Showing 1 - 10 of 12
2026 outlook calls for recalibration
News, Mohamed A El-Erian, Published on 17/01/2026
» For global markets, 2025 was defined as much by what did not happen as by what did. The year offered a masterclass in the power of a single narrative, with massive, concentrated bets on AI masking various other unanswered questions. Yet as we move further into 2026, the AI narrative is unlikely to prove strong enough to continue overshadowing other lingering uncertainties, many of which reflect deeper structural shifts. For investors, central banks, and governments alike, the situation demands adaptation.
Another wasted year in Thai politics
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 26/12/2025
» As Thailand winds down 2025 with an early election looming on Feb 8, the most consequential issue to watch in the coming year will be whether recent topsy-turvy political patterns of polls, protests, and military and judicial interventions give way to a compromise between the old guard clinging on to vested interests and the new generation clamouring for reform and change.
'Phoney trade war' may be ending
News, Mike Dolan, Published on 18/10/2025
» After a period of relative calm through the Northern summer, businesses are bracing for a nervier winter, a return of trade and economic uncertainty, and higher financial market volatility to boot.
Climate crisis is also a costly one
Oped, Mónica Araya & Saliem Fakir, Published on 08/01/2025
» Global inflation in recent years has pushed the prices of food, energy, and basic goods to unprecedented levels. As a result, the rising cost of living has dominated political discussion around the world, but especially in G20 countries. Ahead of this year's presidential election in the United States, for example, 41% of Americans cited inflation as their top economic issue.
Let's give a hip hippo hooray for soft power!
News, Saritdet Marukatat, Published on 25/09/2024
» Every breath you take / Every move you make / Every step you take / The world is watching you.
Social equity vital to climate cause
News, Pakamas Thinphanga, Published on 05/06/2023
» Over the past few months, Thailand has experienced a new record high temperature. The unprecedented extreme heat has never been felt before.
The politics of the term-limit wrangle
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 19/08/2022
» Time is not on the side of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha as various groups of people want to see the back of him. Now that he has survived the last of four no-confidence votes in parliament since the March 2019 election, many are pinning their hopes that the eight-year prime ministerial term limit will upend Gen Prayut's rule.
Despite consensus, plastic continues to pile up
News, Edwin Seah & Natalie Harms, Published on 26/04/2021
» Plastic pollution is never far away in Southeast Asia. It's in the streets, the rivers, the forests, the beaches and almost anywhere else you care to look. According to a 2018 United Nations Environment Programme (Unep) analysis of plastics production, demand and waste, half of the world's plastic is produced in Asia and around 40 per cent of all plastic is consumed in the Asia-Pacific region. It is clear the region is at the heart of the global plastic waste crisis.
China-US rivalry on Mekong mainland
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 27/11/2020
» Unlike other key foreign policy areas where President-elect Joe Biden will likely change the course left behind by outgoing President Donald Trump, the Mekong River region in mainland Southeast Asia represents a low-hanging fruit where continuity from Washington carries consensus. As China has dominated the Mekong space by operating a string of upstream dams and controlling downstream river resources, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam as adversely affected riparian countries have looked for ways and means to mitigate and counterbalance Beijing's aggressive freshwater offensive. All the incoming Biden administration has to do is to keep its eye on the Mekong and work with like-minded partners to keep mainland Southeast Asian countries from becoming Beijing's uncontested front yard.
Last days of the Old Middle East
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 18/09/2020
» President Donald Trump declared "the dawn of a new Middle East" in Washington on Tuesday as the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed public agreements with Israel for the first time.