Search results

Automotive output is falling but innovation is rising

Location:

INTERNATIONAL

Inflation will weaken disposable income, but pent-up demand will remain strong, pushing prices and profits to record levels. Meanwhile, auto makers will continue to invest heavily…

Container shipping congestion will disrupt world trade

Location:

INTERNATIONAL

The China containerised freight index, a widely-used barometer measuring contract rates for export container transport from Shanghai, has averaged more than 2,000 this year, twice…

Long Red Sea crisis would absorb shipping overcapacity

Location:

INTERNATIONAL

The capacity of the global container fleet grew by 7.9% last year but demand for container shipping was flat, triggering a cyclical downturn and a sharp drop in freight rates. All…

US tariffs will test trade alliances and architecture

Location:

INTERNATIONAL

The USTR will subject 284 more products worth 16 billion dollars to public comment. President Donald Trump is intensifying his efforts to return manufacturing to the United States…

Sahel smugglers move into gold and counterfeit drugs

Location:

SAHEL

Some traditional forms of trafficking, such as cocaine, are somewhat contracting, while new ones, for instance counterfeit medicines, are booming. None has disappeared; instead…

China’s defence spending will remain stable

Location:

CHINA

Defence spending will account for 1.2% of GDP in 2024, having remained stable at around this figure for at least the past two decades. Nevertheless, outside estimates of China’s…

New fighting in Congo heightens fears of escalation

Location:

CONGO-KINSHASA

Although the Congolese and Rwandan militaries are not officially involved yet, an escalation of the hostilities could unravel the limited diplomatic progress that has been made in…

The impact of Brexit on UK-EU trade is growing

Location:

UK/EU

UK imports from the EU were consistently weak throughout 2021 and were outperformed by imports from non-EU countries, while exports to EU and non-EU countries were at around the…

End of post-1945 economic order bodes ill for growth

Location:

INTERNATIONAL

The system of international institutions to promote cooperation and open trade was built on the political preferences of a group of the world's wealthiest states. Over time, the…

Climate change threatens brittle global trading system

Location:

INTERNATIONAL

With the WTO in gridlock, major powers are advancing competing policy solutions that threaten to contravene trade agreements and impede global cooperation. The EU remains…