Courtesy of The Diplomat, a look at Afghanistan’s natural resource strategy: The pending outcome of the Afghan presidential election run-off on June 15 will decide a host of measures that will guide the country’s future development. While the presidential candidates have largely been opaque as to the methodology of their many and bold promises, it […]
Read more »Via Reuters, an interesting story on Afghanistan’s nascent oil industry: One-eyed Rateb Popal’s debut as an Afghan businessman was not promising: he was caught smuggling heroin and locked up in a New York federal prison for almost a decade. Popal had better luck once back in Afghanistan, where he emerged from obscurity to make millions […]
Read more »Courtesy of the Financial Times, a report on Glencore’s interest and involvement in Chad: Glencore has organised a plus-$1bn loan backed by crude oil to allow Chad to buy the assets of Chevron in the country, the latest sign of the commodities house’s interest in the central African nation. The pre-export finance deal enabled the […]
Read more »Courtesy of the New York Times, a look at Justin M. Leverenz, who runs America’s largest emerging markets mutual fund: Jodi Hilton for The New York TimesJustin M. Leverenz in Istanbul. Since 2009, the assets in his emerging market fund have soared to $41 billion. The day has been long for Justin M. Leverenz, who […]
Read more »Courtesy of Eurasia Review, an interesting article on a new Uzbek company: Uzbekistan, the only Central Asian country making smartphones, should reap economic benefits from the growing mobile technology industry, industry watchers said. Olive Telecom is planning to release its first batch of smartphones this July, becoming the third smartphone manufacturer in Uzbekistan, behind Artel […]
Read more »Courtesy of the Financial Times, a detailed look at Angola: At night, when the darkness masks the scars left by Angola’s brutal 27-year civil war, the Ilha de Luanda resembles a down-at-heel corner of Ipanema. Like the neighbourhood in Rio de Janeiro, the locals speak Portuguese in the bars and restaurants dotted along its narrow […]
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