A Tiny U.S. Territory in the Pacific Doubles Down on a Giant Chinese Casino
December 31st, 2025
Via The Washington Post, a look at how an unfinished casino resort project on Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands raises questions about money laundering and ties to Chinese criminals: The beachfront casino built here by a Chinese mother-and-son duo a decade ago was billed as a $2 billion investment, a resort […]
Read more »The Wildcat Traders and US Contractors Piling into Pakistan’s Antimony
December 29th, 2025
Courtesy of The Financial Times, a look at the wildcat traders and US contractors piling into Pakistan’s antimony, a rare earth crucial for missiles, batteries and flame retardants: For years, the only buyers for the antimony Jabbar Khan sourced from wildcat traders in Afghanistan were secretive Chinese intermediaries, who bargained hard over the price. Now, […]
Read more »How Algeria Can Help China Plug Iron Ore Gaps and Gain Pricing Power
December 29th, 2025
Via the South China Morning Post, a report on how Algeria’s Gara Djebilet deposit in the Sahara Desert – discovered decades ago – is only now coming into production: In the heart of Algeria’s Sahara Desert, Chinese state-owned giant China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) has completed laying track on the PK330 Bridge, a final and […]
Read more »Africa’s New Cities – Urban Utopias or Future Ghost Towns?
December 29th, 2025
Via The Africa Report, a look at how – from Cairo to Libreville and Dakar – new towns are proliferating, driven by massive investments and futuristic promises. While they inspire dreams for many residents, they remain difficult to bring to life: From the Egyptian desert to Senegal’s clay soils, in recent years, African governments have caught construction fever, […]
Read more »Liberia Backs Ivanhoe Atlantic Rail Deal to Unlock Iron Ore Mine
December 19th, 2025
Via Bloomberg, a report on an export railway key to building an iron ore mind in Guinea: A US company, Ivanhoe Atlantic Inc., took a key step toward building an iron ore mine in Guinea after lawmakers in Liberia ratified an agreement allowing the firm to access an export railway. The access arrangement permits Ivanhoe […]
Read more »A Gateway to the Gulf: India Inks Economic Pact With Oman
December 19th, 2025
Via Modern Diplomacy, a report on a new deal between India and Oman that strategically diversifies India’s trade partnerships at a time of escalating U.S. tariffs, which have risen to 50% on certain Indian goods: India has signed a landmark economic partnership agreement with Oman, securing zero-duty access for over 98% of its exports as […]
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.