Our correspondent reports from eastern Congo , where a three-decade-long conflict has killed thousands, and forced more than five million people from their homes--with no end in sight. Researchers are searching for better analgesics : ones that reduce pain without the risk of addiction or corollary physiological damage. And a contest in southern Alaska to select the internet’s favourite fat bear . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Oct 06, 2022•28 min
In the next instalment of our midterms series, we head to the suburbs of Atlanta in search of that rarest of political creatures: the swing voter. There aren’t many of them, but they may well determine which party controls the Senate. Luxury brands are changing their outlooks and offerings as they seek new markets and younger consumers. And our culture correspondent visits a retrospective of William Kentridge’s works. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscr...
Oct 05, 2022•27 min
Prime Minister Liz Truss has had a bruising first few weeks in office. Amid policy U-turns and plummeting poll numbers, her Tory party’s annual shindig is a venue for much soul-searching. Russia’s “ partial mobilisation ” is unlikely to help much on the battlefield—and is proving exceedingly unpopular at home. And the dangers of naming species after people who become notorious. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceof...
Oct 04, 2022•26 min
Jair Bolsonaro, the incumbent president, did unexpectedly well—giving his campaign a boost and foreshadowing a tough run-up to the second round. Malawi’s incipient democracy stands as a shining regional example, but remaking its economy has proved even harder than ousting its undemocratic leader. And why one tank is a particularly handsome prize amid Ukraine’s growing pile of captured Russian kit. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economis...
Oct 03, 2022•24 min
After a series of sham referendums , President Vladimir Putin is expected to annex four partly occupied regions of Ukraine. We ask what risks that move would pose. What has driven China’s president to amass such tremendous personal power ? We introduce our new, long-form podcast “ The Prince ”, which dives deep into his life. And video-game music is rapidly growing in prestige . For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceo...
Sep 30, 2022•23 min
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a leftist former president, looks well-placed to win a third term. But which Lula would Brazil get—the fiscal conservative or the populist spendthrift? Germany has an earned reputation as an industrial powerhouse, but its dependence on Russian gas and Chinese demand are hobbling it . And why the propaganda-spewing loudspeakers in Vietnam’s capital are firing up again. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.c...
Sep 29, 2022•27 min
Women are burning their hijabs on bonfires and hacking off their hair—but the unrest has come to be about far more than the heavy hands of the morality police. The murder of Abe Shinzo, a former Japanese prime minister, exposed troubling government links to a cult-like sect; the fallout could unseat his successor. And using flying robots as 3D printers . For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See...
Sep 28, 2022•25 min
The markets are so far entirely unconvinced that the new administration’s Reagan-esque economic plans will work to spur growth—just look at sterling's tumble . In Tibet, China’s mass collection of DNA samples has one unabashed motive: social control. And the curious wave of “unretirees” returning to work after the pandemic. Additional audio courtesy of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/...
Sep 27, 2022•23 min
Italians have voted decisively for a coalition of right-wing parties , with Giorgia Meloni, leader of the Brothers of Italy, the likely next prime minister. What this means for Italy, Europe and the war in Ukraine remains unclear. Latin American prisons are awful and getting worse. And a surprising hit film makes Chinese authorities nervous. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pr...
Sep 26, 2022•24 min
Letitia James, New York’s attorney general, announced a sweeping lawsuit against Donald Trump, his businesses and three of his children. He’s also being investigated over allegations of election interference in Georgia and storing classified documents at his Florida resort. The battle to be the top provider of cloud-computing services is heating up. And reflecting on the legacy of “ The Joy of Sex ,” published 50 years ago. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , ...
Sep 23, 2022•26 min
America’s Federal Reserve made its third straight 0.75% interest-rate hike , with Jerome Powell, the Fed’s chair, warning that more hikes would follow. But with inflation still high, and labour markets still tight, is the Fed doing all it can? A new report suggests that forced labour and marriage are on the rise around the world. And reflecting on one man’s long search for extraterrestrial life. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist....
Sep 22, 2022•24 min
This morning Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would call up more troops to fight in Ukraine, said his goal of “liberating” eastern Ukraine remained unchanged and accused the west of “nuclear blackmail.” Our correspondent parses his speech. Our midterm series heads to Maine , to see how Democrats are fighting for rural voters. And a new discovery in Borneo rewrites the history of surgery. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/...
Sep 21, 2022•29 min
Elizabeth II was devoted to the Commonwealth , a club of countries that are home to one-third of the world’s population. What is its future under Charles III? Jeddah is Saudi Arabia’s most charming and cosmopolitan city, which Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Prince Muhammad bin Salman, is swiftly bulldozing. And why China’s economy may struggle to overtake America’s. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Sep 20, 2022•23 min
Two years in the making, the country’s new foundational document was summarily swatted down in a referendum. We ask how it went so wrong, and what comes next. Data show a long-held view on fertility and prosperity is not as straightforward as thought; we examine the policy implications. And learning about HARM —the missiles causing so much harm to Russian forces. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on A...
Sep 19, 2022•22 min
Five years after a brutal campaign that drove nearly 750,000 out of Myanmar and into Bangladesh, conditions for the Muslim minority remain appalling on both sides of the border . Central Asian countries are laying plans for railways that would fill their coffers, distance Russia and empower China. And the economics lessons in London’s queue to see Queen Elizabeth II. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted ...
Sep 16, 2022•25 min
As the presidents of China and Russia meet in Uzbekistan , we examine their friendship. They have much in common—but Russia’s prosecution of the war in Ukraine may strain relations. Islamic State and al-Qaeda may be less in the news but their foothold in Africa only keeps growing . And why so many young Korean city-slickers are becoming farmers in the countryside. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on ...
Sep 15, 2022•26 min
A conflict smouldering since a war in 2020 has again caught alight ; Azerbaijan may feel emboldened by a distracted Russia and its own energy prospects. Gulf countries are swimming in piles of unexpected, oil-derived cash: we ask whether they will sock it away or splurge on citizens and pet projects. And why many Lebanese couples are choosing to wed online . For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast....
Sep 14, 2022•25 min
Vladimir Putin hopes the threat of cutting off fuel supplies this winter will weaken Europe’s support for Ukraine. European leaders are trying to cobble together a collective response to prevent such fracturing. Before Russia invaded, Ukraine’s surrogacy industry was booming. It has since been disrupted, but not ended. And Britain’s bird populations are changing: we ask why. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer...
Sep 13, 2022•25 min
Russia has lost in a week what cost it months to gain in eastern Ukraine. We ask what the lightning counter-offensive means for the war. What is more surprising than Mississippi’s capital lacking access to clean drinking water is that millions of other Americans face the same struggle. And the quasi-astrological methods some investors use to predict market movements. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted ...
Sep 12, 2022•27 min
The death of Queen Elizabeth II marks the end of an era . We explore her long, dutiful reign and how it shaped the modern monarchy. The country has changed substantially during her time, but one parallel remains: her successor, King Charles III, will also take over at a time of uncertainty for the country and for the monarchy itself. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy fo...
Sep 09, 2022•20 min
In Brazil, fears are growing that if Jair Bolsonaro loses in October, as polls suggest is likely, he may try to stage a coup or foment violence. He’s been sowing distrust in the country’s electoral system, and many of his supporters are well-armed. Should school lunches be free? And why the gap between the number of boys and girls born in India is narrowing. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast....
Sep 08, 2022•28 min
Our model, built to predict the outcome of this year’s midterm elections , tips Republicans to take the House and Democrats to retain control of the Senate. The model’s architect discusses how and why he built it, and our polling guru explains why polls matter. Why there’s no nuclear-arms race in Asia —yet. And Egypt wants the Rosetta Stone back, but it’s not that simple. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Ho...
Sep 07, 2022•27 min
As Liz Truss becomes prime minister, we ask whether her meat-and-potatoes tax-slashing agenda will work for a crisis-stricken Britain. Japan’s prison population is ageing just as its wider society is—and that is at last prompting reforms to its punitive penal system. And why Ukraine’s short supply of anti-tank missiles is not as worrying as it would once have been. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on...
Sep 06, 2022•22 min
The worst predictions for costs have not come to pass , partly because Russia is selling plenty of wheat. But plenty of food-price woe may still await. We examine the curious re-appearance of the polio virus in the West. And the trials of “ Pink Sauce ” reveal the perils of being a cottage-food producer—or consumer—in the social-media age. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priv...
Sep 05, 2022•25 min
After a five-month hiatus, violence has returned to the northern region of Tigray—but that is just one of the conflicts threatening to pull the country to pieces. China’s Belt and Road Initiative has made it a prominent developing-world lender. How will it deal with so many of its loans souring? And our obituaries editor reflects on Issey Miyake’s fashion-for-the-masses philosophy. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligen...
Sep 02, 2022•24 min
The long-trailed counter-offensive to retake the Russian-occupied regional powerhouse and symbolically powerful provincial capital has begun . But Ukraine’s forces are in no hurry. Visa and Mastercard are two of the world’s most profitable companies; we look at efforts to break their iron grip on the payments market. And the blue-blooded horseshoe crabs that are needlessly bled in their millions. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist...
Sep 01, 2022•25 min
The leader who oversaw the Soviet Union’s collapse had only intended to reform it. But the propaganda and repression he abhorred were what held it together. A speed bump lies ahead for electric vehicles: manufacturing and mining capacity may not keep up with battery demand. And visiting a vast landscape sculpture in Nevada’s desert ahead of this week’s public opening. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted...
Aug 31, 2022•26 min
As interest rates rise, lots of pandemic-era property trends are fading—but not every market is equally vulnerable as the boom peters out . Generals have long avoided fighting in cities: it is messy and dangerous. Increasingly, though, they have no choice . And our language columnist on the subtle question of whether “data” is plural or singular . For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast....
Aug 30, 2022•23 min
Our correspondent reports from Somalia , which stands on the brink of famine thanks to a drought, soaring food costs and infrastructure destroyed by decades of fighting. Old Hollywood studios are waging an epic battle against their upstart streaming rivals. And why London’s cemeteries are selling used graves. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Aug 29, 2022•25 min
America’s federal government will spend hundreds of billions of dollars cancelling student-loan debt—fulfilling a long-standing progressive wish. But while it may be good politics, the policy rationale makes less sense. Too many Nigerian children are sent to beg on the streets by their religious teachers. And celebrating the music and culture of one of Europe’s oldest ethnic minorities. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , subscribe here www.economist.com/intel...
Aug 26, 2022•24 min
