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Kenya's economy faces climate change risks: World Bank
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Hungary winemakers fear disease may 'wipe out' industry
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Campaigning starts in Central African Republic quadruple election
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'Stop the slaughter': French farmers block roads over cow disease cull
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First urban cable car unveiled outside Paris
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Why SpaceX IPO plan is generating so much buzz
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US unseals warrant for tanker seized off Venezuelan coast
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World stocks mostly slide, consolidating Fed-fuelled gains
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Crypto firm Tether bids for Juventus, is quickly rebuffed
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UK's king shares 'good news' that cancer treatment will be reduced in 2026
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Can Venezuela survive US targeting its oil tankers?
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Salah admired from afar in his Egypt home village as club tensions swirl
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World stocks retrench, consolidating Fed-fuelled gains
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Iran frees child bride sentenced to death over husband's killing: activists
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World stocks consolidate Fed-fuelled gains
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France updates net-zero plan, with fossil fuel phaseout
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Stocks rally in wake of Fed rate cut
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EU agrees recycled plastic targets for cars
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British porn star to be deported from Bali after small fine
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British porn star fined, faces imminent Bali deportation
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Spain opens doors to descendants of Franco-era exiles
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Indonesia floods were 'extinction level' for rare orangutans
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Thai teacher finds 'peace amidst chaos' painting bunker murals
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Japan bear victim's watch shows last movements
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South Korea exam chief quits over complaints of too-hard tests
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French indie 'Clair Obscur' dominates Game Awards
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South Korea exam chief resigns after tests dubbed too hard
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Asian markets track Wall St record after Fed cut
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Laughing about science more important than ever: Ig Nobel founder
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Vaccines do not cause autism: WHO
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Crypto mogul Do Kwon sentenced to 15 years for fraud: US media
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'In her prime': Rare blooming of palm trees in Rio
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Make your own Mickey Mouse clip - Disney embraces AI
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OpenAI beefs up GPT models in AI race with Google
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Dark, wet, choppy: Machado's secret sea escape from Venezuela
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Cyclone causes blackout, flight chaos in Brazil's Sao Paulo
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2024 Eurovision winner Nemo returns trophy over Israel's participation
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US bringing seized tanker to port, as Venezuela war threats build
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Make your own AI Mickey Mouse - Disney embraces new tech
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Time magazine names 'Architects of AI' as Person of the Year
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Floodworks on Athens 'oasis' a tough sell among locals
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OpenAI, Disney to let fans create AI videos in landmark deal
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German growth forecasts slashed, Merz under pressure
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Thyssenkrupp pauses steel production at two sites citing Asian pressure
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ECB proposes simplifying rules for banks
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Stocks mixed as US rate cut offset by Fed outlook, Oracle earnings
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Desert dunes beckon for Afghanistan's 4x4 fans
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Breakout star: teenage B-girl on mission to show China is cool
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Chocolate prices high before Christmas despite cocoa fall
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Austria set to vote on headscarf ban in schools
Finance’s Role in Economic Ruin
The finance industry, often hailed as the backbone of modern economies, has a darker side that increasingly threatens global stability. Since the 2008 financial crisis, triggered by reckless speculation in mortgage-backed securities, the sector’s unchecked growth has sown seeds of destruction. In the United States alone, the financial sector’s share of GDP rose from 2.8% in 1950 to 8.4% by 2020, yet it produced no tangible goods, instead profiting from debt and risk. Critics argue this shift diverts capital from productive industries like manufacturing—down from 27% to 11% of US GDP over the same period to speculative bubbles.
The 2023 collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, fuelled by over-leveraged bets on tech stocks, cost $20 billion in bailouts and sparked a domino effect across European markets. In the UK, the 2022 mini-budget crisis, exacerbated by hedge fund short-selling of gilts, pushed borrowing costs to record highs. Economist Ann Pettifor warns, “Finance thrives on instability it creates”. With global debt at $305 trillion—three times world GDP—experts fear the industry’s pursuit of profit through complex derivatives and high-frequency trading could precipitate another crash. Is finance an engine of growth or a wrecking ball?
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