Economy
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Cargo Cult Capitalism: Why Indonesia’s New Sovereign Wealth Fund Won’t Fix the 5% Growth Trap
Guest Article by Nisa Fathia Rahma Indonesia’s struggle to escape its 5% growth ceiling reflects deep institutional constraints rather than a temporary slowdown. While the government has turned to the Danantara sovereign wealth fund to drive development, without regulatory certainty, meritocratic governance, and rule of law, state-directed capital risks reinforcing…
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Reimagining the Maritime Silk Road: Sustainable Blue Economy as the Next Frontier of China–ASEAN Cooperation
The revival of the Maritime Silk Road through a sustainable blue economy presents both a strategic opportunity and a governance challenge for China and ASEAN. With fisheries collapsing, climate pressures intensifying, and marine industries expanding into trillion-dollar scales, both sides increasingly recognise that fragmented national efforts are no longer viable.…
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Malaysia’s Silent Trade War: China’s Overproduction, Malaysia’s Overreliance
Malaysia is facing a silent trade war with China, as cheap imports erode the local market and weaken its domestic industrial base. Chinese dumping, which is driven by subsidies and overcapacity, has accelerated Malaysia’s premature deindustrialization. Anti-dumping duties can only provide a temporary buffer. Thus, only by attracting long-term, high-quality…
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Coercion by the Kilogram: Rare Earths and the Next Phase of US–China Competition
On April 4, 2025, China’s Ministry of Commerce imposed new licensing requirements on exports of seven rare earth elements (REEs) and their associated products, including permanent magnets. While not an outright ban, this move adds regulatory friction to the global supply of critical materials such as samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium,…
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Neo-Colonialism and the Entrenchment of Palm Oil Exploitation in Indonesia
In July 2025, Indonesia transferred 400,000 hectares of seized plantation land to a state-owned palm oil company. Just weeks earlier, President Prabowo Subianto urged the country to expand palm oil production without worrying about deforestation. At first glance, this may seem like a routine economic decision to support a key…
Sino-Southeast Initiative 