The British government on Wednesday laid out plans for higher military spending and cuts to social benefits, as it sought to keep the nation’s finances on track in what it called a “more uncertain world.” Rachel Reeves, the chancellor of the Exchequer, said there would be an extra 2.2 billion pounds ($2.8 billion) for defense … Read more
The call of a conch shell roused the dolphin hunters from their beds. Under moonlight, the six men shuffled to the village church. There a priest led them in a whispered prayer, his voice barely audible over the sound of crashing waves; the tide was high that day. Saltwater pooled in parts of the village, … Read more
Buried in China’s latest government budget were some numbers that add up to an alarming trend. Tax revenue is dropping. The decline means that China’s national government has less money to address the country’s serious economic challenges, including a housing market crash and the near bankruptcy of hundreds of local governments. Weak tax revenue also … Read more
Britons are bracing for a burst of higher inflation for much of this year as many household bills jump next month, a revival of the cost-of-living pressures that have squeezed household budgets in recent years. Next month, the average annual energy bill is set to rise 6.4 percent as the price cap resets. Water bills, … Read more
Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary pioneered many of the themes dear to conservatives in the United States, railing for years against “migration insanity,” “the woke virus” and “gender madness.” Now Mr. Orban is engaged in an effort that veers away from the orthodox conservative view that the state should stay out of the economy: … Read more
President Trump fueled new speculation this week about a meeting with China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, when he told reporters that Washington needed to be cleaned up to prepare for a summit between the two leaders in the “not too distant future.” Mr. Trump provided no details, and China has said nothing publicly about any … Read more
Britain’s center-left government outlined plans on Tuesday to curb spiraling welfare costs as it attempts to juggle a difficult set of competing objectives: saving public money, incentivizing work and protecting the most vulnerable. The announcement follows weeks of tense internal debate within the governing Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, about how to … Read more
The German Parliament is set to vote on Tuesday on a plan to loosen government borrowing limits in order to spend heavily on defense and infrastructure, in an effort to offset America’s pivot away from Europe and to lift the country out of years of economic stagnation. If the measure eventually becomes law, it will … Read more
The Chinese government and the Communist Party jointly issued a lengthy list of planned initiatives on Sunday to get people to spend more, in yet another move by Beijing to offset potential harm from its escalating economic warfare with Washington. The road map for economic stimulus included larger pensions, better medical benefits and higher wages … Read more