Financial

15/08/2024

Just ignore it. That, in short, is the advice given to retail investors when stockmarkets convulse, as plenty have over the past few weeks.⁠
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Watching hard-earned savings disappear in a flash tends not to promote a cool head. So do not check your portfolio, do not tot up your losses and, above all, do not decide that now is the time to overhaul your entire investment strategy. Simply wait for the storm to pass and for share prices to resume their long march upwards.⁠
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In so far as it dissuades the nervous from panic-selling right after a big drop, such advice is sensible. Yet the idea that doing nothing is the only proper response to volatility is also deeply unsatisfying—so much so that it stretches credulity.⁠
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Everyone knows that markets can overreact during a rout. That does not mean they convey no useful information at all.

14/08/2024

Do billionaires embody the American dream or endanger it? And who gets to decide what billionaires owe to society? ⁠
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Anupreeta Das has chosen an original way to address these questions: by writing a biography of Bill Gates, the first superstar tech billionaire.⁠
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Ms Das explores the founding of Microsoft in 1975, his friendship with Warren Buffett, the breakdown of his marriage and the running of his foundation.⁠
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But her book is most interesting when it shows how Mr Gates has influenced other billionaires—how they have emulated him, and how they have not.

06/08/2024

For decades the world’s corporate titans have seen China as an essential place to do business. Chinese firms, it turns out, were no different. ⁠
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Their domestic market was vast and growing at a dizzying pace, so they had little reason to hunt for customers abroad. This relatively inward focus is now changing—quickly.⁠
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Since 2016 Chinese firms’ foreign sales have more than doubled. Although some factories are being built in the West, the lion’s share of activity is in the global south.

26/07/2024

In its first weeks in office Britain’s new Labour government is hammering away at one message: that the Conservative Party left behind a terrible inheritance. ⁠
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But listen at the door of the country’s new finance minister, Rachel Reeves, and you may in fact hear sighs of relief: the economy seems to be doing fine for now.⁠
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Yet the Labour Party needs it to grow faster if living standards and public services are to improve. ⁠
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The government is trying to keep the momentum going with an early blitz of policy announcements. But tap the link in our bio to find out why they will take a while to have a serious impact.

24/07/2024

Pinpointing differences in the economic views of Kamala Harris and Joe Biden is no easy task: the two have promoted the same ideas and touted the same accomplishments for the past few years.⁠
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In his first term Mr Biden delivered one half of his economic programme, with large investments in infrastructure, manufacturing and green energy. ⁠
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If nominated for president, Ms Harris would aim for an extension, not a refashioning, of Bidenomics. Her main focus would be on the second half—to build on Mr Biden’s social-care plans—while escaping blame for inflation.

23/07/2024

Deciding to call it quits is a relatively simple judgment early on in a career. ⁠
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If you find the prospect of going to work on Monday morning more depressing than a Lars von Trier film, it is time to leave. ⁠
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If you have nothing left to learn in your current organisation, you should probably grab more stimulating opportunities elsewhere. ⁠
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But when you are in a role that already confers lots of status, novelty and purpose, knowing when to quit is less easy.

17/07/2024

More Hong Kongers have entered Britain on humanitarian visas since 2021 than any other nationality.⁠
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Most are highly educated and speak excellent English. They are also older and wealthier than the average immigrant to Britain. ⁠
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Yet many Hong Kongers find that integration into the country is not easy, socially or financially.

12/07/2024

China’s paramount leader, Xi Jinping, contains multitudes. ⁠
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His economic philosophy touts both self-reliance and openness. His vision of policymaking embraces top-down design, but also bottom-up experimentation.⁠
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His recent call to cultivate “new productive forces” entails championing cutting-edge technologies, but without neglecting traditional industries. ⁠
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To some, Mr Xi’s priorities can be baffling. Take the “two unshakeables”, one of his favourite slogans. This refers to the Communist Party’s commitment to both the state-owned economy and private enterprise.⁠
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At first blush, each unshakeable seems to be in contradiction with the other.

10/07/2024

At the turn of the century Boeing was known for its technological breakthroughs. A few years after its merger with McDonnell Douglas, a smaller rival, the firm stood tall in the fast-consolidating aerospace industry.⁠
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How far it has fallen. This week the American government said Boeing had agreed in principle to plead guilty to fraud in connection with two deadly crashes by its 737 MAX jets in 2018 and 2019. ⁠
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This latest frontier, its most disgraceful yet, makes it the corporate equivalent of a criminal. ⁠
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Looking back over the decades, it becomes clear that Boeing’s embrace of what were once the defining trends in American business have come back to haunt it.

09/07/2024

Sorting countries into rich and poor can be difficult. ⁠
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Measures such as GDP are affected by population size. Dollar income per person does not account for differences in prices between countries. Nor does it account for productivity.⁠
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To get a fuller picture, The Economist has ranked countries by three measures: dollar income per person, income adjusted for local prices (known as purchasing-power parity) and income per hour worked.⁠
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Take America, for example. Its GDP has been the largest at market exchange rates for over a century. But, as this chart shows, by income per person it falls to sixth, behind Luxembourg and Switzerland. Adjusting for America’s higher prices pushes it down to ninth; accounting for its long workdays and limited holidays, to tenth.⁠
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Our annual index is designed to give a more complete assessment of the world’s richest countries than does a focus on any single measure.

08/07/2024

China’s small, rural banks provide a complex problem. Many have long been mismanaged. Those stuck with toxic debts can hurt local economic growth. ⁠
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The worst-performing have already threatened social stability, the main concern of Xi Jinping, China’s leader. But state intervention is risky. ⁠
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One solution has been making small, feeble institutions disappear by absorbing them into bigger ones. ⁠
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This regulatory vanishing act will probably pick up pace. Supporters say that fewer bigger banks will be easier for regulators to keep watch over. Critics argue that it is little more than sleight of hand.

05/07/2024

For much of the past three decades Japan’s economy has been defined by deflation, stagnation and fading global relevance. That is no longer the case. ⁠
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Between 1991 and 2021 Japan’s annual inflation rate averaged 0.35%. Inflation has been above 2% every month since April 2022.⁠
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In March the Bank of Japan raised rates for the first time in 17 years, doing away with the world’s last experiment in negative interest rates; it will debate another hike at its next meeting at the end of July.⁠
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The blue-chip Nikkei stock index broke its bubble-era high earlier this year; the Topix, a broader benchmark index, has hit its highest level since 1990.⁠
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It seems that the lost decades are over. But what comes next? Some see opportunity.

03/07/2024

Personal-finance courses that teach pupils best practices for managing their money are spreading across America, propelled by recent state laws requiring such instruction.⁠
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Since 2020, 17 states have adopted mandates that make taking a financial-literacy course a requirement for high-school graduation, bringing the total up to 25. And that figure will probably grow. ⁠
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Pupils in these classes learn not only how to buy and sell shares, but how to save their earnings in order to have something to invest in the first place. Courses teach how to properly bank, budget, manage credit and pay for college. They cover comparison shopping and the basics of how to plan and track daily expenses.⁠
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Young people badly need these courses. According to one international survey, only 10% of 15-year-olds in the OECD, a club of mostly rich countries, score highly on financial-literacy assessments. ⁠
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Are personal-finance courses the answer? For a long time, the research said no.

03/07/2024

America’s share of the world’s stockmarket capitalisation has climbed pretty consistently over the past decade and a half, and sharply this year. ⁠
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It now stands at 61%. That is astonishing dominance for a country which accounts for just over a quarter of global GDP. ⁠
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The extent of market concentration is all the more extreme given what is happening within the American stockmarket itself. Just three companies—Apple, Microsoft and Nvidia—make up a tenth of the market value of global stocks.⁠
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Investors who would rather not put all their eggs in one basket are worried.

02/07/2024

Dubai sells itself as a refuge for the footloose plutocrat. It’s an easy place to do business and has convenient flight connections to just about anywhere (not to mention no tax on income, property or capital gains).⁠
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Small wonder that the United Arab Emirates, of which Dubai is the glitzy business hub, is forecast to draw a net 6,700 millionaires this year, according to Henley & Partners, a wealth consultancy. ⁠
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That is almost twice as many as are expected to head to America, the historic home of the world’s rich, with 5.5m residents worth $1m or more. ⁠
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The city has long been a bolt-­hole for rich Russians, Indians and Arabs from neighbouring countries. Tap the link in our bio to discover why Dubai is now attracting a new group of mogul migrants, however.

30/06/2024

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Uncover the hidden truths in "The Dark Side of Gold: Environmental Disasters." This eye-opening documentary takes you on a journey through the devastating en...

28/06/2024

Nike shares plunge after surprise sales warning | Financial

Nike shares plunged over 12% in after-hours trade, following a surprise warning on sales. The sportswear giant forecast a fall in revenue for the fiscal year, as consumers covet newer brands such as On and Hoka.

23/06/2024

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Discover the unique societal norms and financial systems of Switzerland in "Switzerland's Strict Society: A Financial Documentary." This film delves into the...

19/06/2024

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Nvidia became the world's most valuable company, dethroning Microsoft and Apple, while its rally lifted the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to record highs. ...

18/06/2024

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The S&P 500 and Nasdaq scored record closing highs as technology shares rallied on enthusiasm over artificial intelligence ahead of this week's economic data...

18/06/2024

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Toyota shareholders backed Chairman Akio Toyoda and nine other members of the automaker's board, despite concerns about governance raised by two leading prox...

18/06/2024

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China has opened an anti-dumping investigation into imported pork and its by-products from the EU, a step that appears mainly aimed at Spain, the Netherlands...

16/06/2024

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Dive into the life and legacy of Warren Buffett, one of the most renowned investors in history. This documentary explores Buffett's journey from his humble b...

14/06/2024

Elon Musk wins vote on $56 billion pay package | Financial

Tesla shareholders approved CEO Elon Musk's $56 billion pay package, the electric vehicle-maker said, a big thumbs-up to his leadership and an incentive to keep his focus on his biggest source of wealth.