The $1 trillion club has a new member
Walmart is the tenth US company to cross this symbolic threshold, the twelfth overall together with TSMC and Aramco. After a 72% rise in 2024 and 23% in 2025, the stock is up 15% YTD, as e-commerce enables the retailer to continue posting solid growth rates. Its market capitalization puts Walmart in the big leagues of what was previously reserved for US tech stocks... and its valuation does too. With a forward P/E of 44.5x, the company trades at a richer multiple than all of the Magnificent Seven, with the exception of Tesla.
Sino-American decoupling in a single number
The United States now accounts for just 10% of China's exports, down from 20% in 2018 (even though some products transit through other countries before ending up in the United States, in order to circumvent tariffs). This is the result of Donald Trump's trade policy and the confrontation between the two superpowers, which want to be less dependent on each other. A dynamic that has not prevented China from posting a record trade surplus in 2025 ($1,200bn). The Middle Kingdom has found other outlets, and despite calls to rebalance its economy toward more domestic demand, exports remain the main engine of growth.
More inflation in France
In France, January inflation came in well below expectations, at +0.3% year-on-year in December, after +0.8% in December. This is the lowest level since late 2020. The good news is that inflation is no longer a problem. However, inflation that is too low is also a sign of an economy that is not very dynamic. Since inflation returned in 2021, inflation in France has most of the time been lower than in the rest of the euro zone. Cumulatively, that is seven points less inflation since 2019, according to calculations by Rexecode economist Anthony Morlet-Lavidalie.
Source: Bloomberg
