Each year I perform the exercise of picking what I think is the most underrated (and overrated) economy in the world. Past winners have included Germany, Mexico and, more recently, the Philippines. The designation is tricky, because it can go to an ailing country with an excessively bad reputation or maybe to a known star with virtues beyond what …

  The going-concern issue is becoming a problem in Singapore. Ezra Holdings Ltd., an oil-services company, was the latest to indicate it faces debt hurdles that require a restructuring. Under Singapore law, as in the US, that could mean a stay on interest payments until creditors and shareholders agree on a balance sheet that allows the company to keep operating …

  Social scientists have always been fascinated by crowds. From guessing the weight of a cow to identifying which company built the faulty part in the space shuttle Challenger disaster, the many have often been able to outguess the expert few. Crowd wisdom is often cited as the justification for the idea of efficient asset markets — many investors, each …