Dilma Rousseff’s Push to Expand the Global South’s Financial Power
Dilma Rousseff now leads a development bank that has approved nearly $43 billion across 139 projects — and is pushing to expand its role in financing infrastructure, climate action and development across the Global South. More than a decade after helping establish the New Development Bank (NDB) as president of Brazil, Rousseff is now shaping […]
Defense Brief: NATO Shoots Down Drone Over Latvia as Unmanned Threats Test Alliance Air Defenses
A NATO fighter jet shot down an unidentified drone over Latvia on Friday, underscoring a wider security challenge with implications well beyond Europe: governments are being forced to adapt national air-defense systems to an era in which relatively inexpensive unmanned aircraft can cross borders, disrupt civilian activity and generate military escalation risks within minutes. An […]
Europe’s Nuclear Power Plants Are Running Out of Water as Record Heat Grips the Continent
Extreme heat and drought have pushed major European rivers to exceptionally low levels, forcing nuclear shutdowns and output cuts from Romania to France and highlighting a growing climate-resilience challenge for Europe’s electricity system. Europe’s prolonged heat and drought are putting the continent’s power system under mounting pressure, constraining nuclear generation just as high temperatures increase […]
Iran Turns to BRICS Bank as War Deepens Push Beyond the Dollar
Tehran says it is preparing to join the BRICS-backed New Development Bank, potentially expanding its access to development finance as war and sanctions constrain Iran’s economy — while testing how effectively emerging-market institutions can broaden financing options for countries facing international restrictions. Iran says it is moving toward membership in the New Development Bank (NDB), […]
Iran War and El Niño Put Panama Canal at Center of a New Global Shipping Squeeze
A ship reportedly paid nearly $4 million to jump the Panama Canal queue as Middle East conflict disrupts major maritime routes just as falling water levels threaten capacity at one of the world’s most important trade arteries. PANAMA CITY — The Panama Canal is emerging as a critical pressure point in the global trading system […]
Norway’s $2.3 Trillion Sovereign Wealth Fund Posts Record Profit — and Warns the Good Times May Not Last
The world’s largest sovereign wealth fund generated roughly $184 billion in the first half of 2026, powered by global equities and technology stocks — even as its chief executive warned that the economic conditions behind Norway’s extraordinary accumulation of wealth may not last. OSLO — Norway’s sovereign wealth fund generated an accounting return of 1.753 […]
Defense Brief: First Deadly Houthi Attack in Over a Year Opens New Front in Iran War
Six people were killed near the Bab el-Mandeb as the Iran war puts simultaneous pressure on two of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints. The Iran war entered a more dangerous maritime phase this week after an attack by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis killed six people near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait — marking the first fatal […]
The $1.3 Trillion Climate Finance Test Moves to COP31
COP29 set the target. COP30 produced the roadmap. As governments turn toward COP31 in Türkiye, the unresolved challenge is how to turn a $1.3 trillion climate-finance ambition into capital that actually flows. At COP29 in Baku, governments agreed that developed countries would take the lead in mobilizing at least $300 billion annually by 2035, while […]
DR Congo Ebola Outbreak Becomes Second-Largest on Record as Death Toll Tops 2,000
More than 4,400 cases have been confirmed as the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record strains containment efforts — and scientists race to develop the first approved vaccine targeting the Bundibugyo virus. The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has become the second-largest on record, with the death toll surpassing 2,000 less […]
China and America’s Car Markets Are Moving in Different Directions
China’s latest auto data reveal an extraordinary contradiction: domestic vehicle sales are falling sharply even as electric models capture nearly two-thirds of the market and Chinese manufacturers accelerate overseas. In the United States, overall demand remains comparatively resilient — but hybrids, rather than fully electric vehicles, are gaining momentum. The world’s two largest automotive powers […]
