Tensions have been rising in the South China Sea of late, and these are threatening to put strains on China’s relations with South East Asia and the US.
Essentially, China has reiterated its long-standing claims over the whole of the South China Sea, including the Spratly and Paracel islands. Unsurprisingly, this sovereignty assertion is disputed by [Read more...]

Last year, I mentioned that if Emerging Markets are truly to dominate the 21st century, then they would have to capture the world’s imagination through ‘soft power’, which I defined to mean cultural appeal. While I expect this will be a long-term process, evidence of Emerging Markets’ ability to transform Hollywood was apparent in a [Read more...]

The world’s largest manufacturer of construction equipment, Caterpillar, has announced impressive Q2 2010 results, with net profit almost doubling compared to Q2 2009 as a result of strong sales and revenues growth. Increased demand for machinery was the underlying growth driver, with cost-cutting boosting the bottom line.

The company is often considered a bellwether for the [Read more...]

Through the second quarter of 2010, many analysts noted a divergence between seemingly positive microeconomic data and a macroeconomic outlook which was flagging a renewed downturn in growth. A seemingly strong recovery in container shipping in particular augured well for global demand and trade. On this week’s Business Monitor Podcast, BMI’s Head of Shipping and [Read more...]

 

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Data from the second quarter has reinforced our long-held core outlook for a downturn in US growth in H210 and 2011. On this week’s Business Monitor Podcast, BMI’s Head of Country Risk and Financial Markets Justin Patrie and Global Economic Strategist Tim Cooper, revisit their views on the shape of the US recovery and the [Read more...]

 

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China’s Dagong Global Credit Rating Co earlier this week released what it described as the first ever assessment of sovereign credit risks by a non-Western ratings agency. Dagong’s report covers 50 countries (20 in Europe, 17 in Asia, 2 in North American, 6 in South American, 3 in Africa, and 2 in Oceania) comprising 90% [Read more...]

BMI’s newest core view is that private healthcare spending as a percentage of total healthcare expenditure in emerging markets will decrease over the medium term. Governments in these countries increasingly appreciate the value of a healthy population and are boosting investment in medical services, such as pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, doctors, nurses, clinics and hospitals.

Notable public sector [Read more...]