Headlines

Israel, Iran trade fire for first time since truce

Israel and Iran exchanged attacks on Monday for the first time since a ceasefire in the Middle East war took effect two months ago, despite US President Donald Trump calling for restraint. The flare-up, which also drew in other countries in the region, saw Israel striking Iran

The curious case of South Africa’s African Renaissance Fund

R100m was approved for earthquake victims in Türkiye and Syria. Not a cent was disbursed. The episode offers a window into a fund that holds more than R800m in assets, has accumulated large surpluses, and continues to channel resources in ways that appear more aligned with

Why Europe should erect high and hard trade barriers on China

As regular readers of this blog know, I’m pretty ambivalent about trade barriers as an economic policy. On one hand, I think targeted tariffs and other trade barriers can be used to protect strategic industries from surges in underpriced import competition, especially by

Asia

New EU rules on pay transparency explained

Have you been applying for jobs and felt frustrated not knowing what the pay was? Have you gone through several rounds of interviews, completed tests, prepared documents, and invested significant time and energy, only to find out at the end that the salary was far below your

Airline industry chiefs say 2050 net zero goal now unlikely

Iata boss Willie Walsh blames fuel suppliers, governments and aircraft makers, saying new ‘realistic timeline’ now needed Air fare rises ‘inevitable’ as airlines face extra $100bn jet fuel bill The aviation industry’s landmark pledges to be net zero by 2050 will probably not

Myanmar’s military ‘comeback’ claim doesn’t hold water

Coup maker Senior General Min Aung Hlaing’s allies want the world to believe that Myanmar’s military is “on the upswing” and “mounting a comeback” in a war that foreign media increasingly describe as “forgotten.” Recent US media coverage leans into that storyline, highlighting

Asia

Record breaking Belgian sailors making more waves

Two record-breaking intrepid Belgian sailors have revealed their next nautical target. Quentin Debois, the first Belgian to set a record for a solo Atlantic crossing, aims to qualify for the 2028 Vendée Globe as skipper. His sailing chum, Denis Van Weynbergh, the first Belgian