In The News

The New Barons of Bordeaux

Pallavi Aiyar September 12, 2012
Globalization is both blessing and curse for enchanting regions like Bordeaux. Even as Europe struggles with debt and austerity plans, centuries-old vineyards and chateaux languish on the market, and their winemakers must compete with upstarts from South Africa, South and North America. An increasingly prosperous China has become a major export market for Bordeaux wines, and Chinese investors...

US Voters Mull the Economy

Bruce Stokes September 6, 2012
The global economy has a stake in the US presidential campaign. Top issues so far are economic: jobs, debt reduction and protecting the safety net for the nation’s elderly, otherwise known as Social Security and Medicare, amid rising costs. US voters want the economy fixed, but resist the sacrifices required for long-term solutions. In polls, 80 percent of Americans have expressed dissatisfaction...

US Law’s Positive Impact on Africa

Humphrey Hawksley July 10, 2012
With the sentencing of a Congolese warlord at the International Criminal Court, whose charges included employing child soldiers, the wheels of justice turn in Africa. Another unexpected source, too, is helping Africa. The Dodd-Frank Act was designed to reform the US financial system after the 2008 credit crisis, explains Humphrey Hawksley, BBC News correspondent, and Section 1502 addresses so-...

Economic Nationalism Rises in Indonesia

John Berthelsen June 5, 2012
In Indonesia, as foreign investors express interest in a project – purchasing a bank or building a port – the government steps in with new regulations that thwart the deal and reinforce state-controlled enterprises. Taxes discourage exports of raw materials, minerals or palm oil, and encourage refining inside Indonesia. While globalization and foreign direct investment have fueled Asia’s...

Asia Caught Between Rivals China and US

Jean-Pierre Lehmann April 30, 2012
As European and US economies continue to drag, many analysts see China and Asia as a whole rising as dominant global players. But international political economist Jean-Pierre Lehmann points to the ambiguity of this prowess. Asian nations increasingly rely on China as an economic partner while increasingly counting on the United States for security. Vietnam, Australia, Japan and others...

Tide Turns on Border Crossing

Miriam Jordan April 26, 2012
The reasons are many – demographics, recession, a rise in enforcement and hostility toward immigrants – but net immigration from Mexico to the US has plummeted to zero, reports Miriam Jordan for the Wall Street Journal. A decline in the Mexico’s birth rate has increased families’ wealth and reduced the need to immigrate in search for work. “Mexican families have fewer mouths to feed as the...

Ending Isolation – Part II

Andrea Armeni April 25, 2012
International sanctions are intended to signal displeasure about another country’s direction and promote change. This YaleGlobal series examines separate trade bans directed at Burma and Cuba, questioning whether long-term isolation provides enough incentive for wayward states to pursue reforms. The United States imposed a near-complete trade embargo on neighboring Cuba one half century ago after...