China and Russia Are Beating the US in Africa
June 13th, 2024
Via Bloomberg, commentary on a proposed new strategy for Washington to center on giving four “anchor” African countries preference in economic and military support: Africa, with 60% of the arable land on the planet, 30% of the mineral reserves and a population approaching 1.5 billion, is an increasingly vital region for global security. Unfortunately, the US has not been […]
Read more »Africa Takes Aim at Avocado Market Expected to Reach $26 Billion by 2030
May 26th, 2024
Via Emerging Real Estate, a report on the global avocado market, which is expected to reach $26.04 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 7.3%. Africa, already a major producer, is poised to be a key player in this growth. Specific growth projections for Africa’s avocado industry are difficult to make, […]
Read more »How Fast Food’s Global Takeover Was Underwritten by Development Banks
April 24th, 2024
Courtesy of TruthDig, a report on how – from South Africa to Ukraine – five industrial chicken companies that supply KFC have benefited from financing from the World Bank Group and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development: With its unparalleled purchasing power and exacting demands, fast food has long shaped agricultural systems in the United […]
Read more »For Multinationals, Africa’s Allure Is Fading
April 21st, 2024
Courtesy of Bloomberg, a report that – after decades of optimism about the region – global giants such as Bayer, Nestlé and Unilever are cutting back: Nestlé SA in August shuttered production of Nesquik chocolate milk powder in South Africa, citing falling demand. A year ago, Unilever Plc pulled the plug on the manufacturing of home-care and skin-cleansing […]
Read more »The Rare Earths Mine Becoming a Bellwether For U.S. Minerals Policy
April 20th, 2024
Courtesy of The Financial Times, an article on U.S. attempts to challenge China’s global dominance in critical minerals: A site close to Kruger National Park in South Africa is becoming a testing ground for US attempts to fight China’s global dominance in critical minerals. Washington has committed to finance a little-known London-listed miner hoping to […]
Read more »Emerging Powers and the Future of American Statecraft
April 10th, 2024
Via the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a new report on how, collectively, emerging powers in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East are growing in their geopolitical weight and diplomatic ambition. How closely do they align with the United States when it comes to Russia and China? What drives their decisions on 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.