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Harris v Trump

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Finance & economics

The Federal Reserve’s interest-rate cuts may disappoint investors

Jerome Powell could still surprise on the hawkish side

Asia

Narendra Modi starts losing battles

India’s prime minister is 100 days into his third term. He’s having a tough time


United States

Who is Ryan Routh, Donald Trump’s would-be assassin?

His 291-page screed on Ukraine’s “unwinnable war” offers some clues




The world in brief

Friedrich Merz was named by Germany’s centre-right parties as their candidate for chancellor in next year’s general election...

Hizbullah, an Iran-backed Lebanese militia, reported serious injuries after hundreds of the pagers used by its members exploded...

Electric cars now outnumber petrol vehicles in Norway, according to data published by the country’s Road Federation...

Ursula von der Leyen announced her new European Commission...


Bill Gates on how feeding children properly can transform global health

The stomach influences every aspect of human health, says the philanthropist

Banyan: Youngsters are fleeing Japan’s once-mighty civil service 

Why would anyone sane and talented work for it?

Should euthanasia be allowed for those with mental illnesses?

Legislators and doctors are struggling to define who should have the right to die

How odd Christian beliefs about sex shape the world

Despite their shaky grounding in scripture

Café Europa newsletter

Sign up for analysis of European politics, business and finance

Pint-sized news quiz

How well have you been following the headlines?

Harris v Trump

Our presidential prediction model

Video

World news

Another attempt to kill Trump raises fears of political violence

Republicans and Democrats must again try to avoid politicising a failed assassination

What are the Murdochs fighting about in a secret Nevada court?

The outcome could shape the political orientation of the family’s media empire


Why Israel has not yet lost Europe

Europeans are angry about Gaza, but they aren’t voting like it


Can Xi Jinping take Hong Kong “from stability to prosperity”?

A fixation on security may cost the city in the long term


Business, finance and economics

Why family empires dominate business in India

Their grip on the economy may be starting to weaken—slowly

How to finish Japan’s business revolution

Tokyo-listed companies have become more friendly to shareholders, but the job is only half-done


Strangely, America’s companies will soon face higher interest rates

Even though the Federal Reserve is about to loosen monetary policy


Can anything spark Europe’s economy back to life?

Mario Draghi, the continent’s unofficial chief technocrat, has a plan


America’s election

The never-Trump movement has leaders. What about followers?

For some dissident Republicans, backing Kamala Harris seems a step too far

What will happen if America’s election result is contested?

The system is now stronger, but so is public mistrust of it


America’s election is mired in conflict

Donald Trump’s conspiracy machine is already gearing up for election night



More highlights

Paul Gauguin is an artist ripe for cancellation

Yet, as with others, controversy and talent were part of the same palette

Ginni Thomas, battle-hardened conservative and bugaboo of Democrats

Clarence Thomas’s wife is back in the news for supporting a group opposed to stricter ethics rules for the Supreme Court


Breast milk’s benefits are not limited to babies

Some of its myriad components are being tested as treatments for cancer and other diseases


What are the Murdochs fighting about in a secret Nevada court?

The outcome could shape the political orientation of the family’s media empire


Stories most read by subscribers

Featured read

How today’s wealthy present themselves differently

A new book offers an engrossing but flawed takedown of Britain’s most privileged

Revitalising Europe’s economy

Mario Draghi outlines his plan to make Europe more competitive

The continent needs investment on a par with the Marshall Plan and a lot more innovation, says the former central banker


Nice ideas, Mr Draghi—now who will pay for them?

From “whatever it takes” to “whatever the cost”


Can anything spark Europe’s economy back to life?

Mario Draghi, the continent’s unofficial chief technocrat, has a plan


Europe and the hard right

How to deal with the hard-right threat in Germany

As extremists win more votes across Europe, forming moderate and effective governments is getting harder

Germany’s party system is coming under unprecedented strain

Forming governments after the eastern state elections looks nightmarish


Charlemagne: Europe must beware the temptations of technocracy

Experts are increasingly crowding out flailing politicians


Europe’s lefties bash migrants (nearly) as well as the hard right

Xenophobia is crossing the political spectrum


America’s economy

Strangely, America’s companies will soon face higher interest rates

Even though the Federal Reserve is about to loosen monetary policy

America has a huge deficit. Which candidate would make it worse?

Enough policies have been proposed to make a call


American office delinquencies are shooting up

How worried should investors be?


Has Warren Buffett lost his touch?

Assessing Berkshire Hathaway’s recent performance


The war in Ukraine

America keeps Ukraine fighting with its hands tied

Russian missiles blast its cities, but it still cannot strike back

Danger in Donbas as Ukraine’s front line falters

Russian fighters are trying to encircle the defenders


Clearing Ukraine’s mines is crucial for global food security, say Howard Buffett and Tony Blair

With the right sort of technology and financing, it needn’t take a century


American restrictions on hitting Russia are hurting Ukraine

The Biden administration’s justifications keep changing


Israel’s wars

A narrow corridor in Gaza has become an obstacle to a ceasefire

Binyamin Netanyahu says the presence of Israeli troops is crucial. His generals disagree

The one thing Israelis agree on: rescuing the hostages

Bibi’s failure to do so has prompted huge protests


Israel and Hizbullah play with fire

They both attempt escalating attacks that fall short of all-out war


Have Israel’s far-right religious nationalists peaked?

They wield great power but schisms within the movement are deepening


Monster vehicles

What to do about America’s killer cars

The country’s roads are nearly twice as dangerous as the rich-world average. It doesn’t have to be that way

Americans’ love affair with big cars is killing them

New analysis shows that the heaviest vehicles kill more people than they save in crashes


Why American cars are so big

A regulatory loophole that incentivised sales of big vehicles is about to be tightened


A farewell to small cars, the industrial icons that put Europe on wheels

Why a continent with ever-smaller families is driving ever-bigger automobiles


China goes dark

The real problem with China’s economy

The country risks making some of the mistakes the Soviet Union did

The Chinese authorities are concealing the state of the economy

But the Communist Party’s internal information systems may also be flawed


China is suffering from a crisis of confidence

Can anything perk up its economy?


Liberalism is far from dead in China

Despite an intense clampdown, it may even be drawing more adherents


How ugly will it get?

Edition: September 14th 2024

How ugly will it get?