We’ve been here before. Unemployment is high and rising. Americans fear for the future. Politicians of both parties are unsure about what to do, though they’re quick to criticise the other party’s suggestions. Regardless of which way they turn, the choices seem dismal. Sound familiar? It’s not 2019 or 2020, and the subject is not the coronavirus. It’s late 1970s ...

Crises such wars, depressions, natural disasters and pandemics can reveal differences in how effectively a society organises itself. In the 1600s and 1700s, for example, Britain’s more advanced tax system allowed it to outspend Spain and France, while Prussia’s efficient army let it overcome larger opponents such as Austria. In the Civil War, the Union’s industrial prowess allowed it to ...

All upheavals leave their marks. Some fade away, some linger. Following the Black Death, the plague that’s believed to have killed 60% of Europe’s population in the second half of the 14th century, the realisation that life is short, played a big role in shaping interest rates in late medieval Europe, stretching all the way to the Enlightenment. Could we ...

If the recent selloff in markets proves anything, it’s that for too many years too many people were focussed solely on returns with zero consideration for risk or safety. The last time anyone really thought about safety in markets was during the financial crisis more than a decade ago, when investors couldn’t get enough government bonds or cash. But as ...

It doesn’t matter that the United States doubled China in reported Covid-19 cases because those numbers (164,610 and 82,198 respectively as of March 31) don’t tell us how many people actually became infected in either country. Nor do they tell us how fast the disease is spreading, since only a tiny portion of the population in the United States has ...

Authorities’ efforts to stem the spread of the coronavirus have plunged the US economy into a sharp contraction, leading some to argue that the cure may be worse than the disease. This misguided thinking ignores a crucial consideration: As Congress and the Federal Reserve have demonstrated, we can improve the trade-off by lowering the cost of saving lives. No doubt, ...

The UK housing market — that obsession of middle-class Brits — has been placed in suspended animation. Buyers and renters have been told to delay moving home to limit the spread of coronavirus. While a few transactions are still going through, a functioning market depends on prospective buyers and surveyors being able to view people’s homes. Mobility restrictions and distancing ...

Dubai / WAM Expo 2020 Dubai has convened a second virtual meeting of its Steering Committee, with representatives of the countries taking part in the event, as part of ongoing consultations that the impact of coronavirus (Covid-19) will have on global preparations of Expo 2020 Dubai. Participating countries briefed the Steering Committee on the global precautionary measures that have to ...

Bloomberg Oil slumped to a 17-year low as coronavirus lockdowns cascaded through the world’s largest economies, leaving the market overwhelmed by cratering demand and a ballooning surplus of crude. Futures in London fell as much as 7.6% to lowest since November 2002, while New York crude briefly dipped below $20 a barrel. Physical oil markets are struggling to store fuel, ...

ABU DHABI / WAM ADCB Group, including Al Hilal Bank, on Monday announced its commitment to ensure the continuity of employment at the Bank, pledging that no employee will be made redundant during 2020 as a result of coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. Commenting on the announcement, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Chairman of ADCB Group, said, “The banking sector plays an important role ...