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Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2008

Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2008
The Global Financial Crisis of 2007-2008 was widely blamed on the subprime crisis and its fallout, which led to the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, with the US government forced to bail out AIG, and to rescue both General Motors and Chrysler, while also adding liquidity to avert a severe credit crunch in the banking sector. Banks in Europe, the US and Britain also came under extreme pressure and the GFC contributed to the euro zone sovereign debt crisis.
People with smartphones walk through the business district of Jakarta, Indonesia, in June 2022. Debt stocks have reached new highs across both advanced and emerging economies. Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images
Banking & finance

Macroscope | How global debt is sowing the seeds of financial collapse

Markets have so far shrugged off wars and trade conflicts, but the rapid rise of already massive debt should alarm investors.

Hong Kong property

How 2 landmark Central deals boost sentiment in Hong Kong’s office market

United States

Macroscope | Distracted at Davos, leaders are ignoring one critical issue

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European Union

Opinion | Can Europe survive its crippling paralysis?

The brutal reality is that the European Union is failing to get its squabbling nations to work as a coherent group.

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European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas signs an agreement to transfer to Ukraine a tranche of proceeds from frozen Russian assets during a meeting in Lviv, Ukraine, on May 9. Photo: AP
Banking & finance

Macroscope | Inflated asset prices show markets don’t always know best

With hyperinflated sectors across multiple asset markets, the next crash could be so severe that it prompts a restructuring of global finance.

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China economy

Opinion | The rise of a Beijing-led ‘Global South Consensus’

As the Global South seeks a better development model and China looks for alternatives to mature markets, a match made out of mutual need is emerging.

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Banking & finance

Opinion | As markets grow more fragile, matter of time before the bubble bursts

The news and stories that move markets could well be a leading indicator of when markets fail.

The floor of the New York Stock Exchange on September 10. Photo: AP
China property

Opinion | Amid a wave of foreclosures, China’s homeowners could use a break

To share losses more evenly among the financial system, Beijing ought to take pre-emptive steps to protect borrowers and keep prices stable.

Banking & finance

Opinion | Jitters among US banks raise spectre of global financial crisis

The world appears to have forgotten a key lesson of the global financial crisis: some problems were spotted earlier but sidelined.

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Insurance

Retiring AIA chairman Edmund Tse reflects on 64 years with the insurer

Tse presided over the company’s blockbuster IPO and return to mainland China in a career that began in 1961 with a monthly salary of US$76.90.

AIA chairman Edmund Tse Sze-wing speaks to the media in a briefing on July 9, 2025 at AIA Central. Photo: Enoch Yiu
Banking & finance

Macroscope | How the obsession with risky assets is putting global finance in peril

From the speculative frenzy over digital assets to the assault on bond markets, the next financial crisis will be self-inflicted.

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An activist in Sterling, Virginia, calls out an attendee at an exclusive dinner at the Trump National Golf Course, on May 22. Photo: AP
Hong Kong economy

Opinion | Cryptocurrencies are emerging as ‘digital gold’ in a shaky world economy

Demand is growing for borderless, neutral financial tools in a fragmenting world economy, with rising tariffs and alliances under strain.

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US-China relations

Opinion | Why China has refused to back down in the face of Trump’s tariffs

China’s elites, going back to the late Qing, have been waiting for this moment – to push back against the world’s strongest power.

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United States

Macroscope | IMF’s tariff warnings may be too little, too late

The Trump administration has brought the world to the brink of a systemic financial and economic crisis.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva delivers a speech ahead of next week’s World Bank Group and IMF 2025 spring meetings, at the IMF headquarters in Washington on April 17. Photo: EPA-EFE
Hong Kong stock market

Where does Hang Seng Index’s 13% slump rank among other major crashes?

The plunge pushed Hong Kong’s benchmark index into bear territory, as it has lost more than 20 per cent from a recent peak.

Anxious investors watch the stock market coverage at a bank after the crash on October 28, 1997. Photo: SCMP
United States

Explainer | From Great Depression to Covid-19, how Trump’s tariffs compare to worst crashes

China’s retaliation to Trump’s tariffs caused historic stock market collapses in Asia and Europe, reminiscent of past financial crises.

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Canada

Canada votes: Carney seeks strong mandate to deal with Trump

Carney and his Conservative opponent will kick off the election against the backdrop of a trade war and annexation threats from Trump.

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Wealth Report

From niche to necessity: private credit transforms Asia’s lending landscape

As rising interest rates and market volatility push investors towards alternative assets, private credit is gaining traction – though some question whether the sector can maintain its strong returns.

Since the global financial crisis of 2007-08, private credit – nonbank lending from institutional investors direct to businesses or individuals – has gone from strength to strength. Photo: Getty Images/AFP
Canada

Who is Mark Carney? Crisis-fighting central banker to lead Canada through US trade war

Former central banker Mark Carney has won the race to replace Justin Trudeau as Canada’s prime minister.

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Hong Kong budget 2025-26

Opinion | Hong Kong must find the courage to reform its public finances

Reliance on salary freezes and workforce reductions has become a recurring theme. But they fail to address the public sector’s inefficiencies.

China economy

Editorial | China leaves no doubt on way forward at key economic talks

Wide-ranging measures aim to inject momentum into growth of the domestic economy and reflect tone of earlier Politburo meeting.

A woman shops in a Beijing clothing store. China’s leaders are moving to boost stubbornly weak domestic demand and reduce reliance on exports. Photo: EPA-EFE
Diplomacy

Opinion | Trump’s victory a reminder the ‘end of history’ remains far away

As countries respond to global crises and challenges to multilateralism, a new era has dawned that cannot be understood using old precepts.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
United States

Opinion | An America awash in global capital risks spreading financial instability

Free capital flows accelerate economic growth but can also be destabilising, spreading jitters via financial markets.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Here’s how the G20 can be more than a talk shop

While the grouping did a good job of dealing with the 2008 global financial crisis, in recent years, collective action has been sorely lacking.

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US presidential election 2024

Opinion | Can the US overcome its political polarisation, whoever wins the election?

Harris will have the support of the establishment but not Trump. The possibility of the the US going into terminal decline looms large.

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Republican presidential nominee and former US president Donald Trump watches a video featuring Democratic presidential candidate, US Vice-President Kamala Harris, during a campaign rally on October 18 in Detroit, Michigan. Photo: Getty Images/AFP
China’s economic stimulus

Exclusive | Chinese economist calls for mega stimulus in excess of 2008’s 4 trillion yuan

Outspoken Chinese economist Yu Yongding says bigger is better for stimulus package – and the details should be revealed as soon as possible.

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=== PHOTO CAPTURED FROM WEIBO === The comments from Yu Yongding, an outspoken economist at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, came as a growing number of academics and advisers openly express worries about the safety of China’s overseas assets. WEIBO
China's economic recovery

When will it end? How inexperience is fuelling the fire of China’s economic woes

Economists have ‘never seen anything like this’, and ‘challenges are on a greater scale’ than ever before, so how can China bring the wild ride to an end?

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Banking & finance

Opinion | Reform financial markets now – or be forced into it with the next crash

It’s not just market volatility. We need to understand the deep structural forces sometimes beyond any single national regulator’s power.

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