*[Global Morning Briefing] summarizes global news delivered by Seoul Economic Daily.*
Apple's 15-Year 'Tim Cook Era' Comes to an End
Apple has named John Ternus, senior vice president of hardware engineering, as its new chief executive officer, succeeding Tim Cook, who led the company for 14 years following the death of founder Steve Jobs. Ternus will officially take office on September 1, while Cook will move to the position of chairman of the board.
Born in 1975, Ternus majored in mechanical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and worked at a VR startup before joining Apple in 2001. Over the past 25 years, he has led the development of nearly all of Apple's major products, building deep internal trust. Thanks to his experience working alongside Jobs, he is regarded as the person who most deeply understands Jobs's design innovation philosophy.
Among his notable achievements is the launch of Apple's first slim phone, the "iPhone Air." Hailed as the company's most innovative product since 2017, the iPhone Air drove the success of the iPhone 17 series, enabling Apple to reclaim the top spot in smartphone sales for the first time in 14 years. Replacing Intel chips with Apple's in-house silicon in Mac computers — reducing heat issues and boosting sales — is also cited as a major accomplishment.
High approval ratings are providing the foundation for this rightward shift. Takaichi's approval rating reached 70% in an FNN poll, and the Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide victory in February's general election, exceeding the two-thirds majority required to propose a constitutional amendment. However, top-down decision-making has led to communication issues within the ruling party, which is cited as a potential wild card.
However, concerns are emerging that his hardware-centric philosophy could become a weakness in the AI era. Ternus maintains that "AI is a tool for making great products," prioritizing on-device strategy over developing proprietary AI models. Apple has in fact struggled with in-house AI development, and the next-generation Siri is being built on rival Google's Gemini model. Reuters pointed out that competitors such as Samsung and OpenAI view Apple's AI struggles as an opportunity, while Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, predicted that "Ternus will face enormous pressure to deliver results in AI."
Europe's Economic Gap With U.S. Doubles; Diplomatic Clout Falls Behind Pakistan
The economic gap between the European Union and the United States has more than doubled over the past decade, and with the added shock of the Iran war, Europe's economic and diplomatic presence is weakening rapidly.
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the EU's nominal GDP in 2025 stands at approximately $21.2 trillion, leaving a gap of $9.5 trillion with the U.S. ($30.7 trillion). The gap, which stood at $4.6 trillion in 2015, has more than doubled in a decade. A rigid labor market and excessive regulation have left labor productivity stagnant. Hourly labor productivity in the eurozone is only 82% of U.S. levels, and R&D spending growth at EU companies stands at 2.9%, less than half the global average of 6.3%. Not a single European company currently ranks among the world's top 10 by market capitalization.
A fragile structure with 57% energy import dependence has been hit hard by the external shock of the Iran war. The European Central Bank (ECB) has lowered its eurozone growth forecast for this year from 1.2% to 0.9%, warning of further downside if the energy shock is prolonged. Government bond yields in major economies including the U.K., France, and Italy have surged by up to 53 basis points since the outbreak of the war, raising concerns over fiscal soundness.
The decline in diplomatic standing is equally painful. Europe, which led the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, was effectively excluded from the recent Iran ceasefire negotiations. Steven Everts, director of the European Union Institute for Security Studies, criticized the situation, saying, "It was Pakistan, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia that mediated the ceasefire — there was no seat for Europe."
Kevin Warsh: Trump's Rate Views Don't Threaten Fed Independence
Kevin Warsh, nominee to become the next chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, has officially stated that President Donald Trump's remarks on benchmark interest rates do not threaten the independence of monetary policy. It marks his first public comments since being nominated, delivered through an opening statement submitted a day before his Senate confirmation hearing.
"I do not view elected officials, including the president or members of Congress, expressing views on interest rates as particularly threatening to the independence of monetary policy operations," Warsh said. Rather, he stressed that "the Fed's independence is most threatened when it oversteps into fiscal and social policy areas where it has neither authority nor expertise." His logic is that presidential remarks on interest rates can be accepted as political opinion, but when the Fed itself oversteps its boundaries, it invites political backlash that damages its independence.
Warsh also described the Fed's independence as "at the highest level in monetary policy operations" but drew a line on extending that independence to all Fed functions. He indicated he would cooperate with the administration and Congress in non-monetary policy areas such as bank supervision and oversight of financial payment systems — a stance that can also be interpreted as criticism that independence in those areas has not been adequately secured. He added that "a reform-oriented Fed can bring real change to the American people."
Japan Allows Export of Lethal Weapons, Lifts Ban on War Zones
The Japanese government has fully abolished weapons export restrictions maintained for 70 years since the end of World War II, and in principle will allow exports of weapons with lethal capabilities. With exports to countries engaged in combat also now possible, analysts say Japan's security policy has effectively entered a new era.
The Japanese government revised the Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and its operational guidelines at a Cabinet meeting and National Security Council (NSC) session on the 21st. Previously, exports of finished weapons were permitted only in five non-combat categories, but the revision removes those restrictions. Subject to NSC review by the prime minister, chief cabinet secretary, foreign minister, and defense minister, weapons can now be sold to countries engaged in combat — as well as jointly developed weapons sold to third countries — if deemed "necessary for security."
The measure was spearheaded by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi just six months after taking office, going a step further than former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's 2014 move that cracked open export restrictions in five categories. Takaichi is also pushing to amend Article 9 of the Constitution to explicitly recognize the Self-Defense Forces and is accelerating the establishment of a "National Intelligence Agency," a Japanese version of the CIA. Critics warn that the Self-Defense Forces' first participation in multinational joint exercises signals a revival of militarism.
