Religiously. Damn good read, very broad scope of subject matter, thorough analysis and reasonably balanced views. Except for the Finance section, where their perennially bearish disposition is rather wearisome. Haven't traded specifically on any insight, but I find it helps inform a view of the general direction of key global trends and sectors that help one balance out the self-serving material that is rife elsewhere in financial media
Do I read The Economist? Nah. Occasionally I might look at the cover picture at economist.com. I do read Star Magazine though. www.starmagazine.com Hasn't hurt me any.
The world can usefully be divided into two categories: those who read The Economist, and those who do not. Re: bearishness. I don't really think it's that... they're not traders after all. Besides, it's pretty obvious that the more experienced you get the more you see that markets ARE pretty much way overvalued. It's just that good traders understand that doesn't mean they have to go down.
I too read The Economist. As previously stated by others, it does an excellent job of giving you a world-view macro synopsis of what is going on. Excellent reporting, haven't found it to be biased, all very objective. It does, however, count among the business magazines I look at for a "cover setup trade" - whenever a topic makes the cover, its time to start looking to go countertrend.
There was actually a hedge fund manager interviewed in the Economist who said he could trade from a prison with just a copy of the Economist. Forget who it was...
I believe you are thinking of a quote from "Inside The House of Money". One of the hedge fund managers interviewed said if he had to dump all of the research they did and keep one thing, he could macro trade off The Economist.