The Economist | Independent journalism
Boom!
A new six-part podcast series about the generation that blew up American politics
“Dateline” history quiz
This week: The Lusitania sinks; football doesn’t come home; and more
US in brief
Biden’s defiant but garbled press conference
Finance & economics
Trumponomics would not be as bad as most expect
Opposition would come from all angles
United States
Biden survives his “big boy” press conference
His performance wasn’t perfect and the Democratic Party rebellion is far from over
International
How China and Russia could hobble the internet
The undersea cables that connect the world are becoming military targets
The world in brief
Joe Biden reportedly arranged virtual meetings with congressional groups one day after delivering a closely watched press conference...
China’s trade surplus rose to $99bn in June, an all-time high...
America’s most closely-watched index of consumer sentiment, published by the University of Michigan, plunged to its lowest reading in eight months in July, according to preliminary data...
Russia denied that it had conspired to assassinate Armin Papperger, the boss of Rheinmetall, Germany’s biggest arms-maker...
Why most battery-makers struggle to make money
This is not your classic boom-and-bust cycle
Chaguan: What China means when it says “peace”
From Ukraine to Gaza, China sees a chance to promote an ultra-realist worldview
Why cooking causes 4m premature deaths a year
One big health risk is often overlooked
The best film and television of 2024 (so far)
What to stream on your summer holiday
Boom!
A new six-part podcast series about the generation that blew up American politics
“Dateline” history quiz
This week: The Lusitania sinks; football doesn’t come home; and more
US in brief
Biden’s defiant but garbled press conference
Video
This week
The most important political stories this week
A NATO summit in Washington, pressure on Joe Biden—and more
The most important business stories this week
Boeing agrees to plead guilty, Microsoft reportedly gives up seat on OpenAI’s board—and more
KAL’s cartoon
A lighter look at the week’s events
Letters to the editor
On Joe Biden, a Palestinian state, rising seas, Willie Mays, working late
More on America’s election
Joe Biden is failing to silence calls that he step aside
And some senior Democrats may merely be holding their fire
Anguish about Joe Biden’s candidacy is rational, polls suggest
Would Kamala Harris fare better?
Why Biden must withdraw
The president and his party portray themselves as the saviours of democracy. Their actions say otherwise
Trump v Biden: who’s ahead in the polls?
The Economist is tracking the race to be America’s next president
NATO
When will Ukraine join NATO?
Its road to membership could be blocked if Donald Trump becomes president
How to Trump-proof America’s alliances
An essential step will be to let Ukraine into NATO
Trump and other populists will haunt NATO’s 75th birthday party
Threats to Western alliances lie both within and without the club
NATO must tackle instability in the Balkans, says an ex-head
Russia and China are up to old tricks in the region, argue George Robertson and Andi Hoxhaj
World news
Charlemagne: Viktor Orban solidifies his credentials as the EU’s pantomime villain
The Hungarian prime minister’s “peace mission” to Russia has peeved Europeans
Iran’s new hope: a cardiologist president
He is said to detest the capital, Tehran. Can he master its politics?
The French far right may not have peaked
After winning 32% of the vote in parliamentary elections it will eye the presidency
Bagehot: The new front line of British politics is just lovely
From the “left-behind” to the “well-ahead”
Business, finance and economics
The EV trade war between China and the West heats up
But Elon Musk’s carmaker is somehow escaping the worst of it
How strongmen abuse tools for fighting financial crime
They can get Western governments and banks to crack down on exiled dissidents
The world’s richest countries in 2024
Our annual ranking compares economies in three different ways
Once high-flying Boeing is now a corporate criminal
Its woes illustrate the excesses of a lean-and-mean era in corporate America
Summer reads
The world’s most studied rainforest is still yielding new insights
Even after a century of research, Barro Colorado in Panama continues to shed light on natural life
Finishing schools for the age of TikTok
Unsure how to be polite at work? Ask a digital etiquette guru
New yeast strains can produce untapped flavours of lager
One Chilean hybrid has a spicy taste, with hints of clove
Can Saudi Arabia become a premier tourist hotspot?
It has sun, sea and (lots of) sand. But people are wary of visiting the kingdom
After Britain’s election
How did pollsters do in predicting the British election?
The biggest miss since 1992
How shallow was Labour’s victory in the British election?
The British party system may be fragmenting but voters delivered a coherent message
Labour has won the British election. Now it has to seize the moment
A volatile electorate and a strong showing for Reform UK are no reason for caution
Bagehot: What now for Britain’s right-wing parties
The Conservatives, Reform UK and the regressive dilemma
Stories most read by subscribers
Featured read
Iran’s new hope: a cardiologist president
He is said to detest the capital, Tehran. Can he master its politics?
Israel and its enemies
The next terrifying war: Israel v Hizbullah
It would feature kamikaze drones, mass blackouts and the largest missile barrage in history
Is the American-built pier in Gaza useful or a fiasco?
The Economist went to see
Is a Palestinian state a fantasy?
Amid war in Gaza, the prospect is at once more relevant than ever and more distant
Hamas and Israel are still far apart over a ceasefire deal
For all America’s optimism, the two sides look fundamentally irreconcilable
The war in Ukraine
How many Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine?
Four charts illustrate a grim new milestone
Ukraine’s war has created millions of broken families
Children and wives have been apart from their fathers and husbands for more than two years
Ukraine has a month to avoid default
Lending to a borrower at war entails an additional gamble: that it will win
Death and destruction in a Russian city
Russians in the border city of Belgorod have become victims too in the war Vladimir Putin launched against Ukraine
Edition: July 13th 2024
How to raise the world’s IQ
Labour’s first week
What does Labour’s win mean for British foreign policy?
Will Biden’s dam break?
Joe Biden is failing to silence calls that he step aside
Ungovernable France
France is desperately searching for a government
Inside AI’s black box
Researchers are figuring out how large language models work
Special reports: July 13th 2024
Must try harder
Schools in rich countries are making poor progress. They need to get back to basics, argues Mark Johnson
