| Giving ground | Trump said he'll relinquish power if the Electoral College affirms Biden's win next month, but he signaled he may never formally concede defeat, and may skip his successor's Jan. 20 inauguration. Trump fielded questions from reporters yesterday for the first time since his loss, speaking at the White House after a Thanksgiving teleconference with members of the military. Wooing Biden | France and Germany are leading efforts in Europe to make early contact with Biden's team, with the aim of accelerating talks to ease trade tensions between the U.S. and the EU. At the top of the agenda for Paris is resolving an aircraft dispute that has seen tariffs imposed on more than $12 billion of transatlantic goods, while Berlin is keen to revive free-trade talks. Angry farmers | Almost 300,000 farmers from several states are on their way to India's capital to protest new agricultural laws they say will severely hurt their income. Police have already arrested upwards of 100 leaders and turned water cannons on the marchers as authorities try to stop them from reaching New Delhi.  Farmers gathered on a bridge yesterday as police blocked a road during a march to India's capital. Source: AFP via Getty Images Missile message | North Korea has greeted the prior two new occupants of the White House with missile or nuclear tests soon after taking office. As Jon Herskovitz explains, Kim Jong Un may have a similar provocation in mind for Biden, laying down a marker soon after he takes power. Changing calculus | Alongside the west, Turkey is also seeking a thaw with regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia in a bid to navigate rifts with Russia, Biden's election victory and the threat of European sanctions. Selcan Hacaoglu and Firat Kozok explain that two years after Erdogan made a high-stakes pivot from the west, he's now taking a more conciliatory line. What to Watch - U.K. and EU negotiators will resume face-to-face trade talks this weekend after key officials went into virus-related quarantine.
- China is imposing anti-dumping duties of more than 100% on Australian wine from this weekend, adding to trade tensions with Canberra.
- The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments Monday in the Trump administration's bid to exclude undocumented immigrants from the census count used to divvy up congressional seats and federal funds.
Pop quiz, readers (no cheating!). Which country has had its second successive president take a prolonged absence abroad for health reasons? Send your answers to balancepower@bloomberg.net. And finally ... South Africa's shutdown to fight the pandemic slammed an already weak economy, fueling job losses and bankruptcies. But, as Pauline Bax discovered, the dislocation opened up opportunities for small businesses to thrive in the densely populated township of Soweto on the outskirts of Johannesburg, as people turned to corner shops and local food deliveries.  Refiloe Rantakoe outside his Borotho Bakery in Soweto. Photographer: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg | 
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