On the cover
After a quarter-century of drift Nicolas Sarkozy offers
the best hope of reform: leader

The world this week
Politics this week
Business this week
KAL's cartoon
Leaders
The French presidential election
France's chance
Economic rankings
Come in number one, your time is up
Pakistan's tribal areas
A safe haven for terrorists
Gas cartels
A snag in the pipeline
Brazil
Should try harder
Letters
On Iran, Congress and Iraq, the European Union, Austria,
Northern Ireland, Neanderthals

Special Report
France's presidential election
The race for the Elysee
United States
Indian tribes and casinos
The last shall be first
Immigration
Bringing order to the border
Troubled Republicans (1)
The comeback grandpa?
Troubled Republicans (2)
Mitt the moneymaker
Protecting sources
Go to jail
Racial politics
A double standard?
Voting rights
Out of the cell, into the booth
Racing cars
Corn-propelled
Lexington
Where's the beef?
The Americas
Human rights
Slaking a thirst for justice
Venezuela
Scarcity amid abundance
Mexico and Central America
Countering Chavez
Asia
Pakistan's militant drift
Taliban all over
Bangladesh
Battered begums
Kashmir
Lock up your daughters
Timor-Leste
A half-built nation
Kyrgyzstan
Wilting tulips
China's tax system
Return to sender
Middle East & Africa
Terror in the Maghreb
The long arm of al-Qaeda
Iraq
Most turbulent and puzzling of priests
Israel and Palestine
The variable price of freedom
Egypt
Bloggers may be the real opposition
Ethiopia
Justice, of sorts
Africa and homosexuality
In denial

Europe
European energy security
A bear at the throat
Ukraine's political crisis
Viktor v Viktor
Turkish honour killings
A dishonourable practice
The Portuguese economy
A new sick man of Europe
Poland and the second world war
Black mischief
Charlemagne
The non-functioning myth
Britain
Scottish elections
Upheaval in the north
Welsh politics
A rumbling in the valleys
Devolution to the regions
Back in England, something stirs

International
Nuclear proliferation
How to get a handle on the axis
The World Bank
The Wolfowitz affair
Censorship and the internet
Whose tube?

A survey of Brazil
Land of promise
Heavy going
The blessings of stability
The economy of heat
The final frontier
Rich man, poor man
Low marks
The slow road to paradise
No end of violence
Sources and acknowledgements
Offer to readers
Business
Softbank
Receiving, not giving
German corporate governance
Digging in
European retailers
Pinault-Puma-Redoute
Employee share ownership
An ESOP to the workers
Sun Microsystems
Expanding its universe
Health care
McClinics
Online gambling
Antigua claims the pot
Face value
Viking boss, Viking strategy
Correction: IBM
Special Report
Italian luxury goods
Tutto in famiglia
Finance & Economics
Retirement and banks
From cheque books to checking pulses
Buttonwood
Sting in the tail
The world economy
Test of stamina
World trade talks
A pot-holed road
Student loans
Another subprime scandal
Hyperinflation
Our mutual friend
Economics focus
Making less with more
Science & Technology
Global warming
A new tree line
Conservation
Raining bats and logs
Diet and ageing
A dog's life
Books & Arts
Lazard
Clash of the titans
Congress of Vienna
The world's first summit
Iraqi women
Mixed messages
American railways
Big man belittled
Redwood trees
Ancient giants
Modern dance
Exploring the unknown
Obituary
Maria Julia Hernandez
Economic and Financial Indicators
Overview
Output, prices and jobs
The Economist commodity-price index
Slovakia
Trade, exchange rates, budget balances and interest rates
Markets
Top importers