Today’s top stories:

1. What is the Department of Government Efficiency?

2. S&P 500 post-election rally dissipates.

3. Enterprise search startup Glean’s valuation at $4.6B.

4. Musk’s xAI and SpaceX valuations reach a combined $295B.

5. China’s retail improves but property and manufacturing still down.

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Today’s top stories

1. What is the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)? 🏢 

Musk and Ramaswamy are tasked to submit their recommendations by 4 July 2026.

What you should know:

• It’s not really a department, as departments can only be created or disbanded by Congress.

• Trump wants to dismantle federal bureaucracy and even eliminate the Department of Education through DOGE, calling the initiative ‘The Manhattan Project’ of our time.

• Its ambition is to cut $2 trillion in government spending, led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, making them special government employees.

• Trump’s second attempt - in 2016, he promised to balance the budget ‘fairly quickly’ but it grew to a record level when he left office in 2021.

• Musk promised that all work would be ‘posted online for maximum transparency’ including a ‘leaderboard for most insanely dumb spending.’

• Congress doesn’t need to approve Musk’s role but they hold the spending power under the Constitution.

• Trump plans to challenge a 1974 law called the Impoundment Control Act, which says the president must spend appropriated money unless Congress rescinds it.

2. S&P 500 drops 2.1% as market doubts Fed rate cuts 📉

Post-election rally dissipates

Key takeaways:

• S&P 500 had its worst week since September 6, falling 2.1% while Nasdaq 100 declined over 3%.

• Market has erased more than half of its post-election gains.

• Odds of December Fed rate cut dropped to 56% from 80% earlier in the week.

• Tech sector led the decline with most "Magnificent Seven" stocks falling, except Tesla.

• 10-year Treasury yields reached 4.5%, highest since May 31.

• Retail sales data showed significant upward revisions for previous month.

How it could impact you:

• Borrowing costs for mortgages and loans likely to stay elevated longer than expected.

• Job market might remain tight as companies maintain cautious hiring approaches.

• Credit card rates could stay high, so maybe it's time to reconsider those impulse purchases (sorry, online shopping cart). 🛒

What this could mean for the stock market in the US economy:

• The market seems to be having a reality check moment - kind of like when you realize those "great deal" Black Friday purchases weren't such bargains after all.

• With Powell playing hard to get with rate cuts and Trump's fiscal plans raising eyebrows, investors are starting to question if the recent market optimism was a bit overdone.

• Mix in some tech sector jitters and rising Treasury yields, and you've got yourself a classic case of market indigestion! 🎢

3. Enterprise search startup Glean hits $4.6 billion valuation amid AI boom 🔍

Key takeaways:

• Glean's valuation jumped to $4.6 billion, up from $1 billion in May 2022.

• Company generates $100 million in annual recurring revenue, tripling from last year.

• Their connector technology integrates with over 100 business apps and databases.

• Google, OpenAI, and Cohere are developing competing enterprise search products.

• Deutsche Telekom reports search time reduction from minutes to seconds using Glean.

What this could mean for the enterprise search industry: 

• Competing with Giants: While Google dominates the consumer search space, its enterprise offerings have not been as robust. Glean’s innovative approach could allow it to carve out a niche in enterprise environments where tailored, context-aware search capabilities are essential.

  Plus, OpenAI's entry into the search arena introduces another layer of competition; however, Glean's specialization in enterprise data and its ability to integrate with existing workflows may provide a competitive edge.

• Differentiation through Features: Glean's advanced features, such as semantic matching and natural language processing, enable users to find information across multiple platforms seamlessly. This capability is particularly valuable in complex enterprise environments where data is often siloed across various applications.

4. Musk's xAI and SpaceX surge to $295bn combined value 🚀

Key takeaways:

• SpaceX plans December share sale at $135/share, pushing valuation to $250bn from $210bn.

• xAI raised $5bn, reaching $45bn valuation, almost double its previous worth.

• xAI is building a massive GPU cluster of 100,000 units in Memphis called Colossus.

• Both companies likely to benefit from Musk's new political influence.

• Future xAI fundraising could target $75bn valuation in Q1 2025.

What this could mean for you:

• Grok (xAI's ChatGPT competitor) might become more integrated into X, affecting social media experience.

• Through SpaceX, Starlink's expansion could bring better internet access to remote work locations.

• More competition in AI chatbots could lead to better features and possibly lower costs.

What this could mean for the AI/Space industry:

• The space race is getting spicier than a rocket's exhaust plume - with $250bn valuation, SpaceX could fund a mission to Mars faster than you can say "ground control to Major Tom." 👩‍🚀 

• AI companies are playing musical chairs with valuations, but xAI just grabbed the comfiest seat - looks like Grok might be less of a joke than we thought. 🤖​​​​​​​​​​​​​

5. Chinese retail sales surge 4.8% while factories miss targets. 🛍️

Chinese economy stabilizes after stimulus

Key takeaways:

• Retail sales jumped 4.8% in October, marking strongest growth since February 2023.

• Property investment dropped 10.3% year-to-date, worse than previous 10.1% decline.

• Government bond financing topped 1 trillion yuan ($138 billion) for three consecutive months.

• Beijing's stimulus measures show mixed results, with retail outperforming manufacturing.

• Home prices showed signs of stabilizing after two months of slower declines.

China’s drop in house prices continue in spite of stimulus

How it could impact you:

• Chinese retail growth could mean better deals on consumer goods as retailers compete for market share.

• Property market weakness might affect global raw material prices, potentially lowering renovation costs. Your kitchen remodel might finally be affordable! 🏠

• Continued manufacturing slowdown could lead to higher prices for imported goods.

• Near-zero inflation in China might help keep global prices stable, especially for everyday items.

What this could mean for consumer spending in the Chinese economy:

• China's retail revival shows consumers are finally opening their wallets, but it's like trying to fill an Olympic-sized pool with a garden hose - progress is there, but it'll take time 🐢.

• The government's pushing hard with stimulus measures, but getting Chinese consumers to spend like it's Singles Day every day remains a challenge.

• Property market blues continue to cast a shadow over the party - looks like the real estate sector didn't get the memo about the economic recovery! 🏗️

Other reads

AI

Musk doubles down on OpenAI lawsuit, includes Microsoft and antitrust claims.

The EU released their first draft for General Purpose AI Code of Practice.

Chinese AI startup launches OpenAI’s Sora competitor.

A leading figure in the AI world is leaving Google after close to a decade at the company.

Google’s latest Gemini model is at the top of the LLM leaderboard.

Tech

Bluesky, a new social platform, is attracting disgruntled X users.

Google Docs is adding its Imagen 3 image generator for workspace users.

Black Friday comes early for Samsung fans.

Bose is resurrecting its 1960s loudspeakers.

Business

TSMC receives $6.6 billion government subsidy before Trump takes office.

EU hands Meta an 800 million euro fine for abusive marketplace practices.

Amazon competes with Shein and Temu by launching online discount store.

Xi positions himself as defender of international trading system against Trump.

US Politics

Musk says Trump and he have ‘mandate to delete’ regulations.

Health stocks drop after Trump taps RFK Jr as Health Secretary.

Trump’s nominees prepare for confirmation from Congress.

Top non-US economies

Japan’s economy slows but consumer spending goes up.

Germany’s shrinking GDP forecast adds to worry after coalition split.

Moody’s predicts India’s economy will grow 7.2% this year.

Worth knowing

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