The new mediocre: the world economy

After decades of overpopulation worries, the country now has the opposite concern. We examine India’s unusual demographic turn, and why it is a wider warning to the world. Vegan substitutes have broadly improved in recent years—so why is there no good vegan cheese? And rememberin ...  Show more

Nigel Farage, leader of the populist-right Reform UK party, wants Britons to be enraged by a killing in the street. We ask why his tone has changed from “colour-blind” to race-baiting. NATO must now take seriously the idea that America is pulling back; we ask how it is adjusting. ...  Show more

The International Monetary Fund is sitting on oodles of cash, but failing to disburse it. We examine why China’s lending practices are putting the IMF on <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2023/04/05/how-to-fix-the-international-monetary-fund?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medi ...

India is not the first country to leapfrog from poverty-induced undernourishment to also having an obesity crisis—but a <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/03/07/indian-food-is-great-perhaps-too-great?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelli ...

America is producing more high-school graduates—but on average, they know less. We ask how a push for equity can in reality seed a <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/03/10/new-numbers-show-falling-standards-in-american-high-schools?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medi ...

How can the most vulnerable countries protect against climate change if they’re drowning in debt? A major international aid agency revealed this week that 93% of the world’s worst-affected countries can’t afford to safeguard against natural disasters. Some are being forced to sla ...  Show more