Savings Glut, China Protectionism Call, Biden on Virus: Eco Day

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

• The world is awash with savings and central banks don’t have the tools on their own to combat the resulting stagnation, ex-Fed Chair Janet Yellen and U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers said
• Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan called for global solidarity and a shift away from protectionism as Beijing grapples with the prospect of a new administration in Washington
• President-elect Joe Biden said containing the coronavirus pandemic is key to the nation’s economic recovery, calling for cooperation between business and government to combat it
• Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said the incoming Biden administration should move quickly to restore lines of communication with China that frayed during the Trump years or risk a crisis that could escalate into military conflict
• Fed Vice Chairman Richard Clarida said prospects for the economic recovery were brightening due to progress in the development of Covid vaccines. Meantime, a third Republican senator said he opposes the nomination of Judy Shelton to the Fed’s board
• The U.K. government signaled the abrupt departure of two of Brexit’s architects from Downing Street won’t prompt it to back down as negotiations with the EU enter another crucial week
• Chancellor Angela Merkel urged people to limit public and private gatherings, while pushing decisions on a road map for the coming months to next week as Germany struggles to stem the coronavirus
• Japan and the IOC are looking to have spectators attend next July’s Tokyo Games after putting together a raft of safety measures
• A few years ago, the hundreds of members of France’s Mulliez family, with a global retail empire worth more than $38 billion, decided they should take climate change more seriously—or rather, their investment portfolio should

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