Donald Trump poses the biggest danger to the world in 2024

The world this week

Politics
Business
KAL’s cartoon
This week’s cover
The World Ahead


The World Ahead
Introducing The World Ahead 2024

Leaders


America and the world
Donald Trump poses the biggest danger to the world in 2024
What his victory in America’s election would mean

Gaza
The rights and wrongs of Israel and Hamas at al-Shifa hospital
Why Israel must meet and exceed the requirements of the laws of war

Inflated hopes
Will Japan rediscover its dynamism?
Rising prices and animal spirits give it a long-awaited opportunity

Dying in plain sight
The world is ignoring war, genocide and famine in Sudan
America is distracted, the UN is not interested

Scientific methods
To supercharge science, first experiment with how it is funded
Too much of researchers’ time is spent filling in forms

Governing Britain
If Labour is to succeed in power, it must fix the Treasury
The finance ministry protects the country from disaster—but also holds it back
Letters

On Israel and Gaza, Li Keqiang, feta cheese
Letters to the editor
By Invitation


The war in Gaza
Andreea Manea on the legal complexities around Israeli attacks that hit hospitals
The fog of war
David Enoch argues that much of the public discourse on the Israel-Hamas conflict is depressingly simplistic
Asia


A chance to rise again
Is Japan’s economy at a turning point?
Good news for China
Taiwan’s opposition parties unite
Swadeshi spirits
Premium Indian whisky is booming
Banyan
Myanmar’s junta suffers startling defeats
China


Flying Tigers, smiling dragon
Joe Biden and Xi Jinping rediscover the joy of talking. Good
Bromptons, not blusher
China’s shoppers are gloomy and picky
Chaguan
Xi Jinping repeats imperial China’s mistakes
United States


Shut it all down (next year)
America’s government isn’t shutting down just yet
Code switch
The Supreme Court’s code of conduct is a good first step
Sup on that
Higher wages are spurring innovation in dinner
Pro-choice religious exemptions
Some progressives are arguing for a religious right to abortion
Beyond the classroom
Inside a month of America’s school shootings
Mayor culpa?
An FBI investigation raises questions about Eric Adams
Lexington
Why America struggles to make friends abroad

Middle East & Africa


The end of the beginning
The battle of northern Gaza is almost over
The region reacts
Many Arab governments would like to see Hamas gone
The forgotten war
A genocidal militia is winning the war in Sudan
Aisle be there for you
Africa’s supermarket revolution
The Americas


Missing in action
Mexico’s foreign policy is unambitious and erratic
A rare success
Andrés Manuel López Obrador has reduced poverty in Mexico
The exodus economy
Latin America’s most powerful new gang built a human-trafficking empire
Europe


On the verge of a nervous breakdown
Spain’s prime minister secures his job, at a high cost
Gang of rivals
Sweden is suffering a grim wave of gang violence
Dancer in the dark
As Ukrainian men head off to fight, women take up their jobs
Soft power, then and now
The ancient Eleusinian mysteries get a new incarnation
Charlemagne
Fentanyl kills thousands every year in America. Will Europe be next?
Britain


Treasury island
Why Britain’s Treasury must change its ways
Stopping the planes
The Supreme Court rules against Britain’s Rwanda plan. What now?
Do not forget
The British government is not paying dementia enough attention
Going up in smoke?
Vaping is big business in Britain
Bagehot
What David Cameron’s return says about British politics
International


Everything, everywhere, all at once
From Gaza to Ukraine, wars and crises are piling up
Business


A place in the sun
Can the Mediterranean become Europe’s energy powerhouse?
A gulf between them?
Three climate fights will dominate COP28
Bartleby
The curse of the badly run meeting
Son rise, Son set
After WeWork’s fall, what next for SoftBank?
Putt option
Netflix takes a swing at live sport
A lifestyle on the ocean waves
Why the market for superyachts is booming
Schumpeter
How to think about the Google anti-monopoly trial
Finance & economics


Personal finance
How the young should invest
Dream scenario
What can inflation-strugglers learn from inflation-killers?
Buttonwood
Ray Dalio is a monster, suggests a new book. Is it fair?
Empty Framework
Joe Biden’s failures on trade benefit China
Reasons to be cheerful
What will artificial intelligence mean for your pay?
Free exchange
The false promise of green jobs
Science & technology


Giving science a shot in the arm
New ways to pay for research could boost scientific progress
Rip van Winkle, the microbe
Was an ancient bacterium awakened by an industrial accident?
The wisdom of youth
Could newborn neurons reverse Alzheimer’s?
Culture


Historical friction
Much of “The Crown” is nonsense
Well played
How maths can help you win your favourite games
Bottle shock
How to spot a fake wine
The scales of injustice
Can trials heal the wounds of war?
Back Story
Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon” cuts the emperor down to size
Pass the popcorn
The best films of 2023, as chosen by The Economist
Economic & financial indicators

Indicators
Economic data, commodities and markets
The Economist explains


The Economist explains
How the term “genocide” is misused in the Israel-Hamas war
The Economist explains
The difference between a “ceasefire” and a “humanitarian pause”
Obituary


A hundred ways to peace
Vivian Silver knew no good could ever come of war