US President Joe Biden faces a critical decision - whom to appoint as chair of the Federal Reserve, arguably the most powerful position in the global economy. He doesn't have to look far to find someone who has already shown her mettle.

US President-elect Biden's appointment of Janet Yellen as the next Secretary of the Treasury is good news for the US and the world. No one is better equipped to deal with today's economic challenges.

Early in the Covid-19 crisis, most people anticipated a quick V-shaped recovery, on the assumption that the economy merely needed a short timeout. It was an appealing idea. But now it is July, and a V-shaped recovery is probably a fantasy.

Governments are responding forcefully to the COVID-19 crisis with a combined fiscal and monetary response that has already reached 10% of global GDP. The key now is to increase incentives to spend.

There are many lessons to be learned as we reflect on the 2008 crisis, but the most important is that the challenge was – and remains – political, not economic. Secular stagnation was just an excuse for flawed economic policies.

The euro was supposed to bring shared prosperity, which would enhance solidarity and advance the goal of European integration. In fact, it has done just the opposite, slowing growth and sowing discord.

As some countries have shown, a market economy can take forms that temper the excesses of capitalism and globalisation, and deliver more sustainable growth and higher standards of living for most citizens.

Globalisation's early opponents in emerging and developing countries have been joined by tens of millions in advanced countries. The rules of the game need to be changed – and this must include measures to tame globalisation.