Economy
Our coverage of global economics, from inflation-fighting central banks to apprehensive financial markets
The US economy
Why the Federal Reserve is split on the future of interest rates
Jerome Powell began with a big cut. What comes next?
A Wall Street state of mind has captured America
Downtown New York is quieter than ever. Finance has never been louder
What is the Fed’s preferred inflation measure?
The PCE gauge is broader and more dynamic than its better-known relative, the CPI
Why the Federal Reserve has gambled on a big interest-rate cut
The bold move carries economic and political risks
The Federal Reserve’s interest-rate cuts may disappoint investors
Jerome Powell could still surprise on the hawkish side
An American sovereign-wealth fund is a risky idea
Donald Trump’s latest proposal has worryingly broad support
China’s economy
Don’t celebrate China’s stimulus just yet
It will take more than a spectacular stockmarket rally to revive the economy
Xi Jinping’s belated stimulus has reset the mood in Chinese markets
But can the buying frenzy last?
China’s central bank tries to save the economy—and the stockmarket
But it will need more help from the government
Anger abounds as China raises its strikingly low retirement age
Old people will have to toil a little longer, assuming they can keep their jobs
China’s government is surprisingly redistributive
That is despite a stingy tax-and-transfer system
Can Xi Jinping take Hong Kong “from stability to prosperity”?
A fixation on security may cost the city in the long term
Russia’s economy
How Vladimir Putin hopes to transform Russian trade
He believes the country’s future lies with China and India. What could go wrong?
Vladimir Putin spends big—and sends Russia’s economy soaring
How long can the party last?
How Vladimir Putin created a housing bubble
Prices have risen by 172% in Russia’s biggest cities over the past three years
European banks are making heady profits in Russia
But for how much longer?
Russia’s gas business will never recover from the war in Ukraine
Hopes of a Chinese rescue look increasingly vain
Frozen Russian assets will soon pay for Ukraine’s war
And America now hopes to convince others to make better use of the stash
Asia’s economies
India’s consumers are changing how they buy
A giant population turns to deliveries
Can Japan’s zombie bond market be brought back to life?
Ueda Kazuo begins on a dangerous mission
Why Japanese stocks are on a rollercoaster ride
Volatility in global markets continues
India’s economic policy will not make it rich
A new World Bank report takes aim at emerging-market growth plans
Japan’s mind-bending bento-box economics
The paradox of red-hot labour markets, falling demand and rising prices
Narendra Modi needs to win over low-income Indians
They are dissatisfied with their share of the country’s growth
Europe’s economies
Britain’s budget choices are not as bad as the government says
It has more room for manoeuvre than it lets on
Mario Draghi’s best ideas are those Europe finds least comfortable
The danger is that it picks the easy ones
Can anything spark Europe’s economy back to life?
Mario Draghi, the continent’s unofficial chief technocrat, has a plan
Norway’s weak currency presents a mystery
The country’s economy is thriving yet the krone is becoming less and less valuable. What’s going on?
Europe’s economic growth is extremely fragile
Risk is concentrated in one country: Germany
Can anything rouse Germany from its economic slumber?
Politicians are more interested in trivial budget rows than finding sources of growth
Data
Three charts show that America’s imports are booming
Here’s why that could spell trouble
The Big Mac index: where to buy a cheap hamburger
Meat-eaters may want to avoid Argentina
The world’s richest countries in 2024
Our annual ranking compares economies in three different ways
The economics of American lotteries
Our analysis shows poorer citizens spend a staggering amount on tickets
Where are Europe’s most expensive cities for renters?
Our “Carrie Bradshaw index” moves across the pond
American consumers are finally cheering up
Much to the relief of Joe Biden
Latest coverage
United States
What America’s presidential election means for world trade
The first in a series of eight concise briefs on the consequences of the 2024 election
Finance & economics
How bond investors soured on France
They now regard the euro zone’s second-largest economy as riskier than Spain
Britain
Gigafactories and dashed dreams: the parable of Blyth
What one port town says about the British economy
Culture
The best new books to read about finance
The joys that can come from good writing about the dismal science
Briefing
The bloodshed in the Middle East is fast expanding
Israel seems certain to retaliate to Iran’s missile attack
Finance & economics
Can Andrea Orcel, Europe’s star banker, create a super-bank?
An interview with the boss of UniCredit
Finance & economics
Why economic warfare nearly always misses its target
There is no such thing as a strategic commodity
Finance & economics
A tonne of public debt is never made public
New research suggests governments routinely hide their borrowing
Leaders
Don’t celebrate China’s stimulus just yet
It will take more than a spectacular stockmarket rally to revive the economy
Finance & economics
Xi Jinping’s belated stimulus has reset the mood in Chinese markets
But can the buying frenzy last?
Business
The future of the Chinese consumer—in three glasses
What China’s biggest distiller, brewer and water-bottler say about its economy
Finance & economics
The house-price supercycle is just getting going
Why property prices could keep rising for years
Finance & economics
Why is Canada’s economy falling behind America’s?
The country was slightly richer than Montana in 2019. Now it is just poorer than Alabama
China
Worries of a Soviet-style collapse keep Xi Jinping up at night
China’s Communists have now been in power longer than the Soviets
United States
Harris’s and Trump’s economic plans both promise utopia
High spending, low taxes—and don’t worry about the deficit