Archive for August, 2023

China Shores Up BRI Deals with Middle East Cash and Partnerships

Via the South China Morning Post, an article on Chinese efforts to shore up belt-and-road deals with Middle East cash and partnerships as Western investment wanes: Beijing’s charm offensive to lure the capital from the Middle East appears to be paying off, as a Dubai-based chamber of commerce welcomes business cooperation with open arms and vows […]

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India: Doubling Down On Regional Connectivity To Counter China

Via the Lowy Institute, an article on India’s efforts to double down on regional connectivity where it has big advantages in its South Asia infrastructure push – even if outspending China isn’t one of them: India’s recent hosting of leaders from Nepal and Sri Lanka highlights the growing prominence of infrastructure in India’s regional strategy. […]

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Africa’s EV Input

Via Semafor, a look at Africa’s global share of EV metals and minerals: The worldwide supply chain disruption caused by the global pandemic from 2020 through 2021 forced major organizations to rethink what they now realize was an overreliance on tried and tested systems. Until then African countries had not been prioritized as a supply chain […]

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10 Years On: Has CPEC Spurred Economic Activity in Pakistan?

Via Panda Paw Dragon Claw, commentary on the real economic impact of CPEC in Pakistan: As the Belt and Road turns 10, it is a good time to assess the successes and failures of the initiative. Such a task is far from simple, however, complicated by the fact that the initiative has ballooned to 148 […]

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The Phoenician Problem: Lebanon’s Tourism Boom

Via The Economist, a look at Lebanon’s tourism boom: It could be any luxury hotspot on the Mediterranean. The four-hour flight from Dubai, the region’s financial hub, may cost $1,000 each way. Holidaymakers fork out over $450 for hotel rooms, $100 for plates of grilled fish. Day-passes to beach clubs can cost 25% of the […]

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BRICS Expansion Is No Triumph for China

Courtesy of Foreign Policy, commentary that BRICS expansion is not a triumph for China, but rather a warning shot for the West to end its strategic slumber in the global south: Those who believe that the world is moving to a post-Western global order saw their belief confirmed last week. At its annual summit in […]

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ABOUT
WILDCATS AND BLACK SHEEP
Wildcats & Black Sheep is a personal interest blog dedicated to the identification and evaluation of maverick investment opportunities arising in frontier - and, what some may consider to be, “rogue” or “black sheep” - markets around the world.

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.