Afghanistan’s Mineral Resources: Lost Opportunity and Threat
February 2nd, 2020
Via The Diplomat, a report on Afghanistan’s mineral resources: Torn by four decades of war and desperate poverty, Afghanistan is believed to be sitting on one of the richest troves of minerals in the world. The value of these resources has been roughly estimated between $1-3 trillion. Afghanistan has vast reserves of gold, platinum, silver, […]
Read more »Afghan Transit Cargo: Game Changer For Gwadar Port
February 2nd, 2020
Via Lowy Interpreter, commentary on how Gwadar – the Chinese-run port in Pakistan – may have found a path to success: On a sunny Tuesday in the third week of January, a cargo ship named Diyala docked at Gwadar seaport, in south-west Pakistan. The enthusiastic port staff quickly unloaded the cargo. When the unloading was finished, Chinese […]
Read more »China’s Economic Stabilization Efforts in Afghanistan
January 31st, 2020
Via The Middle East Institute, a look at China’s economic engagement with Afghanistan: Economic development as a key to a country’s stabilization has been one of the cardinal principles guiding China’s international engagement. In December 2019, during his first public appearance as a Chinese representative for European affairs, Wu Hongbo outlined the Chinese perception of […]
Read more »Is China’s Belt And Road Already In Retreat?
January 30th, 2020
Via Forbes, an article on China’s BRI: When I first began traveling the corridors of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in the spring of 2015, there was an almost ubiquitous sentiment of hope and excitement across the network. I would be paraded out to look at massive nascent logistics and industrial zones, new cities […]
Read more »Bangladesh: Economic Growing Pains
January 30th, 2020
Via East Asia Forum, an article on Bangladesh’s economy: Bangladesh began 2019 with a renewed hope that its newly elected government would bring in political and economic changes as promised in its election manifesto. Although the economy has maintained high GDP growth, electoral promises remain unfulfilled in several critical areas. Many old woes continue to […]
Read more »More TAPI Delays, This Time in Afghanistan
January 27th, 2020
Via The Diplomat, an article on how TAPI’s “progress” remains slow across Afghanistan: Not that the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline needs any more delays, but Afghan officials say laws on land acquisition for the project as it crosses Afghanistan have not been signed, meaning the project’s timeline remains as foggy as ever. According to a TOLO News report, the […]
Read more »Focusing primarily on The New Seven Sisters - the largely state owned petroleum companies from the emerging world that have become key players in the oil & gas industry as identified by Carola Hoyos, Chief Energy Correspondent for The Financial Times - but spanning other nascent opportunities around the globe that may hold potential in the years ahead, Wildcats & Black Sheep is a place for the adventurous to contemplate & evaluate the emerging markets of tomorrow.