Bloomberg Daybreak: Asia Edition

President Donald Trump's fixation on Greenland offers an ice-cold reminder to leaders in Europe and abroad: No deal is ever final. Trump announced a 10% tariff, rising to 25% in June, on eight European nations, including Denmark, for saying they would undertake token NATO military exercises in Greenland in response to US saber-rattling. While the tariffs aren't certain to take effect, the threat was a brazen escalation and insult to close US allies, trampling over the US-EU trade deal reached only six months earlier at Trump's Turnberry resort in Scotland. Trump's targets in Europe pushed back quickly. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer blasted his tariff threat as "completely wrong," France's Emmanuel Macron called it "unacceptable" and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said his country wouldn't be "blackmailed." For more on how geopolitics is moving the markets, we heard from Julia Wang, North Asia Chief Investment Officer at Nomura. She spoke to Bloomberg's Shery Ahn and Avril Hong. White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said President Donald Trump may well keep him in his current job, which would eliminate him from contention for the next Federal Reserve chair. Trump expressed reluctance about nominating Hassett as the successor to current Fed Chair Jerome Powell, saying "I actually want to keep you where you are, if you want to know the truth." Hassett once was considered the frontrunner, along with Fed Governor Christopher Waller, former governor Kevin Warsh and BlackRock Inc. executive Rick Rieder. It's now seen as a four-man race, while Rieder's candidacy has recently gained late momentum, according to people familiar with the matter, as some view him as potentially better placed to win US Senate confirmation. For more perspective, we heard from Bill Campbell, Global Bond Portfolio Manager at DoubleLine.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend with Host Nathan Hager take a look at some of the stories we'll be tracking in the coming week. In the US – a look ahead to earnings from Netflix and Intel. In the UK – a look ahead to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. In Asia – a look ahead to China GDP data. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The US and Taiwan agreed to a trade pact that would lower tariffs on goods from Taiwan to 15% and see Taiwanese semiconductor companies increase financing for American operations by $500 billion. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. shares climb as much as 2.7% in Taipei after the chipmaker’s strong results and outlook underscored the strength of demand trends related to AI. The shares ended 4.4% higher overnight in the US. Rob Haworth, Senior Investment Strategy Director at U.S. Bank Asset Management Group, talks TSMC, the day's eco data, and what's next for the Fed. After reporting huge profits in Q4, Wendell Huang, the CFO of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. affirmed the company’s strong conviction in the “mega trend of AI demand.” Huang mentions that the company is eyeing smaller tech gap between US and Taiwan chipmaking fabrication plants. While addressing the challenges, Huang says that the key to managing forex exposure is to keep it simple.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will call a snap election early in the parliamentary session starting later this month, in a bid to shore up her leadership and secure a mandate for the new ruling coalition. Takaichi told officials from the ruling bloc that she will give more details of the dissolution on Jan. 19, according to Liberal Democratic Party Secretary General Shunichi Suzuki and Hirofumi Yoshimura, co-leader of the Japan Innovation Party, the LDP's coalition partner. We spoke to Isabel Reynolds, Bloomberg's Tokyo Bureau Chief Plus - Stocks started Thursday on a softer note after Wall Street gauges retreated as investors rotated out of richly valued technology stocks. We heard from Jason Liu, Head of APAC Equity & Derivative Strategy at BNP Paribas. He spoke to Bloomberg's Paul Allen and Avril Hong. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Asian shares posted a modest gain at the open, while Japanese equities extended their record-breaking run fueled by a weaker yen. For more on what is moving the markets in the region, we speak to Abhishek Vishnoi, Senior Reporter for Asia Equities. Plus - Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's reported plan for a snap election fueled a rally in stocks while pushing down bonds and driving the yen deeper into the intervention-risk zone. For more on the outlook on Japanese markets, we heard from Zuhair Khan, Senior Portfolio Manager at UBP. He spoke to Bloomberg's Paul Allen and Avril Hong. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.