The End of the Abe Era Mickey Mao: Hollywood in China Britain's Love
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The end of the Abe era Mickey Mao: Hollywood in China Britain’s love affair with Germany A special report on dementia AUGUST 29TH–SEPTEMBER 4TH 2020 What Putin fears Contents The Economist August 29th 2020 5 The world this week Britain 7 A summary of political 19 Generation rent and business news 20 Studying Mandarin 21 Labour and the Leaders middle class 9 Russia 21 Politics and the Proms What Putin fears 22 Eating out on the state 10 Mexico Mishandling a scandal 22 Classic literature thrives 23 School uniforms 10 Dementia The forgotten problem 24 Bagehot Germanophilia 11 Hollywood and China Un-American activities Europe 25 Immigrants in Germany On the cover 12 Covid-19 A world of mental trauma 26 Green-fingered Bulgarians People in Russia and Belarus 27 Montenegro’s election are wearying of the backward- Letters looking autocrats who rule 27 Universities in France On Kamala Harris, over them: leader, page 9. The 14 28 Charlemagne The vaccines, fishing rights, uprising in Belarus and the Pampers index postmen, IPOs, Boris poisoning of Alexei Navalny Johnson, TikTok reveal Vladimir Putin’s United States weakness: briefing, page 15. 29 California’s disasters The Telegram app’s careful Briefing 30 QAnon and the election blend of security and usability: 15 Belarus and Russia Schumpeter, page 57 The people lose patience 31 Meet Guo Wengui 31 More trouble in Wisconsin • The end of the Abe era Concerns about the health of Special report: Dementia 32 Kennedy v Markey Japan’s prime minister fuel The perils of oblivion 32 Learning and the virus After page 40 speculation about the 33 Covid-19 in schools succession, page 41 34 Lexington Hail to the king • Hollywood in China How studios should deal with a The Americas growing Chinese audience and 35 Mexico’s biggest scandal its authoritarian gatekeepers: leader, page 11. China’s box office 36 Caribbean storms is poised to become the world’s biggest. What does that mean for Hollywood—and America’s soft power? Page 51 • A special report on dementia Its rising prevalence is a global Middle East & Africa emergency: leader, page 10. 37 Conflict in Mozambique Lexington The Nowhere in the world is ready 38 Aid’s effect on migration for it, writes Simon Long, after Republicans’ national Nollywood blues page 40 convention underlines 39 how much they prefer 39 Palestinians at the beach the president to reality, 40 Muslims debate dogs page 34 We are working hard to ensure that there is no dis- ruption to print copies of The Economist as a result of the coronavirus. But if you have digital access as part of your subscription, then acti- vating it will ensure that you can always read the digital version of the newspaper as well as all of our daily jour- nalism. To do so, visit economist.com/activate 1 Contents continues overleaf 6 Contents The Economist August 29th 2020 Asia Finance & economics 41 Japan after Abe 61 Mighty stock exchanges 42 The Christchurch killer 62 Ant’s giant listing 43 North Korea’s economy 62 Phil Hogan resigns 43 Covid-19 and airline food 63 Norway’s oil fund 44 Banyan Indonesia, the 63 Insurers in Lebanon Philippines and covid-19 64 Hot property in Seoul 65 Buttonwood Lessons China from Argentina 45 A boom in podcasting 66 Free exchange Economic 46 Matronymics scarring 47 Chaguan Health system, heal thyself Science & technology 67 Robots that walk 69 Covid-19 medicines International 48 Covid-19 and collective trauma Books & arts 71 The art of Chinese tattoos 73 The Freemasons 73 Elena Ferrante’s new novel Business 74 Home Entertainment Hollywood and China 51 An early Beatles album 54 The DAX’s latest hero 54 Medical devices 55 The business of blackouts Economic & financial indicators 55 Does bribery pay? 76 Statistics on 42 economies 56 Palantir’s patriotism Graphic detail 57 Schumpeter The rise of Telegram 77 Anti-vaxx theories may prevent herd immunity Economics brief Obituary 58 Dollar dominance 78 Marvin Creamer, a circumnavigator without a compass Volume 436 Number 9209 Published since September 1843 Subscription service to take part in “a severe contest between For our full range of subscription offers, including The best way to contact our Customer Service Please intelligence, which presses forward, digital only or print and digital bundled, visit: team is via phone or live chat. You can contact us and an unworthy, timid ignorance Economist.com/offers on 0333 230 9200 or 020 7576 8448; please check obstructing our progress.” our website for up to date opening hours. If you are experiencing problems when trying to Editorial offices in London and also: subscribe, please visit our Help pages at: PEFC certified Amsterdam, Beijing, Berlin, Brussels, Cairo, www.economist.com/help This copy of The Economist Chicago, Johannesburg, Madrid, Mexico City, for troubleshooting advice. is printed on paper sourced Moscow, Mumbai, New Delhi, New York, Paris, from sustainably managed San Francisco, São Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, forests certified by PEFC Singapore, Tokyo, Washington DC PEFC/16-33-582 www.pefc.org Registered as a newspaper. © 2020 The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. Neither this publication nor any part of it may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of The Economist Newspaper Limited. Published every week, except for a year-end double issue, by The Economist Newspaper Limited. The Economist is a registered trademark of The Economist Newspaper Limited. Printed by Walstead Peterborough Limited. The world this week Politics The Economist August 29th 2020 7 America’s position. Mean- Liberal government of Justin while, Iran agreed to grant Trudeau, chose Erin O’Toole to Coronavirus briefs inspectors from the Interna- be its new leader. To 6am GMT August 27th 2020 tional Atomic Energy Agency Weekly confirmed cases by area, ’000 access to two nuclear sites after Prosecutors in Brazil charged 600 a months-long stand-off. Flordelis dos Santos de Souza, Latin America a gospel singer who is now a India US 400 Israeli warplanes bombed congresswoman, with conspir- targets in Gaza belonging to ing to murder her husband, an Other 200 Hamas, the Islamist group that evangelical pastor. They ac- runs the territory. The strikes cused six of her 55 children Europe 0 were a response to Palestinians (most of whom are adopted) of Alexei Navalny, Russia’s most launching incendiary balloons participating in the murder. Ms Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug prominent opposition leader towards Israel. There were no dos Santos claimed her hus- Confirmed deaths* and anti-corruption activist, reports of casualties. band, who was shot 30 times, Per 100k Total This week fell into a coma after being was killed in a robbery. Belgium 85 9,879 27 poisoned. He was held for two Several pro-democracy activ- Peru 85 28,001 1,343 days in a Russian hospital, ists were arrested in Thailand America’s Republicans held Spain 62 28,971 174 before being released and as student protests raged their convention, with most of Britain 61 41,465 68 flown to Germany, where against the military-backed the speechifying broadcast via Italy 59 35,458 46 Sweden 58 5,817 15 doctors said they thought the regime. Facebook obeyed an video link. Donald Trump used Chile 58 10,990 412 poison included cholinester- order to block access to a group the White House as a backdrop Brazil 55 117,665 6,565 ase inhibitors, an ingredient in with 1m members that the state for parts of the jamboree. Mike United States 54 179,281 6,474 some Russian-made military claims is rude to the mon- Pompeo also flouted protocol Mexico 48 62,076 3,595 toxins. Kremlin flacks said archy—a crime in Thailand. by praising Mr Trump’s ac- Sources: Johns Hopkins University CSSE; UN; perhaps he was suffering from complishments. Secretaries of The Economist *Definitions differ by country low blood sugar. Germany has In India Prashant Bhushan, a state normally keep a low offered him asylum. lawyer, was found guilty of profile at overtly political Researchers in Hong Kong contempt of court for a tweet functions. reported the world’s first Hundreds of thousands of chiding the chief justice for genetically verified case of protesters continued to de- flouting social-distancing Mr Pompeo broadcast his someone who has been mand the resignation of Alex- rules and another saying speech from Israel, where he reinfected with covid-19, ander Lukashenko, Belarus’s courts were abetting the ero- had earlier called on other suggesting that immunity dictator, despite facing arrest sion of democracy in India. Arab states to follow the lead from the disease does not and torture. Mr Lukashenko The ruling on the two tweets of the United Arab Emirates necessarily last long. The who flew by helicopter to a secure was 108 pages long. and normalise relations with called for more studies. location and brandished an the Jewish state. ak-47 rifle. Western countries A white supremacist who Mexico officially passed have not recognised a rigged massacred 51people at two Protests against the shooting 62,000 deaths in total and election on August 9th that Mr mosques in Christchurch was of a black man by police in 574,000 cases. Unofficially, the Lukashenko “won”. sentenced to life in prison Kenosha, Wisconsin, that left real numbers are thought to be without the possibility of him paralysed, descended into perhaps three times higher. In Phil Hogan, the eu’s commis- parole. It was the first time violence. A white teenager was the United States the number sioner for trade, resigned after such a sentence has been charged with shooting dead of new cases continued to fall.