Category Archive: 5) Global Macro

How many years will it take until Europe can defend itself without America’s protection?

The director-general of the Royal United Services Institute, Rachel Ellehuus, examines the strengths and weaknesses of European military capabilities, in an interview with our defence editor, Shashank Joshi

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Meta-Thoughts on the War

Decades of 'The Fog Machine of War' have jaded the public's appetite for 'Narrative Control'. The Fog of War is perhaps better described as The Fog Machine of War, for everything presented to the public is some version of Narrative Control, the purpose of which is to establish a context and story that's beneficial to whomever is presenting "facts," "news," "information" and "commentary."

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Why do some people get sicker than others?

Do our genes determine how quickly we recover from illness? Dan Davis, professor at Imperial College London, discusses how biology, not just lifestyle, shapes every infection, with Alok Jha, host of Babbage, our science and technology podcast

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Weekly Market Pulse: The Turkey Leg

Note: I wrote most of this commentary prior to the US strike on Iran and I decided to go ahead with it anyway. I don’t know any more than you do about what is going on in the Middle East and trying to predict what will happen in the coming days and weeks is a fool’s errand. We have a strategic allocation to commodities in our portfolios exactly because we can’t predict things like this.

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Has America destroyed Iran’s nuclear programme?

Have Trump’s vast strikes destroyed Iran’s nuclear capability? America attacked three nuclear sites in Iran, using 13-tonne GBU-57s—known as “bunker-busting bombs”—in combat for the first time. Shashank Joshi, our defence editor, analyses how much damage might have been caused #iran #america #trump #nuclear #israeliranconflict

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How effective is Israel’s air-defence system?

Israel's air-defence system is the world's most extensive missile shield. It's intercepting Iranian missiles which are striking deep inside Israel. How does the system work—and for how much longer can it hold?

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Can Vietnam be the new Singapore?

Can Vietnam reinvent its stalling economic model? Mike Bird and Ethan Wu, co-hosts of The Economist’s Money Talks podcast, discuss the country’s new leadership and the growth challenges it faces 00:00 - Vietnam's economic success 02:26 - Why tariffs could dismantle Vietnam’s export economy 05:01 - Vietnam’s model is similar to Singapore 06:50 - Why its harder to climb the development ladder now Listen to the rest of the episode:...

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Could Iran’s regime fall?

Iran is facing its biggest external threat in nearly 50 years. Israel has killed its top generals and set back its nuclear programme. Could its regime fall?

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Can Israel destroy Iran’s nuclear programme?

Israel has hit some of Iran’s most important nuclear sites but doing lasting damage to Iran’s nuclear ability is extremely difficult, as our defence editor, Shashank Joshi, explains

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The deadly new weapon in the Ukraine war

Fibre-optic drones can avoid electronic interference, making them almost impossible to defend against #drone #ukraine #russia

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Will AI take Apple’s crown?

Apple may have brought us the iPhone and changed the world, but it’s having a hard time keeping up with rapid advances in AI. Our AI correspondent, Alex Hern, discusses whether Apple will lose its crown on The Intelligence podcast 00.00 - Why Apple is falling behind AI 04.14 - Can Apple catch-up? 05.36 - How will this impact consumer behaviour 07.17 - What does this mean for Tim Cook? Listen to the rest of the episode: https://econ.st/3SMLPzk...

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How Donald Trump escalated LA’s protests

Donald Trump’s decision to order National Guard troops to Los Angeles turned protests against immigration raids into major clashes. Our West Coast correspondent, Aryn Braun, reports from the ground #la #laprotests #losangeles #uspolitics #immigration

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The GOP’s voting crackdown could backfire

Republicans are making it harder to vote. But what if this decades-old strategy no longer helps them win? The very voters these laws target might now be the ones the Republican party needs

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How will South Korea’s new president balance China against America?

South Korea has elected Lee Jae-myung, from the liberal Democratic Party, as president after six months of political upheaval. But the next president’s political promises have been inconsistent and it's unclear what kind of leader his voters will actually get. Noah Sneider, our East Asia bureau chief, explains on our podcast, The Intelligence Listen to the rest of the episode: https://econ.st/45Cn8Nu Can South Korea’s new president mend a...

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India is not as hot as you’d expect

Could pollution be shielding South Asia from the worst of climate change? The region has been warming at a slower rate than the rest of the world and many scientists think this anomaly could be due to smog. But pollution is a bigger killer than heat stress in places like India today—South Asia’s dilemma will soon be whether to fry or to choke

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Ukraine’s drone strike is a warning to all armed forces

Ukraine’s astonishing drone attack deep inside Russia was a humiliation for Vladimir Putin—and a warning to other Western armed forces. We explain why the operation is likely to be ranked among the most important raiding actions in modern warfare

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What’s at stake for Poland in Europe’s election

Poland has become Europe’s most overlooked military and economic power, but it risks throwing away this influence in its presidential election. With two very different paths the country could take, will Poland cement or ruin its standing in Europe?

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El Salvador’s president is locking up his critics

El Salvador’s President Bukele imprisoned thousands in his crackdown on crime, winning praise from Donald Trump and the American right. But now the president is using repressive tactics on his critics too

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Courts block Trump’s tariffs: what happens next?

America’s Court of International Trade has unanimously struck down many of Donald Trump’s tariffs. Henry Curr, our economics editor, examines the president’s remaining options for his trade war

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The Gaza death toll may be higher than reported

The death toll in Gaza may be higher than reported. New research suggests tens of thousands of people may be missing from the official count #gaza #palestine #palestinian #waringaza

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