A persisting puzzle about the US economy is how it can seem both strong and weak. On the one hand, it remains a citadel of innovation, producing new companies like Uber. On the other, the economy is expanding at a snail’s pace of 2 percent annually since 2010. How could both be true? Why isn’t innovation translating into faster growth? …

It’s time for Australian legislators and jurists to end a juvenile tussle about citizenship and who can serve in government. Their future depends on it. There is almost daily hysteria in Australia over a formerly obscure clause in the constitution that bars dual nationals from sitting in the federal parliament. The question is which legislators are now disqualified because they …

American voters are obligated to pass judgment on President Donald Trump. Increasingly, American corporations may find that they, too, have little choice. After Trump failed to call out the racists responsible for the deadly violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend, Merck & Co. chief executive officer Kenneth Frazier made an announcement: He was resigning, he said via Twitter, from Trump’s …

The most important thing to know about Steve Bannon, the departing White House “chief strategist,” is that he was an amateur. And just as Richard Neustadt tells us that the presidency is no place for amateurs, the same is true for White House senior staffers. The most important thing to know about Donald Trump’s first staff is that the actor …

“Whose streets? Our streets!” If you found it disturbing to hear white supremacists chanting these words as they marched last weekend through Charlottesville, Virginia, I’m about to make you feel worse. This blueprint for political rise comes directly from Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf,” where the would-be dictator advised his followers that “the road can be cleared for the movement … …

The S&P 500 Index has recorded more than 150 new all-time highs since eclipsing its previous peak in late-March of 2013. In 2017 alone there have been 30 new record highs through the end of last week. To put this into perspective, there were only 13 new highs for the entire decade of the 2000s. When you combine a stock …

`The Federal Reserve has an opportunity to test a hypothesis critical to the health of the US economy: Can persistently loose monetary policy boost the pace of productivity growth? Sadly, for now, an adherence to a strict Phillips curve framework for the economy and fear of financial instability will prevent the Fed from venturing down this path. Chair Janet Yellen …

Bloomberg European stocks joined a rally across most Asian equities following three days of losses, though trading volumes were once again depressed. Havens including gold, the yen and bonds retreated even as the likes of Bridgewater Associates’ Ray Dalio said he was reducing risk. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rebounded from the lowest in more than a week as miners …

DUBAI / Reuters Saudi Arabia’s stock market rose on Tuesday on the back of gains by Al Rajhi Bank and mining firm Ma’aden, while Dubai also outperformed most Gulf bourses although trading was thin. The Saudi stock index climbed 0.4 percent with Al Rajhi up 2.2 percent to 65.80 riyals, bringing its gains over the last five days to 4.9 …

Bloomberg While central bankers from the US to Europe see inflation undershooting their targets as a headache for monetary policy, it may be a boon for the Bank of Russia. A surprise deceleration in consumer prices below 4 percent in July is set to cool off inflation expectations, which Russia’s central bank calls a “pillar” of its rate decisions, according …