Showing 41 - 50 of 240
Balancing sustainability in BRI
Oped, Published on 19/10/2023
» Ever since 2013 when China launched its magnanimous Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Western capitals have been viewing this monumental developmental project with scepticism; their response is tainted by an unwarranted wave of negativity and misinformation.
What can COP28 really achieve?
Oped, Published on 18/10/2023
» COP season is almost here. For the climate-conscious, the annual Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is a fixture of the late-year calendar and an opportunity to take stock of our goals, needs, and achievements. We spend two weeks preoccupied with a distant event hoping that negotiators will make meaningful progress toward mitigating the climate threat. But to keep our expectations for COP28 realistic, we must understand what a COP can and cannot do.
France's latest crude, culinary counter-offensive
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 08/09/2023
» The French government has just published a decree banning the use of terms like "steak", "spare ribs" and "ham" on plant-based foods. Sausages and "poultry nuggets" will escape the ban so long as the plant protein content is less than 6%.
An Opec for critical minerals?
News, Published on 06/09/2023
» We know that the future will be powered by metals, but it remains to be seen if those metals will be fenced in by iron curtains. After all, most critical minerals come from only a handful of countries: China controls nearly all heavy rare-earth materials (including 91% of magnesium and 76% of silicon metal), the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) accounts for over 60% of the global cobalt market, and South Africa controls 71% of the world's platinum supply.
Time to close the clean-tech gap
News, Published on 04/09/2023
» In the debate about how to curb global warming, climate action is often confused for climate justice. Many European countries (including the United Kingdom) have taken to self-flagellation, atoning for their long history of burning fossil fuels by attempting to decarbonise their domestic economies as quickly as possible, no matter the cost.
Biden has done very little for the US economy
Oped, Published on 25/08/2023
» To the dismay of many economists, US President Joe Biden's administration has retained most of its predecessor's tariffs and trade barriers. In fact, contrary to most analysts' expectations, the United States has imposed additional protectionist measures, such as Mr Biden's "buy American" policies, resulting in higher costs for American consumers and taxpayers.
Will India be a new economic superpower?
Oped, Published on 11/08/2023
» In March 1985, the Wall Street Journal showered India's new prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, with its highest praise. In an editorial titled "Rajiv Reagan", the newspaper compared the 40-year-old Gandhi to "another famous tax cutter we know", and declared that deregulation and tax cuts had triggered a "minor revolution" in India.
Free trade in green goods needed
Oped, Published on 02/08/2023
» International trade has boosted economic growth in many countries, especially those without abundant natural resources or fixed capital. In addition to creating opportunities for cross-border specialisation, trade has made it possible to import cheap consumer goods, intermediate inputs for manufacturing, and capital equipment. This is especially true in Asia and the Pacific, which accounted for 35% of global trade in 2020, up from 25% a decade earlier.
Why is America undercutting the Japanese?
Oped, Published on 26/07/2023
» Until 2017, America's trade policies were reasonably well aligned with its strategic objectives. The US was the world's largest economy, with unrivalled military power, and its alliances with European countries and others bolstered security and underwrote prosperity for all. It also provided global leadership through bodies like the World Trade Organization, ensuring a common rule-of-law framework to support economic growth and cross-border exchange around the world.