8 h. ago India and EU agree landmark trade deal after almost two decades of talks

Agreement removes almost all trade barriers for bloc of 2bn people representing a quarter of global economy

Economics

5 d. ago CDC’s deputy director says measles outbreak is ‘cost of doing business’ in a global economy

‘This is appalling and not how public health leaders typically respond to ongoing outbreaks of preventable infectious diseases,’ one public health expert responded

Economics

1 week ago The threat to the global economy from Trump’s war on the Fed

The escalating conflict between the White House and the US central bank could have far-reaching consequences

Events

1 week ago Populism makes managing global economy harder, Andrew Bailey warns

Bank of England governor tells officials to challenge populist leaders ‘in deeds more than just words’

Events

1 week ago The crisis whisperer: how Adam Tooze makes sense of our bewildering age

Whether it’s the financial crash, the climate emergency or the breakdown of the international order, historian Adam Tooze has become the go-to guide to the radical new world we’ve enteredIn late January 2025, 10 days after Donald Trump was sworn in for a second time as president of the United States, an economic conference in Brussels brought together several officials from the recently deposed Biden administration for a discussion about the global economy. In Washington, Trump and his wrecking crew were already busy razing every last brick of Joe Biden’s legacy, but in Brussels, the Democratic exiles put on a brave face. They summoned the comforting ghosts of white papers past, intoning old spells like “worker-centered trade policy” and “middle-out bottom-up economics”. They touted their late-term achievements. They even quoted poetry: “We did not go gently into that good night,” Katherine Tai, who served as Biden’s US trade representative, said from the stage. Tai proudly told the...

Events

2 w. ago ‘History will tell’: as US pressure grows, Cuba edges closer to collapse amid mass exodus

Disillusioned with the revolution after 68 years of US sanctions and a shattered economy, one in four Cubans have left in four years. Can the regime, and country, survive the engulfing ‘polycrisis’?Hatri Echazabal Orta lives in Madrid, Spain. Maykel Fernández is in Charlotte, in the US, while Cristian Cuadra remains in Havana, Cuba – for now. All Cubans, all raised on revolutionary ideals and educated in good state-run schools, they have become disillusioned with the cherished national narrative that Cuba is a country of revolution and resistance. Facing a lack of political openness and poor economic prospects, each of them made the same decision: to leave.They are not alone. After 68 years of partial sanctions and nearly 64 years of total economic embargo by the US, independent demographic studies suggest that Cuba is going through the world’s fastest population decline and is probably already below 8 million – a 25% drop in just four years, suggesting its population has shrunk by ...

Events

2 w. ago Voices: ‘Brexit benefits exist for everybody but us’: Readers on UK’s struggle as new poll says things are worse than ever

Our community has been reflecting on a recent survey showing that Brexit has left Britain worse off than ever, from the economy and borders to its global influence

Politics

2 w. ago Don’t be fooled — everything has changed for the global economy

Damage caused by US tariffs has so far been muted but that won’t last

Politics

3 w. ago The cost of slop poses a risk to all of us as AI reckons with reality in 2026

Revenues may be rising rapidly, but not by nearly enough to cover the wild levels of investment under wayThe US dictionary Merriam-Webster’s word of the year for 2025 was “slop”, which it defines as “digital content of low quality that is produced, usually in quantity, by means of artificial intelligence”. The choice underlined the fact that while AI is being widely embraced, not least by corporate bosses keen to cut payroll costs, its downsides are also becoming obvious. In 2026, a reckoning with reality for AI represents a growing economic risk.Ed Zitron, the foul-mouthed figurehead of AI scepticism, argues pretty convincingly that, as things stand, the “unit economics” of the entire industry – the cost of servicing the requests of a single customer against the price companies are able to charge them – just don’t add up. In typically colourful language, he calls them “dogshit”. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago The cost of AI slop could cause a rethink that shakes the global economy in 2026

Revenues may be rising rapidly, but not by nearly enough to cover the wild levels of investment under wayThe US dictionary Merriam-Webster’s word of the year for 2025 was “slop”, which it defines as “digital content of low quality that is produced, usually in quantity, by means of artificial intelligence”. The choice underlined the fact that while AI is being widely embraced, not least by corporate bosses keen to cut payroll costs, its downsides are also becoming obvious. In 2026, a reckoning with reality for AI represents a growing economic risk.Ed Zitron, the foul-mouthed figurehead of AI scepticism, argues pretty convincingly that, as things stand, the “unit economics” of the entire industry – the cost of servicing the requests of a single customer against the price companies are able to charge them – just don’t add up. In typically colourful language, he calls them “dogshit”. Continue reading...

Economics

4 w. ago Five charts that explain the global economic outlook for 2026

Inflation is predicted to cool but uncertainty over AI-driven growth and trade policy poses risks in the year aheadThe global economy proved to be more resilient in 2025 than had been feared, despite severe headwinds that ranged from Donald Trump’s trade war to geopolitical tensions and the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.Entering the new year, the hope is that the worst of the recent inflation shock has passed, as the world’s most powerful central banks lower interest rates. However, the pre-Covid age of rock-bottom borrowing costs is a distant memory, global growth is slowing and conditions remain fragile. Continue reading...

Economics