Silicon Valley Bank. Signature Bank. Credit Suisse. The world’s banks look wobbly, leading to fears of broader economic pain. Our economics editor explains how regulators should stabilise the sector. Russia is running out of tanks; replenishing its supply will not be easy. And America has a new favourite dog breed.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, what’s wrong with the banks? Also, we ask whether Bibi will break Israel (10:39) and why men should get a good night’s sleep to ensure vaccines work properly (19:03).Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:www.economist.com/podcastoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The visit of Xi Jinping, China’s president, to Moscow may seem like the solidifying of a simple, anti-Western alliance. But China is walking a delicate line to look after its own interests. A growing minority of young people simply do not want to drive; that will have consequences far beyond roadways. And research on colonising the Moon goes underground.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chulpan Khamatova is one of Russia's best-loved actors. Once courted by Vladimir Putin, she now lives in exile in Latvia. Her work and fame brought access to the key protagonists in Russia’s recent past. It’s a unique vantage point to contemplate the nature of evil⁠⁠—and its antidote.The next episode will be released on Saturday April 1st 2023.For full access to print, digital and audio editions, as well as exclusive live events, subscribe to The Economist at economist.com/moscowoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More than 650,000 Americans have died of overdoses since the start of the opioid epidemic. Fentanyl, easily available and dangerously powerful, killed seventy thousand people in 2021 alone. Now, as the federal government estimates more than five million people struggle with an opioid addiction, states are increasingly looking for sweeping solutions to the crisis. What solutions are there? And what’s stopping them being enacted?Keith Humphreys, drug policy advisor to George W Bush and Barack Obama, talks us through the state of epidemic. And The Economist’s Stevie Hertz heads to Oregon to see how its first-in-the-nation policies are working in practice. This is the first part of a short series looking at the opioid epidemic in America. This episode considers the demand for the drugs, and in a few weeks we'll delve into the supply chain. John Prideaux hosts with Charlotte Howard and Idrees Kahloon.You can now find every episode of Checks and Balance in one place and sign up to our weekly newsletter. For full access to print, digital and audio editions, as well as exclusive live events, subscribe to The Economist at economist.com/uspod.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.