In The News

Asia Sentinel: Malaysia’s PM Sells His Country to China

Philip Bowring August 10, 2016
“The vulnerability of Southeast Asian countries to the combination of Chinese money and their own corrupt politicians has been laid starkly bare by a new report on Malaysia’s scandal ridden 1MDB,” reports Philip Bowring. International authorities are investigating Prime Minister Najib Razak for transferring 1MDB sovereign fund money into his personal accounts. The prime minister is accused of...

Crowding Out the Locals: Are Weekend Trips Ruining Cities?

Dinah Deckstein and Alexander Kühn August 9, 2016
Many tourists try to squeeze as many possible experiences as possible into a few days, and quick weekend jaunts are common. Communities and businesses target visitors with sporting events and festivals; less savory are pub crawls and binge-drinking activities. “Tourists are conquerors who disguise themselves as friends, which often makes them difficult to deal with, no matter how much money they...

Texas Shale Oil Has Fought Saudi Arabia to a Standstill

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard August 1, 2016
Oil suppliers have flooded global markets, driving down prices. Investment in the industry is down, and some high-cost projects in deep waters and other challenging environments have been shelved, but “North America's hydraulic frackers are cutting costs so fast that most can now produce at prices far below levels needed to fund the Saudi welfare state and its military machine, or to cover...

Brexit Blues in Central Europe

Joji Sakurai July 28, 2016
Europe's opponents of immigration may be triumphant about Brexit, but the crowing won’t last long in countries that depend on the European Union for technical advice, aid, trade and foreign investment that allowed them to outperform the European Union as a whole. “To hear the rhetoric, one might assume that ‘Huxit’ or ‘Czexit’ – departures by Hungary or the Czech Republic – may be around the...

India’s Digital Revolution Poised to Propel Services

Nandan Nilekani July 26, 2016
India is poised to revolutionize the service industry, in such a way that borrowing, saving and transferring money could happen as swiftly as sending an email. This technological leap enables India to rely more on services and domestic consumption even as world trade is slumping. A nationwide government initiative encouraging financial inclusion and bank accounts, combined with biometric-based...

With Globalization in Danger, G-20 Double Down on a Defense

July 26, 2016
The world’s largest economies have prospered from globalization, yet G20 finance leaders must confront the growing opposition to trade and immigration among their citizens: “finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 put a stepped-up emphasis on fiscal and structural policies to boost growth, and renewed a pledge to promote inclusiveness,” reports Bloomberg News. The article...

It’s Just a Stealth Reform

Nayan Chanda July 25, 2016
The Indian government is promoting textile and garment production to restore the country’s manufacturing prowess while also slipping in labor reforms. “By highlighting subsidies and higher wages for workers while increasing the hiring and firing power of employers the government has adopted the tactic of stealth reform,” writes Nayan Chanda, founding editor of YaleGlobal Online, in his column for...