committee of inquiry, Chancellor Scholz defended the nuclear phase-out in 2022 and explained that extending the operating times would have violated the consensus of the previous governments. He decided to keep the nuclear power plants running until April 2023 in order to secure the energy supply, which was only possible thanks to his word of authority. Critics accuse the government of not having examined the lifetimes with an “open mind”. Scholz emphasized that no agreement would have been reached without his decision. Minister Habeck criticized the committee and accused it of pursuing a political agenda.
A SpaceX Starship rocket exploded over Texas after launch on Thursday, forcing planes to divert in the Gulf of Mexico. Eight minutes after launch, SpaceX lost contact with the Starship, which was carrying a test cargo of satellites. The FAA responded by temporarily diverting air traffic before normal operations resumed. According to Elon Musk, an internal liquid oxygen leak was the cause of the error. This could delay the planned 12 test flights this year if an FAA investigation is launched. Despite the failure, the Super Heavy Booster successfully returned to the launch pad.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol was arrested following his impeachment and allegations of sedition. His martial law decree and allegations of left-wing subversion of the legal system caused political turmoil. Despite ongoing protests against him, the popularity of his conservative party is recovering. However, experts believe a political comeback is unlikely.
Rudy Giuliani has reached an out-of-court settlement with two female campaign workers from Georgia, Ruby Freeman and Wandrea Moss, whom he falsely accused of rigging the 2020 US presidential election. Part of the settlement is that Giuliani is no longer allowed to defame the two women. In return, he will be allowed to keep his property in Florida and his apartment in Manhattan. The two campaign workers had previously obtained a 148 million dollar judgment against Giuliani, who is now bankrupt. Freeman and Moss confirmed that they were compensated as part of the settlement. Giuliani continues to deny any guilt or responsibility. The case had further damaged Giuliani's reputation after he had already been found in contempt of court twice. The settlement allows both parties to end the protracted legal dispute.
The US Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Houston County in Georgia. It argues that the current voting system for the election of the county board's five commissioners violates the rights of black voters. The “at-large” voting system disadvantages black citizens, who make up 31% of the county's voting population, and makes it more difficult for them to elect candidates of their choice. Instead, the Ministry proposes the introduction of single-member constituencies to ensure equality of opportunity. Since the end of the Civil War, only one black commissioner has been elected in Houston County. The case could bring about a significant change in the county's electoral procedures, with local authorities signaling their willingness to examine the evidence of the investigation and take action if necessary.
French Prime Minister François Bayrou has survived a vote of no confidence as the Socialists did not reject his center-right government despite its support from the left. Bayrou, who has no majority of his own, could now continue to count on the Socialists and thus avoid becoming dependent on Marine Le Pen's right-wing nationalists. His predecessor Michel Barnier failed after the right and left withdrew their trust. Bayrou made concessions to the Socialists, for example on pension issues, which put him under pressure within his own party.
According to DEMOX, the FPÖ achieves an absolute majority in the polls for the first time (the Greens would be thrown out of parliament): FPÖ: 43%, ÖVP: 15%, SPÖ: 20%, GREENS: 3%, NEOS: 7%. All poll results together minus the poll result of the Greens result in an absolute majority for the FPÖ.
A fire has broken out at a large power plant in California and an evacuation has been ordered in several nearby areas. The media report that one of the largest battery power plants in the world is on fire - it has tens of thousands of lithium batteries.
The Slovakian President, Peter Pellegrini, has canceled his trip to Kiev, reported the portal “Aktuality sk”. The reason he gave was the suspension of the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine.
The US short seller Hindenburg Research, known for its bets against large companies and founded by former journalist Nate Anderson, is surprisingly disbanding. In 2023, Hindenburg had counted on the Indian conglomerate Adani Group, among others, accusing it of “brazen stock manipulation” - whereupon the group lost +$100 million in stock market value at its peak. (HIN)
According to the Financial Times, the Israeli online broker is aiming for an IPO in the USA and a valuation of $5 billion. It would be eToro's second attempt to go public. (FT)
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- DAX: Marks another record high (TAG)
- Financial assets: At record high - Germans hoard €9 trillion in accounts (MM)
- Inflation estimate: ifo Institute expects companies to raise prices by +2.5% (ZON)
- VW: Crisis-hit group could order 28-hour week (SPG)
- Tupperware: Closes German business for good (NTV)
- S&P 500: Equal-Weight Index sees record inflows as tech exposure rises (FT)
- UK economy: Creates only mini-growth - and “largely stagnates” (HB)
- TikTok: Trump considers 90-day suspension of looming ban on US business (WP)
- Hindenburg Research: Well-known US short seller shuts down (WSJ)
- Jeff Bezos: Next tech billionaire launches rocket into space (MM)
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