The Intelligence from The Economist

The highest interest rates in years should lead to a fall in house prices. But peculiarities of America’s mortgage market are driving them up . Egg-freezing was supposed to give women more control over childbearing; we look at scant data showing how successful it really is (10:57). And remembering Isabel Crook , an anthropologist who embraced China’s communist transformation, warts and all (15:44)...

Axing generous fuel subsidies was just one necessary reform promised by Bola Tinubu. A hundred days into the president’s term, we examine his ideas for change—finding they do not seem to be backed by real plans. Our correspondent says India’s decrepit cities would fare better if permitted to govern themselves more (09:58). And the kinder, gentler trend in video games (17:13) Join our team of audie...

The retail behemoth is splashing tremendous amounts of cash on streaming content; critics are unimpressed with the outcomes. But Amazon may have the best business model going. Statisticians in Britain appear to have found about 2% of GDP hiding in their data—we ask how it got lost (8:24). And how the pocket calculator ushered in the digital age (15:52). For full access to print, digital and audio...

The calculus of the cold war is back, but there are new variables in the equation—namely China’s growing arsenal. We look at how three-way deterrence could work. Two years after America’s schools reopened their doors, a terrifying proportion of students are still skipping class (10:13). And what a slew of rickshaw apps says about India’s technological backbone (15:38). For full access to print, di...

The absolute numbers remain troubling but a close look at statistics reveals that, across American cities,  fewer people  are being killed. That democracy is good for a country’s economy is taken as orthodoxy—but given the time and costs to make the transition, the reality is  a bit more complicated  (09:38). And why Britain’s government is in hock to the country’s  hobbyi...

The president is using racist hate-mongering as both a rallying tool and a distraction mechanism. It is the oldest trick in the autocrat playbook and it proving effective. Why are some Americans flocking to start new lives in Europe (10.36)? And, a tribute to a Ukrainian pilot who made the case for his country to get F-16 fighter jets (18.03). For full access to print, digital and audio editions o...

Putsches in Africa are becoming more common and there appears to be a trend . Are there more to come and is there any hope of restoring democracy? Lebanon’s tourism sector is bringing foreign money back into the economy, but it’s not trickling down (10:27). And, the American right is propelling a new song to chart-topping popularity (16:44). For full access to print, digital and audio editions of...

Three months into the counteroffensive, the military is reaping the fruits of several months of drone development. But as the war continues, will it be able to scale up its capacity and outpace Russia? New international laws cracking down on Caribbean tax havens seem to be working (10:03). And politicians reignite an old debate on official language use in Spain (17:21). For full access to print, d...

Owing to a host of deep-rooted economic and political challenges, it could be the only G7 economy to contract this year. How might it turn the tide ? More people want flashy, bigger electric vehicles , but are the added environmental costs counterproductive (10:00)? And examining the decline in Mandarin learning (18:18). For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist , try a...

From Japan to South Korea, from China to Taiwan, family structures are becoming less traditional. More premarital cohabitation, single parenthood and two-income households are influencing demographics—with worrying consequences. And we pay tribute to 50 years of hip-hop. The New York -born genre is taking the world by storm, and picking up new influences along the way (9:22). Additional music “ HI...

The alliance was always based more on common fortunes than common interests. We ask what to make of the six new members, and whether the bloc’s motley nature undermines its purpose. Regulation has struggled in an era when children can become “influencers”, but it is starting to catch up (9:36). And remembering Bindeshwar Pathak , who realised India’s future depended on toilets (16:28). For full ac...

History would suggest that the crash of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s plane was an assassination. Our correspondent considers what the supposed death of the Wagner Group’s leader means for Ukraine—and what it says about Vladimir Putin’s Russia. Indonesia has fostered a more moderate version of Islam that it would now like to export (9:58). And meeting an indigenous pioneer of Peruvian pop (16:21). For full...

Arranging friendly media coverage, giving handouts to voters, stifling opposition rallies: once again the country’s ruling party has put its thumb on the scales . It has to, after decades of failed governance. Our correspondent visits fire-ravaged Lahaina in Hawaii, finding equal parts shock and anger among residents (10:32). And the curious rise of Britain’s self-pitying lawmakers (18:38). For fu...

Once again, fears are ripping through the industry—this time starting from a firm once thought too big to fail. In an economy so dependent on housebuilding, that will have wide-ranging consequences . We take a ride in one of the autonomous taxis that have flooded onto San Francisco’s streets (10:22). And crunching the numbers on Antarctica’s worrisome dearth of sea ice (19:40).  For full acce...

Ecuador and Guatemala faced similar preoccupations with violence and corruption —one of Ecuador’s candidates was assassinated on the campaign trail—but their electoral outcomes were very different. What does that reveal about the region? Once rare in America, leprosy is on the rise again, particularly in Florida (8:04). And how Singapore leads the charge for “alternative proteins” (14:08).  F...

For weeks, the regional bloc ECOWAS has threatened to undo the putsch by force. But appetite for a military response—the ultimate deterrent in a coup-prone region—seems small and waning. Russia’s rouble has become one of the world’s worst-performing currencies, and there are not many good options to rescue it (09:40). And a tribute to an American pioneer of consumer-product safety (16:22). For ful...

The region is home to most of the world’s known lithium. Given the mineral’s usefulness in batteries and electric vehicles, could it be on the cusp of a commodities boom ? Germany’s auto industry is at risk. Volkswagen , one of its biggest carmakers, should be worried (10:27). And, England’s World Cup successes could change the face of women’s football (18:06). For full access to print, digital an...

As the death toll surpasses 100, we report from Maui where fires have ravaged the island in the deadliest American wildfire in over a century. Why was this one so catastrophic ? The plummet of coca prices in Colombia is messing with the market (09:58). And northern Europe fights to preserve its local languages in schools (17:09).  For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Ec...

The former president has been hit with a new set of charges, under a catch-all racketeering act that has been used to prosecute everyone from rappers to teachers. It’s Mr Trump’s fourth indictment , but perhaps the most unusual. Ukraine’s new, surprisingly effective innovation: the “ candy bomb ” (10:10). And, the most expensive American cities to live alone (17:30). For full access to print, digi...

Despite cosying up with Russia and accusing America of trying to topple him, the newly re-elected president now appears to be flirting with old allies. But there is reason to be sceptical. A global survey shows that liberal values may not be catching on as some expected (09:54). And, have scientists found the biggest animal that ever lived (18:36)?  For full access to print, digital and audio...

Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman says a presence in top-level global sport is one route to modernising; critics call the effort a distraction from the country’s appalling human-rights record. Brazil’s government is pushing reforms that are clearly calming investors , who had fretted about a return to ruinously spendthrift policies (9:20). And how speedy “first-person-view” drones are changing the...

An appalling record compared with much of the rich world is not just down to drugs and guns. We ask what changes, both in policy and philosophy, might reduce the death toll. A heat-transporting ocean current in the Atlantic could soon be on the wane—or switch off altogether (10:08). That would have disastrous consequences . And musing on airborne etiquette for business travelers (18:09). For full...

Big-money legislation to bring microprocessor manufacturing to the country is off to a reasonable start —but dominance of the industry is and will probably remain distant. Britain was once a leading light when it came to international aid; we ask why that reputation is now in tatters (tk:tk). And exploring all the funny noises coming from electric vehicles (tk:tk). For full access to print, digita...

The Economic Community of West African States may yet try to restore President Mohamed Bazoum militarily. Either way, Niger’s status as a bulwark against jihadism is threatened. America’s Republican hopefuls are courting Moms for Liberty, a pressure group with some outlandish ideas; we meet a few of them (10:51). And the design principles of a good flag (19:33). For full access to print, digital a...

As diplomatic efforts played out in Saudi Arabia our correspondent recounts travels along the nearly unbroken front line of the war—finding frustrated but determined soldiers and exhausted, fearful civilians. We examine the row around Japan’s plan to release wastewater from the Fukushima disaster (09:21). And how rosé wine became summertime’s go-to tipple (15:39). For full access to print, digital...