Opinion

  Brexit is no more a domestic issue as its impact spreads eastward, where bonds from Poland, Hungary and Romania, underperform most of their emerging peers. But the “leave” campaign maintains reports being made about potential negative economic impacts “are part of scaremongering”. Yet, many strategists have drawn pessimistic scenario towards eastern Europe as Britain’s departure threatens billions of euros …

  Robert Farley SPECIAL TO EMIRATES BUSINESS Do states acquire weapons because of security needs or out of a desire for prestige? Analysts have asked this question about a wide range of weapons, including advanced fighter jets, nuclear submarines, aircraft carriers, battleships, and (perhaps most importantly) nuclear weapons. On the prestige side, nuclear weapons convey modernity, power, and a spot …

  The Asia-Pacific region’s successful achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development needs to be driven by broad-based productivity gains and rebalancing of economies towards domestic and regional demand. This is the main message of the Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2016, published last week by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the …

  Environmental degradation remains at the center of scientific conversation on the South China Sea as more marine scientists sound the alarm about the environmental consequences of China’s island-building activities. A Closer Look at the Problem The problems facing the sea are as vast, deep, and seemingly intractable as the oceans themselves, and the need to address issues of acidification, …

  Yuki Tatsumi SPECIAL TO EMIRATES BUSINESS On April 26, the Australian government announced that it has chosen DCNS of France as the partner for joint development in its SEA 1000—Collins-class submarine replacement—program. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said in his joint statement with Defense Minister Marise Payne that the French proposal best met Australia’s unique requirements as well as …

  Prime Minister David Cameron should, if the pollsters and bookmakers are right, win his campaign to keep the U.K. in the European Union. But if things go wrong between now and the June referendum his biggest challenge will be to persuade the poor, for whom he has done little, that Brexit won’t make them better off. The economic case …

  Immigrant goes to America, Many hellos in America; Nobody knows in America Puerto Rico’s in America! — “West Side Story” Puerto Rico, an awkward legacy of America’s 1898 testosterone spill, the Spanish-American War, is about to teach two things that few Americans know: If conditions get bad enough there, its residents, who are American citizens, can come here. And …

  The move of Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to launch the world’s first integrated and comprehensive strategy to use 3D printing technology to develop infrastructure, sets the tone for advanced development in the next decade and beyond. The declaration that 25 per cent of Dubai’s …

  The Federal Reserve acted as expected on Wednesday: It left interest rates unchanged and used language that was somewhat more hawkish, increasing the probability of a rate increase in June. Specifically: Fed officials highlighted that labor market conditions have improved further, even though “growth in economic activity appears to have slowed.” This is an important distinction — not only …

  Ikea, the Swedish retailing behemoth, is installing “Solar Shops” in its U.K. superstores to sell solar panels. It’s a defiant move given that the British government has slashed subsidies for homeowners who sell surplus electricity to the national grid. This suggests that the market is picking up where government aid left off; perhaps Britain will achieve its target of …