In The News

Nikkei Asian Review: Brexit Moment of Truth

Humphrey Hawksley March 22, 2017
Britain will give formal notice March 29 on exiting the European Union. “Britain has suddenly become a place of uncertainty for investors – from Asia and the rest of the world,” explains Humphrey Hawksley for Nikkei Asian Review. “Already, thousands of Asian companies that are integral to the British economy are slowing or reversing expansion plans.” Hawksley points that the UK’s share of the...

Time: The Comey Hearing

Sam Frizell March 21, 2017
The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation publicly confirmed an investigation into links between the Trump campaign and Russian interference in the November election. “Comey then contradicted several statements by the White House, including the president's incendiary claim that former President Obama had ‘tapped’ Trump's phone,” reports Sam Frizell for Time magazine. Democrats...

Spiegel Online: Dutch Election Slows Europe's Populists

Claus Hecking March 21, 2017
Prime Minister Mark Rutte and his center-right political party, the VVD, won the Dutch general election. Rutte has held the position since 2010, but faced a strong challenge from the far-right populist Geert Wilders. Wilders’ calls for nationalist policies and a “Nexit” from the European Union were at odds with the Netherlands’ global position as a leading exporter, Claus Hecking posits for...

The Diplomat: After Impeachment Verdict, Korea’s "Fresh Start" On Reform Begins Again

Anthony Fensom March 14, 2017
South Korea’s president was removed from office, and so far the country’s economy and markets are left unfazed. South Korea’s first female president had promised strong economic growth, with a rise in per-capita income, as well as increased tax breaks to encourage investment. Instead, “Exports shrank for two straight years through 2016 and may be further damaged by deteriorating relations with...

Project Syndicate: Brexit in a Brave New World

Daniel Gros February 7, 2017
Trade increases efficiency, reducing costs for all parties. Large economies have advantages with tariffs, and “The advantage of the larger economy is even greater when it comes to non-tariff barriers, which often result from differences in regulations and standards among trading countries,” explains Daniel Gros for Project Syndicate. “In most cases, the smaller country must simply accept the...

A Europe of Merkel and Fillon?

Camille Pecastaing December 6, 2016
François Fillon and Angela Merkel lead in the polls to become the respective leaders of France and Germany. Both cater to the center-right and embrace free-trade, the EU and globalization. Their similar platforms as well as past tenure together could shore up “the French-German dynamic [that] has been so central to the construction of Europe since the 1950s,” writes Camille Pecastaing for Foreign...

Italy Sinks Into Political Limbo as Defeat Sweeps Renzi Away

John Follain and Chiara Albanese December 5, 2016
Italy is Europe’s fourth largest economy and the country is falling “into political limbo after Prime Minister Matteo Renzi announced his resignation, with rival parties jockeying to fill the power vacuum following his crushing defeat in a constitutional referendum,” reports Bloomberg. The constitutional reforms were intended to reduce the size of parliament, putting limits on the Senate, and...