Society

Hadas: Albanian mania is cautionary crypto tale

28 Dec 2017

Back in 1996, the Balkan state went wild for investment funds offering 30 percent monthly returns. The final cost was 2,000 lives and five years of lost GDP growth. Bitcoin’s 24 percent monthly gains in 2017 show similar foolishness, but a quick collapse could limit the harm.

Viewsroom: Investors target sexual misconduct

29 Dec 2017

Companies that sweep settlements for bad behavior under the carpet will feel shareholder ire in 2018, Breakingviews predicts. Plus, Apple will float past the EU’s roving eye, splintering political parties are a ticking U.S. time bomb and bank bosses may hang up their hats.

Temperance is the new craft beer for drinks groups

28 Dec 2017

Health awareness and restrained young drinkers are driving demand for booze-free tipples. Growth in volumes of low-alcohol beer will outstrip traditional drinks fivefold next year. It’s a new source of expansion for global companies as the craft beer craze loses its froth.

Even rich geeks can’t escape the Grim Reaper

22 Dec 2017

Silicon Valley’s best and brightest have earned fortunes by solving complex problems. Now many are turning brains and wealth toward conquering death. Applying an engineering mindset to health issues may benefit humanity, but it’s more likely to burn capital than discover the fountain of youth.

Catalonia poll delivers no Christmas joy

22 Dec 2017

Parties seeking to break with Spain won a majority of seats in local elections. Their support didn’t strengthen, but it didn’t really weaken either. PM Mariano Rajoy now faces the challenge of appeasing the region with greater autonomy. The political uncertainty will linger.

Britain will take the high road out of the EU

22 Dec 2017

Leaving the European Union will hurt manufacturing and financial services and make the government more willing to explore controversial ideas to help the economy. Legalising cannabis would help employment, lift tax revenues and reduce law enforcement costs.

Hadas: Christmas presents and economic humbug

22 Dec 2017

Are gifts generous gestures or an awkward waste? Addictive materialism or open-ended exchanges of valuable tokens? Is it better just to swap envelopes of cash? Children and retailers know what Christmas means, but economists are less certain. Anthropologists have good ideas.

How to know if America’s big tax bet pays off

20 Dec 2017

Republican lawmakers have passed revised tax cuts that give even more breaks to companies and the wealthy. They are banking on those benefits trickling down to average workers. It could come back to haunt them. Breakingviews notes a few ways to measure the policy’s success.

Review: Why Brexit will ultimately please nobody

15 Dec 2017

Britons voted to leave the EU for myriad and conflicting reasons, according to “Brexit and British Politics”. It’s hard to see a settlement that addresses them all. The risk is that voters see Brexit as another betrayal by politicians, fuelling the disaffection that caused it.

UK gender pay data needs rigorous audit

7 Dec 2017

Some British companies have suspiciously reported no gap between the pay of male and female employees, the Financial Times found. The government thought transparency would help close the divide. To be credible, though, the data must be audited – and offenders punished.

Jeremy Corbyn pay row shows costs of bank excess

1 Dec 2017

The UK opposition leader attacked “speculators” and criticised banker pay, as UBS chief Sergio Ermotti defended it. A decade after the crisis, remuneration still fuels dissent. Shareholders' failure to rein it in has led to dismal returns. Volatile politics could be more damaging.

Review: Macron is a riddle wrapped in transparency

24 Nov 2017

A trio of books help explain how a political neophyte became the French president. One is a decent account of the election campaign, another delves deeper into his youth and family life. But even Emmanuel Macron’s own tome is short of detail on how he formulated his beliefs.

Hadas: Be thankful for good economic news

23 Nov 2017

The launch of bitcoin futures contracts grabs headlines, but has no weight on the scales of history. A half-century of sharp declines in global misery is another matter. This may be the greatest economic achievement ever. Be grateful - and angry at how much is still not done.

Sabotaging Obamacare backfires on Republicans

22 Nov 2017

President Trump claims his predecessor’s health-insurance program is dying. He and the GOP have eliminated some subsidies and slashed marketing. Yet the pace of enrollment has risen from last year. The political cost of efforts to kill the program is rising.

Mastering effluent can make a financial splash

20 Nov 2017

Some 80 pct of global wastewater goes untreated, causing health and other societal problems. That leaves untouched 1 trln gallons of sludge that could be harnessed for energy, fertilizers and reusable water. With a potential fivefold return, investors need not hold their noses.

Mugabe will cast a long shadow over Zimbabwe

20 Nov 2017

The 93-year-old ruler is likely to be impeached after nearly four decades in power. He bequeaths an economy in urgent need of reforms. The most important – attracting foreign investment and restoring trust in the currency system – will happen over years, not weeks.

Merkel’s weakness could give Europe strength

20 Nov 2017

The collapse of coalition talks will force German Chancellor Angela Merkel to weigh other options. Another grand coalition or a minority government would be preferable to new elections. Revamping the euro zone will be easier without the Free Democrats opposing fiscal integration.

Review: The next fight for Latin America’s soul

17 Nov 2017

Dictators and demagogues have come and gone; progress in the region has been impressive. Still, rule of law and effective institutions still lack, Michael Reid writes in "Forgotten Continent." That makes the next steps toward prosperity harder.

Gender bonds are more than feel-good investments

17 Nov 2017

Investors have flocked to the first-ever U.S. dollar bond promoting equality at work. They are smart to do so. It's more than good PR at a bad time for the war of the sexes. Given the correlation between moral behaviour and sound returns, the bigger issue is lack of supply.

Hadas: Unintended consequences may be new normal

15 Nov 2017

From Brexit to Donald Trump to Saudi Arabia, the world is full of surprises. But those cheering wrenching change may face further upsets. The UK rejoins the EU, the U.S. president discredits small government, and Saudis become poorer. The next shock may be the rise of dullness.