This insider economy takes several forms. Those on good terms with the president over time tend to be first in line for deals. A high-profile example is the agreement Trump helped to broker last week to split out the US operations of the short-video app, TikTok. Oracle — whose chair Larry Ellison has hosted Republican fundraisers and provided advice to Trump — garnered a key stake in the new US entity. The technology firm Palantir, whose co-founder Peter Thiel was an early Trump backer, has won a series of state contracts; its third-quarter US government revenues jumped 52 per cent year on year.