Obesity medicines could benefit under new rules.

A recent change to Medicare rules means that the insurer — which covered more than 19% of U.S. adults at the start of 2025 — will expand coverage of obesity medicines. That could be good news for the makers of GLP-1 medications.

Artificial intelligence companies brace for bottlenecks.

With demand soaring, AI companies are scrambling to secure the power and equipment they’ll need to keep up. Adding to the pressure are the relatively short lives of such hardware, with most servers only lasting about five years. Is there a risk of overbuilding? Not a concern, some say: These companies have a history of using more computing power and energy each year, even before AI.

With a change in leadership, eyes are on Japan’s markets.

Japan’s new prime minister — the first woman to hold the position — has long had her eye on corporate governance issues. The country’s equity markets are at historically high valuations, but that’s been partly driven by the modernization of business practices. Further reforms could help increase efficiency and potentially stock prices.

The Middle East’s pivot from oil is bearing fruit.

Energy is still a critical economic driver for countries such as Saudi Arabia and Dubai, but that’s beginning to change. Several of these countries are intentionally diversifying their economies, seeking to add more technology, tourism and finance to the mix amid other sectors. Early results seem promising: For example, Saudi Arabia’s economy is now majority non-oil sectors.