Business
Flush fund
Can Japan’s toilet technology crack global markets?
The leading maker of electronic bidets shows the difficulties facing Japanese companies abroad
Schumpeter
Can anyone besides Nvidia make big bucks from chips?
The strange economics of the semiconductor supply chain
From shuddering to shuttering
Volkswagen’s woes illustrate Germany’s creeping deindustrialisation
And intensify the problems of Olaf Scholz’s fractious coalition
Dig, baby, dig
China is tightening its grip on the world’s minerals
That is making Western policymakers anxious
Oversubscribed
Too many people want to be social-media influencers
That is good for companies but bad for “creators”
Schumpeter
Can Google or Huawei stymie Apple’s march towards $4trn?
The contest for global smartphone dominance gets interesting
Tropical depression
South-East Asia’s stodgy conglomerates are holding it back
The region’s ageing corporate empires are stuck in the past—and too cosy with politicians
Pharma frenzy
Competition will make weight-loss drugs better, cheaper and bigger
Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly face a growing number of challengers