The West's recent growth was dependent on borrowing. Going even further into debt now won't help; instead, countries need to address the underlying flaws in their economies.

Brazil's economy depends too much on high commodity prices, and as demand falls, so may Brazil.

Unions are declining, and the working and middle classes are paying the price. Reviving labor won't be easy -- but doing so is critical to preserving America's economic and social health.

The main health threat in developing states today is not plagues or parasites but illnesses such as cancer and diabetes, noncommunicable diseases long associated with the rich world.

Executing policy through tax breaks and other indirect measures encourages Americans to think that they do not rely on the government for help, even when they do. The result is a distorted public discourse and an erosion of democratic legitimacy.

Two recent books reveal the ugly underbelly of India's success story. A vast gulf has opened up between the rich and the poor, corruption suffuses every aspect of life, and the country's political leaders lack the vision needed to turn this would-be world power into an actual one.

Blake Clayton says Wall Street is not to blame for high gas prices.

Running down the list of the U.S. State Department's Latin America policy objectives in El País in September 2010, the economist Moisés Naím noted that they focused almost exclusively on domestic concerns.

In 2007, the World Bank was in crisis. Some saw conflicts over its leadership. Others blamed the institution itself.

Confidence in the dollar and the euro continues to falter, threatening the international monetary system.

China seems to want the yuan to dethrone the dollar as the global reserve currency. But don't expect China's currency to take over anytime soon.

Three new books look at poverty from the bottom up, painting a vivid portrait of the lives poor people live.

China's rise is overstated, and its financial problems are massive, argues Derek Scissors. Arvind Subramanian disagrees, claiming that Beijing already calls theshots in the global economy.

Michael A. Levi says Republicans and Democrats alike have touted the energy sector as the key to solving the United States' employment problems. They are both wrong.

Most pundits argue the eurozone has only two options: break up or create a fiscal union to match its monetary one.

As Indonesia hosts a number of high-level summits this year, it looks set to take its place among the world's economic superstars.

Is globalization to blame for rising unemployment and income inequality in the United States?

Over the past three decades, Washington has consistently favored the rich -- and the more wealth accumulates in a few hands at the top, the more influence and favor the rich acquire, making it easier for them and their political allies to cast off restraint without paying a social price.

Is China poised to take over from the United States as the world's leading economy?

Sure, China's economic growth has been unprecedented, even miraculous. But the country is unlikely to keep up its breakneck pace.