Markets

The three-year dispute between the University of Queensland and academic Paul Frijters has finally been resolved, with the Fair Work Commission finding in Frijters' favour. But this is a case that should ring alarm bells not just for all academics...

After many years of slow growth and stagnation, the last couple of years have seen a significant boom in car sales in Vietnam. The country most known for its staggering motorbike population now appears to be rapidly heading for the...

China is North Korea’s largest trading partner and has consistently encouraged cross-border trade and non-official investments in North Korea since 2006. Yet, despite its low-cost raw materials, cheap labour and large market potential, North Korea remains as a high-risk investment...

This week the Productivity Commission released an issues paper as part of an inquiry into the adequacy of Australia’s Universal Service Obligation (USO) for telecommunications, in light of changes in technology and demand. This week the Productivity Commission released an issues paper as part of an inquiry into...

Let there be no doubt about who is the main winner from the Australia–Singapore Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) signed on 6 May. It is Singapore. This tiny country is a quarter the size of the Australian city of Melbourne by...

A consistent feature of global analyses of Africa’s economic prospects is their fickleness. A consistent feature of global analyses of Africa’s economic prospects is their fickleness. In the years since the global financial crisis in 2008, forecasts about Africa have...

Japan is experiencing a serious demographic crunch. About 27 percent of the Japanese population is over the age of 65 and there are 1.4 million fewer people today than there were in 2007, when the total population peaked at 128...

Recent months have seen a continuing increase in military activities in the South China Sea, particularly by the United States and China, but also by ‘bit players’ like India and Japan. These activities only serve to heighten tensions in the...

This Great Graphic shows the price people are willing to pay to bet that the UK votes to leave the EU at the June 23 referendum on the PredictIt events markets.  We included the lower chart to give some sense...

The Philippines has concluded its elections with Rodrigo Duterte coming from out of nowhere only to gallop passed better-known political figures and snatch the presidency. Duterte was a long-serving mayor of Davao City and, except for a brief tenure as...

India has revamped its Middle East policy. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has laid the foundation for strategic interdependencies with the region by focusing on counterterrorism cooperation, deeper economic and security ties, and by engaging the large Indian diaspora. India has...

Editor’s note: The U.S. economy added a disappointing 38,000 jobs last month, the smallest number in more than five years, according to seasonally adjusted figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The weak numbers suggest a June interest rate hike – which...

EM ended the week on a firm note after the US jobs shocker.  While we view the weak reading as a fluke, shifting market perceptions of Fed tightening risk should keep EM bid near-term.  However, we think the July FOMC...

In the past year, investors have seen emerging markets thrive, plunge, re-emerge and re-decline. Despite the volatile short-term story, the fundamentals of the emerging market assets remain strong. Last fall, the Wall Street Journal reported that rich nations were “losing...

In the EM equity space, China (+4.1%), Brazil (+3.0%), and Hong Kong (+1.8%) have outperformed this week, while Poland (-2.6%), Russia (-2.1%), and Qatar (-1.9%) have underperformed.  To put this in better context, MSCI EM rose 1.4% this week while...