The prospect of interest rates staying higher for longer is having powerful ripple effects across the economy; companies large and small are struggling to refinance debt, while governments are seeing the cost of their pandemic-era borrowings rise. This series examines the impact across businesses, governments and economies around the globe

• Can corporate America cope with its vast debt pile?

  Rapid increases in borrowing costs prompt concerns about more defaults on $13tn of debt, but companies are finding new ways to survive

  
• Governments brace for fiscal reckoning from bond markets

  Investors say countries will have to get used to higher interest bills as borrowing costs soar

  
• Private equity: higher rates start to pummel dealmakers

  The firms that used the era of cheap money to become the new financial titans are wrestling with rising interest costs