Xi should talk quietly and carry a bigger (reform) stick

By:
On:
In: Asia

Almost five years to the day that he inaugurated a “new era of socialism with Chinese characteristics”, General Secretary Xi Jinping returned to the Great Hall of the People to renew his ‘common prosperity’-based agenda of modernization and national rejuvenation. In his report to the 20th National Party Congress, Xi acknowledged the darkening geopolitical clouds on the horizon — the “black swans”, unpredictable dangerous […]Continue Reading

How Europe has navigated its energy crises

By:
On:
In: Asia
LNG exporters like Qatar are currently much better positioned than the US to satisfy Europe’s natural gas demand. Photo: iStock

While European energy prices have eased slightly in recent months, stress continues to build across a continent that has long been dependent on access to cheap Russian energy. Protests related to high energy costs have been held from Belgium to the Czech Republic. Fuel shortages have led to long queues to buy gasoline at fuel stations in France. The Don’t Pay […]Continue Reading

Thai economy stuck in an aging middle-income trap

By:
On:
In: Asia, Business

Southeast Asia’s second-largest and once one of its most dynamic economies is struggling under the weight of an aging population, a deteriorating education system and low-yield rice farming. Thailand looks trapped as a middle-income country, unable to get rich, and stuck between a younger, dynamic Vietnam and a larger Indonesia. Getting out of its economic […]Continue Reading

Role of tax cuts in Sri Lankan crisis

By:
On:
In: Asia

Sri Lanka’s fiscal situation has been facing turmoil since the global financial crisis of 2008 as well as the 26-year-long civil war that ended in 2009, draining the country of valuable resources over the years. The present economic breakdown is a result of various political missteps, which cascaded into the collapse of the political administration […]Continue Reading

Heat, then floods ruin Pakistani farmers’ livelihoods

By:
On:
In: Asia

“NO WORK LEFT” Many of the flood-displaced in southern Sindh province have sought shelter in urban centres, including tens of thousands recorded at relief camps and many more in the homes of relatives or rental properties. With homes and livelihoods washed away, some are expected to abandon their rural lives,Continue Reading

Crisis-hit Sri Lanka votes to curb presidential powers

By:
On:
In: Asia

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s parliament voted Friday (Oct 21) in order to curtail the capabilities of the president, a partial concession towards the protest movement that will forced the island nation’s former mind of state into exile. An unprecedented economic downturn this year fuelled intensive public anger, with all the governmentContinue Reading