G20

The President's trip to Asia was supposed to be all about creating jobs back in the U.S. But he failed to create a trade pact with South Korea, get an agreement on limiting surpluses by large trading partners and to get China to allow its currency to appreciate more.

Asian markets took a tumble today with China's Shanghai Composite Index plunging on rumors that another interest rate hike is imminent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 1.9% and Japan's Nikkei 225 Index was down 1.4%.

A strong sense of pessimism shrouded the start of an economic summit of rich and emerging economies Thursday, with President Barack Obama and fellow world leaders arriving in Seoul sharply divided over currency and trade policies. Can the meeting accomplish anything?

The G-20 has a second chance to diffuse exchange-rate tensions Friday and Saturday, when finance ministers and central bank governors meet in South Korea. World leaders failed to resolve the currency issue two weeks ago in Washington.

In a new article, political scientist Ian Bremmer and economist Nouriel Roubini assert that the free-market system of capitalism has been so damaged by the recent financial crisis that the West's era of political and economic dominance may be gone for good.

Maybe so. The latest NYSE Euronext Annual CEO Report, which surveyed 325 chief executives around the world, found them to be significantly more upbeat than a year ago. CEOs are "going back to the business of growing business."

As G-8 leaders wrapped up their summit in Huntsville, Ontario, and prepared to travel south to Toronto for the full G-20 summit, the city witnessed some of the most violent protests in its history. What city would ever want to host a summit again?

Ahead of the G-20 summit in Toronto this weekend, billionaire investor George Soros warns that Germany's policy of fiscal austerity could put Europe in danger. Could the budget cuts ultimately destroy the euro and fracture the European Union?

Canada is footing a huge bill on security measures for the G-8 and G-20 summits in Huntsville, Ontario and Toronto on June 25-27. Still, the U.S. has issued a travel alert for Americans traveling to Toronto, angering Canadians across the country.

Massive liquidity injections in the form of monetary and fiscal stimulus seem to be the cure-all these days for any economic malady. But staggering unemployment, especially among the most vulnerable, calls for a very different response.