🎯 The week's 5 stories

A heatwave for a chunk of ice

The week got off to a bad start. Over the weekend, Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on European countries that have deployed troops to Greenland. That came even as he has been demanding ownership of the island for weeks, citing national security concerns. It had people wondering whether the United States might resort to using force against a NATO ally. His appearance in Davos ultimately led to an almost unexpected de-escalation, thanks to an agreement between the US president and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (a "framework” that no one has really understood what is included). Perhaps it was the mountain air...

The Fed's independence heads to the Supreme Court

This week, Supreme Court justices held a hearing to examine the legality of Donald Trump's dismissal of Lisa Cook last August. More than the future of a Fed governor is at stake: the institution's independence is on the line. The ruling is still several weeks away, but an outcome favorable to Lisa Cook appears to be taking shape.

Intel finally falls

Fueled by stakes taken by the US government, SoftBank and Nvidia, Intel just kept climbing. The stock is up 150% over the past year. But the results published last night did not meet expectations. Guidance for Q1 points to revenue, at best, flat and, at worst, down 8%. All while the company is now valued more than TSMC, as The Information noted this morning.

Takaichi's gamble

Buoyed by strong popularity ratings, Sanae Takaichi has called snap elections for Feb. 8. Japan's prime minister hopes to secure a clearer majority in Parliament. In markets, the fiscal stimulus measures she is promising have pushed long-term yields higher again. The 40-year yield topped 4% for the first time.

Crash and an endless slide for Ubisoft

Plunging 40% in a single session. Ubisoft took another hit and kept sinking. The French video games publisher announced a sweeping reorganization on Wednesday evening and the cancellation of six games. The restructuring is expected to result in an operating loss of €1bn for the current fiscal year.

Best of the rest

Donald Trump's nomination of the Fed chair is still pending. Yet the US president has been repeating for weeks that he has made his choice and that an announcement is imminent. So why is he dragging out the suspense for so long?

The Stoxx Europe 600 - the broad European index - has logged three straight years of gains without any growth in earnings. To keep the rally going, 2026 has to rhyme with earnings growth.

Stocks of the week