Written by Simon Robinson
(Reuters) – Inflation fell in most economies around the world in 2024, but voters didn't care.
Angered by the skyrocketing prices of everything from eggs to energy over the past few years, they have punished established parties at almost every opportunity. The pain of inflation remains, and the ruling parties bear the blame in election after election.
In the United States, rising costs helped Donald Trump win a second term as president four years after leaving the White House and then falsely claiming election fraud. His supporters failed in their attempt to overturn Trump's defeat by storming the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. This year, they made their voices heard at the ballot box, marking the arrival of new US leadership that is likely to test democratic institutions at home and relationships. outside.
Anti-incumbent sentiment over inflation also led to new governments in Britain, Botswana, Portugal and Panama. South Korean voters have succeeded in putting the opposition in power in its parliament, a check on President Yoon Suk-yeol. In early December, the president imposed martial law, a move that the National Assembly quickly reversed. The elections also shook France, Germany, Japan and India.
There is one place where there has been no change: Russia, where Vladimir Putin was re-elected president with 88% of the vote, a record high in post-Soviet Russia.
Moscow continued its war against Ukraine, crushing notable territorial gains. The big question is what impact Trump's return to the White House will have on the conflict? He promised to end the war in one day. Many in Ukraine and elsewhere in Europe fear that this means siding with Putin and freezing the status quo.
In the Middle East, Israel continued its war against Gaza and expanded it into Lebanon, where it left Iran-backed Hezbollah damaged and in disarray. In Syria, a well-coordinated group of rebel groups overthrew Bashar al-Assad and now seeks to run the country.
In business, companies around the world have grappled with how to adapt to artificial intelligence. The dominance of technology companies for investors can be summed up in this simple fact: Seven technology companies – the so-called “Big Seven” – now represent more than a third of the market capitalization of the Standard & Poor's 500.
Elon Musk, who runs one of those companies, Tesla (NASDAQ:), is an advisor and financial backer to President-elect Trump. Looking ahead, this combination of technological power and political power could define the year 2025.
