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Macroscope
A utilities box covered in Canadian flags sits in front of a steel plant in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, on August 20. Although Canada’s economy will bear the brunt of a full-blown trade war, the US will suffer, too. Photo: The Canadian Press via AP
United States

Macroscope | US markets are paying the price for Trump’s reckless policies

From surging debt to trade wars with Canada, self-harm has been the main consequence of Trump’s reckless policy decisions.

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US-China relations

Opinion | The security-obsessed global economy needs its own Helsinki process

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Books and literature

Opinion | Why Asimov’s Foundation series still resonates in the AI era

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Diplomacy

Opinion | For states, being part of everything doesn’t mean being part of nothing

The opposite of commitment is breach, not multiplicity. A nation’s reliability isn’t measured by how many treaties it signs.

The United Nations General Assembly Hall in New York on March 25. Governments increasingly face the same demand: prove the depth of your commitment by closing the door on everyone else. Photo: Zuma press wire / dpa
The United Nations General Assembly Hall in New York on March 25. Governments increasingly face the same demand: prove the depth of your commitment by closing the door on everyone else. Photo: Zuma press wire / dpa
Education

Just Saying | Reflections of a reformed grammar Nazi

The evolution of English is an unstoppable force and resisting its ‘dumbing down’ may be futile.

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US-China relations

Opinion | China’s view of Trump’s America has changed from alarm to a shrug

Erratic and transactional, the US leader’s approach exposes domestic governance flaws and the limits of Washington’s containment strategy.

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United States

As I see it | The US is telling its trading partners – do as I say, not as I do

While Washington says it is monitoring certain countries, including Japan, for foreign exchange interventions, it also coordinated with Tokyo to prop up the yen.

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters as he walks to the West Wing following an interview at the White House in Washington on August 20. Photo: EPA
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters as he walks to the West Wing following an interview at the White House in Washington on August 20. Photo: EPA
University of Cambridge

Opinion | Why the Jason Arday case resonates with me

While stories emphasising the personal background of academics can inspire, they can also turn those scholars into a symbol too early.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Trump’s blunt remarks offer South Korea an opportunity

Reduced US-South Korea drills complicate Seoul’s security dilemma but are also a low-cost goodwill signal to Pyongyang that could create room for dialogue.

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United States

As I see it | Why China’s political and industrial systems work better than the US

An Indian writer and an American businessman explain how de-industrialisation and the rise of oligarchs handicapped the US ability to compete.

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A giant screen shows news footage of Chinese President Xi Jinping shaking hands with DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng during a symposium on private enterprise, at a shopping complex in Beijing on February 17, 2025. China’s treatment of its billionaire class differs from the United States’. Photo: Reuters
United States

Opinion | America is arguing over the wrong AI obstacle

Sluggish adoption can’t be blamed on overregulation, and restricting access to US frontier models is no defence against open-source Chinese rivals.

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US President Donald Trump displaying a signed executive order related to his AI Action Plan at the “Winning the AI Race” summit in Washington, D.C. on July 23, 2025. Photo: Getty Images
US President Donald Trump displaying a signed executive order related to his AI Action Plan at the “Winning the AI Race” summit in Washington, D.C. on July 23, 2025. Photo: Getty Images
War and conflict

Opinion | Chokepoints and the cost of cutting off access

The most dangerous chokepoint may not be the narrowest strait or rarest tech but where the final decision rests with the fewest people.

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US-China tech war

Opinion | A US ban on Chinese optical transceivers would highlight tech war direction

The possible ripple effects of an FCC ban on Chinese optical transceivers show any US-China tech decoupling will be slow and costly.

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Artificial intelligence

Macroscope | Why are global leaders asleep to risks of uncritical AI adoption?

Much like their drowsiness on climate change, world leaders have been lulled to sleep by promises of AI’s benefits to efficiency and profits.

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US President Donald Trump closes his eyes before signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on August 10. Photo: AFP
Banking & finance

Opinion | The AI-driven candyfloss economy can’t last forever

Wishful thinking and irresponsible levels of debt are driving a global economy that looks sweet from the outside but is utterly hollow.

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People stand near an electronic screen showing trading figures including South Korea’s benchmark stock index in a foreign exchange dealing room at the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on July 31. Photo: AFP
People stand near an electronic screen showing trading figures including South Korea’s benchmark stock index in a foreign exchange dealing room at the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on July 31. Photo: AFP
Banking & finance

Opinion | Just like with the yen, America cannot save the AI bubble

The Japanese currency and US tech stocks share the same fatal problem: momentum can’t survive broken fundamentals.

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Books and literature

Opinion | What Nolan’s Odysseus tells us about Western elite’s existential angst

The film’s reinterpreted Homeric hero represents a contemporary reckoning with the West’s ruthless pursuit of power and disregard for boundaries.

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Middle East

Opinion | How Mecca defence pact changes China’s calculations in the Middle East

Defence pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan presents a complex strategic calculus for Beijing, demanding a masterclass in balance.

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
Artificial intelligence

Macroscope | Could China be a hedge against risk of AI investment boom going bust?

The more ‘DeepSeek moments’ there are in China, the likelier markets are to doubt the AI-related revenues and financing of US hyperscalers.

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Environment

Opinion | The race for critical minerals is clearing the path for deep-sea mining

Corporate pressure and US-China competition are stalling global efforts to set environmental safeguards for seabed mining.

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Technology

Opinion | US does its robotics industry no favours by fencing it off from China

By banning Chinese humanoid robots, Washington is trying to buy its industry time, but the lack of competition is not a strength.

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A robot made by Chinese company AgiBot dances at the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, Switzerland, on July 7. Photo: Xinhua
Artificial intelligence

Outside In | Why Asia need not match West’s fear over data centre buildout

The spread of data centres in Asia does not seem to have sparked the kind of protests it has in the West, but good policies are needed to ensure that remains the case.

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Demonstrators participate in a nationwide protest against data centers in Fredericksburg, Virginia, on July 18. Photo: Reuters
Demonstrators participate in a nationwide protest against data centers in Fredericksburg, Virginia, on July 18. Photo: Reuters
Chinese history

As I see it | The world that made Confucius – and the China he made

China’s most enduring philosophical tradition didn’t merely revere the past; it drew upon history to construct the future.

Fifa World Cup

Opinion | Why underdogs like Alexandra Eala, Cabo Verde, Dear You fascinate us

Money still shapes the balance of power, but every so often a team, player or film will rise up to challenge the status quo and inspire us.

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Banking & finance

Macroscope | US efforts to prop up the yen risk doing more harm than good

Reversing the yen’s long-term decline ultimately rests on Japan’s ability to take its real interest rates out of negative territory – without triggering market panic.

A person walks past an electronic board showing Japan’s Nikkei index chart in Tokyo on August 6. At a time when the US is the main source of volatility in global markets, Washington’s participation in the Japanese currency intervention adds another layer of uncertainty. Photo: AP
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