There may be good reason to expect any global recession to be triggered in Europe. Of course, much of the continent has been severely affected by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and supply chain issues resulting from sweeping lockdowns in China haven't helped. The latest economic news from Europe is grim.

In July, amid skyrocketing inflation, Germany announced its very first trade deficit since 1991. Though the deficit was relatively small in global terms at €1 billion, it's worth remembering that, as Spiked magazine puts it, "it’s a bad omen for Germany, whose growth has depended primarily on its exports".

"How much is €1 billion in US dollars?" you may ask. Well that's news in itself: in recent weeks, the answer has been about $1 billion. That's because the value of the euro has plummeted and has neared parity with the dollar for the first time in two decades.

The British pound is arguably in even bigger trouble. Following announcements of a series of uncosted tax cuts on 26 September, the value of the pound plummeted to $1.038 – the lowest it's been since 1971.

27 alarming signs the world is heading for recession