In The News

Trump Spells End of Normality for Europe

Melanie Amann, Horand Knaup, Martin Knobbe, Peter Müller, Ralf Neukirch, René Pfister, Michael Sauga and Christoph Schult November 14, 2016
Donald Trump vowed to upend the establishment. German leaders also expect the next US president to upend European politics, fueling populist parties and encouraging fragmentation of the European Union as right-wing politicians lure working-class voters with big promises of restoring jobs by ending immigration. German-US relations enter unknown territory. “Will the next US president become the...

Japan Races to Become the Robot Capital of the World

Alisa Yamasaki November 11, 2016
Japan’s median age is 46, and the aging country confronts labor shortages. So the government invests in robotic technology and subsidizes development, aiming to “position the nation as the world’s largest society supported by robotic technology,” writes Alisa Yamasaki for the Japan Times. “In order to become the global robot leader, Japan must incorporate robotic technology into factories and...

Understanding Latin America’s New Political Paradigm

Ernesto Talvi November 11, 2016
In Latin America along with Europe and the United States, political parties that lean right are strengthening. Since the 1970s, social and political change is shown to be derived from cycles of “economic malaise,” writes Ernesto Talvi for the Brookings Institution. Corruption scandals combined with economic doldrums, as in the case of Brazil, have reduced popularity of left-leaning governments....

India to Replace Largest Bank Notes

Raymond Zhong November 10, 2016
Governments combat counterfeiting and tax evasion by eliminating big bills in circulation and imposing frequent design changes for currency. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi surprised citizens with news that its 500- and 1000-rupee banknotes would cease being legal tender the following day. The notes – representing more than 80 percent of the currency in circulation as of March – can be...

EU Agrees Screening Process for Tax Havens, Critics Cry Foul

Francesco Guarascio November 10, 2016
European Union finance ministers are preparing a weak blacklist of tax havens and suggest that zero tax rates may not be a qualifying factor. “The bloc committed in May to agree on a common list of tax offenders by the end of next year, after leaked documents - the so-called Panama Papers - that showed how some multinationals and individuals avoided paying tax,” reports Francesco Guarascio for...

Crazy Campaign Ends With Upset, and Hard Work of Governing Begins

David Dapice November 10, 2016
US voters elected Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States, and globalization was pummeled. The United States is deeply divided over policies on trade, immigration and alliances for financial, environmental and national security. Democracy was tarnished, too as some politicians threaten US governance by refusing to compromise. Economist David Dapice reviews the many challenges...

What the Tea Party Tells Us About the Trump Presidency

Vanessa Williamson November 9, 2016
The Tea Party movement foreshadowed Donald Trump’s winning the US presidential race. Vanessa Williamson, writing for Brookings, describes the grassroots activists as a coalition of older, white conservatives and a conservative media infrastructure funded by ideologue billionaires who oppose taxes and regulations. “Donald Trump was willing to address immigration in terms substantially more extreme...