We will soon mark the 10th anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers — the event that more than any other sparked what has now become known as the Great Recession.

International business appeared almost impervious to the huge political tensions in Korea and the Gulf, as global shares soared and the rich got richer, writes Kyran Fitzgerald.

The launch of Ireland’s best-known food brand in the world’s 11th largest economy boosted last week’s Irish trade mission to South Korea and Japan, led by Agriculture Minister Michael Creed and Bord Bia Chief Executive Tara McCarthy.

Legislative roadblocks to President Trump’s tax reform plans could bring US economic expansion

Miriam Beattie (We should keep the Eighth Amendment, Irish Examiner, September 5) states: “Ireland was once known as the safest place in the world to have a baby”.

A Chinese invasion of North Korea or at least a forced regime change is not as unlikely as most people might think and could help ‘Make China Great Again’, writes Bill Emmott.

The pound staged a recovery on Tuesday as weakness in the euro and dollar helped the UK currency shrug off weak services data.

From Pukguksong to ‘Gangnam Style’, what do you tell your kids when the possibility of a third world war has never loomed larger, asks Catherine Shanhan.

Some attempts to rid the world of nuclear weapons, like the proposed multi-lateral nuclear-ban treaty, could prove self-defeating, writes Carl Bildt            

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has said that China has threatened to impose sanctions on North Korea if it conducts further nuclear tests.

There has been little else but talk about North Korea’s weapons programme for almost quarter of a century. That may not be true for much longer, says Michael Mandelbaum

SuperDisty supplies the software that helps online retailers to source products, writes Trish Dromey

Less than 10 years ago, South Africa looked on the cusp of a glorious period. Instead it is in danger of throwing it all away through misstep after misstep, writess Kyran Fitzgerald.

Swedish academic Hans Rosling, who died recently, was a skilled communicator who managed to bring subjects to life and shine light on complex issues, writes Kyran Fitzgerald

The global business elite, each coughing up over €20,000 each, are gathering for their annual shindig at the up-market Swiss resort of Davos.

75 years on, the consequences of Pearl Harbour have yet to be fully played out, writes Geoffrey Roberts

A Chinese lawyer has been jailed for seven years in the third in a series of subversion trials demonstrating the ruling Communist Party's determination to silence independent human rights activists and government critics.

The winner of the Man Booker International Prize could be an anonymous author for the first time in the prize's history.

The message in destroying 100 tons with a value of $110m is that the trade has no future, say Chris Alden and Ross Harvey

The Chinese government, it seems, has finally woken up and smelt the coffee. The notorious one-child policy, in force and rigorously enforced since 1979, is to be replaced by a two-child policy.

China has feigned outrage at the US sailing a warship within 20km of one of its islands. It’s all about it wanting to protect military power, writes Bill Emmott

Twelve Pacific Rim states have reached the most ambitious trade pact in a generation, aiming to liberalise commerce in 40% of the world’s economy.

South Korea and North Korea are holding their first high-level talks in nearly a year in a bid to defuse mounting tensions that have led to the brink of a military confrontation.

The brown rat is a common, widespread and distinctly unpopular Irish wild animal. They are not native.

Britain’s two biggest airports were busier than ever in 2014.

This week, a white- haired woman spoke and the world sat up and listened.

BANKSY ART HIT BY CRUDE VANDALISM

Whether a victim of a coup or ill health, his absence raises fears of military action, writes Christopher Harress.

The proposals presented by Martin Wolf in ‘The Shifts and the Shocks’ merit close consideration if another crisis is to be avoided, writes economist and former finance minister Alan Dukes

Are we going to die, Granddad? It hardly bears imagining what torture must have gone through the mind of Nick Morris in the brief instant between life and death after a missile tore through Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine.

A powerful typhoon has buffeted the southern Japanese islands of Okinawa, paralysing transport and injuring at least 10 people.

North Korea represents a threat not just to Asia but to the US, US President Barack Obama said yesterday, as he and South Korea’s president Park Geun-hye warned they would respond firmly to any “provocations”.

Rising superpowers Brazil and India have been left off the list of ministerial St Patrick’s Day visits, despite claims by the Coalition the annual exodus is about trade not junkets.

The global economy is slowly picking up steam, led by advanced nations appearing to turn the corner after five years of financial crises, recession and a continued good performance by China, the World Bank has said.

An international media frenzy over reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s uncle had been executed by throwing him to a pack of dogs appears to have originated as satire on a Chinese microblogging website.

China’s government says it is ready to discuss strengthening cyber security at a top-level forum with US officials next week and wants Washington to help settle territorial disputes in east Asia.

The American defence contractor who says he leaked information on classified US surveillance programmes could benefit from a quirk in Hong Kong law that would ensure a lengthy battle to deport him.

‘Abenomics’, a mix of fiscal and monetary expansion together with structural reforms, is helping to revive Japan’s stagnant economy and, while some question its sustainability, at least it has helped lift morale, says Kyran Fitzgerald