Georgia Elections, Storming the Capitol, and EU-China Agreement

In this latest issue of my weekly podcast, we discuss the Georgia elections. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossof beat Republican incumbents Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue. Both Warnock and Ossof won by over 0.5%, avoiding an automatic recount. Ultimately this is good news for markets. While traditional wisdom says markets want a divided Congress, the recent chaos has led them to hope for a united government.Pro-Trump protesters storm the Capital Building. Despite the protesters' wishes, the siege did nothing to change the outcome of the joint session of Congress. Joe Biden's win was officerly certified. In the end, this was a major embarrassment for the GOP leadership. There is a mounting prospect of a fatal splintering of GOP support, with Trump triggering a permanent "Bull Moose" split. Israel's coalition collapses. After failing to pass a budget on Dec. 22, Netanyahu and Gantz's coalition government was dissolved. This will trigger new national elections in late March. All eyes are on Gideon Sa'ar, a popular former cabinet minister, who recently left the Likud party to start the New Hope party. If victorious, Sa'ar is predicted to create a standard right-wing coalition. EU and China sign the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment. The new agreement allows EU companies to invest in China in a greater capacity and locks in existing market access to Europe. The countries will not fully finalize the deal for another year. The incoming Biden administration has already signaled they are uneasy with the agreement and want to slow down its implementation.Public opinion increasingly supports raising the minimum wage. In Florida, a $15 minimum wage initiative was recently approved by 61% of the voters, adding to a growing list of successful efforts to raise the minimum wage at state and local levels around the country. **********The content featured here is a small part of Hedgeye’s Demography Unplugged, a game-changing market intelligence product brought to you by historian, demographer and best-selling author Neil Howe. Visit us to find out more and subscribe.

Om Podcasten

Exciting news for all listeners: Neil Howe's podcast is undergoing an exciting transformation and emerging with a brand-new name—"Trend Watch". From now on, all upcoming episodes will be exclusively available in full on Substack. But that's not all—Neil's new Substack newsletter launching August 21, 2023, will feature thought-provoking insights on demographic, economic, and generational trends. Stay informed, stay engaged, and stay ahead of the trends! Visit: www.demographyunplugged.com to subscribe. Neil Howe’s podcast is designed to help savvy investors and business leaders uncover hidden trends and critical developments driving world markets and economies. It’s like peering into the future. Discover the likely winners (and losers) of “big ideas” as renowned demographer Neil Howe – the guy who coined the term “Millennial” – distills game-changing new developments down to their essence.Neil Howe is an acclaimed historian, economist, and demographer and the bestselling author (with William Strauss) of The Fourth Turning, the New York Times Bestselling follow-up book, The Fourth Turning is Here, as well as over a dozen books on demographic and social change. The nation’s leading thinker on today’s generations—who they are, what motivates them, and how they will shape America’s future—Howe is Managing Director of Demography at Hedgeye Risk Management, an independent financial research firm, as well as President of LifeCourse Associates, which serves hundreds of corporate, nonprofit, and government clients.