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How woven cloth changed the course of history

Dec 11, 2018
From Viking sails to international trade, author Kassia St Clair explains how fabric influenced civilization.
Was woolen sailcloth the secret weapon of the Vikings? Above, the Draken Harald Harfagre, a reconstruction of a Viking longship.
Photo by Thos Robinson/Getty Images for Draken Harald Harfagre

Rhetoric aside, a global downturn would hit the U.S., too.

Dec 10, 2018
Economic growth in the rest of the world will slow next year. And that slowing growth will take a bit of wind out the U.S. economy’s sails. So said Maurice Obstfeld, the outgoing chief economist of the IMF, this past weekend. In other words, despite “America first” rhetoric and increasingly nationalistic economic policies, the United States […]

IMF forecasts slower global growth

Oct 9, 2018
The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday it’s shaving off some of its earlier optimism about world economic growth over the next couple years. It has downgraded its growth forecast for this year from 3.9 percent to 3.7 percent, and for next year, the IMF has ticked the world’s growth down from 2.7 percent to 2.5 […]

How strong is the U.S. dollar's position as a reserve currency?

Aug 15, 2018
Russian officials were in Turkey on Tuesday, talking with the government there about possible solutions for Turkey’s currency crisis. Both countries are also facing U.S. sanctions, so one idea they floated: Stick to their own national currencies for trade and avoid using the dollar at all. On top of that, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov echoed […]
The dollar is an international currency — a common denomination for global business. 
Yasin Akgul/AFP/Getty Images

How liberalism should adapt to the needs of the 21st century

Apr 25, 2018
A conversation with Zanny Minton Beddoes, the editor-in-chief of the Economist.
Numerous national flags are seen in front of the United Nations Office (UNOG) on June 8, 2008 in Geneva, Switzerland. 
Johannes Simon/Getty Images

Is globalism a failed policy?

Apr 24, 2018
The economy is doing well, but the average person is angry. "The alternative is that you change the social contract," one expert says.
“You can get rid of Trump, but, I mean, all of the Trumpism in the United States is real and is coming for us,” says Ian Bremmer, president of the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group.
Ralph Freso/Getty Images

What the world economy might look like without the U.S.

Feb 26, 2018
America is less interested in leading the global economy, says the Peterson Institute president. And that could mean trouble.
“The U.S. doesn't always do the right thing,” says Adam Posen, president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics. “But on average, it both tries to do the right thing and professes to do the right thing more credibly than anybody else.” Above, a trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

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Trump sets out new economic policy

Aug 8, 2016
The Republican presidential nominee said Americanism should come before globalism.
Trump gave a speech about his economic plan on Monday, but still left details out. 
Darren Hauck/Getty Images