Asia

Emerging and Frontier Markets Investment Perspectives

Today I attended a full-day workshop in Monaco, about the current state of emerging and frontier markets. The workshop was led by Dr. Marcus Goncalves from Nichols College, and it was not about investment ideas or recommendations. Instead, it was about analysing the fundamental global macroeconomic forces and trends which enables us to better understand… Continue reading Emerging and Frontier Markets Investment Perspectives

Robert Neuwirth on the Informal Economy in Africa

Wednesday this week, I watched a speech by Robert Neuwirth at the Future of Places conference, which I found both very good and entertaining. As it is Friday, I think it is an appropriate day to publish my video of the speech here on the Bearing Wave. Mr Neuwirth describes the informal economy in Africa… Continue reading Robert Neuwirth on the Informal Economy in Africa

How Lee Kuan Yew transformed Singapore

Some days ago, I wrote an article about Lee Kuan Yew, the Place Manager of Singapore. Below is a well made video by The Economist from last week, about how Lee Kuan Yew transformed Singapore, and how important it is to be pragmatic, to not be bound by dogma or ideology, but to focus on… Continue reading How Lee Kuan Yew transformed Singapore

The Place Manager of Singapore

“If I were in authority in Singapore indefinitely without having to ask those who are governed whether they like what is being done, then I would not have the slightest doubt that I could govern much more effectively in their interests.” – Lee Kuan Yew, 1962 The Origin of the Modern City-State Singapore is a… Continue reading The Place Manager of Singapore

A snapshot of power in the Pacific

The worlds economic centre is now in Asia and more than half the world’s population live within a circle superimposed over a section of southeast Asia. It is not the first time in history that the global economy has revolved around the Pacific. The demography was about the same in the year 1.000. In the… Continue reading A snapshot of power in the Pacific

11 Mind-Blowing Facts About China

Business Insider has recently made a video with some amazing facts about China. This most populous country in the world, and its 1.35 billion nationals consume copious amounts of food and resources, and here are some mind-blowing facts that prove this: Only one time zone- Beijing Standard Time China geographically spans five time zones and there were… Continue reading 11 Mind-Blowing Facts About China

Weirdest Hotel Requests And Complaints

Even though good customer service is one of the main conditions for success in any business, it is particularly important in the hotel industry where guests are looking to staff to help them make their stay as relaxing and comfortable as possible. And staff in hotels all over the world really does go out of… Continue reading Weirdest Hotel Requests And Complaints

No Money, But Love: The Case of Yubari, Japan

This article was originally posted on placesbrands. Detroit has been all over the news recently with its declaration of bankruptcy, as already discussed on this blog. With Chicago also showing signs of struggle, I decided to hoist the spotlight across the Pacific and shed some light on another city that has already collapsed financially, yet… Continue reading No Money, But Love: The Case of Yubari, Japan

The Innovations that made Western Civilisation Dominate the World for 500 Years

What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea. – Mahatma Gandhi As I have written about in another article on this blog, in 2013, for the first time since the the industrial revolution, emerging economies will produce the majority of the world’s goods and services. This implies… Continue reading The Innovations that made Western Civilisation Dominate the World for 500 Years