In The News

UK Will Find EU Bank Bonus Cap Hard to Lift

John O'Donnell March 6, 2013
Europeans are impatient with the pace of economic recovery. The European Union surprised the financial industry by imposing a cap on bonuses for banks’ senior managers and traders, and the mood was also reflected by Swiss voters who approved of shareholders having a say on board and executive salaries. The plan is to reduce excessive pay and end the practice of rewards for crisis. How many...

The World Wants Vancouverism – Shouldn’t Canada?

Doug Saunders March 5, 2013
The city of Vancouver touts its diversity, green initiatives, parks and mass transit and remains a popular destination for immigrants, who account for 40 percent of the metropolitan population. Vancouver has managed fast-growing urbanization with good planning that includes eliminating vast parking lots. “Vancouver has been remade dramatically, rendered into a thickly vertical city jammed with...

Is This the End of Globalization?

David Francis March 4, 2013
Investors are less intent on pursuing cross-border profits, investing in overseas endeavors. A McKinsey Global Institute report measured money in the global financial system before and after the 2007-2008 financial crisis: In 2007, $11.8 trillion in investments and loans crossed borders; the figure for 2012 is $5 trillion. “McKinsey hedges the report by saying that some of the capital removed...

The Europeanization of America

Mark Leonard February 26, 2013
The United States and Europe each are coping with heavy debt and the prospect of decline, argues Mark Leonard, co-founder and director of the European Council for Foreign Relations. Polarized electorates and clumsy austerity programs add to uncertainty and compound economic woes. Leonard suggests that the Obama administration admires the Germany economy and pursues policies of “energy...

The Route of the Problem

Nayan Chanda February 25, 2013
The pace of growth for India is slowing. With a young workforce and high technological skills, the country shows promise. But it must “clean up the governmental morass and think holistically about what needs to be done to take advantage of its global connections and promote sustainable growth,” argues Nayan Chanda in his column for Businessworld. Strong growth and prosperity require reliable...

Immigration Reform and the American Worker

James Surowiecki February 25, 2013
Misunderstandings and myths do not produce good policy. Many Americans oppose immigration reform because they’re convinced that more immigrants eliminate jobs and hurt the US economy, especially during the recession. Instead, “a host of studies have found that immigration has actually boosted wages for native-born American workers as a whole, and that while immigration has had a negative impact...

India: Still at the Center of the Indian Ocean

Nilanthi Samaranayake February 22, 2013
Despite speculation to the contrary, India is far from losing strategic influence in the Indian Ocean region. Its security cooperation and relations with states like Sri Lanka, Maldives and Seychelles remain strong, maintains Nilanthi Samaranayake, an analyst in the Strategic Studies division at CNA, a research institute in Alexandria, Virginia. The recent cancellation of an Indian airport...