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In the aftermath of the violent insurrection on the U.S. Capitol last week, Twitter and Facebook de-platformed President Donald Trump. They effectively ended his unprecedented run of attention-hacking, gaslighting, and outright lies about the results of the 2020 presidential election.
It wasn’t just the president and leader of the free world who got this treatment. All of a sudden, the dominant social media platforms, including YouTube, also decided they had had enough of the incendiary groups QAnon, “Stop the Steal,” and related conspiracy groups that had been allowed to use their services to organize a movement that ultimately resulted in a deadly attempted coup.
French retail giant Carrefour supermarket in Saint-Herblain, outside Nantes. Getty Images
Who remembers today that back in 2017, Bruno Le Maire ran for the presidential nomination in his conservative party’s primary on a 1,000-page platform advocating sweeping free-market reforms and the end of state meddling in the economy?
Three years on, Le Maire, now the French economy and finance minister and one of the most prominent members of President Emmanuel Macron’s government, is proving one of the most interventionist economy ministers of later years. And he has shown a particular dislike for the acquisitions of French companies by foreign competitors.
Anthem could benefit as the labor market recovers, says Jefferies. Dreamstime
Managed care stocks that focus on the government-funded insurance market have jumped in the week since Democrats secure control of the Senate, as investors have begun to anticipate an expansion of Obamacare, and even a public option.
Shares of Centene Corporation (CNC) are up 6.5% since the market closed on January 5, while shares of
Molina Healthcare (MOH) are up 3.6%. The
S&P 500, which is up 1.8% over the same period.
But in a note out Friday morning, Jefferies analyst David Windley argues that investors are too optimistic that the Biden administration will drive up managed care stocks in the near term by significantly expanding government-funded coverage.
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People at a market under a Brazilian flag in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Dec. 08, 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP/Getty Images
Brazil is a hard place to be optimistic about. Liberal spending to offset rampaging Covid-19 led to a gaping budget deficit last year, and national debt nudging 100% of GDP.
The economy contracted more than 4% despite this stimulus. Politicians are taking their time about righting the ship for 2021. Congress, home to some 30 competing parties, is set to wrangle over new leadership for the rest of January, then take much of February off for Carnival. A second pandemic wave gathers force in the meantime, with case counts.
Trump’s trade conflicts, deregulation, immigration restriction, tax cuts, and military buildup had little impact on the U.S. economy in either direction. But the change of leadership at the Federal Reserve was significant and could have long-lasting benefits, writes Matthew C. Klein.