Shows / The Intelligence from The Economist
The Intelligence from The Economist
Join Jason Palmer and Rosie Blau for noise-cancelling news and analysis from The Economist's global network of correspondents. Every weekday this award-winning podcast picks three stories shaping your world—the big shifts in politics, business and culture, plus things you never knew you needed to know. On Saturdays, download The Weekend Intelligence to dive deep into a single story, vividly told. If you’re already a subscriber to The Economist, you’ll have full access to all our shows as part…
Episodes
The Intelligence from The EconomistPlagued by uncertainty: German politics
As the country wrestles with another covid-19 wave, the battle to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel is building. We look at the political and epidemiological…
The Intelligence from The EconomistLike a tonne of bricks: violence in Northern Ireland
The ostensible reason for continuing clashes relates to a well-attended funeral. But the terms of Brexit have raised tempers, inflaming centuries-old tensions…
The Intelligence from The EconomistClotting factors: the AstraZeneca vaccine
British and European regulators have addressed a possible link with blood clots. Expect more rare side-effects to emerge; what seems clear for now is that the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistDeaths spiral: America’s spike in murders
Estimates suggest that last year’s rise in murder rates was the greatest in perhaps half a century, reversing a long decline; we ask what is behind it. Amid…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCrown and thorn: Jordan’s royal ruckus
Pressure on the king’s half-brother may represent a mere family feud, but Prince Hamzah’s complaints resonate with the country’s people. We ask what will…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHe said, Xi said: America-China ructions
The Biden administration’s early moves suggest no “reset” in relations; we recall a time when the game of ping-pong brought the countries back to the table…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBattle acts: France beefs up its forces
After years of peacekeeping and counter-insurgency campaigns, the country is getting tooled up and trained up for serious military conflict. The “baby bust”…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCresting: India’s second covid-19 wave
Case numbers are on the rise—at a more worrying rate even than the first wave. We ask why, and what is being done to slow the spread. As revenues at…
The Intelligence from The EconomistTakeaway lessons: Deliveroo’s listing disappoints
The tepid debut of Britain’s dominant food-delivery app signals doubts not only about the gig economy but also about London’s ability to lure tech-firm…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHigh threat-count: boycotts in China
Western fashion brands are in Chinese consumers’ crosshairs, the victims of political wranglings over sanctions and human-rights issues—a spat that may soon…
The Intelligence from The EconomistThe smell of gas: insurgency in Mozambique
In a province that is home to a massive natural-gas project, a long-simmering insurgency has burst into horrific violence; we ask why the government seems to…
The Intelligence from The EconomistGrowth and stagnation: Bangladesh’s first 50 years
The country has empowered its women, established itself as a garment-industry powerhouse and vastly improved public health—but its politics remains troubled…
The Intelligence from The EconomistExport-control panel: the EU meets on vaccines
European leaders will address the thorny question of vaccine-export controls today. We look at the row with Britain and what it means for the broader…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCan’t take a hike: more economic turmoil in Turkey
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan just does not like interest-rate rises. So he has again sacked a central-bank governor given to imposing them—again, to his own…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAlways be their Bibi? Israel votes, again
It’s the fourth poll in two years, but a stable government is still far from guaranteed. We examine the firm grip Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu still has…
The Intelligence from The EconomistNot-purchasing power: boycotts in Myanmar
As demonstrations against February’s coup continue, many are trying a subtler form of resistance: starving army-owned businesses of revenue. We ask whether the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAnother race question: murder in Atlanta
A shooting in the city left eight dead, six of them women of East Asian descent. We examine the past and present of anti-Asian sentiment in America. Frontex…
The Intelligence from The EconomistForces to be reckoned with: Afghan peace talks
Negotiations in Moscow may at last forge agreement between the Afghan government and Taliban insurgents; that, in turn, would inform America’s long-promised…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHarms weigh: AstraZeneca vaccine fears
Scattered reports of blood clots have sparked curbs across Europe, even though the jab is almost certainly safe. We take a hard look at the risks in relative…
The Intelligence from The EconomistEarning them: Stripe’s monster valuation
The firm got in early providing online-payment software to tech startups. Now it’s the most valuable Silicon Valley darling yet. We look at its future…
The Intelligence from The EconomistRedrawing the map: a fragmented Syria
As the country marks ten years of civil war, the economy is crippled; it has broken up into statelets and ethnic enclaves that may never be reunified. Violence…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCasting the net wider: remaking the welfare state
As the Biden administration fires a $1.9trn pandemic-relief bazooka, we consider how governments might rethink welfare: providing more-flexible benefits…
The Intelligence from The EconomistNuclear inaction: the legacy of Fukushima
The cleanup effort in and around the melted-down power plant is still progressing, but rebuilding communities—and, crucially, trust—is proving far more…
The Intelligence from The EconomistWhither permitting? Vaccine passports
Formalising systems to divide the vaccinated from the unvaccinated is neither as risky nor as useful as many people think. In any case, vaccine passports are…
The Intelligence from The EconomistReconciled to it: America’s stimulus bill
Thanks to a parliamentary contortion called reconciliation, the $1.9trn covid-relief plan is likely to sail through—we examine what is in it and what its…
The Intelligence from The EconomistDespair and disparities: covid-19 consumes Brazil
State and local pandemic responses are scattershot; a national effort is all but nonexistent. A creeping sense of fatalism makes for peril far beyond the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistRubber-stamping ground: China’s parliament meets
The National People’s Congress kicked off with two big signals of Beijing’s intentions: a return to economic-growth targets and a plan to eradicate Hong Kong’s…
The Intelligence from The EconomistExit stages left: America and the Middle East
The Biden administration would like to pull back from the region; America’s strategic interests have changed, as have regional dynamics. We examine the careful…
The Intelligence from The EconomistOwing to the pandemic: Britain’s budget
The finance minister has a plan that will keep many safeguards in place—for now. We ask how the country will then dig itself out of a financial hole. As…
The Intelligence from The EconomistA dark picture emerges: atrocities in Ethiopia
It is becoming more certain that war crimes are being committed in the northern region of Tigray. Yet, despite increasing international pressure, there is…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCoup fighters: Myanmar’s persistent protesters
The temperature keeps rising: as demonstrations continue to grow, the army is becoming more brutal. We ask how the country can escape the cycle of violence. In…
The Intelligence from The EconomistMutual-appreciation anxiety: Putin and Erdogan
The presidents of Turkey and Russia make an odd couple; their former empires have clashed over centuries. We look at the fragile—but nonetheless…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHell for Tether: a cryptocurrency crimped
The notionally dollar-pegged “stablecoin” quietly underpins many crypto-market moves. We ask what the currency issuer’s clash with New York authorities means…
The Intelligence from The EconomistLet the games be thin: Tokyo’s Olympic tussles
Planners are in a corner. Delaying or cancelling the summer tournament looks like defeat; pressing ahead looks like a danger. We take a look at the sporting…
The Intelligence from The EconomistConfirmation biases: Biden’s cabinet picks
President Joe Biden’s top posts are shaping up as Senate confirmation hearings continue—but some controversial nominations await a vote. We look at who is on…
The Intelligence from The EconomistContrary to popular opinion: Mexico’s president
Andrés Manuel López Obrador roared into office with a grand “fourth transformation” agenda. Even after two years of policy failures and power-grabbing, he…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHave I not news for you: Facebook’s Australian battle
A media code that would obligate tech giants to pay for linking to news stories looks set to pass. In response, Facebook pre-emptively took down those…
The Intelligence from The EconomistWatts the problem: Texas’s energy failings
Crippling blackouts can be explained in part by the state’s unique energy market, but the disaster exposes wider failures that must be confronted amid a…
The Intelligence from The EconomistThe next of 1,000 cuts: Hong Kong activists on trial
It is not violent young protesters in the dock: the accused are the architects of the territory’s democracy. Our correspondent examines the city’s descent into…
The Intelligence from The EconomistDesert stands: France in the Sahel
Terror groups and separatists run riot in the sprawling region, and France has had some success in keeping the peace. But how, and when, to draw down its…
The Intelligence from The EconomistNo Capitol punishment: Trump’s acquittal
Donald Trump was all but certain to be cleared in his Senate trial, and so it went. But the few Republican votes to convict are telling. What next for the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistExit-stage plight: Brexit’s costs come due
Stock-trading is shifting to the continent; businesses are bound up in red tape; border issues are still simmering. There is far more than mere “teething…
The Intelligence from The EconomistThe coup is on the other foot: Myanmar
A power-grab by the army’s commander, Min Aung Hlaing, is not turning out to be easy: the greatest protest movement in a generation is gathering steam. Debates…
The Intelligence from The EconomistLike hell out of a bat: SARS-CoV-2’s origin
The World Health Organisation unveiled preliminary findings, suggesting the coronavirus probably jumped to humans via an intermediary animal and all but ruling…
The Intelligence from The EconomistVery long covid: the lasting risks to Africa
So far it seems the continent has weathered the pandemic well. But current numbers mask a future reckoning that is likely to have dire human and economic…
The Intelligence from The EconomistThe art of the done deal: Trump on trial, again
The second impeachment trial of Donald Trump will make history, but its outcome is assured. We ask what the proceedings say about the Republican Party. China’s…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBallot bonanza: Latin America’s year of elections
Ecuador’s elections on Sunday kick off a packed year of polls in the region. Democracy’s foothold in South America looks assured; in Central America, less so…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCheques notes: getting America’s stimulus right
Congress is on the cusp of pushing through a $1.9trn stimulus bill. But would it be money well spent? We examine the economics. Nearly half of India’s students…
The Intelligence from The EconomistRise above the cloud: Amazon’s new chief executive
Jeff Bezos is relinquishing the reins—partly—of the firm he founded. We take a look at Andy Jassy, who will replace him as chief executive at a profitable but…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAs a general rules: Myanmar’s coup
The army already had plenty of political power, but following a landslide election loss it dramatically seized more. After five years of democracy, will the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistMore needles in the haystack: vaccine candidates proliferate
That a coronavirus vaccine could be developed in a year is astonishing—and promising candidates just keep coming. How will the virus’s variants change the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistTug of warheads: the nuclear order
Successful arms-control diplomacy has kept proliferation at bay for decades. But many states now have nuclear ambitions; we look at an increasingly worrying…
The Intelligence from The EconomistConte’s inferno: political crisis in Italy
The president is scrambling to pull together a workable government following Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s resignation—and the instability has big…
The Intelligence from The EconomistVials and tribulations: the EU’s vaccine push
The European Union’s vaccine rollout was slow and fragmented even before pharma companies warned of supply shortfalls; we ask what’s gone wrong. Australia’s…
The Intelligence from The EconomistParty down: Vietnam’s Communist leaders meet
At this week’s five-yearly congress there will be pride in the handling of the pandemic—but broader discontent and mounting protests should worry party…
The Intelligence from The EconomistVlad tidings: demonstrations across Russia
The arrest of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny—and an exposé he released alleging deep corruption—fuelled vast weekend protests, chipping away at President…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBiting the hands that would feed: Ethiopia
There are signs that the federal government is obstructing humanitarian aid to the war-torn region of Tigray, putting millions of civilians at risk of famine…
The Intelligence from The EconomistMuch to repair: Biden’s first day on the job
The watchword was unity as Joe Biden took office—he struck a calming tone and got immediately to work. We analyse the gargantuan tasks that lie ahead…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCostly disbelief: covid-19 ravages Brazil again
Desperate scenes in the city of Manaus may foretell a dire wave throughout the country. A misguided sense of “herd immunity” has worsened matters, as has the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHell no, we won’t grow: Indian farmers’ mass protests
Hundreds of thousands of farmers have participated in protests around Delhi, demonstrating against laws that they say threaten their livelihoods. We ask how…