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Explainer · Money and power
When Washington borrows more, who gets squeezed?
Two well-known investors say heavy US government borrowing will squeeze everyone else. Part of that holds up.
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Archive →02
Explainer · Money and power
Did Anthropic ‘hide’ $108 billion? What its IPO filing actually says
AI company Anthropic has filed to go public. A viral claim that it “hid” $108 billion doesn’t survive the filing.
03
Five countries, five sets of grievances
Europe’s autumn of protest: one wave, or five separate stories?
France, Belgium, Italy and Albania have seen clashes in the past fortnight, and Serbia’s government has just lost an election. It looks like one wave, but the timelines and grievances point to separate stories happening at the same time.
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Explainer · Money and power
China makes more electricity than America and Europe combined. What does that tell us?
An investor says electricity beats GDP as a gauge of economic strength, and that GDP flatters war spending. His central fact holds; other numbers need care.
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Hormuz in plain English
Oil is flowing again. So why is it still so expensive?
More oil is getting out of the Gulf than in the summer, but attacks on ships, scarce diesel and LNG, and thin stockpiles are keeping prices high.
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Money · Europe
France now pays more to borrow than America. What’s going on?
A budget fight, street protests and a jittery bond market have pushed France’s borrowing costs past 5%, and the head of the European Central Bank says the fix lies in Paris.
Concept Library Coming soon
About the library →The ideas that keep coming up, drawn out like a whiteboard lesson. We’re building it slowly; here are the first four.
Plumbing
Strait of Hormuz
A narrow sea passage off Iran that a large share of the world’s oil and gas tankers must sail through.
Plumbing
Bond yields
The interest a borrower must pay to sell its bonds; when yields rise, borrowing gets dearer for everyone.
Big cycles
Inflation
A general rise in prices, so the same money buys less over time.
Multipolar
Reserve currency
The currency other countries hold for savings and trade; for the dollar it brings cheap borrowing and influence.
Reflection Point