Weekend Edition: America’s next top e conomic model

Welcome to the weekend!

Tis the season for family visits, tropical vacations and gripes about modern air travel. Navigating today’s back-of-the-plane shakedown is one of our 32 new rules for flying, which also include saying no to Clear and yes to airport hotels. And if you’re looking for the lowest-key vacation on offer, consider this week’s most-read story: How Arlington, Virginia Became the Safest Place in America.

You can enjoy every bit of Bloomberg’s Weekend Edition online or in the app, where you can also listen to the stories if that’s your jam. Don’t miss this Sunday’s Forecast email, in which we’ll ponder a “no landing” scenario (the economic kind, not the airplane kind). For unlimited access to Bloomberg.com, subscribe.

When the financial system collapsed in 2008, it seemed that aughts-era capitalism would have to be upended to survive. But 16 years and five US elections later, the alternative is MIA. …Or is it? Chaotic politics have masked the development of a new economic order, writes Bloomberg Opinion’s John Authers. It’s modern mercantilism — economic nationalism with self-interested state intervention.

No one does self-interested intervention like Saudi Arabia. Armed with a $600 billion sovereign wealth fund, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been hustling to position the kingdom as a bastion of culture — and himself as a strategically patient leader — writes Blood and Oil author Bradley Hope. To combat criticism, the kingdom now applies pressure through business deals rather than public statements.

To see Saudi pressure in action, look to the COP29 climate conference in oil-rich Azerbaijan. Delegates spent two weeks debating legalese on a football pitch, but Saudi recalcitrance stalled a pledge to move away from fossil fuels, and wealthy countries elided specifics on paying poor countries for clean energy. Can diplomacy increase action at the speed of rising temperatures? No one is sure anymore.

Agree or disagree:

Luggage should always be lifted, not rolled, to avoid tracking dirt.

Vintage champagne should be stored at 11°C, and imbibed at night.

You never know when you’ll need a lint roller, a USB or a pocket knife.

No one, and I mean no one, wants to be asked, “How was your flight?”

If you agreed with all of the above, you might pass muster with Andi McCann, a driving coach and de facto headmaster of the Rolls-Royce School for Chauffeurs. About 20% of Rolls are sold to owners with drivers, and McCann makes sure they’re elite. Hannah Elliott joined him in Las Vegas to test her chauffeur skills.

What we’re asking ourselves: Have I peaked? China’s emissions might have. The country’s share of emissions since 1850 is already equal to the 27 EU nations combined, but its adoption of clean energy is equally unprecedented.

What we’re seeking: stability. When we asked CEOs, politicians and entrepreneurs for their favorite books of 2024, the answers suggested they’re seeking it too. Books on conflict, human behavior and longevity were among the top picks.

What we’re reading: Michael Crichton. The author coined the “Gell-Mann Amnesia effect” to describe trusting newspapers on topics you don’t know much about, even if they’re wrong on topics you do. It’s now a tech billionaire talking point.

What we’re buying: premium mac and cheese. Across the consumer landscape, mid-priced options (think: Kraft) are losing shelf space and sales as customers either pay up for higher-end items or trade down to cheaper “private label” store brands.

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