| Boris Johnson loses a key Brexit vote, Trump gives China another prod over trade and Beijing softens its tone on Hong Kong protests. Here are some of the things people in markets are talking about today. Brexit Backlash The U.K. may be on course for a snap general election after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Brexit strategy suffered a humiliating defeat in Parliament. Lawmakers voted 328 to 301 to take a crucial first step toward forcing Johnson to delay Brexit until Jan. 31 in an effort to stop a no-deal split. Earlier in the day, Johnson lost his ruling majority when a member of his party defected. The prime minister says delaying Brexit would undermine his negotiating hand and that he'd rather collapse the government and hold a fresh election. The pound see-sawed through the day as it became clear Johnson's attempt to stop Parliament from giving him instructions had backfired. These are the stocks to watch if an election is called. 'MUCH TOUGHER!' U.S. President Donald Trump seems to be trying to goad China into doing a trade deal before the presidential election in November 2020. On Twitter, he suggested that negotiations will become trickier if he wins a second term. "Think what happens to China when I win," Trump said in a tweet on Tuesday. "Deal would get MUCH TOUGHER!" Trump also said that the U.S. is "doing very well in our negotiations with China," without offering any specifics. Officials have been struggling to agree on the schedule for a planned meeting this month after Washington rejected Beijing's request to delay tariffs that took effect over the weekend, according to people familiar with the discussions. Here's how the trade war got to this point. Softer Tone China isn't budging on Hong Kong protesters' demands for direct democracy, but it is at least softening its tone on the demonstrations themselves. In a wide-ranging briefing in Beijing on Tuesday, Chinese officials overseeing Hong Kong sought to make a clear distinction between violent protesters who have thrown petrol bombs in running battles with police and others who have marched peacefully through the city. They also strongly backed Chief Executive Carrie Lam, saying an emergency law could be implemented if necessary and pledging support for the economy. Uniqlo's Future The 70-year-old billionaire behind clothing giant Uniqlo wants a woman to succeed him. Being CEO of parent company Fast Retailing "is more suitable for a woman," Tadashi Yanai said in an interview. "They are persevering, detail oriented and have an aesthetic sense." Japan has faced scrutiny over its lack of gender diversity in top management roles; only 4.1% of women in the country hold executive titles at publicly traded firms. In the U.S., women make up about a quarter of executive ranks, according to multiple studies. One possible successor to Yanai would be Maki Akaida, who was appointed this year to run Uniqlo's Japan operations — the company's most profitable unit. Australian Opportunities Australian companies are cautious about the year ahead after 65% of the 134 companies that reported annual earnings in August missed their annual sales targets. With an economy that even Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison conceded on Monday is "soft," new tariffs from the U.S. taking effect on around $110 billion of Chinese imports earlier this week and Brexit looming at the end of next month, not many companies are optimistic about their future. But some sectors are still looking good for investors. "I like energy, I like healthcare, I like materials," Dale Gillham, chief analyst at Wealth Within, told Bloomberg TV. What We've Been Reading This is what's caught our eye over the weekend. And finally, here's what Tracy's interested in this morning I sometimes like to refer to China Evergrande as the poster child for over-indebted but politically well-connected companies in China. While mainly a very large property developer, China Evergrande's billionaire founder Hui Ka Yan has an unmatched ability to go wherever Chinese policy goes. When Xi Jinping said he wanted the country to win the World Cup, Evergrande opened a football school. When China announced its "Made in China 2025" program to boost its domestic technology industry, Evergrande pledge to invest $15 billion in new tech. Most recently, Evergrande has announced plans to become the biggest electric vehicle manufacturer in the world — mirroring an ongoing policy drive.  But what if China Evergrande is also the poster child for "too big to fail?" Bloomberg reports this week that the company now has about $114 billion in outstanding debt. That figure grew by $20 billion in the first half alone, the same period in which Evergrande posted a 45% fall in profit. How to explain that level of overspending? Bloomberg Opinion columnist Nisha Gopalan notes that much of Evergrande's spending is a bet that China policymakers won't be able to stomach a serious downturn in real estate and will do what they can to keep the sector afloat. You could go one step further: By accumulating so much debt, Evergrande is effectively betting that it's made itself too big to ever be allowed to sink. Hui — who is so adept at tying his business to the interests of policymakers — might just be succeeding in tying policymakers' interests to his business. You can follow Bloomberg's Tracy Alloway at @tracyalloway. The best in-depth reporting from Asia Pacific and beyond, delivered to your inbox every Friday. Sign up here for The Reading List, a new weekly email coming soon. Before it's here, it's on the Bloomberg Terminal. 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