A delegation from UNIAPAC, which brings together 45,000 entrepreneurs from around the world in the name of the Church's social teaching, is meeting with Catholic colleagues from Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Vietnam to establish new contacts. The goal is to develop businesses that put people, not profit, at the centre, in places where GDP growth too often fails to address inequality.
Overturning a previous ruling that prohibited retroactive environmental permits, the Supreme Court has opened the door to projects already underway without prior permits, weakening legal protection of territories and the precautionary principle. Environmental movements are concerned at a time when India is announcing ambitious plans for the manufacturing industry.
Since August 2024, over 300 companies have closed in a heavily industrialised area of Bangladesh, leaving tens of thousands of people out of work. ‘My wife and I used to earn a good salary. Now I drive a rickshaw and we've cut back on meals.’ Many have returned to their villages, but the depopulation also affects traders and homeowners. Entrepreneur: ‘The empty warehouses I saw in Italy are now in our country.’
In recent years, Beijing has moved from mass production of generic drugs to investing in advanced biomedical research. Thanks to a growth model very similar to that adopted for electric cars, it now controls 80% of global active ingredients. The Fentanyl case has shown the importance of this card, described as a “nuclear option” in trade wars. But China still needs the West to hold its own in this market.
In his first visit to New Delhi since 2021, Vladimir Putin announced an economic cooperation plan with India between now and 2030. India has been trying to balance relations between the United States, which has imposed heavy tariffs, and Russia, which remains the country's leading arms supplier. No new defence contracts were signed, but the two sides inked energy, nuclear power, shipbuilding, and labour deals, to reach US$ 100 billion in bilateral trade a year.
Visitors from China will be able to use payment apps, making transactions easier. Soon, Thai nationals will also benefit from this technology in China. The system, increasingly used across ASEAN, serves not only to exchange money but also to strengthen trust, convenience, and a shared commitment to a more seamless financial future.
Over the last three years, Russia has invested almost one and a half billion dollars in the development of the Northern Sea Route. The goal is to increase traffic from the current 38 million tonnes to 220 million by 2035. However, the extreme weather conditions, the archaic ships and, above all, the toxic fuel used make this ambitious project a decidedly risky venture.
The mining industry is the main contributor to growth, but positive indicators are also being recorded in the transport sector. Analysts forecast a 5.6% increase in GDP by the end of the year. However, experts believe that “the model remains vulnerable, overly dependent on raw materials and subsidies, and lacks stability”. Wage and pension growth ‘eaten up’ by inflation.
A meeting in Beijing between senior officials from the two foreign ministries failed to solve the heated dispute. The number of tourist cancellations over the weekend reaches early COVID-19 levels. Beijing is also putting pressure on Chinese students, who, faced with visa difficulties in the United States, increasingly opted for Japanese universities.
Over two hundred IT experts discussed the prospects for artificial intelligence and technological entrepreneurship in the region. The ambition is not only to be users, but to develop local skills capable of competing in the innovation market.
Through a chirograph, the pope gave a new legal form to the network of port chaplaincies to continue this service with "enthusiasm and generosity." Meanwhile, Cardinal Czerny, in his message for World Fisheries Day, laments that “many fishermen face storms far beyond the seas: low income, job insecurity, poor working conditions, being far from their families.”
Indonesia is the world's largest producer of this raw material and the crossroads of discussions on its environmental sustainability. Over the last year, prices have fallen by more than 17%, but operators in the sector are optimistic about the biofuel market. Forty-one per cent of Indonesian plantations are owned by small farmers.
Joy Reyes, who experienced firsthand the devastation of cyclone Ulysses in 2020, shared her experience at the UN Conference on Climate Change. “I used to love the sound of rain. Now every drop brings fear,” she said. The perverse connection with international debt, which weighs heavily on the victims of other people's pollution, is a powerful one. Cardinal David calls for a tax on mining to compensate local communities.
Only 17.5% of Japanese citizens currently hold a valid passport. This reflects not only the weakness of the yen but also the forced withdrawal of the younger generations. To combat this growing isolation, new solidarity initiatives are emerging, as well as corporate and technological responses. But the social framework remains stuck.
The trade agreements signed at the White House on rare earths and other sectors seem to focus more on US economic interests than on geopolitical balances. And even the Kremlin, which in the past had shown some impatience with these contacts, this time expressed great acquiescence.
Over the past five years, Chinese loans and deposits in renminbi abroad have quadrupled, while CIPS (Beijing's alternative to SWIFT) is growing in Central Asia, the Middle East, and other strategic areas. But the plan remains China-centric, because to truly rely on a global currency, Beijing would have to give up control over capital flows, a choice Xi Jinping believes is incompatible with internal stability.
The Ministry of Human Rights is intervening in the struggle of the Batak people of Sihaporas against a paper mill that is threatening their traditional lands. Local Churches had previously filed a complaint requesting action. For Minister Natalius Pigai, “any business or industrial entity must respect the interests of local people”.
U.S. sanctions against the oil giant Lukoil are expected to have repercussions in Central Asia as well. The Russian company has announced plans to sell its foreign assets — a major issue for a country like Kazakhstan, which exports 80% of its oil through Russian infrastructure but cannot afford to lose access to Western banking systems.
The US leader met with the South Korean president today on the eve of the APEC summit, signing an agreement on autos, steel, and investments. Yesterday, an agreement was reached with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, criticised by the Asahi Shimbun for being too soft. Tomorrow, the long-awaited meeting between Trump and Xi Jinping takes place in Busan. The Chinese leader will also have a bilateral meeting with the Japanese prime minister.
Speaking at the regional summit, Chinese Premier Li Qiang called on Asian countries to “close ranks” in the face of global challenges, primarily that of trade with the United States. Southeast Asia must maintain open markets while avoiding becoming embroiled in a trade duel between superpowers. The summit saw the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement upgraded. The Philippines will take over the association’s rotating presidency next year.
For decades, China has poured resources into the real estate sector, generating a colossal bubble. Now it is investing in high-tech, generating excess production capacity that does not really boost the economy. Millions of rural workers displaced by construction are unable to find work in innovative sectors that create little employment. The alternative would be to invest in the 900 million Chinese who live on ten dollars a day.
The new restrictions introduced by Beijing to control exports of precious minerals essential for sophisticated weapons and artificial intelligence applications raise the issue of deposits in Central Asia. Astana claims to have opened a new mining production line for over 20 million tonnes. But transport and infrastructure shortages make international investment uncertain and risky.
From car factories to textile workshops, factory tours are selling out in the People's Republic. Itineraries include real attractions designed specifically to showcase industries not only as places of work, but above all as symbols of the country’s achievements.
One of the consequences of rapid urbanisation is the proliferation of huge landfills in contexts where only a small percentage of waste is recycled. In Tajikistan alone, over 2 million tonnes of waste accumulate every year, occupying a total of over 300 hectares of land.
After scaling NEOM and other infrastructure, Saudi authorities plan to develop Islam's holy city. The King Salman Gate project was unveiled this week, covering 12 million square metres and provide 300,000 jobs over 10 years. Commercial, cultural, and residential spaces are also planned. But there are also critics.
At the Dushanbe summit, discussions developed on the route that would directly connect Russia to India and Iran. Moscow is unable to offer Central Asia the large investments that China and Europe can, but it is trying to catch up in terms of transport and logistics infrastructure.
The Colombo government has launched a plan to build the facility on the northern island, where it still takes seven hours and sky-high prices to deliver the fuel that powers the electricity generators. ‘It is part of the effort to bridge the gaps and develop the economy in peripheral areas.’ But environmentalists are concerned about the impact on the fragile ecosystem, which is still home to a large population of wild horses.
The Taiwanese government was quick to deny that trade negotiations with the United States include moving to the US half of its microprocessor production for the US market. The opposition Kuomintang and the Taiwan People's Party attack the government, warning that an agreement would “hollow out” the country’s tech sector. TMSC’s investments in new 1.4-nanometer chips are also at stake.
The military supply sector is growing and thriving with a continuous flow of resources, raw materials, finance and technology. Small and medium-sized enterprises and the consumer sector are having to contend with restrictions due to sanctions, tax increases and limited access to capital. Moscow's economy has already taken root in a model that will not be easy to change in the future.
A price cap on the retail price of rice has triggered economic instability, causing supply shortages. Government moves have failed to solve the crisis. The Consumer Protection Authority has reported difficulties in monitoring and frequent limited results.
