Marketplace Morning Report TikTok is here to stay
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Jan 23, 2026 Christopher Lowe, chief economist at FHN Financial, explains shifting gold demand and how weather and savings shape spending. Nancy Marshall-Genzer, Marketplace reporter, breaks down TikTok’s U.S. joint venture, who controls the algorithm, and what may change for users. Multiple short, lively conversations about national security, markets, and consumer behavior.
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TikTok's Ownership Restructuring
- TikTok formed a U.S. joint venture with majority American ownership but ByteDance keeps a near-20% stake.
- The algorithm stays with ByteDance and will be secured in Oracle's U.S. cloud while being retrained on U.S. data.
User Experience Likely Unchanged At First
- The joint venture won't change the TikTok user experience immediately and global teams will keep handling commerce and ads.
- Users may see gradual shifts as the algorithm is retrained and secured in Oracle's U.S. cloud environment.
Gold Overtakes U.S. Bonds Globally
- For the first time since 1996, the world holds more gold than U.S. bonds, signaling shifting preferences.
- Central banks, especially in emerging markets, drove heavy gold purchases starting last year, pushing private investors to follow.