Very substantially revised edition of previously successful title that, with typical Economist style and clarity, provides expert analysis of different aspects of the modern economy. Aimed at those in business and professions and with a special paperback edition aimed at students, it includes sections on:

1. Globalisation – how and why it has gathered pace, and how its critics’ views are understandable but often misguided
2. The phoney recovery and America’s imbalances – why the US’s quick recovery from recession is mere respite, not escape, and how the country’s appetite for debt is dangerous.
3. China’s rise - and what it presages for the world economy.
4. Underachievers – analysis of the problems that previous economic giants such as Japan and Germany have run into trouble.
5. The arteries of capitalism – the financial markets, central banks and global capital
6. Economic facts and fallacies, which spells out basic economic truths and exposes some economic canards.