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Quote of the Day

The more refined and subtle our minds, the more vulnerable they are - Paul Tournier

Word of the Day

Verbose - Using or containing a great and usually an excessive number of words; wordy

In the news...

Italy’s full election results.top administration officials said on Sunday. Projections suggest no parliamentary bloc will emerge with an outright majority after Sunday’s election, with voters flocking to anti-establishment and far-right groups amid discontent over immigration and a sluggish economy. The country likely faces months of political gridlock, with a more Euroskeptic coalition being a possible outcome.

China’s legislature kicks off its annual session. During the two-week gathering it’s expected to scrap (paywall) the two-term limit for the president and vice president, which would allow Xi Jinping, 64, to serve indefinitely. It could also appoint Xi ally Wang Qishan as vice president. Bloomberg has a cheat sheet on what investors should look for.

Senior South Korea officials land in Pyongyang. They’ll talk to their North Korean counterparts about the need for denuclearization and the possibility of starting a dialogue with the US. North Korea hasn’t conducted a weapons test since November but warned it would “counter” the joint military exercises by the US and South Korea scheduled for April.

High spirits at a Houston oil gathering. Top industry execs meet at the CERAWeek conference amid booming shale oil production that could allow the US to surpass Russia as the world’s largest oil producer this year.

Germany’s government finally came together.The Social Democrats voted Sunday to form a coalition with chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats. This fourth term is likely to be the last (paywall) for Merkel, meaning she’ll be less restrained by domestic politics and freer to help French president Emmanuel Macron on EU reform.

China boosted its military spending. This year’s defense budget will reach $175 billion, up 8.1% from 2017, as Beijing continues to modernize the People’s Liberation Army. Last month Harry Harris, head of US Pacific Command, warned about China’s rapidly advancing military technology, saying America might struggle to compete “on future battlefields.”