At the military headquarters where commanders oversee Am- erica’s longest war, an official explains in one sentence the US-led coalition’s bottom-line objective: “Peace is a situation where we can leave, and we don’t have to come back.” But how will United Sta-tes move towards this end-game, as US special envoy ZalmayKhalilzad nears conclusion of his secret peace negotiations with the ...

The US Federal Reserve is poised to put interest rates on a new, downward trajectory in its efforts to support an increasingly fragile economy. The move is long overdue, but it’s crucial that officials and the public recognise the risks. Although Fed officials meet at least eight times a year to deliberate over monetary policy, they change the direction of ...

The star that burns the brightest may also burn out fastest. Investors tempted by the blazing debut of China’s new tech board should bear that in mind. The first 25 companies to start trading on Shanghai’s Star market posted an average gain of 140 percent. The value of shares that changed hands surpassed 48 billion yuan ($7 billion) — about ...