Opinion

At the eleventh hour, KKR & Co. has clinched what is likely to be Europe’s biggest leveraged buyout of 2017. The US private equity firm’s 6.8 billon-euro ($8 billion) agreement to buy Unilever NV’s spreads business will need some full-fat ingredients to generate a decent return. The Anglo-Dutch consumer giant put the business on the block in April after Kraft …

For Wells Fargo & Co., is the worst over? The scandal-plagued bank’s recent stock revival suggests yes, maybe it is. But even if there are more revelations to come, there’s a good chance that the shares may hang onto its gains. While it continues to lag rivals and the benchmark US bank index since last year’s presidential election, the San …

Departing Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen is leaving US monetary policy in pretty good shape, and her colleague and successor, Jerome Powell, can be expected to continue her record of stewardship. As always, though, the economy may have other ideas. The Fed will most likely raise interest rates another quarter-point — the latest step in a carefully laid out plan …

Like much else about Pakistan, it’s often infuriatingly difficult to determine whether or not its economy is on the brink of disaster. This week, as the Pakistani rupee lost 5 percent of its value in just three days, it looked like trouble was brewing. And sure, this might be a sign of the economy slipping towards a balance-of-payments crisis. But, …

Hong Kong’s move to allow dual-class shares should attract a wave of listings by Chinese technology companies. It won’t be enough for the city to challenge New York as the global hub for new-economy fundraising. Despite a year of hot flotations that included firms backed by Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Hong Kong is close to being …

A household appliance will be the next steppingstone on America’s path to restored greatness. The government is poised to punish many Americans, in the name of protecting a few of them, because, in the government’s opinion, too many of them are choosing to buy foreign-made washing machines for no better reason than that the buyers think they are better. If …

One of Washington’s permanent parlor games is how much credit or blame a president deserves for the state of the economy. Inevitably, then, the question being asked now is whether Donald Trump or Barack Obama created today’s strong economy. The correct answer is: neither. To the extent that personal responsibility can be assigned, the worthy recipient is Janet Yellen. In …

Mario Draghi had better enjoy his winter break. Entering the home stretch of his eight-year term, the European Central Bank (ECB) president unveiled a big jump in the growth forecast and told reporters he’s increasingly confident in the outlook. His demeanor seemed almost relaxed, winding down for the year. It won’t last. The relatively upbeat outlook foreshadows a watershed moment …

Well, here are some things you don’t see every day. A few headlines in Brazil are aligning to show Latin America’s largest economy a path back towards confidence — and, just possibly, to restore some of the world’s confidence in democracy. The first unusual circumstance is that Brazil’s central bank governor will almost certainly have to write a letter to …

“There’s nothing wrong with supply-side economics that division by ten wouldn’t cure.” The quip came from Charles Schultze, the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers in Democrat Jimmy Carter’s White House. It meant that improving incentives to work and invest would promote economic growth — but not nearly as much as tax-cutting enthusiasts believed. The point applies to the …