Showing 1 - 10 of 32
China's future could reflect Russia's own
Oped, Published on 01/10/2022
» As China prepares for its 20th National Congress in October, when President Xi Jinping is expected to accept an unprecedented third term, many observers worry about uncertain days ahead, especially regarding Taiwan. But one doesn't need a crystal ball to glimpse its future. China's leaders, for their part, are looking at Russia.
A last look back at Asia this year
Oped, Published on 31/12/2021
» 2022 could not have come fast enough. For many in Thailand and no doubt the rest of the world, new hope based on increased vaccination rates against Covid-19 was overwhelmed by the spread of the Omicron variant at year-end. Thailand's travel and tourism sector continues to be particularly hard hit as entry and quarantine rules continue to change.
New lockdown bodes economic misery
Oped, Chartchai Parasuk, Published on 07/01/2021
» My first article of the year cannot be about anything but the Covid-19 lockdown. Actually, I planned to write about the two-month disappearance of the world-famous Jack Ma -- founder of Alibaba and Alipay. He has an innovative idea to revolutionise the Chinese financial system but his revolutionary idea was not agreeable with Chinese authorities and caused him to "disappear". What interests me is not China's internal affairs. But his idea, once put into use, will revolutionise the global economy as well. Milton Friedman (a Nobel Prize laureate in Economics and the father of monetary policy) and his Optimum Quantity of Money theory will become useless. His idea, if taken far enough, might be able to pull the world economy out of the Covid slump. Sound interesting? Readers have to wait until my next article, which will come in two weeks' time.
FFP pays price for meteoric rise
News, Veera Prateepchaikul, Published on 25/11/2019
» Following the Constitutional Court ruling last week that disqualified Future Forward Party (FFP) leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit as an MP, the Election Commission (EC) said it is considering whether to file criminal charges against him in a related case for violation Section 151 of the Members of the House of Representatives Election Act 2018. But FFP spokeswoman Pannika Wanich has made a valid point about the law in a defence of the party's leader.
Jack Ma's Singles Day is coming for Black Friday
News, Shuli Ren, Published on 23/11/2018
» Watch out: Jack Ma's Singles Day is going to make Black Friday a lot less alluring.
Xi, not Trump is the true cold warrior
News, Michael Schuman, Published on 15/11/2018
» The US-China trade war is looking more and more like a cold war. President Donald Trump's tariffs, crackdown on alleged Chinese theft of American technology, and rhetoric have overturned decades of US foreign policy that had prioritised cooperation. Meanwhile, his counterpart Xi Jinping hasn't budged on any concessions. China experts worry that relations between the world's two most important countries have reached a turning point.
Unnecessary complications
News, Editorial, Published on 09/11/2018
» The working of government and the making of sausages are quite similar, a wise man said more than a century ago. It is often unappealing to watch the process, even if the outcome is often uplifting. Two events sparked by the Thai government last week rather prove the point. The quest for "Taobao Villages" and a sudden demand to protect Thai food from foreigners both came out of the blue, and are more off-putting than attractive.
Early impact of the US-China showdown
News, Published on 26/10/2018
» The talk making the rounds everywhere about a "trade war" between the world's two largest economies began early this year when the United States imposed tariffs on solar panels and washing machines against cheaper versions from South Korea and China. By midyear, China became the US' principal target in a wider and more intense tit-for-tat tariff spiral. Seen in this light, the trade war between the two giants was always going to be about a broader geopolitical and geoeconomic tussle, much more than just about trade. The early effects of the US-China confrontation are now evident and will manifest more clearly and widely next year and beyond. As some of the US multinationals in China turn elsewhere, Southeast Asia will be poised for short-term gains, although longer-term prospects bear risks.
The dawn of a second Great Recession?
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 22/09/2018
» Ten years ago this month the financial services firm Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection, triggering the 2008 crash and the subsequent Great Recession from which the world's economies have still not fully recovered. Will we look back on this month as the turning point when Donald Trump's trade war with China unleashed the Second Great Recession?
Global trade is flourishing (for emerging markets)
News, Daniel Moss, Published on 20/09/2018
» The West has turned hostile to open markets, but trade isn't in retreat everywhere. In other parts of the world, it's flourishing.