There will be a post-war reconstruction of Ukraine. Charles Lichfield and Nicolas Véron examine how European Union countries should agree to back a clever financing workaround that would leave Russia’s assets untouched but leverage them to support Ukraine

The Great Divergence and the Great Reversal
The economic and political gaps between China and the West is one of the defining challenges of the modern era. Avner Greif, Joel Mokyr and Guido Tabellini argue that institutions and culture played a key role in setting Europe and China on divergent paths well before the onset of the Industrial Revolution

The EU should moderate its steel protection plan
There is a steel overcapacity problem. Ignacio García Bercero considers a European Commission proposal for a tight quota and high steel tariffs that risks undermining perceptions of the European Union as a reliable trading partner

Challenges to financial stability
Andrew Bailey reflects on the reforms made to the financial system since the 2008 financial crisis. He addresses the challenges these reforms face in an ever-changing world and says the regulatory system of the future must be constantly assessed and adapted as needed

The power of words and the fragility of democracy
Democracy flourishes when free expression is robust. In the foreword to the Autumn edition of World Commerce Review the editor writes that to secure a future of prosperity and unity, society must resist divisive rhetoric, reject suppression, and champion the open discourse that underpins true democratic vitality

Trade wars and central banks: lessons from 2025
Christine Lagarde states we can take comfort in having overcome a large inflation shock after the pandemic, and in how the economy has coped so far with an upheaval in trade relations, but warns we must remain alert to possible new shocks that may still lie ahead
Finance
Tax

The pricing of profit shifting
MNEs routinely allocate profits across jurisdictions with differing tax regimes. Fotis Delis, Manthos Delis, Sotirios Kokas, Luc Laeven and Steven Ongena examine how stock markets price profit shifting and consider the economic effects

Tariffs cannot fund the government
In the past most government spending was funded from import tariffs. Simon Evenett and Marc-Andreas Muendler discuss whether this practice could work today, paying attention to the displacement effect on revenues

Tariffs and digital services
EU targeting of digital services in tariff retaliation would present challenges. Bertin Martens argues that the European Union lacks an instrument to unpick crossborder transactions on US digital platforms