“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” —Franklin D. Roosevelt’s first inaugural address, March 4, 1933 When Roosevelt uttered these famous words, the nation was grappling with more than fear. For all intents and purposes, the economy had shut down. Roughly a quarter of the labour force was out of work. Thousands of the nation’s banks were ...

I’m not prone to making directive calls in columns like this one or to using capital letters in my social media posts. Rather than telling people what to think, I strongly prefer to try to help them reach their own conclusions by providing analysis and insights. In the last few weeks, however, I’ve made two notable exceptions: in repeatedly urging ...

Oil majors and big miners have been falling over themselves to promise better behaviour when it comes to greenhouse gases. A significant number now say they are targeting zero emissions. Unfortunately, not everyone agrees on exactly what that means. It leaves investors clear on good intentions, but far less so on how to price transition risk, compare strategies and judge ...

There are still many states left to vote in the 2020 Democratic primary election, but the outcome now looks all but certain. Following a series of catastrophic losses in states such as Michigan and Missouri, and facing big deficits in the polls in coming states, Bernie Sanders’s presidential campaign has very little chance of victory. Sanders’s so-called political revolution, centred ...

Hospitals often speak of what’s called “surge capacity” — the ability to absorb a sudden influx of patients because of a terrorist attack, a natural disaster, or even, yes, a pandemic. Given the possible influx of patients sickened by the new coronavirus, how much of a surge can US hospitals accommodate? Not as much as you might think. For years, ...

At last the creaking wheels of the European Union are starting to turn in motion — its leaders scared, no doubt, by the violent market reaction to the underwhelming performance by European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde. The entire viability of the euro project was once again coming into question because of the single currency area’s fractured response to the ...

Confidence in the Indian financial system has been breaking down for some time. Instead of trying to restore trust, it may be time to require less of it — with the help of an official rupee cryptocurrency. The last straw was the collapse of corporate lender Yes Bank Ltd, which failed in slow motion in full view of authorities. Depositors ...

Bloomberg US equity futures tumbled by their limits and Treasuries surged at the start of what’s set to be another volatile week, with investors responding to the rapidly escalating economic hit from the coronavirus and a massive emergency move by the Federal Reserve to ease lending. Contracts on the S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 and Dow Jones Industrial Average all sank ...

Bloomberg India’s benchmark stock index slumped to its lowest since September 2017 after entering a bear market last week amid concern that the novel coronavirus outbreak may threaten the nation’s already fragile economy. The S&P BSE Sensex fell 8% to 31,390.07 in Mumbai, with all 30 members declining, following a wild session last week, when the gauge swung to end ...

Bloomberg Zimbabwean Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube restricted trading in three companies’ stocks to try and halt a rout of the nation’s currency. The measure to limit trading of dual-listed shares Old Mutual Ltd, PPC Ltd and Seed Co will be in place for a year, Ncube said in a Government Gazette. The order doesn’t have any impact on the settlement ...