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A US-Canada trade war will disrupt North America's historically low-tariff environment, reshaping the global tariff landscape.Click on the map to read Meredith Crowley on the danger of rising protectionism.Monday 10th March 2025
On average, 3% of trains were cancelled in 2024 – up from 2.2% in 2019.Click on the chart to read Padraig McKee and Chris Colvin on financing UK rail infrastructure.Thursday 6th March 2025
In 1971, the UK’s female employment rate lagged men’s by nearly 40 percentage points. Today, that gap stands at just 6.4%. Interestingly, major economic shocks often spurred this convergence, as recessions hit male-dominated industries hardest. Economists refer to this as a “man-cession” effect, though it also reflects longer-term sectoral shifts that favour service and knowledge-based work. Other factors include the “added worker” effect—where some women join the labour force when male earnings drop—and the possibility of “forced renewal,” where post-layoff hiring opens doors for more women. So, do recessions boost gender equality—or simply speed up changes already in motion?Saturday 8th March
Donald Trump has won the U.S. presidential election resoundingly, carrying five swing states, with additional gains in Nevada and Arizona unconfirmed but likely. Trump also became the first Republican nominee to win the popular vote since George W. Bush in 2004.In the coming weeks, the Economics Observatory team will provide analysis on the election results and their implications for the U.S. and world economy.For insights into how Trump’s election may influence the stock market, read Clive Walker’s analysis from earlier this year
How green is your electricity?The UK grid produces 250.8g of carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour. Electricity in Turkmenistan is the most carbon-intensive at 1306g/kWh, while Lesotho is the least with only 20.8g emitted.Click on the chart to read Jessie Bloom on how nuclear power contribute to energy supply.Wednesday 5th March 2025
Production of semiconductors — an essential component of smartphones and cars — has steadily declined in the EU and US, with East Asia now hosting over 70% of global semiconductor capacity.Click on the chart to read Tom Joshi on how China-Taiwan tensions impact global supply chains.Monday 3rd March 2025
Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson have been awarded the 2024 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences “for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity.”Today’s #ChartOfTheDay recreates and extends a chart from their seminal 2005 paper, showing the divergent economic paths of North and South Korea. The laureates present the case of the two Koreas as a natural experiment between two halves organised in radically different ways - a system of Soviet socialism and a system of private property with government.In 1960, South Korea was one of the world’s poorest countries, with a GDP per capita comparable to that of Liberia or Guatemala. Today, it is a global economic powerhouse, with a per capita income more than 30 times greater than its northern neighbour.
Last year, UK productivity was 24% lower than if it had continued climbing at its pre-2008 trend. Before the crisis, productivity grew at about 2% per year. Since the crisis, it has grown at just 0.5% per year. Slow productivity growth is hurting families, costing the average UK household £11,500 per year.What can be done to address the challenges facing the UK? Join us today at the Festival of Economics to find out how we can boost Britain’s low productivity. Our expert panel will debate the causes of the UK’s productivity stagnation and consider potential policy solutions. Join us to explore the extent of the challenge and to discover how boosting investment, improving education and training, exploiting technological innovation, and changes in regulation could help address the UK’s productivity puzzle.
Between January 2022 and October 2024, the US provided $88.3bn in aid to Ukraine – $60bn was military.In the same period, the EU Commission and Council contributed $44.7bn: $42.2bn financial and $2.5bn humanitarian.Click on the chart to read Erika Szyszczak on sanctions effectiveness in Russia.Thursday 27 February 2025
Germany's net migration peaked at 1.5 million in 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.Click on the chart to read Michelle Kilfoyle on the global impact of Russia's invasion.Monday 24 February 2025
In the last two decades, China has come to dominate the world’s steel supply. At the turn of the millennium, 16% of the world’s raw steel came from China. Today, it is a majority.European steel production has been squeezed hardest, making up just 7% today. In the UK, the industry is now on its last legs. With the forthcoming closure of the Port Talbot steelworks, the UK will become the only G7 country unable to make ‘virgin’ steel.Listen to Richard Davies, the director of the Economics Observatory, explore the decline of the industry in the new Radio 4 documentary Steel Dragons.
More than 200 countries and territories are taking part in the Paris Olympics. At the opening ceremony, some countries needed full double-decker boats for their athletes, while others waved their flags from small Murano boats.China (388 athletes) and the USA (594) have large athlete delegations, while France (572), Slovenia (74), New Zealand (212), and Australia (460) have some of the highest athlete-to-population ratios.Despite their large populations, Pakistan (7), Bangladesh (5), and Myanmar (2) have few athletes at the Olympics.Somalia, with over 18 million people, has just one athlete. The Netherlands, with a population almost the same size, has 276 athletes competing.To find out more about the 2024 games, read this Economics Observatory article about home advantage.
