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Davos 2012 ©Getty
From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 27, 2012

Tensions rise over eurozone firewall

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble speaks next to French Finance Minister Francois Baroin as they attend a debate on The Future of the Eurozone during the World Economic Forum ©Getty

But hopes build for deal in Greek debt talks

Comment

Both Obama and Hollande were calling key elements of globalisation into question
– Gideon Rachman
The summit offers an extraordinary laboratory to observe the existence – and the power – of hubris
– Moisés Naím
From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 28, 2012

Outlook looks less bleak from Alpine retreat

Unease remains over eurozone and global economy’s weakness

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 27, 2012

Germany isolated over opposition to boosting bail-out fund

Berlin objections at odds with most of eurozone

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 26, 2012

Cameron criticises European financial tax

Comments in Davos likely to be seen as unhelpful commentary

  • Donald trumps Mitt in bearing gifts for Barack
    Donald Trump in April 2012. Photo: Getty Images

    Donald Trump in April 2012. Photo: Getty Images

    Anyone wondering if there is well-concealed method behind the Romney campaign’s continued fraternisation with Donald Trump should watch the following video. Compiled by a Democratic group after Mr Trump’s return foray into “birtherism” this week, it shows what a whopper of a gift the tycoon presents to the Obama campaign. The ad ends with a clip of Mr Romney’s declaration that he likes “to be able to fire people who provide me with services”. The man with the perfect hair should start by firing the man with the imperfect hair.

  • In the Picture: Syria and the question of intervention
    A UN observer takes pictures of bodies of people killed in Houla. Reuters/Shaam News Network

    A UN observer photographs the bodies of some of those killed in Houla. Reuters/Shaam News Network

    As images of the victims of last week’s Houla massacre were broadcast around the world, and the stories of their deaths began to be told, the wave of outrage and horror in the international community gained force. The White House denounced an act of “unspeakable and inhuman brutality”; the UK foreign secretary spoke of an “appalling crime”; the UN security council condemned the “outrageous use of force against [a] civilian population”, and said it constituted a “violation of applicable international law”.

    Yet for all this, the next step is troublingly unclear. The killing of 108 civilians, among them 49 children, was only the latest in a series of atrocities that have taken place under the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria in the past 14 months. More than 9,000 Syrians are thought to have died in this period, including members of the security forces or suspected regime sympathisers who were killed by the armed opposition. While UN envoy Kofi Annan says that a “tipping point” in the crisis has now been reached, the UN security council itself remains hindered by the positions of Russia and China, both of whom have dug in their heels against external intervention. So what are the arguments for and against action, and what form could it take?

  • European attitudes to “Europe”
    GERARD CERLES/AFP/Getty Images

    Gerard Cerles/AFP/Getty Images

    The latest Pew poll on Europe has been given the provocative headline “European unity on the rocks”. And the survey results do indeed show that in six of eight countries surveyed, majorities believe that European integration has damaged their economies.

    This is now true even of Spain (by a narrow majority) – and of France, Italy and Britain by large majorities. The only two places surveyed where majorities still think the EU has been good for prosperity are (predictably), Germany and Poland.

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 27, 2012

Google protests at EU privacy rules draft

New laws would regulate how companies store and handle personal data

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 26, 2012

UK leads launch of £3bn green energy fund

Emerging and developing countries to benefit from initiative

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 26, 2012

Iran nuclear stance rings alarm bells at Davos

Delegates seem to be taking the prospect of war seriously

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 26, 2012

Cameron rebukes euro leaders over crisis

Davos speech reflects frustration with German leadership of eurozone

From COMPANIES Jan 26, 2012

Gates pledges $750m to Global Fund

Grant coming in form of ‘promissory note’

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 26, 2012

JPMorgan admits it weighed euro exit

Bank stayed in troubled periphery for social reasons

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 25, 2012

Merkel set on beating crisis in eurozone

Chancellor warns against demanding too much from Germany

John Gapper from COMMENT Jan 25, 2012

Money shovers can live without tax perks

Low rate on carried interest is no longer defensible

From WORLD Jan 25, 2012

Speed vital in eurozone crisis, say bankers

Problems in the region must be fixed – and fast

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 25, 2012

Income disparity tops list of concerns

Little consensus among leaders about what to do

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 24, 2012

Experts share downbeat mood at forum

Top economists disagree only on how worried they should be

From WORLD Jan 24, 2012

China breaks 30-year tradition with Davos

Senior officials to miss WEF as dates clash with Chinese New Year

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 24, 2012

Warning over world economic outlook

Fund urges eurozone to break vicious circle

Gideon Rachman from SPECIAL REPORTS Jan 24, 2012

Confronting an age of austerity

An analysis on the hopes and concerns that beset world leaders as they gather in Davos

From COMPANIES Jan 23, 2012

Newest bank chiefs choose to skip Davos

New generation appears wary of perceptions

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 23, 2012

Russia found failing on pollution curbs

Global environmental concerns to be discussed at Davos

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 22, 2012

Faith in government plummets, survey says

Research for Davos says findings give companies ‘licence to lead’

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 22, 2012

Business urged to fill in for government

Unilever chief says institutions have ‘failed’

Jan 20, 2012

Postcard from ... Davos: The hotel with no staff

Fiftyone, the smart Swiss ski resort’s first ‘automatic’ hotel, oozes stylish efficiency

From WORLD Jan 19, 2012

Minister urges Japan to use strong yen

Business advised to increase investment abroad

From WORLD Jan 17, 2012

Chinese GDP growth rate falls

Analysts predict further slowdown during the year

From GLOBAL ECONOMY Jan 17, 2012

Jobs at risk as global productivity slows

Gap disappearing between economies

From COMMENT Jan 16, 2012

Capitalism in crisis: A perilous path to prosperity

As west sinks, eastern economies soar

Robert Shrimsley from COMMENT Jan 11, 2012

Occupy Davos: reclaim the slopes

Our new offshoot movement worries about getting on the right side of the rich-poor divide