This was a week to cause sleepless nights. The refugee crisis got worse. Infighting and border closures across Europe made it look as if the short-lived age of free movement within the European Union has come to an end. We all thought far too much about possible movements in US interest rates. And Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader of the Labour party. It's all been rather exhausting.
Sadly, we suspect it's going to get more so. The migration crisis is nearer its beginning than its end. That's because, regardless of the media obsession with Syria, it isn't really about Syria. And it isn't about war either. Instead, says James Fergusson, it is all about water scarcity. That means it isn't just displaced people from Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and Yemen who want to come to our wet north. It's all of sub-Saharan Africa too. And there isn't anything we can do about that. This crisis will run and run, getting more politically fraught along the way. And it might well break the EU.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
-
Government launches full review of parental leave and pay – what could it mean for you?The government wants parental leave to be fairer - will its shake-up fix the widespread problem for families?
-
Nationwide: House prices see biggest monthly fall in over two yearsUK house prices dropped by 0.8% in June, according to Nationwide. We reveal the top-performing and worst-performing regions
-
Inflation may be slipping but there is still plenty of misery aheadEditor's letter Inflation may be a little lower than last month as the prices of petrol and diesel fall back, but it remains structural and long-term, says Merryn Somerset Webb. And there are no painless solutions.
-
Beat the cost of living crisis – go on holidayEditor's letter As inflation rages, energy bills soar and the pound tanks, what’s a good way to save money this winter? Go on holiday, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
-
How capitalism has been undermined by poor governanceEditor's letter Capitalism’s “ruthless efficiency” has been undermined by poor governance, a lack of competition and central banks’ over-enthusiastic money printing, says Andrew Van Sickle.
-
The biggest change in the last 17 years – the death of the “Greenspan put”Editor's letter Since I joined MoneyWeek 17 years ago, says John Stepek, we’ve seen a global financial crisis, a eurozone sovereign debt crisis , several Chinese growth scares, a global pandemic, and a land war in Europe. But the biggest change is the death of the “Greenspan put”.
-
Things won't just return to normal – that's not how inflation worksEditor's letter You might think that, if inflation is indeed “transitory”, we just need to wait and everything will return to “normal”. But this is a grave misunderstanding of how inflation works, says John Stepek.
-
The public may have reached its limit for tax risesEditor's letter The UK tax burden is now at a 70-year high. And, while there may be some reason to hold off on cuts right now, taxes are too high because the state tries to do too much. Perhaps it should do less, says Merryn Somerset Webb.
-
Things may look bad – but they’re not that badEditor's letter The UK faces plenty of problems, says John Stepek. But things may not be as bad as they look. Our debt to GDP ratio is lower than many other major economies, and high employment means a healthy tax take. That gives the new chancellor room to cut taxes so people can keep more of their own money.
-
Car hire and the strangeness of the post-pandemic economyEditor's letter A global shortage of hire cars and unusually high hotel occupancy rates sum up the post-pandemic global economy in a nutshell, says Merryn Somerset Webb, with enhanced demand meeting restricted supply.
