Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday created history, winning Japan’s parliamentary vote to become the country’s first woman prime minister, with domestic stock markets cheering her ascendancy.
Takaichi garnered 237 votes in the first round of voting, negating the need for a runoff vote in the 465-seat Lower House, according to public broadcaster NHK. Her victory comes after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party allied with the Japan Innovation Party and reportedly signed an agreement over the weekend to form a coalition government. Takaichi agreed to back JIP policies such as a reduction in parliamentary seats, free high school education and a two-year pause on food consumption tax, according to Reuters. Source: CNBC
Sudden burst of optimism that government shutdown will be resolved in next few days (Polymarket)
Source: zerohedge
For now, China–U.S. trade tensions continue to escalate ahead of the scheduled October 29 meeting between President Trump and President Xi.
Source : Financial Times
The U.S. government shutdown is now in its third week after the Senate again rejected a temporary funding bill.
Polymarket odds now show a 73% chance the shutdown lasts over a month. Source: Cointelegraph, Polymarkets
Not really a signal of appeasement...
US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent has accused China of trying to hurt the world’s economy after Beijing imposed sweeping export controls on rare earths and critical minerals, hitting global supply chains. Bessent told the FT that China’s introduction of the controls, three weeks before US President Donald Trump is expected to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in South Korea, reflected problems in its own economy. “This is a sign of how weak their economy is, and they want to pull everybody else down with them,” Bessent said on Monday. https://lnkd.in/e2YHBgxP
When geopolitical & socio-economic tensions rise, both people & nations turn to hard assets.
One big buyer in particular has been Beijing. China has been swapping Treasuries for gold for years, lifting reserves to over 74m ounces. 👉 This is a reflection of both state policy and popular sentiment: hedging against dollar risk, sanctions, and China’s own shaky property and stock markets. Source: Chamath Palihapitiya @chamath, Steno Research, Bloomberg
France changes its Prime Ministers more often than some people buy new underwear...
Source: Connexion VisActu
Kalshi is currently pricing in a 57% chance that the 🇺🇸 Government shutdown will last more than 10 days
Source: Kalshi
