Opinion

  The planet has broken global heat records for three years in a row — a finding that, paradoxically, may raise public concern about global warming, but won’t change long-term climate forecasts. First, the good news: Scientists say the run of record-breaking temperatures doesn’t mean that we should expect every year to be relentlessly hotter than the last. From year …

  Separate comments last week from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen confirmed an ongoing change in the policy configuration facing their two systemically important central banks: The recognition of a transition in both economic conditions and prospects, along with questions about robustness and durability. For now, their response is to maintain a stimulative …

  After Paris hosted the 2015 Climate Change Accord, it’s fitting that France is pioneering one way in which it might be paid for: green bonds. The country is making its debut appearance in the market this week — the first big sovereign issuer to do so. If all goes well, it could be a sign of green bonds really …

  The ideas of France’s Benoit Hamon, the surprise front-runner in the presidential primaries of the Socialist Party, are far to the left of U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and even the U.K. Labour Party’s Jeremy Corbyn. This, of course, is the era of the expanding Overton Window, with radical ideas bursting into the mainstream. One Hamon proposal in particular, however, …

  Without question, the most exciting economic story of the past half century has been the dramatic, and probably unprecedented, decline in global poverty. In a recent study, the World Bank estimated that in 2015, just over 700 million people remained trapped in desperate poverty, or 9.6 percent of the world’s population. Those sound like big numbers until you compare …

  Much business in Asia is still done the old way — trust is the most important asset. As the region becomes the biggest source of dollar bonds in the developing world, however, investors are starting to question whether they need more in writing. It’s high time. For one thing, bond fund managers are talking about limiting the freedom of …

  Britain’s Supreme Court has given UK members of Parliament the power to stop Brexit. Unfortunately, it’s a power they don’t seem to want. In its ruling, the court said that an act of Parliament is necessary to authorize Theresa May’s government to invoke Article 50, the European Union’s exit clause. MPs will almost certainly approve the enabling act and …

  Damascus government and rebel factions fighting to overthrow it came face-to-face for the first time on Monday in Kazakhstan, where the representatives of Russia, Turkey and Iran sought to bolster a shaky cease-fire which is in place since last month. The Astana gathering is the first time Syrian government representatives are sitting down with an opposition delegation made up …

  Donald Trump’s inauguration marks a global inflection point: He takes office at a moment when many analysts see a transition to a new economic and political order — one where the risks for the United States and its allies are likely to increase. Trump’s promise to “make America great again” resonated with many disaffected voters at home. But abroad, …

  Japan Inc. is getting a raw deal in India. Some of its high-profile investments in the country have created more wealth for arbitration lawyers in London and Singapore than they have for shareholders. Those who were expecting great things from the bromance between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi have reasons to be disappointed. …