Even by videoconference from Washington, Donald Trump drew a big crowd on Thursday, January 23. The American president's speech was eagerly awaited at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. This finely tuned, 45-minute show allowed Trump to reaffirm the broad outlines of his economic nationalism.

His inauguration, and the first measures taken, have overwhelmed all the other subjects traditionally debated by the political and economic elites in the Grisons resort, from the fight against global warming to the technological revolution. Some might have imagined that the temple of globalization, or even of "woke culture," would be critical of the president's protectionist and climate-skeptic agenda. Yet admiration, even enthusiasm, prevailed among many American business leaders. "Many of my friends are in the audience," said the political leader.

This is, of course, the case for the tech industry, omnipresent at Davos, which, like its figureheads – Elon Musk (X, SpaceX and Tesla), Mark Zuckerberg (Meta) and Jeff Bezos (Amazon) – lined up behind the Republican candidate with the zeal of new converts, in the expectation of regulatory relief synonymous with good business.

You have 70.94% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.