The writer is a financial journalist and author of ‘More: The 10,000-Year Rise of the World Economy’

Political turmoil seems to be everywhere these days. Not just in the Middle East but in nations such as France and Germany. In other countries like the US, political polarisation is intensifying. The proximate causes may differ but the underlying problem seems clear; it is hard to keep voters in a democracy happy when their standard of living is not improving.

In the midst of all this popular discontent, the equity markets couldn’t be happier. US equity indices are regularly hitting all-time highs and the S&P 500 index is up nearly a quarter this year. The FTSE 100 index rose above 8,000 in April and has not dropped below that level since, holding on to a gain of about 5 per cent for 2024. Even Germany’s Dax 40 is about 18 per cent higher than at the start of 2024 despite the country’s economic and corporate problems.