Economy

Having built the world’s second-largest economy on the back of its mammoth manufacturing sector, China is now contending with not just environmental problems but also economic obstacles. Policies that make businesses greener can raise costs, and negative impacts on labor must be mitigated.

Following World War II, the global economy moved rapidly toward further integration. Now, this process has stopped, and is in fact reversing itself. With countries increasingly engaging in economic nationalism, massive changes are coming, for economies big and small.

For innovation to serve everyone in emerging economies, it must go beyond the relentless pursuit of the cutting edge. Focusing more on the needs of the majority of Asian emerging market consumers will lead to more sustainable, lasting growth.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been a popular topic, and many countries have provided incentives for corporations to contribute more to the public good. China has joined such efforts as part of its campaign to achieve sustainable growth. But more coherent incentives are needed to encourage Chinese businesses to join the party.

Globalization is not just dominated by big brands. Low-cost knock-offs of popular items such as mobile phones also cross the globe, often from China to the rest of the world. Although it operates below the radar, this trade powers growth.

China’s development model has brought great economic success but also serious social and environmental problems. Can Xi Jinping’s major governance changes make the Chinese model more sustainable?

The United States has likely launched a trade war with its announcement of new tariffs targeted at Chinese imports. But this strategy could backfire, with devastating effects that reverberate far beyond the U.S.

Last month, the first session of China's 13th National People's Congress enacted a much discussed constitutional change, opening up a path for Xi Jinping to be president for life. Beyond this spectacular measure, promotions and appointments indicate the direction of the winds for China's foreign partners and competitors.

In our rapidly changing global, digital, and urban contexts, we no longer have the luxury of attending to just one region of knowledge. Asian universities are responding with the reinvention of liberal arts programs.

On February 1, 2018, AsiaGlobal Online invited Dr Lucas Chancel and Dr Li Yang from the Paris School of Economics to present and discuss trends in global income inequality, on the basis of the "World Inequality Report 2018." The report was co-written with Thomas Piketty and draws on the work of more than 100 researchers around the world, with Chancel as a lead coordinator. Below are videos of the presentations and brief summaries of the key takeaways.

China and Russia followed two distinct approaches to reform, leading to drastically different trajectories of economic growth. While both countries have experienced rising inequality over the last 30 years, Russia’s income distribution has worsened at a faster pace and in a bigger magnitude. What caused the difference in income distribution dynamics between the two? There are important lessons to be learned on the impact of policy decisions on inequality.

With their focus on economic development through innovation, the countries of East Asia are rising quickly through the ranks of the Global Innovation Index. These countries are not merely growing individually—they are growing with one another.

Global economies seem to be doing reasonably well in the face of an array of potentially destabilizing political issues. But this may not last if we do not tackle a non-inclusive pattern of growth and do more to address the needs of people and societies.

As fair trade and corporate social responsibility (CSR) gain traction as responses to a perceived neglect of ethics in business today, a look back at Asia-Europe exchanges in the early modern era reminds us that trade has always been a moral endeavor.