Uncle Sam gets gold star for growth

The past week saw news that the Japanese economy had slipped back into recession yet again, with GDP declining in both the second and third quarters of the year.

Combined with the sluggishness of the eurozone economy, it means that two of the main blocs of the world economy remain in a very weak state, some five years after the end of the so-called Great Recession of 2008-09.

By contrast, the US economy is continuing to motor ahead.