Finance & economics

Indestructible
China’s economy is a mess. Why aren’t firms going under?
The government’s desire to avoid bankruptcies is another drag on growth

Frightening
How Japan poses a threat to the global financial system
Huge, reliable buyers of overseas bonds may be about to close their wallets

Tariff Man Part Two
Donald Trump’s second term would be a protectionist nightmare
His first term was bad enough

Buttonwood
What a third world war would mean for investors
Global conflicts have a habit of sneaking up on money-managers

Free exchange
Israel’s war economy is working—for the time being
The longer the conflict lasts, the greater the pressure

Buttonwood
Investors are returning to hedge funds. That may be unwise
Look beyond the current turbulence

Trade nightmares
America and the EU demonstrate protectionism’s ratchet effect
Negotiations over metal tariffs are going nowhere

Under the microscope
How health-care costs stopped rising
In America and elsewhere the received wisdom has been proved wrong

Fleet-footed
America would struggle to break Iran’s oil-smuggling complex
After years of sanctions, it has become a sophisticated operation

Making a statement
Xi Jinping steps up his attempt to rescue China’s economy
The president unleashes stimulus, appoints a finance minister and visits the central bank

Consumerzzzzzzzzz
Welcome to the age of the hermit consumer
The world economy is witnessing a $600bn-a-year shift in behaviour

Not so civil anymore
How free-market economics reshaped legal systems the world over
Friedrich Hayek’s followers promised growth. They may have overpromised