Tootfinder

For all of Donald Trump’s promises of an economic “golden age,”
a spate of weak indicators this week told a worrisome story as the impacts of his policies are coming into focus.
Job gains are dwindling.
Inflation is ticking upward.
Growth has slowed compared with last year.
More than six months into his term, Trump’s blitz of tariff hikes and his new tax and spending bill have remodeled America’s trading, manufacturing, energy and tax systems to his own liking.

It's Trump's economy now. The latest financial numbers offer some warning signs
President Donald Trump's economic policies are facing scrutiny as weak indicators emerge. Job gains are dwindling, inflation is rising and growth has slowed compared to last year. More than six months into his term, Trump's tariffs and tax changes have reshaped the economy. On Friday, a bleak jobs report showed a decline in manufacturing jobs, and Trump fired the head of the agency responsible for the data. Critics warn that Trump's aggressive use of tariffs and tax changes could backfire. The …

AI-Led Growth Conceals an Economy Built on Debt and Inequality https://jacobin.com/2026/01/artificial-intelligence-economy-debt-inequality/

AI-Led Growth Conceals an Economy Built on Debt and Inequality
Despite rising inequality, poor job numbers, and Donald Trump’s mass deportations, the economy grew by a remarkable 4.3% last year, mostly thanks to the AI industry. This success masks an economy highly dependent on debt and state subsidies.

“This is not 'spicy'. This is illegal. This is appalling. This is disgusting.“
"The European Commission has announced it is looking into cases of sexually suggestive and explicit images of young girls generated by Grok, the AI chatbot integrated into social media platform X, following the introduction of a paid feature known as “Spicy Mode” last summer."

Pleased to see this article translated to English. Wide implications.
The Securitization of Minerals in the EU: Why Europe is Not Immune to the Resource Curse - resilience
https://www.resilience.org/stories/2026-01

The Securitization of Minerals in the EU: Why Europe is Not Immune to the Resource Curse
This article examines how access to mineral raw materials in the EU has been transformed through a process of securitization over the last two decades. What was once mainly a matter of economic policy and trade has been reframed—through narratives constructed by industrial lobbies and political allies—as an existential issue for European security and survival.

Ventures launched by the Trump family since Donald Trump’s reelection have generated at least $4 billion in proceeds and paper wealth for the Trump family.
With investments across sectors like real estate, hospitality, media, cryptocurrency and more,
the Trumps are “increasingly integrating their business empire”
into the wider U.S. economy,
says David Uberti, who has been reporting on the family’s self-enrichment for The Wall Street Journal.
The coupling of T…

Trump Family Businesses Rake in $4 Billion After His Reelection with Focus on AI, Crypto & Nuclear
Ventures launched by the Trump family since Donald Trump’s reelection have generated at least $4 billion in proceeds and paper wealth for the Trump family. With investments across sectors like real estate, hospitality, media, cryptocurrency and more, the Trumps are “increasingly integrating their business empire” into the wider U.S. economy, says David Uberti, who has been reporting on the family’s self-enrichment for The Wall Street Journal. The coupling of Trump’s economic and polit…

"the [Chinese] plan removes #ElectricVehicles from the list of strategic emerging industries. That move has been misread by some commentators as a retreat. It is better seen as a milestone of maturity. When an industry no longer needs preferential support or policy protection, it has crossed from experiment to normalcy"

There are two reasons that Motability includes “premium” brands:
1/ they are often the ones that meet the needs of the users with features like parking assistance for those who cannot see behind them
2/ the leases are often cheaper than non premium brands as their resale value is so much higher.
The effect of these changes might well be that Mobility actually costs the government MORE money 🤦‍♀️

Motability Scheme makes ambitious goal that half of Scheme vehicles leased from 2035 will be British built
Motability Scheme sets ambition for 50% of all vehicles leased to be British built from 2035  Scheme is a lifeline for disabled people and will now further support the UK economy  With government and industry support, ambitious commitment could create demand for 150,000 vehicles annually, boosting jobs and driving new investment  Premium brand vehicles, including Mercedes Benz and BMW, removed from the Scheme 

Two interesting articles about the dubious financials of OpenAI and the recent NVIDIA earnings report (which regardless of positive outcome triggered a sell-off):
The Structural Collapse: How Google’s Integrated Stack Is Dismantling the OpenAI Thesis
https://shanakaanslemperera.substack…

The Structural Collapse: How Google’s Integrated Stack Is Dismantling the OpenAI Thesis
A leaked internal memo reveals the tectonic shift reshaping artificial intelligence, where platform economics are defeating venture-backed innovation at the exact moment markets assumed the opposite.