Wednesday, October 21, 2026

The Economist

3 stories

Summaries below are written from each story's published headline and summary, in plain English — what happened and why it matters. They are a reading guide, not the articles themselves. To read the full text, follow the link and log in with your subscription.

Finance

The late Perry Mehrling explained the hierarchy of money

The Economist remembers the economist Perry Mehrling, whose work explained the hierarchy of money—how different kinds of financial claims sit on a ladder of liquidity, with central-bank money at the top. His framework has become a lens for understanding modern financial plumbing.

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Markets

Who will buy $120bn-worth of fresh Japanese government bonds?

Japan is leaning on its pension fund and ordinary households to absorb $120 billion in fresh government bond issuance. The push raises questions about who is left to buy the country's ever-growing pile of public debt.

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AI & Tech

AI-powered personal assistants could reshape the digital economy

AI-powered personal assistants could reshape the digital economy, The Economist argues—but first they must prove they are safe for users and genuinely useful for businesses. Trust and reliability, not raw capability, are the gate to mainstream adoption.

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