Key Davos Debates, Central Banks Start 2020, Oil Unrest: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Monday, Asia. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help you start the week:

• Amid the Alpine peaks of the Swiss resort of Davos, politicians, investors and executives will be busy debating whether we are witnessing peaks in key drivers of the world economy. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is poised to hail his “America First” agenda
• The European Central Bank and Bank of Japan are among Group of Seven institutions leading the charge this week with their first interest rate meetings of 2020: Eco Week Ahead
• Iraq temporarily stopped work on an oil field on Sunday and supply from a second production site is at risk as widespread unrest escalates in one of OPEC’s biggest producers
• Ex-White House economic director Gary Cohn said he sees no recession on the horizon and predicted the economy will continue to grow as the U.S. heads into this year’s presidential election
• The most up-to-date measure of the U.K. economy looks set to improve this week -- yet it might not be sufficient to deter the BOE from cutting interest rates
• Bloomberg Economics has crunched the numbers on what would be required by China to make the $200 billion in additional imports commitment that is at the heart of the trade deal
• A successful “phase two” trade agreement would throw open Chinese markets to American companies by curbing the power and privileges of Chinese state-owned enterprises
• One surprising part of the trade deal struck between the U.S. and Beijing is that U.S. investors now have a direct shot at the potentially lucrative task of cleaning up China’s bad debts
• Singapore’s exports ended 2019 on a positive note, but momentum going forward may be weak despite signs of stabilization in China’s economy, writes Bloomberg’s Tamara Mast Henderson
• Chinese authorities said the outbreak of a new SARS-like virus that’s killed two and sickened dozens is “still preventable and controllable,” in an attempt to reassure the public as hundreds of millions prepare to travel
• Carrie Lam’s government again pushed back on a key demand of protesters as a downtown rally turned violent, showing the unrest in Hong Kong still has no end in sight
• Germany took first place in the 2020 Bloomberg Innovation Index, breaking South Korea’s six-year winning streak, while the U.S. fell one notch to No. 9

To contact the reporter on this story: Alexandra Veroude in Sydney at averoude4@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nasreen Seria at nseria@bloomberg.net, Michael Heath

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