Activist investors are circling Japan Inc., creating momentum for change in the country’s boardrooms. While you’d hope that the Carlos Ghosn saga would help in that effort, it may in fact slow things down. The latest episode in Ghosn’s downfall came, as shareholders in Nissan Motor Co. voted to remove him as a director. The once legendary auto executive was ...

The euro’s steady deterioration is the European Central Bank’s (ECB) saving grace. It buys policy makers more time to assess how dovish it needs to be — but they need to be careful not to fritter away this asset. The euro-area economy is decelerating rapidly, and it is the export-led nations that are suffering most. Keeping the currency from approaching ...

One of humanity’s most hopeful developments in recent decades has been the dramatic drop in extreme poverty. In 2000, some 1.4 billion people lived at or below the global poverty line of $1.90 a day. Today, the number is about 600 million. This remarkable change is mainly due to growth in China and India: Much of sub-Saharan Africa, particularly Nigeria, ...