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06-10 The economist The global financial crisis hits Hong Kong Wall Street's financial troubles hit Hong KongIn the past few weeks Hong Kong has been battered not only by a series of powerful typhoons, but also by the financial storm emanating from Wall Street. So far, the main effect of the credit crisis has been to
06-10 The economist The Caucasus Oil, war and stirring imperial ghostsINTREPID travellers have long had a penchant for visiting the Caucasus. This is a land of mountains and seas, squeezed into the borders of three old empires—Persian, Ottoman and Russian. As such it has been strate
06-10 The economist Even more species are under threat More species of wildlife are under threatIT IS not just investment bankers who face extinction: more animals are now at risk too. The International Union for Conservation of Nature publishes the Red List, its annual inventory of species under threat, on Mo
06-10 The economist Monitoring climate change The world will soon know more about carbon dioxideSINCE the start of the industrial age, the concentration of carbon dioxide in earth’s atmosphere has increased by about 25%—from about 280 parts per million to over 370 parts per million. As con
05-10 The economist Monetary policy and the credit crunch Central banks may be forced into actionHERE comes the cavalry, part two. In recent months, authorities have been relying on fiscal measures, bank bailouts and money-market interventions to try to solve the credit crunch. Higher-than-desired headline inflat
04-10 The economist Jacques Brel's effects Auctioning off the remains of a chanteur's lifeJACQUES BREL (pictured below) was a celebrated French chanteur with a lean, well-lived-in face, best known for the sad songs he wrote about people who were unfulfilled in love and life. He was a romantic figur
03-10 The economist India and America seal a nuclear deal India and America complete, at last, a civil nuclear dealMore than three years after it was initially signed, the US-India civilian-nuclear deal has cleared its last remaining hurdle. A strong bipartisan majority in the US Congress endorsed the deal on Oct
03-10 The economist Sales of digital music are on the rise Digital-music sales are risingSALES of digital music are steadily growing. In 2007 digital downloads accounted for 15% of global music sales compared with almost nothing in 2003. But the outlook for the music industry is worrying. Despite the growing marke
03-10 The economist Tainted Chinese milk China finds melamine and milk don't mixAS AN industrial chemical, melamine has many genuinely useful applications. But a protein booster for milk is not one of them. How melamine got into baby food in China, killing four infants and sickening 54,000 to dat
03-10 The economist From the campaign trail: Florida The campaigns make their plays for new AmericansI’M STANDING at the back of a hall where 1,200 people are taking the oath of American citizenship. They come from 75 different countries, most of them poor. People stand and cheer when their motherland
03-10 The economist Sarah Palin delivers an adequate performance against Joe Biden in the vice-presidential debate Sarah Palin delivers an adequate performance against Joe Biden in the vice-presidential debateUNDER normal circumstances a vice-presidential debate is a snooze. Voters care about the top of the ticket. Unless the running-mate goes berserk, all will be well
02-10 The economist Depression index Signs of a pending depression? The Economist's D-word indexMANY comparisons may be made between the devastaion being wrought on America's financial system today and the Wall Street crash of 1929. One similarity that the world is desperate to avoid is a ree
02-10 The economist Eastern Europe and the financial crisis The world's headache becomes eastern Europe's migraineWHAT does the collapse of the pyramid scheme formerly known as the western financial system mean for the ex-communist world? The short-term answer is bad, and the longer-term answer even worse.In the 19
02-10 The economist No breakthrough in Belarus Another dodgy election in BelarusOpposition parties remain shut out of parliament in Belarus after another election that fell far short of democratic standards. That is despite recent signs that the country's authoritarian regime was looking to improve tie
02-10 The economist The Senate approves a revised bail-out plan, which will return to the House The Senate approves a revised version of the bail-out planTWO days after the House had rejected the financial bail-out plan proposed by the president and his treasury secretary, the Senate on Wednesday October 1st passed a revised version of the bill by th
02-10 The economist A huge slump in car sales in America Amid Wall Streeta€™s woes, and as sales slump by 27%, failing American carmakers land a huge subsidy DETROIT seems to be where Wall Street meets Main Street. Tight credit is reckoned to have cost the American carmakers 40,000 sales in August, wor
01-10 The economist Inequality Income inequality around the worldNOT everyone agrees that income inequality is a problem to be solved. America and Britain are reckoned to have among the greatest inequality, among rich countries, as measured by the Gini coefficient. Such inequality may b
01-10 The economist A pledge too far in Ireland? The government in Ireland guarantees all bank depositsThe Irish government has pledged to safeguard all deposits and debts of six of the country's leading financial institutions for a two-year period, in a bid to improve the banks' access to short-term fun
01-10 The economist Why European Schadenfreude over the ills of American capitalism is restrained European Schadenfreude over the ills of American capitalism doesn't mean a shift from the free marketONE by one, European leaders have lined up to hail the triumph of welfare over Wall Street. a€œThe idea that markets are always right was a mad i
01-10 The economist Hong Kong in the soup Bad times can be good for good governmentsAS THE territorya€™s officials love to boast, Hong Kong truly is a global city. Typically, this is a huge benefit, as it means energy, intellect and products from the world are easily available. But in ti
30-09 The economist The far right does well in Austria Voters punish centrist parties in AustriaAustria's two largest political parties, the Social Democratic Party (SPA–) and People's Party (A–VP), which had ruled in a coalition since early 2007, both performed poorly in the general election on Sept
30-09 The economist Channel crossings How best to cross the English ChannelDESPITE regular passenger-ferry crossings, a tunnel rail link and numerous commercial flights, some people choose to traverse the English Channel under their own steam. Planes can cross the water in the blink of an eye
30-09 The economist Deposit insurance and your savings Don't ask if your money is safeGIVEN that you should never shout a€œfirea€ in a crowded theatre, it was perhaps unwise of your correspondent to walk into his local branch of JPMorgan Chase and ask, a€œCould somebody please ex
30-09 The economist The Clinton Global Initiative Parasitic worms and Bono jokes in midtown ManhattanI HAVE been struggling to explain to my family what Ia€™m doing here. Before I left I tried the phrases a€œBill Clinton Saves the Worlda€ and a€œthe Bill Clinton Co
30-09 The economist Global market turmoil continues after the House rejects the bail-out plan Global market turmoil continues after the rejection of the mortgage-rescue plan in AmericaHOW many votes in Congress will the latest financial upheaval change? That is the calculus underway in Washington, DC, after the House of Representatives defeated the
29-09 The economist As India grows it will reshape the world around it As India's clout grows it will reshape the world around itIndia's growing power will reshape the world as we know it. India's real GDP has surged by an annual average of nearly 9% in the past five years, and across all measures of influence—from mili
29-09 The economist From the campaign trail: Kentucky When pig jokes go badlyI AM in rural Virginia, watching Barack Obama give a speech larded with references to pigs. “You don’t fatten a hog by weighing it,” he says, explaining why he opposes excessive testing in schools. “You can pu
29-09 The economist Aluminium smelting in Iceland When thinking globally requires unpleasant action locallyLAST Thursday, at a conference on aluminium smelting in Germany, environmental activists tripped the fire alarms. Later, they set off a deafening rape alarm in the main auditorium, and suspended it o
29-09 The economist Deposit insurance Are your life savings protected?AS BANKS tumble like skittles, customers across the world are eyeing their cash nervously. Savings are protected in around 100 countries, with varying degrees of generosity. Those spooked by a run on a bank in Hong Kong this
29-09 The economist The House of Representatives rejects the bail-out plan The House of Representatives rejects the $700 billion bail-out planIT WOULD have been one of the most unpleasant laws that Congress had found itself writing so close to an election. Devoting $700 billion of taxpayers’ money to rescuing the country
28-09 The economist Bradford & Bingley, a British bank, capsizes Another small bank capsizes in a storm-tossed seaAFTER a frenetic weekend spent trying to rustle up a buyer for Bradford & Bingley, a small British bank down on its luck, Britain’s government was poised, late on Sunday September 28th, to national
28-09 The economist More anxiety over the bail-out plan and other news of the coming week Anxiety over the bail-out plan, a vice-presidential debate, and more• NERVES on Wall Street will be jangling as the markets open on Monday. Hank Paulson’s $700 billion bail-out plan for America’s crisis-torn financial system looked set to
28-09 The economist Why banks cannot fail It may seem unfair, but a bailout is essentialSUSPICION of banks is a recurrent historical theme, from President Andrew Jackson’s opposition to “money power” in the early 19th century, to the British Labour party’s suspicion of the
27-09 The economist A sale of rare trees Selling a garden from root to blossomTHE auction taking place on October 4th in a nursery garden in rural France, 60km from Angers and the Loire, is almost certainly unique. There will be 210 lots of rare and collectible trees from the 10-acre (four hectar
26-09 The economist Financial crises How much have previous bail-outs cost?CONGRESS is under pressure to approve the Treasury's proposed $700 billion rescue package. Lawmakers, however, are conscious of the cost to the taxpayer: together with loans to AIG and Bear Stearns, public backing so f
26-09 The economist Washington Mutual, a big regional lender, goes under Regulators seize Washington Mutual and sell most of it to JPMorgan ChaseAS AMERICA'S politicians continue to battle over a proposed $700 billion rescue plan for the financial system, a loud clock ticks in the background. Markets for short-term money, the a
26-09 The economist Japan gets a new government Taro Aso forms his cabinetTaro Aso, Japan's new prime minister, has appointed a less-than-progressive cabinet that includes right-wing nationalists and a prominent advocate of public-spending increases. This broadly reflects Mr Aso's own foreign- and econo
26-09 The economist The financial crisis The bail-out plan complicates politics; politics complicates efforts to pass the planBY THE morning of Friday September 26th there remained no deal in Congress on the $700 billion bail-out for troubled financial firms. In a topsy-turvy day on Thursday, it
26-09 The economist Water recycling Thank Prince Albert for clean water and drainsFEW would imagine that Queen Victoria’s consort, Prince Albert, is one of the fathers of public health and modern technology. And yet the industrial world—and Britain, in particular—owe this u
25-09 The economist Gun laws around the world Would tighter handgun laws help to save lives?FINLAND'S government is introducing tougher regulations on handguns following a mass shooting at a school on Tuesday September 23rd, the second in under a year. The country had been among the most lenient in th
25-09 The economist Explaining why Syria has deployed troops on the border with Lebanon Why had Syria deployed troops on its border with Lebanon?The appearance of several thousand Syrian troops setting up camp on their side of the border with northern Lebanon has aroused concern in Beirut that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad may be ge
25-09 The economist Russia and the Council of Europe Laying down the law, or just laying down?WHETHER you look at soft or hard power, Europe’s ability to defend itself appears wobbly. A poll in the Financial Times this week showed that German public opinion strongly opposes the use of force to defend t
25-09 The economist Paulson's plan may expose weaknesses in Europe Are European banks insulated from the panic in America?AMERICAN plans to buy up assets that are clogging the financial system lack detail but no one doubts that a massive government intervention is coming. In Europe jittery investors have no such reassuran
24-09 The economist Abortion Americans are having fewer abortionsTHE abortion rate in America is at its lowest level for 30 years, according to a new study by the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive-health research group. Since a peak in the early 1980s, the rate has dropped steadily
24-09 The economist Argentina's government seeks reform, and access to international capital Argentina seems ready to address its longstanding problem with "holdouts"In the midst of deteriorating international economic and financing conditions, Argentina’s government appears ready to address its longstanding problem with so-called holdouts&#
24-09 The economist The politics of food aid Hunger once again stalks North KoreaIN RECENT weeks, the list of unknowns about North Korea has shot up. Kim Jong Il, the country’s 66-year-old dictator, has been out of sight since early August. Is he dead? Paralysed with a stroke? Or is he merely l
24-09 The economist How Google's Android software may change the mobile-phone industry What Apple did for smartphones, Google may do for all the restNOT since the launch of Apple’s iPhone last year has the unveiling of a handset caused such a stir. On Tuesday September 23rd T-Mobile, a mobile operator owned by Germany’s Deutsche
23-09 The economist Slower economic growth for Mexico A weaker American economy weighs on growth in MexicoFew Latin American countries are as dependent on US demand as Mexico, which sells 80% of its exports to that market and some of whose industries are closely linked to those north of the border. As a resul
23-09 The economist The leaders of America and Pakistan meet amid rising tensions The leaders of America and Pakistan are set to meet, as tensions grow between the two countriesPRESIDENT George Bush and his Pakistani counterpart, Asif Zardari, were due to hold their first official meeting on Tuesday September 23rd at the sidelines of th
23-09 The economist Philanthrophy at the Clinton Global Initiative Giving while Wall Street burnsIT IS not just the financial system that is melting down in New York. Traffic in the city will also grind to a halt. While the after effects of misdirected greed paralyse Wall Street, an influx of self-proclaimed do-gooders wi