Opinion & Features

THINKING ALOUD

The coming brave new world of designer babies

Genetic testing and other genomic services will likely be a hit in Asia

Luckin, a coffee chain, successfully sued a business in Thailand that had opened cafes under the same name with an almost identical logo.
THE BOTTOM LINE

China once stole foreign ideas. Now it wants to protect its own

The country’s courts are inundated with intellectual-property cases

The latest figures include a group whose effects on inequality were previously overlooked: property-owning retirees, especially landlords.
COMMENTARY

Should landlords worry? Singapore’s new inequality data suggests tough conversations will continue

With a clearer – and less flattering – picture of income and wealth inequality, the discussion can shift to what should be done

The fate of CapitaLand Investment's Reits will be closely watched should CapitaLand Group and Mapletree Investments merge.
HOCK LOCK SIEW

Handle with extreme care any Reit mergers should CapitaLand, Mapletree merge

Don’t risk destroying value of leaders CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust and CapitaLand Ascendas Reit  

The US dollar is unique among global currencies in that its value is driven not just by supply and demand, but also by its structural power.

Will ‘Sell America’ end the dollar’s hegemony?

State and market-led pressure to de-dollarise could become mutually reinforcing, accelerating the erosion of the greenback dominance

“We actively take on the world as it is, not wait for a world we wish to be,” said Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month. The logic of flexible multilateralism is straightforward: start with like-minded partners to build open and inclusive initiatives on issues where there is alignment.
NEW GLOBAL ORDER

Shaping flexible multilateralism for a world in flux

An incremental approach towards cooperation is a critical strategic tool for nations

Regulatory volatility and geopolitical uncertainty have brought to the fore concerns around data sovereignty.

Navigating geopolitics for control of data in the AI era

With AI advancing faster than rule books, measures that are now voluntary could become mandatory; it’s happening in South Korea

The Epstein files are not just about one man’s crimes, they are a mirror reflecting deeper problems with how power operates in society, and a test of whether accountability truly applies to everyone.
THE BOTTOM LINE

The Epstein files: Accountability and the question of elite impunity

Jeffery Epstein’s ability to operate for decades, despite credible allegations, points to failures across multiple institutions

Last year, foreigners poured around US$1.6 trillion into US financial assets, including nearly US$700 billion into stocks – both new records and significantly higher than the levels of recent years.

Bash all day, buy all night

Why foreigners keep pouring money into America

Solar panels are arranged to resemble pandas at a power plant in Datong. Even with a headlong renewables build-out, China's rising electricity consumption means that any shortfalls are met by coal generators.

China’s energy future still runs on old technology

The country already has the power grid of the future; the problem is it’s being used in a grossly inefficient manner