Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:

(1) Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said an agreement with Hamas to pause the war in Gaza has been finalized, suggesting it’s on track to begin on Sunday.

(2) China’s economy hit the government’s growth goal last year after an 11th hour stimulus blitz and export boom turbocharged activity, although looming US tariffs threaten to take away a key driver of expansion.

(3) Nigel Farage said Reform UK isn’t anti-immigration and advocated a mixture of tax and spending cuts as he sought to put a more moderate face on his insurgent party in a bid to take it from the political fringes to challenge for power.

 
(4) Rio Tinto and Glencore have been discussing combining their businesses, which if successful would rank as the largest-ever mining deal and create a behemoth to rival longstanding leader BHP.

(5) Treasury Secretary nominee Scott Bessent is on track to be confirmed following a confirmation hearing Thursday lacking the theatrics some of his would-be Trump administration colleagues have faced, with questions largely keeping to policy issues like the federal budget and trade tariffs.

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