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Published daily by the Lowy Institute

  • 15 Jan 2026
    • Global Economy
    • Trade

    Tariffs: Why Oxford students are more protectionist than their professors

    Aylon Berger
    A classroom discussion reveals just how far the economic consensus has shifted.
  • 14 Jan 2026
    • Global Economy
    • United States

    The Fed digs in its heels

    John Edwards
    Jay Powell has demonstrated that he is no pushover, and that central bank independence remains.
  • 12 Jan 2026
    • Global Economy

    The US has finally paid its WTO fees. Now what?

    Jenny Gordon
    Proposed US reforms to the World Trade Organization’s rules are designed to support the Trump administration’s approach to trade
  • 19 Dec 2025
    • Defence & Security
    • Global Economy

    A new era for political risk insurance

    Matthew Newman
    So you want to insure your business against the risks of war? It may not be as farfetched as you think.
  • 17 Dec 2025
    • Global Economy

    Two new books on the future of globalisation

    Stephen Grenville
    Globalisation has always had ups and downs, and has never had clear public support. But trade finds a way.
  • 16 Dec 2025
    • India
    • Global Economy
    • Trade

    India’s economic reforms: Domestic resilience to reshape global standing

    Pratyush Paras Sarma
    Labour codes, tax cuts and GST reforms position India for a new era of growth and international influence.
  • 15 Dec 2025
    • Europe
    • Global Economy
    • Global Issues
    • United States

    Observers at the collapse

    Elliot Stein
    The liberal international settlement is crumbling, but social democrats haven’t found an answer for what comes next.
  • 10 Dec 2025
    • China
    • Indonesia
    • Global Economy

    China raises the cost of Indonesia’s neutrality

    Aniello Iannone
    Far from mere choreography, Beijing is shaping Jakarta’s growth agenda to suit its future core interests.
  • 5 Dec 2025
    • China
    • Global Economy

    Fighting China’s subsidies means copying China’s economic model

    Srijan Shukla
    Rather than just raising trade barriers, countries should predict where Chinese subsidies will move next to compete there.
  • 26 Nov 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Technology
    • Pacific Islands

    Stablecoins for a universal basic income: The Pacific Islands model

    Monique Taylor
    Digital payment systems are emerging as a substitute for inadequate regional banking infrastructure.
  • 25 Nov 2025
    • Asia
    • Asean
    • China
    • Indonesia
    • Malaysia
    • Thailand
    • Vietnam
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • United States

    Southeast Asian manufacturing: No longer immune from geopolitics

    Apoorba Banerjee
    The region’s industrial sector must adapt in a new climate of supply-chain weaponisation.
  • 24 Nov 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Technology

    AI didn’t fire you. The board did

    Niusha Shafiabady
    From Silicon Valley to Shanghai, the new excuse for redundancy has ripple effects everywhere.
  • 18 Nov 2025
    • Global Economy
    • BRICS

    A reality check for BRICS and the lofty dedollarisation agenda

    Shanthie Mariet D’Souza
    Local currency deals are growing, but a unified challenge to dollar hegemony remains a distant dream.
  • 31 Oct 2025
    • Asean
    • Global Economy
    • Climate change
    • Coronavirus
    • Diplomacy
    • Technology

    Resilience diplomacy: The quiet contest shaping the Indo-Pacific

    Shameek Godara
    For middle powers, the ability to help partners withstand shocks may prove more valuable than raw strength.
  • 22 Oct 2025
    • Asia
    • Australia
    • Europe
    • Global Economy
    • Diplomacy
    • The Americas

    Geopolitics and making sense of the NEWS: North, East, West, South

    Abhinandan Kumar
    More than geography, the coordinates of a state are borne of ideology, history and power perceptions.
  • 21 Oct 2025
    • China
    • Europe
    • Global Economy
    • Technology

    What a chipmaker in the Netherlands can tell Australia about its commercial relations with China

    Carolin Kautz
    Commercial disputes with China can escalate quickly – and apparently stable ties can be quickly upended.
  • 9 Oct 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability

    Sustainability matters when economic shocks hit

    Adam Arian
    New global evidence shows responsible business is risk insurance.
  • 8 Oct 2025
    • Asia
    • Indonesia
    • Europe
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • WTO

    Europe notches an early win in Indonesian free trade deal

    Henry Storey
    EU trade with Southeast Asia has been undercooked, but a recent agreement augurs well for others in the pipeline.
  • 30 Sep 2025
    • Indonesia
    • Global Economy
    • Technology

    Indonesia’s SupTech experiment offers lessons for emerging markets

    Hanif Santoso
    With consumer credit booming, AI-driven oversight could help safeguard the economy.
  • 26 Sep 2025
    • Global Economy
    • G20
    • Trade
    • WTO
    • Global Issues
    • Climate change
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • Space exploration
    • United Nations

    Why we need international institutions…

    Jenny Gordon
    …and how to rebuild them in an era of great power competition.
  • 12 Sep 2025
    • Global Economy

    Stablecoins for remittances? A solution in search of a problem

    Stephen Grenville
    Despite the value proposition of stablecoins, the ability to convert into useable currency remains the biggest hurdle.
  • 3 Sep 2025
    • Global Economy

    A world without an economic hegemon

    Stephen Grenville
    What happens to the global economy when Washington no longer makes, and enforces, the rules-based order?
  • 28 Aug 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Technology
    • Public Opinion

    Australia’s stablecoin opportunity in the Pacific

    Monique Taylor
    Digital dollar tokens could revolutionise regional remittances, but only if Canberra helps shape a regulatory framework to dodge the scams.
  • 11 Aug 2025
    • China
    • Global Economy
    • United States

    China and America in a stablecoin race that could reshape global finance

    Evan Freidin
    Competing visions for digital currency regulation reveal broader financial ambitions.
  • 7 Aug 2025
    • China
    • Global Economy
    • Trade

    Too much of a good thing: Will China finally commit to solving overcapacity?

    Henry Storey
    Facing an addiction to manufacturing, Beijing’s rhetoric will need to be matched by deep structural and political reforms.
  • 6 Aug 2025
    • Global Economy
    • United States

    Battle of the currencies: The dollar versus digital

    Stephen Grenville
    Despite a plethora of alternative offerings – from cryptocurrency to stablecoins – nothing delivers quite like the greenback.
  • 28 Jul 2025
    • Indonesia
    • Global Economy
    • Trade

    Indonesia at a discount

    Virdika Rizky Utama
    In a world portrayed as multipolar, Southeast Asia’s largest economy remains bound to the same unipolar logic of coercive economics.
  • 30 Jun 2025
    • Asean
    • Global Economy
    • Technology

    QR payments: The ASEAN way

    Hilman Palaon
    Southeast Asia is leapfrogging global leaders and setting the new standard for digital payments.
  • 12 Jun 2025
    • China
    • Global Economy
    • United States

    China banks big wins as Trump withdraws from global aid game

    Robert Wihtol
    By abandoning climate finance and health initiatives, the United States is creating unprecedented opportunities for Chinese-led multilateral banks.
  • 4 Jun 2025
    • China
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • United States

    Global trade: Why China can’t (and won’t) come to the rescue

    Henry Storey
    Those looking for relief from US tariffs will run up against China’s mercantilism and structurally weak demand.
  • 2 Jun 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • United States

    Trump and the art of the (bad faith) deal

    Huw McKay
    After Liberation Day, evidence is mounting that many US trade negotiations are far from good faith.
  • 19 May 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Debt
    • United States

    The US dollar is everyone's problem

    Stephen Grenville
    A new book offers a chance to look back at the record of a distinguished economist.
  • 29 Apr 2025
    • China
    • Global Economy

    China's yuan challenge: Navigating a US dollar-dominated global economy

    Fraser Howie
    Currency changes? The control-obsessed Chinese Communist Party isn’t going to hand over economic power any more than it would surrender political power.
  • 24 Apr 2025
    • Asean
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • United States

    Economic diplomacy: Trump era transcends economics

    Greg Earl
    The International Monetary Fund and Australia have found some welcome security amid growing geopolitical fragmentation.
  • 23 Apr 2025
    • India
    • Global Economy
    • Global Issues

    T20 diplomacy? The virtues of Test cricket in uncertain times

    Ved Shinde
    Finding political wisdom in sport’s long game.
  • 16 Apr 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Trade

    The scrambalisation era is here

    Nick Bisley
    The distortionary impact of political second-guessing in investment and trade dynamics will be felt across the globe.
  • 11 Apr 2025
    • Global Economy

    Currency capers: What is going on with regulation of crypto?

    Jenny Gordon
    The Trump administration has cryptocurrency plans, but reining in bad actors doesn’t appear to be part of it.
  • 3 Apr 2025
    • Asia
    • Global Economy
    • Trade

    Trump’s tariffs: Australia hit with a stick while our region was clobbered

    Roland Rajah
    The entire export-driven development model of Southeast Asia is now at serious risk.
  • 26 Mar 2025
    • Global Economy
    • United States

    Unpacking the Mar-a-Lago Accord

    Jenny Gordon
    The idea is unlikely to deliver the reduced deficits and bring back good jobs that are the primary motivation.
  • 25 Mar 2025
    • China
    • Vietnam
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • United States

    Made in Vietnam or a backdoor for Chinese exports?

    Roland Rajah , Ahmed Albayrak
    Fretting over “hidden” Chinese exports should not overshadow Vietnam’s helpful role in diversifying global supply chains.
  • 12 Mar 2025
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • WTO
    • United States

    Trump’s tariffs: The smarter option for Australia to retaliate

    Jenny Gordon
    A tariff tit-for-tat game will only cost more. Cooperation with other countries is the better answer.
  • 12 Mar 2025
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Global Economy
    • Trade
    • United States

    Steel yourselves, Trump’s worldwide tariffs threaten Australia more

    Roland Rajah
    The direct consequences of steel and aluminium restrictions are small – but the big picture cost to Australia lies in damage to the global economy.
  • 4 Mar 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Multilateral Development Banks
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • United States

    Why collective action and institutions matter

    Jenny Gordon
    Otherwise, the bears win.
  • 28 Feb 2025
    • Australia's Economy
    • Global Economy
    • Resource security

    How the West can shore up its strategic metals supply chain

    Huw McKay
    With policy design in flux, a five-step plan could drive innovation and private-public cooperation on vital resources.
  • 27 Feb 2025
    • Diplomacy
    • Europe
    • Global Economy
    • Global Issues

    Trust in our leaders: A universal currency

    Mark Pierce
    An intangible mix of competency, honesty and commitment is the glue that holds politics, economies and societies together.
  • 18 Feb 2025
    • Australia
    • Australia's Economy
    • Global Economy
    • United States
    • US Economy

    Lessons for Australia’s policy dilemmas from America’s “post-Neoliberal delusion”

    Jenny Gordon
    Economists prefer pricing approaches, but restricting choice through regulatory requirements is far more common – and carries a cost.
  • 14 Feb 2025
    • Global Economy
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Trade
    • United States

    The latest round of tariffs threats might be the least of our worries

    Jenny Gordon
    Trump looks to target the integrity of payments systems.
  • 7 Feb 2025
    • Global Economy
    • United States

    The dominant dollar

    Stephen Grenville
    If you’re not convinced, I have a book to sell you.
  • 6 Feb 2025
    • Australia's Economy
    • Global Economy
    • Trade

    Is Australia in the tariff firing line?

    Jenny Gordon
    Trump’s plans are less about economics and more about coercion.
  • 30 Jan 2025
    • Australia in the World
    • Australia's Economy
    • Australia's Trade
    • Australia-United States Relations
    • Global Economy
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Free Trade
    • Trade
    • WTO
    • United States

    Trump’s trade policy: Risks for Australia

    Stephen Moran
    With tariff threats against both friend and foe, regional trade agreements will assume greater importance.
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