Society

Racial wealth gap weakens U.S. virus defenses

30 Mar 2020

Pandemics don’t discriminate over whom they infect, but the coronavirus will wreak its worst havoc on black Americans, who are overrepresented in the hardest-hit parts of society. The U.S. racial prosperity gap hasn’t narrowed in 50 years. Covid-19 is likely to drive it wider.

Virus will clear out overcrowded events industry

25 Mar 2020

Even in its early stages, Covid-19 closed gatherings from Coachella to conflabs on the virus itself. Stopgap online substitutes only underscore the value of face-to-face contact. That means the $30 bln industry should eventually recover, but with a slimmed-down list of operators.

Hadas: This is no ordinary anti-crisis stimulus

18 Mar 2020

The usual reason to pump money into an economy is to increase economic activity. That’s not possible in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. But maintaining incomes and solvency will allow fairer and fuller use of what’s available. The crisis is teaching the uses of solidarity.

Toilet paper and bank notes aren’t so different

17 Mar 2020

Stampedes for bathroom tissue have similar roots to the bank runs that characterize financial panics. Rumor, fear of missing out and a patchy understanding of how underlying systems fit together are three ingredients. Bank runs are more serious, but easier to prevent.

U.S. Midwest election ditches free trade boogeyman

11 Mar 2020

Former Vice President Joe Biden scored a huge win in Michigan’s Democratic presidential primary. Senator Bernie Sanders’ attacks on trade deals didn’t resonate like in 2016. Tariff wars have hurt the region, lowering Donald Trump’s popularity and changing the economic calculus.

No Dolce Vita: Life inside the Italian lockdown

11 Mar 2020

A national quarantine prompted by coronavirus threatens the social contacts essential to Italian life, while gut-punching the economy. Italy’s experience also highlights the struggle ageing societies face in fighting epidemics. Breakingviews offers glimpses from the red zone.

Holding: Governance brawl a boon for stakeholders

10 Mar 2020

Attorney Martin Lipton and Harvard’s Lucian Bebchuk are at it again, with the latter saying company pledges to serve the greater good are illusory. Lipton counters that firms really are moving past shareholder primacy. At least the debate could benefit all corporate constituents.

Review: The rent is too darn political

6 Mar 2020

Sky-high housing costs are the scourge of many U.S. cities – especially in California. Fixing zoning and reducing costs are musts, but vulnerable renters might need quicker action. Conor Dougherty’s non-ideological stance makes “Golden Gates” feel downright radical.

Review: Piketty digs deep for fool’s gold

28 Feb 2020

The French economist’s gigantic new book makes some glittering claims, but its few nuggets of insight are surrounded by vast seams of intellectual dross and self-indulgence. Readers of “Capital and Ideology” have to burrow far for some simple half-truths about riches and poverty.

Indian markets will resist jolt from riots

28 Feb 2020

Sectarian violence has left at least 32 dead in the capital. The unrest broke out at a time of slowing domestic growth and when global investors are jittery about the risk of a pandemic. Still, the world’s fifth-largest economy is surprisingly alluring for foreign funds.

Apple scores another unwanted first on China

26 Feb 2020

After sounding the alarm earlier than peers on the impact of coronavirus on manufacturing, the $1.3 trln iPhone maker just got a clear warning from shareholders on human rights. CEO Tim Cook has kept divergent stakeholders onside pretty successfully, but that’s becoming harder.

Hadas: U.S. healthcare passions resist rationality

19 Feb 2020

Americans pay far too much for unequal and at best average medicine. Europeans are right to wonder why, especially as they can provide several superior alternatives. The best explanations are privilege, tradition and tax-phobia. The first is unjust and the other two are confused.

Broke newspapers face painful trade-off writ large

13 Feb 2020

A hedge fund that owns down-market magazines may take control of bankrupt 163-year-old U.S. newspaper group McClatchy. The ignoble end comes days after Warren Buffett ditched his support for local papers. Investors in local news can pursue lofty principle or profit, but not both.

Presidential loser leaves behind winning ideas

12 Feb 2020

Andrew Yang dropped out of the running as Democrats in New Hampshire picked their candidate for November’s U.S. election. Yet his proposals on basic income, automation and worker displacement deserve to make it to the White House, regardless of who wins.

Review: Murdoch’s Fox News survives “Bombshell”

7 Feb 2020

A movie based on the downfall of the American network’s architect Roger Ailes is equal parts inspiring and depressing. Ailes left in disgrace after a brave anchor accused him of sexual harassment. The outcome didn’t weaken Fox News and the film captures the limitations of #MeToo.

Twitter stock drama is just so immature

6 Feb 2020

The social network grew its user base over 20% in the fourth quarter sending shares up 15%. Yet revenue growth lagged. Considering the U.S. election, the Olympics and a possible pandemic, the Twittersphere could keep it going. But that’s not a grown-up business.

Victoria’s Secret deal has more demons than angels

29 Jan 2020

Parent company L Brands may be the next retailer to try to save itself with deal magic by flogging its floundering lingerie brand. Gap just nixed spinoff plans while J.Crew is angling to IPO Madewell. Retailers hoping to be saved by shuffling the shelves will be sadly mistaken.

Hadas: Who deserves to be a billionaire?

29 Jan 2020

Probably not Isabel dos Santos. The Angolan ex-president’s daughter flourished while the country that produced most of her fortune struggled. But in the modern economy, all billionaires extract far more economic value than they add. Taxes are a better remedy than charity.

Progress can’t dispel viral risk to world GDP

24 Jan 2020

It has been decades since a pathogen as frightening as new coronavirus has spread. Biotech advances and China’s modernization helps catch diseases earlier, but easier travel speeds dispersal. Vaccine development is slow. Economic damage, from mild to $3 trln, is up to chance.

China virus scare leaves bling giants exposed

21 Jan 2020

A deadly virus erupted ahead of the key Lunar New Year festival. Compared to the 2003 SARS crisis, the damage to luxury stocks looks modest. Yet Chinese shoppers now make up a third of the $310 bln market for high-end goods. If the disease spreads, the overall hit will be worse.