China now shapes more than growth, trade, and prices In key sectors, its spillovers can weaken other countries’ industrial capacity Education policy must respond or skills will lose their economic value In 2024, China was responsib

Fiscal consolidation is harder when inflation is driven by energy shocks and war Monetary policy cannot always cushion austerity in a supply-shock economy Governments should protect education and core public investment while restoring fiscal credibility

China’s trade edge is built, not accidental Education and industrial policy now shape national competitiveness together Tariffs alone will not close the gap China’s trade surplus is usually framed as a price problem.

AI in education now depends on physical compute, not just digital tools Data centre location, grid pressure, and cloud access will shape who gets reliable AI support Education policy must treat AI infrastructure as a new layer of inequality

The Economy Research Editorial*

Mortgage repricing shapes consumption more than many policymakers assume Lower-income borrowers feel the pressure first, and the effects last beyond rate moves Education budgets should track mortgage exposure as closely as inflation or wages

European Union has 4.4 million openings for 12.9 million jobseekers Skilled-visa fast tracks can ease the crunch Failing to act now risks stronger populist backlash and deeper economic stagnation According to a D

Remote work is driving an 8 percent jump in births That fertility boost stabilises future school enrolment at virtually no public cost Governments should embed flexible work as core demographic infrastructure In 2

China’s subsidies distort trade and weaken global competition They give China power across the whole supply chain Fair trade now needs rules that restore balance In 2024, approximately 75% of new electric vehicle ba

The Economy Research Editorial*

Europe’s productivity lags mainly because high labour costs push firms to scale elsewhere Silent process innovations thrive, yet much value escapes when production is off-shored Cutting the domestic cost of work is the decisive step for renewed European growth

CBDC neutrality feeds outgoing funds straight back to banks, keeping the system calm Automatic, wide-access backstops can avert SVB-style stampedes in sovereign digital money We must lock neutrality into courses, drills, and law before the next flash run arrives

Gold is rising, but the dollar still anchors the system Reserve currencies change only when power shifts run deep Today’s trend is diversification, not real displacement The US dollar’s role as the main global reserve currency is w

Rapid ageing is shattering Asia’s cherished iron rice bowl security Japan, South Korea and China each face pension gaps despite different fiscal strengths Embedding lifelong learning into work policies is the region’s best path to sustainable pensions

Digital markets are moving from dynamic pricing to personalized pricing That shift lets firms charge people based on data, not just supply and demand Consumer protection now needs a right to a fair, impersonal price 93% of onli

Supply chain risk goes far beyond rare earths Hormuz now matters for tech inputs, not just energy Resilience needs diversification and better risk mapping In 2024, the Strait of Hormuz facilitated over one-quarter of global sea

Japan cannot base China policy on dislike alone China’s innovation scale makes selective engagement necessary Japan needs pragmatic China literacy, not emotional distance In 2024, China submitted 70,160 international patent app

Japan proves China dependence is hard to replace, even after years of effort The real task is de-risking, not full decoupling That means coordination, processing capacity, and skilled labor Fifteen years after

Urban density reduces the cost of accessing jobs, education, and daily services When supported by housing and transport, concentration increases efficiency and opportunity The real risk is not density, but scarcity that turns access into exclusion

Europe’s energy shock did not end in 2022 Poor households cut other essentials before they cut heat or power That is why targeted energy subsidies now matter for both welfare and education Targeted energy subs