Why the West Keeps Losing Critical Mineral Assets to China
June 3rd, 2026
Via the Center for Strategic and International Studies, commentary on why the West keeps losing critical mineral assets to China: The contest for critical minerals is increasingly being won or lost long before a mine enters production. Around the world, ownership of strategically significant mineral deposits is changing hands, and Chinese firms are acquiring an […]
Read more »2026 Rankings: The 20 Best-Performing Countries in Africa
June 3rd, 2026
Via The Africa Report, a look at the performance of Africa’s top 20 countries, measured on criteria including governance, influence and innovation. Here are the first takeaways from the top five: South Africa, Mauritius, Namibia, Morocco and Nigeria. South Africa retains its crown. Despite some internal weaknesses, the rainbow nation remains firmly at the top of […]
Read more »The $50B Thirst: Africa’s Beverage Market Enters A New Corporate Era
May 28th, 2026
Via The Africa Report, a look at how – with brewing remaining the undisputed engine of profitability – strategic retreats by select global players signal a structural shift towards hyper-local competition and sophisticated distribution networks: From beer to soft drinks, corporate manoeuvres and major announcements are multiplying across Africa. Driven by the retreat of certain international […]
Read more »Project Vault to Lobito Corridor: Inside Trump’s Deals to Secure Africa’s Critical Minerals
April 20th, 2026
Via The Africa Report, a look at the race for strategic minerals is intensifying, particularly in DRC and Central Africa’s Copperbelt. Trump’s strategy seeks to curb US reliance on Chinese supplies – as this infographic analysis explains: Direct and aggressive – the strategy deployed by the Donald Trump administration to secure US access to critical minerals […]
Read more »North Korea Courts Chinese Private Investors for Pyongyang Commercial Complex
April 6th, 2026
Via Daily NK, a report that the the Ministry of External Economic Affairs is leading effort to secure goods and foreign currency through private Chinese capital, as legal risks give investors pause: North Korea is pushing to develop a large commercial complex in Pyongyang’s Hwasong district and is actively courting Chinese private investors to fund it. According to a Daily NK source, […]
Read more »Inside the U.S. DFC, Trump’s answer to China’s Belt and Road
February 14th, 2026
Via The Africa Report, a look at how – established in his first term and supercharged in his second – the Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is rewriting the rules of engagement in Africa – explicitly placing American security above humanitarian goals: In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), work is underway on the Lobito rail […]
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.