U.S. President Donald Trump gestures during an announcement regarding his administration's policies against cartels and human trafficking, from the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., Oct. 23, 2025.
China on Thursday concluded its "Fourth Plenum," a meeting aimed at setting out the country's development agenda for the next five years. Beijing will focus on domestic consumption, self-reliance in technology as well as the agricultural and manufacturing sectors.
In the U.S. economy and markets — generally considered the exemplar of free-market capitalism — the government's fingerprints have started becoming visible, if you squint a little.
For instance, Intel reported third-quarter revenue that surpassed analysts' expectations, helping the stock jump 7.7% in extended trading. Intel said demand for its processors appears to be recovering.
But it's hard to ignore the elephant in the room, that is, the U.S. government's 10% stake in the company, acquired in August. The company's stock has seen a massive surge since that acquisition, with President Donald Trump saying the government has made $30 billion to $40 billion on its stake. The transaction, however, complicates Intel's accounting practices for its income, the company suggested in a press release.
Trump, meanwhile, pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, the White House said Thursday. Zhao was convicted in April 2024 for enabling money laundering at Binance.
When asked why Trump pardoned Zhao, the president said, "A lot of people say that he wasn't guilty of anything. And so I gave him a pardon at the request of a lot of very good people."
The Wall Street Journal reported in August that the Trump family's crypto venture has been helped by "a partnership with an under-the-radar trading platform quietly administered by Binance."
Trump's proclivity for acquiring stakes in U.S. companies and his other dealings raise the question: are we seeing a four-year U.S. economic plan — with a twist — unfold?