The Italian government has finally presented its much-awaited economic and fiscal forecasts. They are an exercise in smoke and mirrors of which American-Hungarian illusionist Harry Houdini would be proud. The inflated growth figures and frankly incredible future budget adjustments are unlikely to sway investors and the European Commission. Italy is heading for a fight with the European Union (EU) and, more ...

When the world’s de facto central bank rustles up an interest-rate whirlwind, you don’t use a fig leaf of flexible exchange rates to stand in its path. That memo, already well-received in Indonesia, doesn’t seem to have reached India. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) chose to hold its policy interest rate at 6.5 percent last week. And by delaying ...

Amazon.com Inc.’s decision to raise wages to $15 an hour for all of its US workers is good news. It will mean more money in the pockets of thousands of hard-working Americans struggling to make ends meet. Even more importantly, Amazon’s example may start a trend, encouraging other companies to raise wages as well, and prompting workers to demand more. ...