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Sat, Apr 27, 2024 08:42 AM All times are UTC

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Global Geopolitics Series

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When you throw pebbles in a pond, you get splashes and ripples, but drop a huge rock, you create a mini Tsunami. Similarly Geo-political turmoil, are potent enough to create tsunamis in financial markets, even if its for the short run. It has in the past, and it will in the future. De-stabilised Middle East, rise of new power in Saudi Arabia, aggressive China, Russia-US tensions, Turkey-Russia escalation, rise of autocratic but nationalists leaders such as Modi in India, Trump in United States, bin-Salman in Middle East, the Geo-Political unease hasn't been this tense in decades, so as a market participant you can never care less than ever.

Global Geopolitics Series

Ukraine war: Putin’s plan to fire up Zaporizhzhia power plant risks massive nuclear disaster

Apr 25, 2024 06:42 am UTC| Insights & Views

Recent reports of a series of drone strikes on Ukraines Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) have demonstrated the serious safety and security concerns at Europes largest nuclear power station. It has not been confirmed...

Global Geopolitics Series

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has left the entire region at a heightened risk of radioactive pollution

Apr 25, 2024 06:01 am UTC| Insights & Views

Russias invasion of Ukraine has put the countrys nuclear facilities at considerable risk. For example, on April 7 a drone attacked Ukraines Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant. This attack on the largest nuclear power plant...

Global Geopolitics Series

Ukraine war: $60 billion in US military aid a major morale boost but no certain path to victory

Apr 23, 2024 08:04 am UTC| Insights & Views

It took months of delays and desperate pleas from Ukraine, but the US House of Representatives has finally passed a bill authorising US$60 billion (50 billion) worth of military aid to Ukraine. The bill is still subject...

Global Geopolitics Series

How will US foreign policy affect Joe Biden’s chances of re-election in November?

Apr 22, 2024 03:28 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

When big questions about American foreign policy collide with an election, its rarely good news for a sitting president. Like many leaders before him, US President Joe Biden has had some of these questions thrust on...

Global Geopolitics Series

Oman serves as a crucial back channel between Iran and the US as tensions flare in the Middle East

Apr 19, 2024 06:26 am UTC| Insights & Views

Prior to launching a barrage of drones and missiles at Israel on April 13, 2024, Iran reportedly got word to Washington that its response to an earlier strike on its embassy compound in Syria would seek to avoid major...

Global Geopolitics Series

An Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear weapons programme is unlikely – here’s why

Apr 19, 2024 06:24 am UTC| Insights & Views

Israels prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has vowed to retaliate against Iran for the unprecedented aerial assault on April 13. He has made it clear that we will make our own decisions, and the state of Israel will do...

Global Geopolitics Series

Ukraine is losing the war and the west faces a stark choice

Apr 18, 2024 06:24 am UTC| Insights & Views

Ukraine is now experiencing a level of existential threat comparable only to the situation immediately after the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. But in contrast to then, improvements are unlikely at least...

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Economy

Beyond the spin, beyond the handouts, here’s how to get a handle on what’s really happening on budget night

Three weeks from now, some of us will be presented with a mountain of budget papers, and just about all of us will get to hear about them on radio, TV or news websites on budget night. The quickest way to find out what...

Johannesburg in a time of darkness: Ivan Vladislavić’s new memoir reminds us of the city’s fragility

Ivan Vladislavić is Johannesburgs literary linkman. He tells us, in the first pages of his new book, The Near North, that before cities were lit, first by gaslight and later electricity, people of means paid torchbearers...

Why is the London Stock Exchange losing out to the US

London Stock Exchange (LSE), which can trace its heritage to the coffee houses of the 17th century, is failing. The volume of shares traded is sharply declining, and some UK companies are swiftly moving to the US...

Why Germany ditched nuclear before coal – and why it won’t go back

One year ago, Germany took its last three nuclear power stations offline. When it comes to energy, few events have baffled outsiders more. In the face of climate change, calls to expedite the transition away from fossil...

What if the Reserve Bank itself has been feeding inflation? An economist explains

Heres something for the board of the Reserve Bank of Australia to ponder as it meets next month to set interest rates. It has pushed up rates on 13 occasions since it began its attempt to restrain inflation in May...

Politics

Labour can afford to be far more ambitious with its economic policies – voters are on board

To say that the Labour party is flying high in the polls is something of an understatement. But despite its consistent lead against the Tories, the opposition finds itself in a rather odd position: on the cusp of power but...

History for sale: what does South Africa’s struggle heritage mean after 30 years of democracy?

One of my favourite statues is the one of Nelson Mandela at the Sandton City shopping centre in Johannesburg. Larger than life, its oversized bronze shoes shimmer in the evening light, polished by the hands of many...

Sudan: civil war stretches into a second year with no end in sight

In the early hours of April 15 2023, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) a Sudanese paramilitary force attacked the military airstrip in the town of Merowe and deployed troops across strategic locations in Sudans capital,...

Turkey’s suppression of the Kurdish political movement continues to fuel a deadly armed conflict

The world has 91 democracies and 88 autocracies. Yet 71% of the worlds population (some 5.7 billion people) are living under autocratic rule, a big jump from 48% ten years ago. This trend towards authoritarianism can...

Georgia is sliding towards autocracy after government moves to force through bill on ‘foreign agents’

Georgias ruling party attempted to pass a controversial bill on foreign agents in March 2023. The law would have required civil society groups and the media to register as being under foreign influence if they receive...

Science

A Nasa rover has reached a promising place to search for fossilised life on Mars

While we go about our daily lives on Earth, a nuclear-powered robot the size of a small car is trundling around Mars looking for fossils. Unlike its predecessor Curiosity, Nasas Perseverance rover is explicitly intended to...

The rising flood of space junk is a risk to us on Earth – and governments are on the hook

A piece of space junk recently crashed through the roof and floor of a mans home in Florida. Nasa later confirmed that the object had come from unwanted hardware released from the international space station. The 700g,...

Peter Higgs was one of the greats of particle physics. He transformed what we know about the building blocks of the universe

Peter Higgs, who gave his name to the subatomic particle known as the Higgs boson, has died aged 94. He was always a modest man, especially when considering that he was one of the greats of particle physics the area of...

Could a telescope ever see the beginning of time? An astronomer explains

The James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST for short, is one of the most advanced telescopes ever built. Planning for JWST began over 25 years ago, and construction efforts spanned over a decade. It was launched into space on...

US media coverage of new science less likely to mention researchers with African and East Asian names

When one Chinese national recently petitioned the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to become a permanent resident, he thought his chances were pretty good. As an accomplished biologist, he figured that news...

Technology

DJI Faces Possible US Ban by Congress, Echoing Concerns Over TikTok and China

Congress is poised to include DJI in the FCCs list of banned technologies under the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, highlighting similar US security concerns as those with TikTok. Congressional Action to...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Other AI Leaders Join Federal Safety Board, Pledge to Protect Children Online

Sam Altman of OpenAI and executives from Microsoft, Google, and Nvidia have joined a new government AI safety board. This initiative, part of a broader effort to regulate AIs deployment in critical sectors, coincides with...

Mainland China Investors Blocked from Accessing New Hong Kong Bitcoin ETFs

Despite launching new Bitcoin and Ether ETFs in Hong Kong, mainland Chinese investors remain sidelined due to longstanding cryptocurrency bans in their home country. Spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs Launch in Hong Kong, But...

SHIB Price Climbs as Shibarium Upgrade Sparks Optimism Among Investors

The Shiba Inu cryptocurrency surged over 4% on April 26, buoyed by executive enthusiasm for the forthcoming Shibarium upgrade to enhance the platforms functionality and security. Shibarium Upgrade Fuels Market Optimism,...

China Investigates Digital Yuan Architect Yao Qian Amid CBDC Concerns

Yao Qian, a pivotal figure behind Chinas digital yuan, is under investigation for alleged misconduct, casting uncertainty on the future of Chinas CBDC initiatives. Probe into Yao Qian Shakes Foundations of Chinas...