| Tech fight | The Trump administration opened up a new front in trade tensions with China by barring any chipmaker using American equipment from supplying China telecoms giant Huawei without U.S. government approval. Taiwan's TSMC, whose clients include Apple and Qualcomm, has already reportedly stopped accepting new orders from Huawei. China warned the curbs may threaten the global supply chain and threatened possible retribution against U.S. companies. Biden's orbit | Wall Street veteran Charles Myers got a surprise last week when he read the names on Joe Biden's new economic policy task force and none of his financial industry friends were there. Yet the longtime Democratic donor and former investment bank vice chairman isn't bothered. Max Abelson explains why. - Donald Trump's move to oust the State Department's inspector general has prompted bipartisan concern the White House wants to muzzle government oversight amid the pandemic and a tough re-election battle.
Storm clouds | President Jair Bolsonaro is facing a difficult week. For the second time in two months he has to find a replacement for his health minister, who resigned, as Brazil's coronavirus crisis deepens. Then Folha de S. Paulo reported yesterday the Federal Police tipped off his eldest son, who's a senator, that they would open investigations into one of his former aides over suspicious financial transactions before the probe was made public. Political survivor | When Giuseppe Conte made the jump from unassuming law professor to Italy's prime minister in 2018, few believed he would last. Yet, as John Follain reports, today he has more power than any Italian leader since Benito Mussolini. As he starts reopening the economy after two months of lockdown and loosens restrictions for the summer, Conte has become the country's most popular politician. Loyalties tested | Malaysia's king warned lawmakers against resorting to hostility and slander, as parliament sat for the first time since a chaotic change of government two and a half months ago. The brief session revealed the altered political landscape: New leader of the opposition Anwar Ibrahim sat across from Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who avoided a confidence motion by only scheduling the king to speak. Former leader Mahathir Mohamad was a few seats away, in political limbo since his abrupt resignation in February. What to Watch This Week: -
As Israel finally installed a government after more than a year of gridlock, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed his contentious vow to annex West Bank settlements. -
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron meet today to discuss a new recovery fund to help the EU weather the worst recession in living memory. -
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell must perform a high-stakes balancing act tomorrow, when he's expected to urge lawmakers to back more spending for an economy reeling from the pandemic. -
Afghan rivals President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah signed a power-sharing accord to end their quarrel over a presidential election that was tainted by fraud allegations. -
A socially distant lobbying stampede has broken out in Washington for what may well be the last major stimulus bill to address the pandemic. -
Argentina's government has received new counteroffers from its largest creditors aimed at reaching a $65 billion debt restructuring deal in the coming week. Thanks to all who responded to our pop quiz Friday. No one guessed the correct answer, which was that Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said Italy needs help from the EU to cope with its debt load. Tell us how we're doing or what we're missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net. And finally ... Libyan smugglers of Africans heading to Europe are back in business. While the flow of people slowed due to the lockdowns in African countries aimed at fighting the spread of coronavirus, it's now resuming with the easing of border restrictions, Caroline Alexander reports. And the European community is concerned that if the pandemic causes widespread economic pain and social unrest, it could spark a flood of migrants toward the Mediterranean.  Migrants wait for rescue off the Libyan coast on Feb. 9. Photographer: Pablo Garcia/AFP via Getty Images | 
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