As liberal elites both East and West commemorate the peaceful end of the Cold War and celebrate the successes of the last three decades, it is important to recognize how painful the post-communist transition was – and, for many, continues to be. That is why nostalgia for the economic security and social stability of the […]
Today, nearly ten years later, the situation in the Middle East looks even worse than it did before the Arab Spring. Political repression is more onerous. Economic growth is sluggish and unequal. Corruption remains rampant. Gender equality is more aspiration than reality. Yet something fundamental has changed. Arab governments have traditionally rested on what political […]
China’s central bank must manage an economy structured in many ways quite differently from that of other major regions, such as Japan or the European Union. But the PBoC faces the same question of how effective monetary policy can be today. That has significant implications for the central bank’s signalling, which appeared to take a […]
In 1996, Jiang Zemin became the first Chinese head of state to visit India, underscoring the journey the two Asian neighbours had made since their 1962 border war. His successor Hu Jintao came calling in 2006. However, when you compare that to Xi Jinping’s three visits to India in the past five years – the […]
The trade war seems like the simplest explanation for China’s diminishing economic growth. The White House has slapped tariffs up to 25% on a $550 billion basket of U.S.-bound exports and Chinese exports to the U.S. dropped 22% in September. But while U.S. China hawks would no doubt like to take credit for dinging Beijing’s economy, […]
E-bills, e-signature, the electronic transfer of funds – advancements in technology are bringing about remarkable changes in the business landscape, domestically and internationally. All this change is facilitating the faster movement of goods across borders and forcing governments to keep pace. Negotiations for regional trade agreements have proved an important forum for government consultation about […]
To better understand the future of China’s role in Central Asia, and the world, you need to come to Khargos in Kazakhstan, the middle of nowhere. Straddling the Kazakh-Chinese border, a collection of cranes, railways, and buildings rises out of a barren stretch of desert surrounded by towering mountains to form the backbone of the […]
The Federal Reserve’s old moniker of “lender of last resort” is no longer relevant. Its policy of holding its federal funds rate above levels seen anywhere else in the developed world and borrowing near these rates has made it the “borrower of first resort.” This is problematic. Read Here – The National Interest
Just because Imran is flailing around doesn’t automatically have to mean that a better frontman can never be unearthed. It could just be a question of more skilfully looking in the right place at the right time. A regime frontman with the skills of a technocrat, the savvy of a traditional politician and the sleight […]
China’s seemingly inexorable rise has hit a roadblock: demographics. And despite desperate efforts to reverse the effects of the Communist Party’s one-child policy, experts warn it may be too late to prevent lasting damage. Government researchers have predicted that the world’s largest population will peak at 1.4 billion people in 2029. However, it will then experience an […]
looking beyond borders 