Musk's New Trump Job, Treasury Selloff Bets & Fighting Over Europe’s Biggest Lithium Mine

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:

(1) Billionaire Elon Musk and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new Department of Government Efficiency tasked to “dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies,” President-elect Donald Trump announced.

(2) The expected appointment of officials with strong anti-China views to President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet was welcomed by hedge fund veteran Kyle Bass, even as it risks straining ties between the world’s largest economies.

(3) Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari said he’ll be looking at incoming inflation data to determine whether another interest-rate cut is appropriate at the US central bank’s December meeting. It comes as traders are loading up on bets for further losses in the Treasury market in anticipation that Donald Trump’s pledged policies will rekindle inflation and keep US interest rates high.

(4) Germany’s election campaign kicks into high gear on Wednesday, when Chancellor Olaf Scholz makes his case in a public address for another term, despite polls showing voters are overwhelmingly looking for a change.

(5) The Bank of France expects the economy to stagnate in the fourth quarter after growth was boosted by the Paris Olympics in the previous three months and as the political situation continues to add to business uncertainty.

(6) Apple, aiming to catch up with rivals in the smart home market, is nearing the launch of a new product category: a wall-mounted display that can control appliances, handle videoconferencing and use AI to navigate apps.  

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