Economist Radio

America’s Federal Reserve cut interest rates to close to zero to try to ease the economic pain caused by the outbreak of covid-19. What more can central banks do? And, why are many companies fleeing to cash? As consumers race to buy pasta and toilet rolls, what are governments shopping for? Simon Long hosts  Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions: www.economist.com/radiooffer And go to www.economist.com/coronavirus for our full coverage on the virus. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

He has four weeks to form a government, but Binyamin Netanyahu’s rival Benny Gantz is likely to find that the battle lines from three inconclusive elections haven’t moved. As Western factories shift gears to help in the coronavirus response, we ask what they could learn from China’s distillers. And a look back on the economic upheavals wrought by past pandemics. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

Travel restrictions that are proliferating worldwide may represent an existential threat to many airlines. How long the pandemic lasts will determine how much the aviation industry is reshaped by it. We ask why the Philippines’ politics is so much more socially conservative than its populace. And the self-defence measures being developed for delivery drones. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, the politics of pandemics, (09:40) stress-testing the NHS, (17:50) and, the fallout of the oil war.   Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions: www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

The United States is bracing itself for the spread of covid-19. Sports leagues, universities, and, in some states, schools have shut down. Donald Trump announced a ban on flights from Europe, but investors remain unconvinced he has a grip on the situation. China meanwhile appears to have got over the worst of the outbreak after imposing strict quarantine measures. Will America manage to limit the spread of the coronavirus? How much will the delayed response damage Donald Trump?  Charlotte Howard, our New York bureau chief, hosts with Jon Fasman, Washington correspondent, and Midwest correspondent Adam Roberts. David Rennie, Beijing bureau chief, and Idrees Kahloon, US policy correspondent for The Economist, also join. Read The Economist’s full coverage of the coronavirus. For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: www.economist.com/pod2020.  For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

A resetting of the clock on the Russian leader’s tenure will almost certainly pass into law. That sets up a standoff with a public swiftly losing faith in him. The incentives around sick days are all wrong; a change in attitudes could keep everyone safer. And why it is that, for many contestants on “The Price is Right”, the price is wrong. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

The covid-19 pandemic is spreading fast, bringing immense uncertainty to individuals, governments and the global economy. Lord Mervyn King, who led the Bank of England through the depths of the global financial crisis, faced turbulent times. Anne McElvoy asks the former governor whether forecasters can keep up in the era of coronavirus. Also, how panic-buying is like a run on a bank and the radical uncertainty of marriage.    Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions: www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

Britain’s central bank made an emergency cut and released a budget with a whopping £30bn ($38bn) stimulus; we discuss what countries are doing, or should be, to cushion economies against the pandemic. After decades of false starts, laser-based weapons will soon shine on the battlefield. And a look at the legacy and philosophy of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” as it turns 42. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

As the number of cases of covid-19 rises over 100,000 around the world, scientists and governments are working around the clock on treatments and vaccines. Our science editor, Geoffrey Carr, explains the genetic make-up of the virus. Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Rupert Beale from the Francis Crick Institute, and Regina Barzilay from MIT explain their attempts to thwart the outbreak. Plus, we turn data outlining the fatality rate by age into sound. Kenneth Cukier hosts    Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions: www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy