Chinese stocks in Hong Kong have posted their best week in more than seven years, amid rumours that the country could begin reopening to the rest of the world early next year and reports that US regulators had completed a review of Chinese audit papers earlier than expected. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng China Enterprises index […]
China dominates clean energy supply chains and has enough manufacturing capacity to meet global demand for most of the solar market to 2030. But as the US and Europe decarbonize their economies, Western governments are seeking to meet their own needs with new, local facilities capable of producing photovoltaic panels and storage. It won’t be easy or cheap. […]
The price of copper — used in everything from computer chips and toasters to power systems and air conditioners — has fallen by nearly a third since March. Investors are selling on fears that a global recession will stunt demand for a metal that’s synonymous with growth and expansion. You wouldn’t know it from looking at the […]
What is the future of globalisation? This is among the biggest questions of our time. In June, I argued that, contrary to increasingly widespread opinion, “Globalisation is not dead. It may not even be dying. But it is changing.” Among the most important ways in which it is changing is via the growth of services […]
With most of the world’s biggest economies having curbed pandemic restrictions, the mantra for the global events industry is “business is back”, following a difficult two years. But attendance at the Imex show in Frankfurt — which caters to the trade show and travel sectors themselves, with attendees including conference venues, event managers and hotel […]
Commodity prices from iron ore to oil rallied on Tuesday as concerns eased about the impact of Covid-19 on the Chinese economy. Iron ore prices soared 8 percent, while oil prices traded back above $70 a barrel, as traders grew more confident about the prospect for demand in China. The price moves come after a […]
As China strives to hang onto its pole position in the rare earth sector, deteriorating relations with Western countries may speed up their diversification efforts, but analysts say it may be difficult to break free of the stranglehold that China has on the supply chain for critical minerals. This week, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen […]
China’s leading renewable energy think tank gave the most bullish forecast yet for its renewable power build-out this year as it tries to meet climate goals and reduce foreign fuel dependency. China is set to install a record 156 gigawatts of wind turbines and solar panels this year, said Yi Yuechun, vice dean of the […]
Why do we have an energy shock?
Just two years ago, the price of the benchmark US oil futures contract plunged briefly below zero as the pandemic sank the global economy. A year later, the price had rebounded to pre-pandemic levels and kept on rising as revived demand outstripped growth in crude supplies. Then came a wild series of jolts from the waves of sanctions by the US and its allies to shut out Russia, the source of 10% of the world’s oil (along with other key commodities from wheat to fertilizer to nickel)….
