The intensifying strategic contest over critical materials has reached a new inflection point, as Western nations scramble to fill a looming gap in heavy rare earth elements such as dysprosium and terbium. These so-called “heavies” are indispensable for high-performance permanent magnets used in...

Ukraine is preparing to lodge a landmark claim against Russia, demanding around US$44 billion in compensation for the climate-warming emissions produced by the war since Russia invaded in February 2022. At the heart of the case lies a novel hypothesis: that wartime emissions—stemming from fossil...

The European Central Bank (ECB) has made a small adjustment to the capital requirements for banks in the Eurozone for 2026, as these institutions passed their stress tests earlier this year. The ECB has set the minimum Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital adequacy ratio at 11.2% of risk-weighted...

Japan’s economy shrank in the July–September quarter, ending six consecutive quarters of growth and revealing how vulnerable the country remains to shifts in global trade conditions. The annualised 1.8% fall, translating to a 0.4% quarterly contraction, came at a moment when the export-driven...

German officials and business leaders are not giving enough focus to the increasing reliance of the German economy on China, which could lead to serious consequences, according to Bloomberg. The report highlights that major German exporters, including those in the automotive and chemical sectors,...

In recent weeks, a chorus of more hawkish voices has emerged within the Federal Reserve (Fed), signalling a clear reluctance to follow through with another rate reduction at the upcoming December 9-10 meeting. Regional bank presidents such as Jeffrey Schmid (Kansas City), Lorie Logan (Dallas) and...

In a decisive pivot, President Donald Trump announced the rollback of import tariffs on more than 200 food-and-beverage items—including staples such as beef, coffee, bananas, oranges and tomato products—as part of a broader effort to ease consumer inflation and respond to mounting political...

The United States and South Korea have unveiled comprehensive details of a far-reaching economic and security agreement centred on an unprecedented wave of South Korean investment into American industrial sectors, most notably shipbuilding. The deal includes a $150 billion commitment to support US...

China’s leadership has used a succession of recent royal visits to amplify its preferred narrative of stability, trustworthiness and long-term partnership at a moment when it seeks to counterbalance perceptions of geopolitical tension and economic uncertainty. The arrivals of Thailand’s King Maha...