Why democracy needs the rich Opinion A new book argues that, in a democracy, an intellectual class that holds homogeneous, anti-capitalist views demands a counterweight of the wealthy contributing to politics, says Rainer Zitelmann In 2021 and 2022, a representative survey on attitudes toward the market economy and capitalism was conducted in 34 countries. Among other things, respondents were presented with [...]
Space is the new frontier in economics Opinion Property rights underpin capitalism here on Earth, they must do the same in space – a new book by City AM columnist Rainer Zitelmann argues A little over ten years ago, when smartphones were still sufficiently new to mention, I attended a talk by an economist who argued that it was a mistake to see [...]
Trump’s tariffs are unconstitutional and his figures are pure fantasy Opinion Donald Trump claims to have secured $18 trillion in ‘investment’ thanks to tariffs, but much of this is just purchasing, R&D or hiring, says Rainer Zitelmann Tariffs are the central pillar of Donald Trump’s economic policy. Yet it was precisely in this area that he violated the US Constitution. This was not determined by leftwing [...]
Oxfam is peddling myths about wealth ahead of Davos January 20, 2026 Every year Oxfam tries to establish a link between the rising wealth of the rich and increasing poverty ahead of the World Economic Forum in Davos. But no such link exists, says Rainer Zitelmann There are more and more billionaires in the world, and their wealth keeps growing. This emerges from a report that Oxfam, [...]
The space economy will not succeed without private ownership September 26, 2025 A space economy based on legal conditions that ban private property – like those of North Korea – will never flourish, says Rainer Zitelmann After the Moon Landing of 1969, manned space travel stagnated for over half a century. The space shuttle was far too expensive and never lived up to expectations. It was only [...]
Vietnam defeated America, can it beat China too? February 27, 2025 'Escape from China' is the watchword in Vietnam for businesses offering an alternative to Beijing's communist encroachment, says Rainer Zitelmann.
How Poland and Vietnam escaped poverty October 17, 2024 In a new book, Rainer Zitelmann examines how Poland and Vietnam escaped the ravages of the Cold War to become some of the world’s fastest growing economies – and argues that poverty isn’t inevitable, it’s a policy choice says Kristian Niemietz Case studies in recent economic history typically deal with unambiguous success stories, or unambiguous [...]