https://www.scmp.com/rss/517912/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley Can the collective wisdom or clout of the almost 200 countries that make up the membership of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) prevail against the United States and Israel, whose rash actions of declaring war on Iran have effectively declared economic war on the whole world? We may get the answers to this critical question when the two so-called Bretton Woods institutions begin their annual meetings in Washington on April 13. The week-long gatherings provide an opportunity... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349524/can-world-bank-and-imf-leaders-rescue-global-economy-brink?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349524/can-world-bank-and-imf-leaders-rescue-global-economy-brink?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 Apr 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Andrew Sheng Andrew Sheng Have you wondered why most small start-ups have to fight to survive, whereas the rich or those at the top tend to get richer? Capitalism is in trouble because the social divide is widening in terms of both income and wealth. Furthermore, the planet is being eaten alive by excessive consumption financed by huge amounts of debt. At the same time, aspirations such as dealing with climate change appear to be going nowhere. Who cares about net zero when you can bomb your way to more oil and gas? Why... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349484/despite-its-hype-ai-just-means-economic-resilience?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349484/despite-its-hype-ai-just-means-economic-resilience?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 12:30:08 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell Last week, on April 1 to be exact, Apple reached the grand old age of 50 (almost exactly a year younger than Microsoft), one of a tiny proportion of S&P-listed companies that have stayed the course for half a century. It is a company with which I have had a special connection and a love-hate relationship for most of my adult life. Not that I have ever owned an Apple product (I have always been a loyal Android man) nor any Apple shares; heavens, I wish I had. No. My special connection is more... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349541/my-love-hate-relationship-apple-android-user?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349541/my-love-hate-relationship-apple-android-user?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Peter T. C. Chang Peter T. C. Chang With the coming summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump back on schedule for May, the two leaders present two starkly different paths for the world: one defined by a “community with a shared future” and the other driven by unpredictable impulses of rivalry and division. While Trump postponed the April summit to engage Xi without the distractions of the war he launched on Iran, a swift resolution before their meeting does not seem likely – despite the newly... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349273/can-community-shared-future-prevail-over-zero-sum-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349273/can-community-shared-future-prevail-over-zero-sum-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 01:30:10 +0000 Juan Pablo Sims,Brice Tseen Fu Lee Juan Pablo Sims,Brice Tseen Fu Lee The Iran war has been framed as a Middle East crisis with global energy consequences. That is true, but incomplete. It is also reshaping China’s strategic map. The disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, the jump in oil prices and the shock to shipping and energy markets have reinforced a lesson for Beijing: vulnerability begins with concentration. When one region becomes more unstable, the value of diversified suppliers, routes and external partners rises. That is why Latin America matters more to... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349271/middle-east-crisis-pushing-china-deepen-latin-america-ties?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3349271/middle-east-crisis-pushing-china-deepen-latin-america-ties?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Marco Vicenzino Marco Vicenzino The two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran is a real diplomatic breakthrough. It has reopened the Strait of Hormuz, triggered a relief rally in global markets and eased the immediate fear of a spiralling energy shock. But its strategic significance lies less in the relief it has produced than in the uncertainty it leaves behind. The truce is time-limited, tied to negotiations and built around temporary safe passage rather than a settled regional order. The ceasefire terms and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349425/asia-us-iran-ceasefire-offers-little-relief-and-much-uncertainty?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349425/asia-us-iran-ceasefire-offers-little-relief-and-much-uncertainty?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:30:10 +0000 Kamala Thiagarajan Kamala Thiagarajan As Asia grappled with the impact of the Iran war, a major pharmaceutical milestone quietly made the headlines. On March 20, the patent for semaglutide, the active ingredient in Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy drugs, expired in several countries, crucially India and China – two countries renowned for their production of generic drugs, which are drugs with the same active ingredient as the branded original but typically sold at much lower prices. Ozempic, first approved in 2017 by the US Food... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349193/asias-flood-cheap-ozempic-generics-opens-gates-weight-loss-abuse?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349193/asias-flood-cheap-ozempic-generics-opens-gates-weight-loss-abuse?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Göktuğ Çalışkan Göktuğ Çalışkan The first tankers that turned away from the Strait of Hormuz did not just redraw shipping maps. They redrew grocery lists, too. After Iran’s partial closure of the strait disrupted a chokepoint that carries roughly 20 per cent of the world’s oil, traders priced in something they know too well: war is not only about missiles; it’s about the bill that lands on kitchen tables months later. Brent crude climbing back above US$100 a barrel, and touching roughly US$120 on the worst days, is already... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349221/war-premiums-hit-groceries-china-deals-give-africa-room-breathe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349221/war-premiums-hit-groceries-china-deals-give-africa-room-breathe?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Qiyuan Xu,Panpan Yang Qiyuan Xu,Panpan Yang Global imbalances are once again taking shape, albeit differently than how they manifested before the financial crisis of the late 2000s. Back then, the story was simple: some countries, led by China and Germany, saved too much, while the United States consumed too much. The answer, at least in theory, was also simple: surplus countries should rely more on domestic demand while deficit countries should save more; exchange rates should adjust. While that framework still matters, it no longer... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349158/how-ai-and-geopolitical-rivalry-are-breaking-economic-orthodoxy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349158/how-ai-and-geopolitical-rivalry-are-breaking-economic-orthodoxy?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 08:30:07 +0000 Bryanna Entwistle Bryanna Entwistle On April 1, amid China’s cybercrime offensive in Southeast Asia, Cambodia extradited to China Li Xiong, former chairman of Huione Group, which had been severed from the US financial system last year for laundering at least US$336 million from cyber scams between 2021 and 2025. The US had also sanctioned Huione’s parent company, Prince Group, and indicted founder Chen Zhi. In January, Cambodia extradited Chen to China, securing the arrest of a man accused of being Cambodia’s biggest scam... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349051/beat-cambodias-scam-gangs-us-must-work-china-not-blame-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349051/beat-cambodias-scam-gangs-us-must-work-china-not-blame-it?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo It might have made a good April Fool’s joke. Unfortunately, it was not. “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F***in’ Strait, you crazy b*****ds, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP.” Really, who writes like that? Even a tinpot dictator from some godforsaken hellhole would have written a less expletive-laden post to retain some personal dignity as a leader of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349114/why-donald-trump-now-needs-forever-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349114/why-donald-trump-now-needs-forever-war?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Winston Mok Winston Mok The Strait of Hormuz blockage is being felt far and wide. While the world struggles with higher pump prices, key energy exporters such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar face severe economic setbacks. In Gulf states serving as air hubs, expats and affluent locals are scrambling for the exit. The discovery of oil transformed Arabian deserts into rich petro-states. Knowing this wealth would not flow forever, the states leveraged their strategic locations to become air traffic hubs.... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349044/gulf-states-geography-both-generous-and-treacherous-patron?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349044/gulf-states-geography-both-generous-and-treacherous-patron?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 08:30:07 +0000 Yogi Putranto Yogi Putranto Control of the seas has long defined power in the Asia-Pacific. From strategic chokepoints to contested fishing grounds, maritime space has shaped the region’s economic lifelines and geopolitical tensions. But a quieter contest is unfolding – less visible, yet potentially more consequential. It is not a contest over territory but over data. As satellite surveillance, digital tracking and advanced analytics transform how the ocean is monitored, a new question emerges: who controls the information... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348997/asia-pacific-real-maritime-contest-over-satellite-surveillance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348997/asia-pacific-real-maritime-contest-over-satellite-surveillance?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 01:30:11 +0000 Muhammad Faizan Fakhar Muhammad Faizan Fakhar Much Western discourse on artificial intelligence has lately focused on establishing safeguards and installing guardrails against powerful new AI systems, algorithmic bias, the collusion of governments and tech oligarchs, and rising related environmental costs. The growing AI backlash in the West has been labelled a “botlash” in a recent commentary by Stanford University’s Marietje Schaake, who includes anti-AI movements such as “QuitGPT”, “Resist and Unsubscribe” and “Stealing Isn’t... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349034/danger-global-souths-pursuit-ai-magical-cure?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3349034/danger-global-souths-pursuit-ai-magical-cure?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Jianxi Liu Jianxi Liu “We’ve had some very bad allies in Nato,” US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday, warning Washington could walk away from the transatlantic alliance unless allies fall in line with his Iran policy. Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte plans to visit the United States soon to stabilise the alliance. The timing is stark: Trump’s latest threat comes as several European capitals have openly refused to back Washington’s campaign to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, with some blocking the US from using... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348563/closing-airspace-us-europe-opens-existential-debate-over-nato?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348563/closing-airspace-us-europe-opens-existential-debate-over-nato?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Zhang Zhipeng Zhang Zhipeng The US-Israeli strikes on Iran and ensuing conflagration offer a window into how the US-led order works. For all its contributions, it functions like an air conditioner – cooling the American centre by pumping hot air into the periphery. Aggressive interest rate hikes export inflation to emerging markets. Proxy wars outsource geopolitical risk to distant theatres. The United States stays cool while the Global South absorbs the brunt of the heat. But the vents are closing: developing nations are... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348447/global-south-nations-are-insulating-themselves-heat-us-actions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348447/global-south-nations-are-insulating-themselves-heat-us-actions?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Apr 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Steven Okun Steven Okun US President Donald Trump has appointed Nick Adams, the Australian-American social media influencer and self-styled “alpha male”, as special presidential envoy for American tourism, exceptionalism and values. “I look forward to serving as America’s brand ambassador, bringing the message of America’s excellence to the entire world,” Adams wrote on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. “With America 250, the Fifa World Cup and the Olympics coming up, the world needs to be reminded of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348478/why-crisis-hit-asia-unlikely-embrace-trumps-america-250-party?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348478/why-crisis-hit-asia-unlikely-embrace-trumps-america-250-party?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:30:07 +0000 Bob Savic Bob Savic China’s investments in North Africa have intensified in 2026, building on long-standing Belt and Road Initiative frameworks while accelerating amid the US-Israeli war with Iran. With 40-50 per cent of China’s seaborne oil imports traditionally passing through the Strait of Hormuz, which is now blocked to most container traffic, Beijing has sought to diversify energy sources away from Gulf Arab states. For more than a decade, Beijing has pursued deeper engagement across the Middle East and North... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348801/chinas-growing-north-africa-presence-structural-challenge-europe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348801/chinas-growing-north-africa-presence-structural-challenge-europe?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Apr 2026 21:30:09 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley A century on, T.S. Eliot’s poem The Hollow Men strikes a disturbingly ominous note: This is the way the world ends / Not with a bang but a whimper. With the way things are going at present, we could be about to find out which of these endings it will be. The hope is that the Iran-centred conflagration in the Middle East will not turn into a nuclear apocalypse and that the “whimper” will be merely a cry from the depths of global economic recession. But either scenario is possible while the Trump... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348882/can-world-markets-ride-out-rest-trumps-reign?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348882/can-world-markets-ride-out-rest-trumps-reign?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Apr 2026 08:30:07 +0000 Lijia Zhang Lijia Zhang While enjoying a foot massage in Buenos Aires’ Chinatown, I chatted with my masseuse, a Fujianese woman in her late 50s surnamed Wang. Her life, it seemed to me, mirrored that of many recent Chinese immigrants to Argentina. She eats exclusively Chinese food, her friends are fellow Chinese and she still speaks mostly Chinese. While it is not unusual for migrants anywhere to gravitate towards their own community, the tendency appears particularly strong among the Chinese. China’s presence in... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348870/chinese-overseas-need-not-keep-ourselves-i-certainly-dont?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348870/chinese-overseas-need-not-keep-ourselves-i-certainly-dont?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Apr 2026 01:30:12 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo The whole world has come to oppose the Iran war, including most Americans. Just as Israel took part in the 1956 Suez crisis, which signalled the last hurrah of European imperialism, it is now jointly prosecuting a pointless but destructive war that is likely to spell the twilight of American hegemony. This time, though, the Jewish state won’t get away so easily. From the Palestinian territories to Iran and Lebanon, it can no longer hide its Zionist expansionism that threatens the entire... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348754/twilight-us-hegemony-and-israeli-expansionism?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348754/twilight-us-hegemony-and-israeli-expansionism?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 21:30:09 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang The dust and debris of the US-Israeli war on Iran have yet to settle, but its strategic shock waves have reached East Asia. From Tokyo to Taipei, a reassessment is under way. The conflict, intended to project American resolve, has been a brutal stress test for the US-led order – with catastrophic results for Washington’s credibility. Far from cementing its primacy, America’s misadventure has revealed a superpower that is overstretched, vulnerable and seen as an unreliable partner. This erosion... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348665/east-asias-crisis-confidence-us-militarising-chinas-backyard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348665/east-asias-crisis-confidence-us-militarising-chinas-backyard?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Richard Harris Richard Harris The mighty Zambezi River has its source in northern Zambia, and flows north, west, south, then east, tracing borders for several countries including Zimbabwe. As the river enters Zimbabwe, the water molecules begin to flow faster, unknowingly energised – developing first into a rush, then eventually a torrent as they plunge down the Victoria Falls. This is an excellent analogy of the extremes of stock market price movements. In a stock market crash, prices move slowly, then very fast. My... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3348698/us-hong-kong-theres-no-excuse-insider-trading?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3348698/us-hong-kong-theres-no-excuse-insider-trading?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 21:30:10 +0000 Hao Nan Hao Nan A month into the Iran war, Washington still says it expects to achieve its objectives in weeks, not months. That may prove optimistic. The terms on offer from the United States and Iran barely overlap, and markets remain unconvinced a durable settlement is close. But one fact is clear: the war’s most consequential effects may be felt not only in the Middle East but across East Asia. It would be a mistake to see this as only an oil story. It is also about hierarchy. In East Asia, the war is... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3348429/how-east-asia-being-quietly-reordered-us-war-iran?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3348429/how-east-asia-being-quietly-reordered-us-war-iran?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Sebastian Contin Trillo-Figueroa Sebastian Contin Trillo-Figueroa The United States attacked Iran without consulting its European allies. President Donald Trump assumed the operation would be a quick win, over before anyone had to take a position. Instead, Washington answered a question Western governments had long avoided. After years of pushing Nato towards confrontation with China, would the transatlantic alliance fight a war it had not chosen together? The answer was no. Iran and Taiwan are different cases. One sits on Europe’s wider periphery and carries... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348047/what-iran-war-reveals-about-natos-appetite-conflict-over-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348047/what-iran-war-reveals-about-natos-appetite-conflict-over-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Chris Pereira Chris Pereira Against a backdrop of war and global uncertainty, Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivered a clear message at the recent China Development Forum: China is committed to being a “harbour of stability” for the world. The forum, which drew CEOs from global companies such as Siemens, Nestlé and Apple, signalled to the world that while the United States flails, China offers reliability and steady governance. Even before the US-Israeli war on Iran, however, my inbox was already telling me that something was... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3348213/surge-global-business-interest-chinas-harbour-stability?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3348213/surge-global-business-interest-chinas-harbour-stability?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Jawad Khalid Jawad Khalid As with any conflict, the war in Iran has driven people to choose sides and adopt partisan positions. This includes the view that, despite the acts of aggression by the US and Israel, the Islamic Republic somehow “deserves” the attacks due to years of regional instability caused by its Axis of Resistance. This is not to suggest that the Iranian regime has always been a victim. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ transgressions through the Quds Force have been well documented. But let’s be... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348165/how-selective-outrage-over-iran-war-exposes-limits-realpolitik?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348165/how-selective-outrage-over-iran-war-exposes-limits-realpolitik?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2026 21:30:09 +0000 Marco Vicenzino Marco Vicenzino Geopolitical competition has long been understood in territorial terms. Power was measured by control over land, resources and populations. Rivalry was expressed through military confrontation, alliance formation and the defence of borders. As economic interdependence deepened in the 20th century, globalisation was seen as an arena within which states competed, but not itself the object of competition. That assumption no longer holds. Increasingly, the infrastructure of globalisation is becoming... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347953/age-us-china-rivalry-supply-chain-statecraft-counts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347953/age-us-china-rivalry-supply-chain-statecraft-counts?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Every violation of international law invites the next. From Afghanistan to Iran, and across Iraq, Libya, Syria, Ukraine, Gaza and Venezuela, the line between what is permitted and what is prohibited has been steadily blurred by the complicit inaction of the United Nations Security Council. Wielding the veto as both a shield and a weapon, its permanent members act without grounding in the UN Charter. They play with the fate of millions, leaving a trail of death and destruction. Until recently,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348274/un-security-councils-inaction-tearing-world-apart?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348274/un-security-councils-inaction-tearing-world-apart?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Mar 2026 02:30:09 +0000 Sandra Marco Colino Sandra Marco Colino The European Union (EU) is a bystander in the Iran war, but it might end up sustaining significant collateral damage. On one hand, public opinion across Europe is opposed to a conflict that circumvents the core principles of international law. On the other, the continent remains deeply reliant on the United States for its energy and security needs. A definitive anti-war stance risks alienating President Donald Trump, leaving Europe strategically exposed. Talk about being caught between a rock... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347867/europes-response-iran-war-risks-becoming-its-darkest-hour?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347867/europes-response-iran-war-risks-becoming-its-darkest-hour?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Ke Meng Ke Meng In January, a top Chinese AI researcher told an industry summit in Beijing there was less than a 20 per cent chance of any Chinese company surpassing a leading US artificial intelligence firm in the next three to five years. The remark by Lin Junyang, until recently a technical leader working on Qwen, one of China’s most capable open-source AI models under Alibaba (which owns the South China Morning Post), made headlines. But much of the commentary missed a more important question Lin posed:... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347763/how-assess-chinas-real-chance-winning-ai-race-against-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347763/how-assess-chinas-real-chance-winning-ai-race-against-us?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Elina Noor Elina Noor On March 1, after Israel and the United States initiated attacks against Iran, Amazon Web Services reported drone strikes against data centre facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. The strikes caused structural damage to the company’s infrastructure, impairing cloud services for those countries. Iran warned that US tech companies with Israeli links, including Google, Microsoft, Palantir, Nvidia and Oracle, were on Tehran’s list of “legitimate targets” for countermeasures. Strikes on... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3347725/ai-infrastructure-front-line-lessons-asean-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3347725/ai-infrastructure-front-line-lessons-asean-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 21:30:10 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley The law of unintended consequences, a theory popularised by American sociologist Robert K Merton, has rarely been more applicable to any situation than to US President Donald Trump’s war with Iran. Those consequences will be far greater than generally imagined. Their impact will fall heavily on Asia, the world’s most energy-import-dependent region and will almost certainly hurt US ally Japan more than it will the US’ main rival, China. Indeed, China may even emerge from the crisis with an... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348014/asia-worst-effects-trumps-war-iran-are-yet-come?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3348014/asia-worst-effects-trumps-war-iran-are-yet-come?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Genevieve Donnellon-May Genevieve Donnellon-May Amid turmoil in the Middle East, including the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil passes, Beijing is pressing ahead with its Zhuri (sun-chasing) project to build solar power stations in space. Chinese Academy of Engineering academician and senior rocket scientist Long Lehao likened this space-based solar power programme to putting the Three Gorges Dam into geostationary orbit, underscoring its extraordinary scale and ambition.... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347692/why-chinas-space-based-solar-power-next-frontier-green-energy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347692/why-chinas-space-based-solar-power-next-frontier-green-energy?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Andrew Sheng Andrew Sheng After eight decades of relative peace following the end of World War II, we now find ourselves in the midst of the Russian invasion of Ukraine entering its fourth year and escalating violence between Israel, the US and Iran. After 12 days of fighting last June, the latter conflagration has erupted again in a widening war that has killed Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and closed the Strait of Hormuz, sending oil prices to near record highs. In 1984, American historian Barbara... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347982/time-confront-folly-iran-war-and-irrational-us-spending?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347982/time-confront-folly-iran-war-and-irrational-us-spending?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 12:30:09 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell In these turbulent times, focusing on the World Trade Organization’s 14th ministerial conference (MC14) in Yaounde, Cameroon, is a bit like trying to focus on a picnic sitting alongside a bar brawl, or listening to a lesson in pruning bonsai while a lumberjack takes a chainsaw to a giant redwood. But try we must. Even if the deliverables are meagre and may take years to materialise, the symbolism of Yaounde points to a possible future very different from today’s chaotic hegemonic unilateralism –... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348028/wto-meeting-cameroon-signals-rise-world-minus-one-order?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3348028/wto-meeting-cameroon-signals-rise-world-minus-one-order?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Lanxin Xiang Lanxin Xiang Beijing is probably sighing with relief following US President Donald Trump’s postponement of his visit to China for “a month or so”. Initially, Trump had tried to threaten China for not joining a proposed naval escort campaign in the Strait of Hormuz, but quickly changed his tone after recognising the absurdity of such a demand. Not even the United States’ closest allies are willing to lend a hand. However, Beijing is even more frustrated with Washington’s lack of clarity and Trump’s hazy... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347597/taiwan-trump-reimagines-strategic-ambiguity-suit-his-own-ends?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347597/taiwan-trump-reimagines-strategic-ambiguity-suit-his-own-ends?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Mar 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Andy Xie Andy Xie The Iran war’s oil shock has dramatically increased the security risk for oil-dependent countries, incentivising a turn towards renewable energy. This impact will outlast the war and oil price spikes because the world knows this war will recur. China will be the biggest beneficiary and its exports are likely to do very well this year, offsetting losses from buying higher-priced oil. A fifth of the global supply of oil and liquefied natural gas plus a third of seaborne fertilisers traditionally... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347634/oil-shocked-world-turns-renewables-china-will-reap-rewards?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347634/oil-shocked-world-turns-renewables-china-will-reap-rewards?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Mar 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Nicholas Spiro Nicholas Spiro For the second year in a row, Asia’s vulnerability to global shocks is a source of concern. Almost exactly a year since US President Donald Trump launched his assault on the global trading system, the external dependencies of leading Asian economies have once again dimmed the outlook for the region. Early last year, analysts were worried about Asia’s heavy reliance on exports to the United States. Morgan Stanley pointed out that seven of the 10 countries running the largest trade surpluses with... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3347935/iran-war-why-trump-climbdown-wont-save-asias-economies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3347935/iran-war-why-trump-climbdown-wont-save-asias-economies?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Mar 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Peiman Salehi Peiman Salehi On most nights, the sound that defines Tehran is not conversation or traffic. Instead, it is a distant explosion, a jet overhead, a pause in the rhythm of ordinary life. A few days ago, that distance collapsed. An explosion in eastern Tehran, where I live, shattered the windows of our home. Glass fell across my books and laptop, damaging it beyond repair. For a moment, the abstract language of conflict became immediate and physical. And yet, almost as quickly, life resumed. The city has not... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347576/life-iran-illustrates-shifting-realities-amid-us-israel-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347576/life-iran-illustrates-shifting-realities-amid-us-israel-war?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Mar 2026 01:30:09 +0000 Dong Ting Dong Ting Bangladesh’s garment industry employs around 4 million workers. Their labour built something larger than an export sector – it built a tax base. The industry generates more than 80 per cent of the country’s export earnings and contributes roughly 11 per cent of its GDP. The taxes paid by workers and the wider economy they sustain fund a meaningful share of Bangladesh’s public schools and basic healthcare. Over several decades, a country that once ranked among the world’s poorest has turned... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347472/why-bangladesh-could-be-last-hurrah-asias-development-model?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347472/why-bangladesh-could-be-last-hurrah-asias-development-model?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Wang Huiyao Wang Huiyao For much of the post-war era, the architecture of global governance rested on the simple assumption that the United States would support the systems it largely designed and uphold the rules it helped to create. The first Trump administration was no isolated incident. Now, from the vantage point of 2026, amid the US-Israel attack on Iran and the subsequent closing of the Strait of Hormuz, it is quite clear that there is little sign of an appetite in Washington for the US to once again safeguard... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3346975/middle-powers-are-taking-mantle-multilateral-leadership?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3346975/middle-powers-are-taking-mantle-multilateral-leadership?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 12:30:07 +0000 James David Spellman James David Spellman As war in the Middle East escalates, the financial fallout extends beyond energy price and supply-chain disruptions. Vulnerabilities in the US$3 trillion-plus global private-credit market are accelerating, driving investors to safe havens, while global finance undergoes a rapid transformation. China, the world’s largest creditor to developing countries, will feel the repercussions. This is the first real stress test confronting the vast lending empire. A meltdown was inevitable; only the timing... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347602/why-global-private-credit-meltdown-would-hit-china-hard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3347602/why-global-private-credit-meltdown-would-hit-china-hard?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 08:30:09 +0000 Nong Hong Nong Hong Gulf exporters are scrambling to bypass the Strait of Hormuz after Iran choked off most of the maritime traffic in one of the world’s most critical energy corridors. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates rushed to divert exports through overland pipelines; officials warned that even naval escorts could not guarantee safe passage. About a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) trade passed through this narrow waterway. The immediate shock was felt in the Gulf. The strategic... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347190/conflict-middle-east-boosting-value-arctic-windfall?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347190/conflict-middle-east-boosting-value-arctic-windfall?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo Is bulls*** worse than lying? The late Princeton philosopher Harry Frankfurt thought so. I am not entirely convinced that it’s always true, but in the case of US President Donald Trump, it most certainly is. I am not denying Trump is a constant liar, but I think the essential characteristic that defines his personality and career as a politician is his BS rather than lies. As Frankfurt wrote in his essay On Bulls***, “One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347538/donald-trump-purest-symbol-post-truth-america?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347538/donald-trump-purest-symbol-post-truth-america?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Winston Mok Winston Mok US President Donald Trump has initiated an international trade war in which American consumers and businesses are bearing most of the immediate costs, and now he has started a war on global energy where people worldwide are paying the price. While Iran is no match for US military might, Tehran has turned its control of the Strait of Hormuz – through which 20 per cent of the world’s crude oil flows – to its advantage. Nations in conflict with the United States do not need to fight back tariff for... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347460/trumps-energy-war-over-iran-failing-just-his-china-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347460/trumps-energy-war-over-iran-failing-just-his-china-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Chietigj Bajpaee Chietigj Bajpaee When the late Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe gave his landmark speech in the Indian parliament in August 2007 referring to the “confluence of the two seas”, he gave birth to the concept of the Indo-Pacific as a strategic space connecting East and South Asia. But the latest conflict in the Middle East illustrates how South Asia’s interconnectedness increasingly lies to its west. Some of these connections are deeply rooted in history: South Asia is home to the world’s largest Muslim population... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3346933/why-middle-east-volatility-presents-enhanced-risk-south-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3346933/why-middle-east-volatility-presents-enhanced-risk-south-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Mar 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Albert Bakhtizin Albert Bakhtizin War in Iran disrupting established trade flows raises an important question: how serious could the consequences be, and for whom will they be most severe? To answer this, it is useful to look at history. During the fifth and fourth centuries BC, Athens, a major centre, depended heavily on grain imports. Whenever routes were blocked during wars, Athens almost immediately faced the threat of a food crisis. In the Middle Ages, Venice became one of Europe’s richest cities and a crucial hub linking... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3346896/hormuz-crisis-underlines-vulnerability-global-trade-chokepoints?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3346896/hormuz-crisis-underlines-vulnerability-global-trade-chokepoints?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Mar 2026 12:30:09 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley Before his first term as US president began in 2017, Donald Trump was probably best known for his book, The Art of the Deal. But by launching, together with Israel, a widely unpopular war on Iran, Trump has arguably dealt himself a very weak hand. There is little “art” in it. The headline splashed across the front page of the Financial Times on March 17 – “Allies reject Trump’s call for warships” (to force open the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has partially closed after US and Israeli attacks) –... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347250/trumps-war-uniting-world-just-not-how-he-might-have-expected?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347250/trumps-war-uniting-world-just-not-how-he-might-have-expected?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 08:30:07 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo If you think the Israeli-American war of aggression against Iran is bad, it could get a lot worse. For the first time, a senior American official has openly acknowledged that Israel possesses nuclear warheads and could deploy them in the war. “Israel is getting hit harder than they’ve ever been hit before in their history,” said David Sacks, the White House’s artificial intelligence and crypto tsar, on the All-In Podcast. “If this war continues for weeks or months, then Israel could just be... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347172/why-world-may-now-need-iranian-nuclear-bomb?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3347172/why-world-may-now-need-iranian-nuclear-bomb?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Mar 2026 12:30:08 +0000