Roughly coinciding with the beginning of the financial crisis in 2008, anti-capitalism has enjoyed a global renaissance. The critics of capitalism may be quite diverse, but for many of them rising wealth and income inequality is a commonly shared concern. Read more

Two years ago, three words by the European Central Bank’s President Mario Draghi ended the panic around the euro crisis: “Whatever it takes”. When Draghi said these words at an event in London -- meaning that his institution was prepared to use unconventional (and potentially unlimited) ways to stabilise the euro system -- it halted the escalating crisis. Read more

Among the raft of data our researchers have compiled for New Zealand by Numbers, there are quite a few surprising facts about New Zealand. Most of us would be aware of the big trends facing this country: the changing face of our population, our increasing interaction with Asia, or the increasing importance of digital technology for the way in which we communicate and receive our news. Read more

At first glance, the following two news stories may seem like they have nothing to do with each other except that they happened over the past few days. On Monday, the International Monetary Fund once again admonished Germany for being too competitive, as demonstrated by its enormous current account surplus. Read more

Perhaps it is a sign that I am getting old(er) but I am just astonished by the speed of technological progress. The most recent example is a memory card I ordered for my new smartphone. Read more

Later this month, at a conference organised by a global asset management firm, I will be participating in a debate on the moot that investment markets are driven by factors other than financial fundamentals. So far, all I know is that I will be arguing the case for the affirmative. Read more

For the Germans, July 8 was a good day. Not just because it also happened to be your columnist’s birthday or because of Germany’s emphatic 7-1 win over Brazil in the World Cup, but because this year, it also marked Germany’s Tax Freedom Day. Read more

Last week, I wrote about Angela Merkel’s declining influence in Europe. For a number of domestic and international reasons, the German Chancellor can no longer enforce austerity and economic reforms in the eurozone. Read more

For the past four years, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has topped Forbes’ list of most powerful women. She was actually ranked first on that list for nine out of the last ten years, not least thanks to her pivotal role in the European debt crisis. Read more

In today’s society, you would be hard-pressed to find anyone to object to human rights. Even the nastiest dictatorships still try to maintain at least the semblance of a human rights culture, even if they violate these rights constantly. Read more

Next year, Lithuania will join the eurozone as its 19th member. The direct impact of Lithuania’s accession will be negligible. Read more

As the election gets closer, there is no doubt that immigration remains a potent campaign issue. Few other topics elicit such an emotional response as the questions of who should come to New Zealand or, indeed, how many should come. Read more

Just a couple of months after the visit of the Duke and the Duchess of Cambridge, what do we still remember of their tour? With hindsight, what are the lasting effects, what are the enduring messages, what are the traces they left behind? Read more

When the European Central Bank announced its new policy measures last week, most of the commentary focused on the introduction of negative interest rates. From now on, commercial banks depositing funds with the ECB will have to pay a penalty for doing so. Read more

This year’s global publishing sensation has been Capital in the Twenty-First Century, a tome on the alleged rise of inequality in developed countries. Written by French economist Thomas Piketty, it argues that over long periods of time, capitalist societies had become more polarised. Read more