Most of the World’s Soccer Balls Come From Pakistan
November 29th, 2022
Via Bloomberg, an article on how Sialkot, a city in northeast Pakistan, produces about 70% of the world’s supply—including Adidas’s Al Rihla, the official ball of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar: If you have a soccer ball in your house, there’s a pretty good chance it came from Sialkot, a city in northeast Pakistan […]
Read more »Debt-Ridden Ghana Plans To Buy Oil With Gold Instead Of Dollars
November 25th, 2022
Via Business Insider, an article on Ghana’s recent decision to buy oil with gold instead of dollars, as foreign currency reserves dwindle to an alarming low: Ghana’s government is planning to use gold to pay for oil instead of shelling out US dollars. The move is expected to reduce the “persistent depreciation” of the cedi, the […]
Read more »The Reality of Vietnam’s Energy Transition
November 25th, 2022
Courtesy of The Diplomat, a look at Vietnam’s energy transition, a country which emerged as a regional leader in renewables, but some thorny challenges ahead: Earlier this fall, U.S. climate envoy John Kerry shone a spotlighton Vietnam, urging the Southeast Asian nation to “do what is sensible” and refocus its energy sector by investing in renewables and […]
Read more »Iran-Venezuela Relationship Expands Beyond Energy
November 24th, 2022
Via Press TV and the Iran Project, a report on the growing relationship between Iran and Venezuela: Iran is planning to ship another 2,000 cars to Venezuela, an Iranian trade official says, in a further sign of a burgeoning relationship that appears to be developing beyond energy. It comes after the first shipment of 1,000 […]
Read more »Economic Rationale For China’s Pivot To Vietnam
November 24th, 2022
Via Asia Power Watch, a report on the economic rationale for China’s pivot to Vietnam: There has been a lot of media coverage around the recent escalation of high-level negotiations underway between China and Vietnam. Several agreements and MOU’s have been signed, with fifteen such documents having been concluded since June 2022. Vietnam has successfully promoted […]
Read more »Azerbaijan’s Russian Gas Deal Raises Uncomfortable Questions For Europe
November 24th, 2022
Via Eurasianet, commentary on a highly touted deal between Baku and Brussels that was meant to wean Europe off Russian gas, but Azerbaijan is now importing Russian gas itself in order to meet its obligations to Europe: Azerbaijan has begun importing gas from Russia under a deal which should enable Baku to meet its own domestic […]
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.