5 things to start your day

[Bloomberg]( America gets back to work, it’s a huge week for the world economy and there’s lots of big corporate news. Shutdown ends, for now The partial government shutdown has ended with a [temporary funding bill]( that will re-open agencies through Feb. 15. President Donald Trump made clear that he is willing to [close the government again](, or use emergency powers, should lawmakers fail to provide funding for his border wall by the mid-month deadline. While some agencies are getting back to work this morning, [the fallout]( from the longest-ever closure may linger for some time. Banner week Partisan wrangling in Washington and London has dogged January but it’s ending with big-picture events. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve will announce its latest monetary policy decision, with Chair Jerome Powell due to [give a press conference]( explaining the central bank’s thinking. Chinese officials are set to arrive in the U.S. today ahead of trade talks, also scheduled to [start on Wednesday](. Friday, meanwhile, will see non-farm payrolls data for January. Sponsor Content by PIMCO 2019 Cyclical Outlook: Synching Lower Is it the end of U.S. exceptionalism? In [“Synching Lower,” our 2019 cyclical outlook](, we take a closer look at how U.S. markets are "catching down" to global markets and what investors can expect in the year ahead.  Corporate catch-up It was a busy weekend for some of the world’s biggest companies. Deutsche Bank is said to have secured a commitment for [further backing from Qatar]( as the troubled lender moves towards a possible merger with domestic rival Commerzbank AG. Shares in the bank rose in trading this morning. Brazil’s Vale SA, reeling from the catastrophe of a dam breach that [killed more than 50 people](, voted to suspend dividend payments. Iron ore prices in Asia jumped as investors speculated global supply could be interrupted. There was some relief in the aluminum market after America [lifted sanctions]( on companies linked to Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska. Finally, management problems at Nissan Motor Co. are [far from over]( as the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether the carmaker accurately disclosed executive pay in the U.S., according to several people familiar with the matter. Markets slip Overnight, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.2 percent while Japan’s Topix index closed 0.7 percent lower as investors awaited the outcome of this week’'s trade talks. In Europe, the Stoxx 600 Index was down 0.3 percent by 5:45 a.m. Eastern Time as a fall in energy companies driven by lower oil outweighed a rise in miners on the back of higher metal prices. S&P 500 futures pointed to a [loss at the open](, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 2.755 percent and gold slipped toward $1,300 an ounce. Coming up… There’s a raft of U.S. economic data to catch up on this week as federal employees get back to work. Retail sales, durable goods orders, new home sales, trade balance, the budget statement, and TIC flows are among figures to be published in the coming days, with the exact timing unclear. One thing definitely coming today, and worth watching, is earnings from [global industrial bellwether Caterpillar Inc.](, which can move wider markets. What we've been reading This is what's caught our eye over the weekend. - Odd Lots: What an American reporter learned while [working in China](. - U.S. Treasury set to [borrow $1 trillion]( for a second year to finance deficit. - Bridgewater, Rentech [make $13 billion]( in a grim hedge-fund year. - Bank of England deny Venezuelan request to [withdraw $1.2 billion in gold](. - Starbucks’ Howard Schultz “[seriously thinking](” of 2020 White House run. - Surges of cold polar air are blasting the Midwest with the [lowest temperatures in years](. - Weather forecasts really are [getting better](. And finally, here’s what Joe's interested in this morning A pivotal round of U.S.-China trade talks is scheduled for this week and, [regardless of how they turn out,]( the ongoing trade tensions have elevated concerns about rising Chinese power. Of course, in the short term, what many people are focused on with respect to China is the slowing domestic economy, and the question of whether the government is able to jump-start growth. In light of that, here are three things to check out: First, Matt Klein over at Barron's has a great column declaring [the Chinese boom is over](. The basic gist is that productivity is in decline, and that the demographic situation is rapidly deteriorating (fewer and fewer workers are in the prime years). So, basically, the slowdown is just beginning. Meanwhile, Sri Thiruvadanthai, the head of research at the Jerome Levy Forecasting Center, [tweeted some related thoughts]( on the Chinese decline over the weekend. His view is that while many people focus on China's exploding domestic debt, the real problem is economic sclerosis caused by government control of the economy in the aftermath of the financial crisis. Finally, you should check out [the latest Odd Lots podcast](, where we talk to Bloomberg Economics reporter Matt Boesler, who just spent three months in Beijing. One of the questions I asked him, with regards to the current slowdown, is whether or not China could just undergo a major infrastructure stimulus (like it did after the financial crisis) to boost growth again. As he pointed out, this option is limited because the country is edging closer to deficit (whereas before it was running a major current account surplus), raising risks of currency weakness and capital flight if spending accelerates now. Like Bloomberg's Five Things? [Subscribe for unlimited access]( to trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and gain expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close. 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