Know someone who would like this newsletter? Forward it to them.
The World
Trust in governments, business chiefs and media is crumbling amid a perceived mis-handling by leaders of the pandemic and a widespread feeling among ordinary citizens that they are being misled. The Edelman Trust Barometer, which for two decades has polled thousands of people on their trust in core institutions, found 57% of people believe government leaders, business chiefs and journalists are spreading falsehoods or exaggerations. confidence in the institution of government fell from an all-time high of 65% last May to 53% by year-end. “The U.S. is third from the bottom in our ranking on the trust index, just above Japan - still affected by Fukushima - and Russia, the perennial bottom-dweller,” said Edelman. Confidence in traditional media outlets dropped 8 points to 53% although they still attracted more trust than social media, which fell five points to 35%. (Reuters, Edelman Trust Barometer 2021)
Burnout is on the rise: 71% of workers experienced burnout in 2020. The number of employees working late rose to 87%. 76% of people are having trouble disconnecting from work. And a full 70% of people have experienced burnout in the last year. 62% of respondents also said they're experiencing imposter syndrome. (Source Code, Asana report)
The U.S. federal budget deficit continued to balloon at the end of last year on spending to cushion the pandemic’s economic fallout, with the incoming Biden administration preparing to deploy more government funds. The gap was $572.9 billion in the October-December period, a record for the fiscal year’s first quarter and up 61% from a year earlier. December’s $143.6 billion deficit, also a record for that month, compared with $13.3 billion during the same month in 2019. (Bloomberg)
President-elect Biden called for a $1.9 trillion relief plan, requesting Congress to back a round of $1,400-per-person direct payments to most households, a $400-per-week unemployment insurance supplement through September, expanded paid leave and increases in the child tax credit. Meanwhile, another economic stimulus package has overwhelming, bipartisan support: 64% say they “strongly” support Congress passing another stimulus bill in the next few weeks and another 20% saying they “somewhat” support the idea. (Wall Street Journal, Morning Consult/Politico)
New U.S. jobless claims jumped with 965,000 new applications, the highest level since August, while economists forecast the U.S. economy will grow 4.3% this year, up from the 3.7% growth forecast in last month’s survey. (Wall Street Journal, Financial Times)
Delta, United and American Airlines are refusing to allow passengers travelling to Washington next week to pack firearms in their checked luggage. MLB suspends political donations after DC riot. (Financial Times, Associated Press)
The W.H.O. said the pandemic’s second year may be tougher than the first given how the new coronavirus is spreading, especially in the northern hemisphere. Meanwhile, 1 in 3 L.A. County residents have been infected since pandemic began. The UK banned all direct flights from Portugal to prevent the import of a Brazilian coronavirus variant. In Washington D.C., random people are linking up to get vaccinated in grocery stores, as pharmacies have started quietly offering leftover COVID-19 shots to anyone around. (Reuters, Los Angeles Times, The Times, The Atlantic)
Most people who catch and recover from COVID-19 appear to be immune for at least five months afterwards. Interim results from a study of more than 20,000 health-care workers in the UK found that repeat infections are unusual — they occurred in fewer than 1% of participants who already had COVID-19. (Nature)
The U.S. increased efforts to crack down on China with new additions to a military blacklist, new sanctions on Beijing’s South China Sea claims, and the addition of another Chinese corporate behemoth to its exports blacklist. The Defense Dept. added nine more firms to its list with Chinese military ties, bringing the total to 44. The firms include smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi and the state-owned plane maker Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac), central to China’s goal of creating a narrow-body plane that can compete with Boeing and Airbus. (South China Morning Post)
China has tentatively planned to hold a long-delayed summit between President Xi Jinping and central and eastern European leaders from the “17+1” bloc in early February. The summit would break a year-long deadlock over holding a meeting and show new signs of momentum in China-Europe relations after a rocky 2020. (South China Morning Post)
2020 was effectively tied with 2016 for the hottest year on record, as global warming linked to greenhouse gas emissions showed no signs of letting up. (New York Times)
Consumers choosing insurance via the federal Affordable Care Act exchanges reached 8.25 million over the 2021 open enrollment period, about the same number as the year before. Because two fewer states are participating in the federal marketplace this year, adjusted year-over-year growth in plan selections was 7%. Of the total, 23% of consumers were new, down by 3.6%. Renewing consumers who actively chose a new plan and those who were automatically re-enrolled both increased. (Healthcare Dive)
Economy
European inflation expectations are rising as investors anticipate ongoing easy monetary policy and a global economic rebound boosted by U.S. fiscal spending. Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Wells Fargo report results Friday. Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley follow next week. (Wall Street Journal, Wall Street Journal-2)
New York City apartment tenants are more than $1 billion in debt from missed rent payments during the\ pandemic. (Wall Street Journal)
U.S. education technology startups raised over $2.2 billion in venture and private equity capital across 130 deals in 2020 — a nearly 30% increase from the $1.7 billion invested in 2019, which was spread across 105 deals. The $2.2 billion marks the highest investment total in a single year for the U.S. edtech industry. (EdSurge)
Jane Fraser put her mark on Citigroup with an overhaul of its wealth businesses. A new unit is being created, combining its high-end private bank for the ultrarich with its wealth-management offerings for the less affluent. (Wall Street Journal)
Technology
Worldwide PC shipments totaled 79.4 million units in 4Q20, a 10.7% increase from 4Q19. PC shipments reached 275 million units in 2020, a 4.8% increase from 2019 and the highest growth in 10 years. (Gartner, Statista)
A new and near-final version of Windows 10X has leaked, and it offers a first look at the changes Microsoft has made to the upcoming operating system to get it ready for laptops: it now looks and feels more like Chrome OS than ever before. (The Verge)
Netflix released its first inclusion report. Women make up 47% of its workforce and 48% of its leadership positions, but only 35% of technical roles. Black workers make up 8% of its U.S. workforce, up from 3.8% in 2017. (Fast Company)
Samsung’s latest flagships are here: the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21 Plus, and the Galaxy S21 Ultra. The first two — which start at $799 and $999, respectively — mark some of the least expensive flagship phones that Samsung has made in years, while the $1,199 S21 Ultra aims to be not just the top-specced phone in Samsung’s lineup, but also the best phone, period. (The Verge)
Axios is launching AxiosHQ, a communications platform that will enable businesses to update their employees—including through internal newsletters—in Axios’s just-the-facts, bullet-point style. The software tool, which Axios said would cost at least $10,000 a year depending on a customer’s size. (Wall Street Journal)
Intel unveiled a big leadership change that signals a return to its roots as the chip giant struggles to regain its old luster. The company announced that CEO Bob Swan is stepping down and will be replaced by Pat Gelsinger, VMware's CEO, who had served as the chip giant's first chief technology officer. (Protocol)
Smart Face Masks? Fever-Sensing Doorbells? CES 2021 tech promises covid protection via connected masks, air purifiers, germ-killing UV gadgets and more that have taken over at this year’s virtual tech megashow. WSJ’s Joanna Stern released another excellent and entertaining video review. (Wall Street Journal)
Smart Links
Leadership: Can you succeed without being a terrible person? (Financial Times)
New listings can’t keep up with insatiable housing demand, driving price growth. (Mansion Global)
Student loan help is the ‘It’ employee benefit for 2021. (401K Specialist)
Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg to appear on Swedish stamp. (New York Daily News)
Disneyland cancels annual passes. (KTLA)
Yelp lets you tattle on places that don’t enforce masks and social distancing. (The Verge)
2020 saw an unprecedented murder spike in major U.S. cities. (Statista)