Key Takeaways: Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and his ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) won the May 3 election with a strong mandate. Winning 87 of 97 contested seats, the PAP increased its presence in parliament and grew its total share of votes from 61.2 percent to 65.57 percent. Singaporean voters embraced the PAP’s stable and experienced leadership over the opposition’s […]
The Results of Singapore’s General Election 2025 Read More »
Key Election Outcomes: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has won the Australian election in a landslide, securing a clear parliamentary majority with a bigger-than-expected swing of almost three percent to the Labor Party. The Liberal-National Coalition endured a historic loss with Leader Peter Dutton exiting politics after losing his seat and the Liberal Party’s overall seat
Labor Landslide: Albanese Returns to Government in Australian Election Read More »
Key Takeaways: China’s Made in China 2025 (MIC25) initiative is a strategic blueprint designed to transform the country’s economy from the world’s top factory for low-cost goods into a leader in high-tech and innovative manufacturing. Since its initial release in 2015, China has frequently rebranded MIC25 to match its industrial policy objectives, while endeavoring to downplay
China’s Industrial Evolution: A Scorecard for “Made in China 2025” Read More »
Key Takeaways: The likelihood of a meeting between Trump and Xi – considered a key event to get trade negotiations started – remains low in the near term. Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in meeting with Xi to “make a deal.” But Xi is in no rush to look weak or begin negotiations. • China’s
Beijing Bides its Time on Tariff Talks Read More »
Key Takeaways Retaliation: China stands unique among Indo-Pacific countries with the highest tariff rate of 145 percent while others have been paused at 10 percent for 90 days. China is also the only country in the region that has chosen to economically retaliate against U.S. tariffs, escalating the tensions into a trade war. Negotiation: Most other Indo-Pacific
Retaliation and Negotiation, Asia Responds to Tariff Implementation Read More »
Key Takeaways: The Trump Administration has announced that an additional 50 percent tariff will be added on top of the 34 percent tariff on Chinese goods that is set to go into effect at 12:01 AM on April 9. It is now clear that the United States and China have entered a period that
U.S.-China Trade War 2.0: Tumultuous Tit-for-Tat Read More »
Trump’s Liberation Day Tariffs: On April 2, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 10 percent duties on all trading partners, effective April 5, plus higher market-by-market tariffs on many Asian nations, effective April 9, targeting partners that have the largest trade surpluses with the United States. President Trump is calling these tariffs “reciprocal,” although the
Asia Reacts to Trump’s Historic Tariffs Read More »
Key Takeaways: APEC 2025 will struggle for policy relevance: The political and economic policy importance of APEC 2025 faces stiff challenges. South Korea’s ongoing political upheaval could leave the host country rudderless through much of the calendar year. President Yoon Suk-yeol chose the small city of Gyeongju to host the Leaders Week, creating significant
Spotlight: APEC 2025 in South Korea Read More »
Key Takeaways Much Talk, Less Action: Bipartisan interest in China on Capitol Hill is wide but not deep. In 2024, Congress held nearly 40 China-focused hearings – a slight drop from 50 in 2023 – and debated over 800 China-related resolutions, bills, and amendments. But aside from a piece of nearly unanimous legislation to force ByteDance
The 119th Congress and China: Widespread Interest but Doubtful Legislative Outcomes Read More »
On February 1, 2025, India’s Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman delivered the Union Budget Presentation. This year’s Budget comes as the Narendra Modi government contends with narrower economic growth projections driven by fluctuating global economic conditions, with Minister Sitharaman estimating India’s GDP growth at 6.3-6.8 percent for FY 2025-2026. Accordingly, the Budget showcases the Indian government’s efforts to drive consumption-led
India’s Union Budget 2025-26 Read More »
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